IUMS calls Egyptians to support legitimacy, warns the outbreak of violence, chaos
All praise be to Allah and peace and blessings be upon Muhammad, God’s messenger, his family, companions, and followers;
The International Union of Muslim Scholars – represented in its presidency, general secretariat, its members and broad base of scholars and knowledgeable figures – has followed the incidents in the great Egypt that involved repeatedly spilling the blood of innocent people at numbers reaching hundreds of martyrs and thousands of wounded. Once in a while, we also hear dangerous statements that spell out prejudices that contradict with Shariah Law and international laws. Instances of such statements include the Interior Minister’s statements describing opposition of being rebels and outlaws and statements by a former presidential candidate of their being rebellious traitors. This scene is accompanied by intense media campaigns on the Egyptian state television and its affiliates spreading extreme hostility against categories of Islamists having an evident weight in society and winning the majority in elections and who continue to have much power. To estimate their presence, it suffices to see the million-man marches in all Egypt’s governorates despite the continued threats and recurrent injuries everyday as they persistently tolerated the hunger and thirst, rough living conditions, threats, and killing.
How could these people allow themselves to threaten, frighten, and call for besieging these protesters with tanks and canonizing them with tear gas, etc.? Aren’t they Egyptian citizens?! Aren’t they human?! All the masks have fallen off the faces of these liberals and nationalists that used to rant about democracy over the actions of the elected Egyptian President Morsi throughout a year. They barracked behind democracy, the right to protest, and the prohibition of assault on protests even if they took illegal forms. Now all of a sudden they showed their true colors and dropped the masks manifesting attitudes of double standards and hatred never rivaled before in history.
The international situation is provocative, congested, and extremely deadlocked. At the same time, the media is making utmost effort to spill oil over the fire of hatred. The world shows three stances: a supporter or financer of the coup who doesn’t see the return of legitimacy as working to their best interest and so exerts all efforts to aid the success of the coup albeit at the expense of sedition and internal war and even if this leads Egyptian leverage to fade. The second stance involves supporting the return of the legitimacy but is yet adopted by a small number of countries, on top of them Turkey, and the African Union who regrettably lack the needed influence in Egypt. The last stance is that of hesitant observers waiting to see the results.
The Muslim nation has absorb the lesson throughout its long history that western countries and even eastern (non-Muslim) countries, particularly major powers, only seek their strategic interests that sadly enough are based on the debilitation of the powers of Arabs and Muslims, the preservation of the security of Israel and preserving the supremacy of its power in their conflict with Arabs and Muslims. Hence, it’s normal to seek to achieve this strategy by eliminating any military power that can stand up to this usurping entity, particularly that the strong Iraqi army was completely eliminated, the Syrian army is on its way to elimination, the Algerian army was completely drained after the civil war and only the Egyptian army remains on the scene for which reason it must be debilitated by any means according to this view. But history bears witness that civilization was never and can never be built except on a basis of freedom and democracy and that suppression, oppression, and dictatorship were always the greatest hindrance to progress, innovation and civilization. Hence, it was advisable to never grant this opportunity to the great Egyptian people, the people of a seven-thousand-year civilization.
In addition, any observer to the Egyptian satellite channels, and the statements made by some politicians who were blinded by the fury of hatred, spite, and exclusion, - particularly the footage appearing on one of the channels revealing a desire to impose secularism on Egypt, and excluding all religious movements, even if blood is spilled – can draw the conclusion that these ferocious attacks are in reality addressed to Islam itself to keep it away from life, to seclude it, and confine it to a religious circle with meek and obedient religious authorities.
In light of this grave situation in the great and beloved Egypt, the IUMS views and affirms the following:
1-The union calls all the reasonable people of Egypt, its intellects and wise politicians from all sides who place the interests of Egypt above all other considerations to convene immediately and exert all effort to bring Egypt out of this ordeal and subversion and to pressure all sides to reach an honorable solution.
