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| HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, delivers his lecture at the Islamic Studies Centre at Oxford University yesterday |
HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, has said that the current events on the political scene in the Arab world required a candid revision of the attitude of real politics towards the issue of reform.
In a lecture yesterday at the Islamic Studies Centre at Oxford University, themed “A Vision of the Current Arab Situation and Future Prospects”, he said that the State of Qatar had ever reiterated that reform and popular participation emanate from the right of people to exercise their own will in organising their political life freely in a way securing the respect of the rights and duties for all individuals in the community in a right manner regardless of desires, interests or foreign pressure.
He noted that the desire of the people was not irrational or mere imported ideas.
Qatar’s foreign policy is based on the need for co-existence and peaceful co-operation at the international level on the basis of mutual respect of the rights and duties, and joint interests in accordance with the rules of international legitimacy, he said.
“We emphasise the values of tolerance, justice, openness interactions among peoples, cultures and civilisations which must be accorded due respect and people must live in freedom and dignity in their countries,” he said, underlining the importance of renouncing violence, extremism and terrorism.
“Qatar categorically rejects attempts by western political and academic circles to equate terrorism and extremism as a phenomenon of human history with Islam as a religion, civilisation, culture and heritage.”
The phenomenon of terrorism and extremism in the world of today, he explained, is an expression of political tendencies that has relations whatever with religion. They must be dealt on the basis of this understanding so that they could be treated successfully.
He said it was the duty of Muslims and Arabs to exercise more efforts to improve the distorted image about the Arabs and Muslims. Others also need to rectify their deformed image about Arabs and Muslims, he said and called for investigating the roots of terrorism.
HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim said that Qatar strongly upheld the need to resolve disputes by peaceful means in accordance with the international law and renounces the use of force and other means of pressure and coercion, noting that Qatar had consistently advocated to enhance the status and role of the UN in international relations as the only global forum that embodies international legitimacy that govern the conduct of states.
The prime minister added that “what doubles our responsibility is that the region in which we live where the crisis is gaining a sharp and growing nature that requires us to exert maximum efforts in order to find quick solutions, or at least reduce the aggravation of crises and conflicts.”
HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim stressed that Qatar spared no effort to settle the Arab - Arab differences and other through conciliation and mediation, “because we believe that it is our duty to prevent the exacerbation of differences and conflicts, as the permanence back negative effects on all .”
He said that the work to achieve the reform would not lead to desired results unless the Palestinian cause and the conflict in the Middle East is settled.
He said: “The issue is of fundamental importance in the region and the world as the absence of a solution would keep the region in a state of constant conflict and thus stumble pace of political reform and the development needed in the region. Today, he said, “we face the situation a critical situation that might lead to undesirable consequences.”
He reiterated that “the essential basis for the peace process was the principle (land for peace), and this is the concept of the resolutions of international legitimacy, which is also the concept of the Arab peace initiative, which stresses that the Arab official side wants, and seeks strongly the establishment of a just and comprehensive peace.”
He pointed out that the stalled peace process is due to the position of the current Israeli government, which insists on moving the settlement policy in the Palestinian territories, Jerusalem and the refusal to abandon them, in addition to the claim to meet the new conditions that might lead to fragmentation of the process of reaching a comprehensive solution.
HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim called for a comprehensive international effort to return to the track of comprehensive peace process and to leave partial solutions that have not reached a conclusion.
He expressed the hope that positions would consolidate to implement the peace process in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy that we have a lot of them.
HE the Premier and Foreign Minister urged the Israeli Government to give serious consideration to the Arab and international changes and to realise that what is required to achieve peace is to correct the errors, whatever the difficulties are, for the application of international legitimacy for a just and lasting peace.
HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister said that the winds of change had blown in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Libya and Syria. And a radical change on the political scene took place in Tunisia and Egypt while the change was still under way in others.
The popular uproar was for the establishment of good governance based on the authority of the law and respect of freedom, human rights, eradication of corruption and establishing the foundations for economic and social development.
The people’s demands could all be summed up in the word of reform. He noted that the Qatar, for its part, had held many forums, conferences and meetings on reform, with the participation of various factions in the society.
HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim said that the absence of the rule of law, corruption and the high rate of unemployment and the rising cost of living must all not be ignored.
He referred to the vision of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani set since assuming power in 1995 which laid the basis upon which the modern state should be established, namely the constitution, the rule of law, the popular participation in government and in decision-making.
The first parliamentary elections in the country had been conducted in accordance with the constitution which was approved by a popular majority in a referendum on April 29, 2004.
The constitution secured all rights and basic duties for all citizens and organised the relationship between the ruler and the ruled, and endorsed the principles of accountability, transparency in governance and administration. It also promoted the role of women and activated organisations of civil society to serve social and humanitarian objectives, he said.
The democratic building process is not enough without being coupled with serious projects for all-round development in the economic and social fields, HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim said.
Prince Charles receives Qatari premier
Prince Charles, Heir to the British throne, yesterday received HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani. The Prime Minister conveyed to Prince Charles the greetings of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and HH the Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and their best wishes of good health, and of further prosperity to the British people. For his part, Prince Charles asked HE the Prime Minister to convey his greetings and wishes of continued success to HH the Emir and HH the Heir Apparent and his wishes of further development and progress to the Qatari people. Relations between the two friendly countries were reviewed at the audience.
