Opening Address International Conference of Muslim Social Scientists

Abstract

The year which has just ended has presented the Muslim world with a major
challenge: the bipolar world order which provided some kind of balance between
the East and the West disintegrated and was replaced by a unipolar one.
How will this affect us?
The new world order is an order controlled by a single superpowex which
has its own philosophy, thought, and culture. If we look closely, it seems that
its philosophy stands on a collection of what appears to be mutually opposed
dualities which both necessitate the various elements of conflict and make all
attempts to end the resulting polarization and conflict futile. But the recent
demise of the opposite pole and the end of the Cold War does not mean that
the world is about to witness a period of peace, tranquility, and security in the
shade of this so-called new world order. hther, the inherently belligerent nature
of this entirely Western-controlled civilization precludes such a development,
for such an order requires an opponent, either real or imagined. In other words,
if one is not readily available it will have to be created, so that the fight can
be carried on elsewhere. While many are now saying that the nature ofthe conflict
may shift from military to economic power, this does not automatically
mean that positive developments will occur or that the world can expect true
and constant security, tranquility, or peace from this civilization.
It is thus all the more disconcerting that the Islamic world finds itself in
a state of unpreparedness and disarray unprecedented in all of its lox history,
and that the collapse of the Soviet Union, the other Western pole, leaves the
role of adversary to the Islamic world. All of this suggests that the Islamic world,
which is now infirm, divided, and unable to protect its own resources, will be
faced with the prospect of becoming a battleground over the course of the next
few decades.
It is therefore essential that Muslim scholars, thinkers, research institutes,
universities, and enlightened political elites undertake the responsibility of ensuring
that the Islamic world passes through this coming period of crisis successfully ...