The IUMS endorses its initiative made in cooperation with a number of scholars and intellects which was announced by Dr. Mohamed Selim Al-Awwa as a valid common ground for a solution. Demanded first, however, is the release of the president-elect Mohamed Morsi, to return as president, to be followed by a road map set with consensus among all sides for the sake of the future of Egypt.
The IUMS has formed a council of wise counselors, topped by the former Sudanese President General Suwar Al-Dahab, the Secretary General of the union, and a number of key figures who hold a sincere love for Egypt, and they are completely prepared to contribute to any mission delegated to them in the efforts to achieve an honorable solution.
2-The union warns all those who mistakably assume that peaceful, just protests can be ended by force and warns that these threats, killings and overuse of power are only fuel to more protests and sacrifices as the problem will never be solved with force but with reason, wisdom, response to their legitimate demands, dialogue and a just reconciliation.
3-The union calls the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic conference, and the UN to exert serious good will efforts to resolve this issue according to the prevailing laws in the civilized world and to recall the many instances in history where civilized countries stood by an elected president toppled in a coup d’état until his return to office, to be followed by holding elections.
Approving protests as a method to abolish an elected president or change a government is not in line with the rules of democracy that rely on ballot boxes even if the demonstrations were huge, not to mention the fact that objective reports including the latest Aljazeera report proved that the June 30 protests approximately involved a range of 4 million people, rather than the claimed 28 million digit.
4-The union addresses a special message to western countries demanding them to completely support the legitimacy, relinquish the double standards employed in dealing with Islamists, the majority of whom sense that the west is sacrificing democracy to prevent their arrival to power even if they were moderate – as the case was in Algeria. Should the west continue to support the coup and rob the legitimacy from moderate Islamists this time as well, this would lead to enforcing the violent ideology adopted by radicals and would cause violence and extremism to prevail in our Muslim world, would lead to the destruction of the region and to civil wars that will not spare the western interests inside and abroad.
The success of Islamists in elections under the Arab spring brought many of the extremist ideology holders back to the acceptance of ballot boxes and undermined the project of violence and Al-Qaeda. However, in case Islamists are excluded by the coup supported by the west and its affiliates, the situation will be reversed, and violence and extremism will increase as violence only begets violence and since a wronged and desperate person will do anything for the sake of revenge and retribution.
5-The union appeals to the great army of Egypt to return to its basic duties, leave politics to politicians, restore matters to their normal order by restoring the legitimate authorities. The union also urges the Ministry of Interior to act as a means to achieve security for everyone, not as a tool to kill or threaten any category in favor of another.
Let them all be watchful of God regarding the blood, the honor, and property of people as Allah Almighty said that: {whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land - it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.} [Quran 5:32], and {But whoever kills a believer intentionally
- his recompense is Hell, wherein he will abide eternally, and God has become angry with him and has cursed him and has prepared for him a great punishment.} [Quran 4:93]. Equally, the prophet’s sayings regarding the graveness of killing, blood spilling, and incitement of sedition would make anyone’s skin shiver and become eye watery with fear at the mention of the grave and the Day of Judgment. Also, we should not fail derive lessons from history; the history of pharaohs and tyrants in the old and modern world as Allah reminds {Have you not considered how your Lord dealt with ‘Aad? (7) With Iram - who had lofty pillars, (8) The likes of whom had never been created in the land? (9) And with Thamud, who carved out the rocks in the valley? (10) And with Pharaoh, owner of the stakes? (11) All of whom oppressed within the Lands (12) And increased therein the corruption. So your Lord poured upon them a scourge of punishment. (14) Indeed, your Lord is in observation.} [Quran 89: 6-14].
6-The union calls all Muslims in the world in these blessed nights, nights where the great night of Al-Qadr is anticipated to plead to Allah and supplicate to Him to protect Egypt from seditions, restore its legitimate authority, security, freedom, safety and stability.
{And Allah has full power over His affairs, but most among mankind know it not}
Doha on: 26 Ramadan, 1434 H
Dated: 4 August, 2013
Dr. Ali Al-Qaradaghi Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
IUMS Secretary General IUMS President