Religious leaders have an obligation to unite and fight against those who reject faith and the values of humanity, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
00:00Today in the world there is a deficit, there is a decline in trust, there is deficit among political leaders on what is the notion of justice, on humanity, on good values and therefore the religious leaders will have no choice.
00:26We are not giving you a choice, you have to hold the banner.
00:31Yes, in the days of imperialism and colonialism, religions were used to subjugate communities.
00:40But we must not forget the fact that the anti-colonial movement, anti-imperialist movement were led and started by prominent leaders, religious leaders.
00:56Why? Because they believe in peace, they believe in justice, they believe in humanity, they believe in human dignity.
01:06No country, no person, no women or children or country should be subjugated under any foreign domination or rule.
01:19I am just appealing to religious leaders now to then take up that task because in my limited experience in governance, talking to leaders,
01:37you see so many contradictions, which I sometimes see this blatant hypocrisy.
01:47We talk about democracy, we talk about human rights, we talk about justice, but there is no democracy, no human rights, no justice when you talk about the others.
01:58Where else do I now appeal?
02:02I appeal to religious leaders because you understand the meaning of peace.
02:07You are committed that all religions want to promote humanity.
02:12Yes, there are differences.
02:14I am a Muslim.
02:15I practice Islam.
02:18Islam.
02:19But I also know that in my religion, we talk about rahmatan lil'alamin, the compassion towards everyone, not only human beings, but the animal kingdom, the plantation, the forest and the jungles to be protected, to keep the equilibrium and balance of ummatan wasata.
02:41And I know the meaning of lita'arafu, which means not only tolerance.
02:51You see, the Islamic term connotes a more profound understanding of learning, appreciating, accepting the difference to one another.
03:07And how do you alita'arafu?
03:09Only by knowing, by learning, by appreciating, by tolerating.
03:14And you have to play that role.
03:19Shea Abdul Karim Aisha said about the role internationally, but also the role to protect the rights of minorities.
03:36And it covers all countries.
03:38And it is a challenge here in Malaysia.
03:44I am in a country where about 60% Muslims, abundant number of Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, and some enemies.
03:56Not enemies, enemies.
03:59And we have to deal.
04:00And we have to deal.
04:04Not necessarily to satisfy or easily can satisfy everyone, but we have to engage.
04:13Every policy will have to be discussed.
04:18But more importantly, in the principle of governance, and I learned from the writings of, for example, the Maqasir Shari'ah of Al-Shartibi in Mawafakat, about some of the principles which include protecting life, property, honor, and dignity.
04:45And this covers, of course, every single human being, men, women, youth, and children.
04:58I need to emphasize this point, Excellencies, and brothers and sisters, and my learned scholars, and religious leaders.
05:11Because I think in recent history, we are facing a more grave challenge.
05:25Sometimes we talk about differences between religions.
05:28You don't need to realize.
05:30All religions must unite, at least to create this understanding, against those who reject any faith and values.
05:40All religious leaders must unite and defend what humanity is and what belief is.
05:48We must unite against the forces that reject faith altogether.
05:54The extreme laicite and extreme fundamentalist, not only religion, there are also fundamentalists among the secularists,
06:05who cannot even listen and hear the word religion or faith.
06:11It's not just Islamophobia.
06:13If you read, for example, Samuel Huntington's thesis, clash of civilization, all the rest, the Confucianese, the Hindus, the Muslims, all quite irrelevant.
Be the first to comment