By Baradan Kuppusamy
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 2003 (IPS)

The summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) here has been overshadowed by the anti-Jewish remarks in the opening speech of outgoing Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who is also the summit’s chairman.

Only a day earlier, a Malaysian minister had lamented that the dearth of western reports on the OIC meeting, even alleging that the U.S. media had boycotted the summit. Now the meeting has the western media’s full attention – and perhaps, some say, for all the wrong reasons.

On Thursday, Mahathir, while urging Muslims to unite and industrialise to defeat the west and survive in a new and dangerous world, delivered a blistering attack on Jews that has turned raised anger in the United States and across Europe and in Australia.

Mahathir told delegates from 57 Islamic nations representing 1.3 billion Muslims that although Europeans killed six million Jews out of 12 million, today Jews ruled the world by proxy.

"They recruited others to fight their wars and shed blood and die for their interest," he said. He added that Jews survived 2,000 years of pogroms not by matching the violence inflicted against them but by inventing ideas like socialism, communism, human rights and democracy so that persecuting them would appear to be wrong, so that they can enjoy equal rights with others.

He urged Muslims to ponder the Jewish condition, even emulate it to survive.

"Muslims must employ political and economic tactics instead of violence to achieve a final victory over the Jews," he said to a standing ovation. "We are up against people who think. We cannot fight them through brawn alone, we must use our brains also.”

The 10th OIC summit, the largest gathering of Islamic leaders since the Sep. 11 attacks in the United States, invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, comes at a time when Muslims are frustrated and angry at the U.S. war on terror that they say targets Muslims and Islam.

But some delegates, especially from the Arab League countries, distanced themselves from his anti-Jewish remarks.

Mahathir’s open attack on the Jews has drawn immediate condemnation from Jewish organisations, the EU, Australia and Germany. Some said the comments were an invitation for "hate crimes and terrorism against Jews”.

A U.S. spokesman said the remarks were "offensive and inflammatory" and views it with "contempt and derision". Germany has lodged a protest with the Malaysian charge d’ affaires in Berlin.

"The United States is attacking Muslim nations and the invasion of Iraq is clearly at the behest and for the well-being of Israel," said a delegate from the Middle East who declined to be named. "Dr Mahathir’s speech reflects the thinking of ordinary Muslims but it is not our government policy so we cannot endorse it," he told IPS.

The Malaysian government also sought to contain the damage Friday, saying the remarks were ”misunderstood" and that Mahathir only intended Muslims to ponder the Jews’ success.

However, some leaders like Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakar Qurbi said they were not anti-Semitic.

"Dr Mahathir is merely stating the facts facing the Muslim world and he was not being confrontational at all," Abu Bakar told reporters. "I support his speech 100 percent…he wants the Muslim world to stand up to its responsibilities to its people."

The official Bernama agency quoted Palestinian Foreign Minister Farouk Kaddumi as saying that Mahathir spoke "the truth". He said, "Every time we condemn the Israeli actions, they accuse us of being anti-Semitic.”

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said: "That was a pep talk for Muslims but as soon as you have any criticism of Israel, then there are people who are very eager to rush to condemn even without reading, without understanding what it’s all about."

But different leaders read different things in Mahathir’s speech. Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai said Mahathir’s historic analysis of Islam was very correct. "What Muslims should do is to cease suicide attacks," he said.

Meantime, the main themes of the OIC debate hover over strong support for the Palestinian cause and condemnation of Israel’s military occupation of Palestine. Officials also expressed strong solidarity with occupied Iraq and worry over the fate of Syria, which many said appears to be the next target of the U.S. ‘war on terror’.

Delegates expressed fear and anger that because of U.S. policies in the wake of its ‘war on terror’, Muslims are being seen as potential terrorists and being singled out for persecution.

"We are all witnesses to the smear campaigns directed at major Islamic hallmarks, which have also come under the threat of political containment, sanctions, marginalisation, isolation and military occupation," OIC Secretary-General Abdelhouahed Belkeziz told IPS in an interview on the sidelines of the summit.

"Neither this painful reality nor the state of helplessness, frustration and weaknesses has sprung out of a vacuum. They are due to both external and internal forces," he said. "Some major media depicted any act of violence by Muslim individuals as Islamic terrorism."

The question of Iraq brought out all the divisions – what stand to take on Iraq? Delegates hotly disagreed over whether to send OIC-mandated peacekeeping troops to Iraq, a proposal made by Pakistan.

Some delegates propose U.N. mandated troops. Others said none at all. Several, including the Iraqi delegation, said it is better for all Muslim troops to stay away.

"If OIC sends troops will only confuse the situation in Iraq," Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa said, explaining the decision of Arab countries to wait and watch.

"(But) this is what the OIC has been always criticised for – not doing anything," an angry delegate from an East African country told IPS, asking not to be named.

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