Islamic Summit supports rights of women

South News, 12 December 1997

Tehran: Muslim nations of the world today declared full respect for the dignity and the rights of Muslim women and enhancement of their role in all aspects of social life in accordance with Islamic principles. They also condemned terrorism committed in the name of Islam and demanded that Israel stop building settlements on war-won Arab land, particularly in Jerusalem.

The declaration made a veiled criticism of Afghanistan's Taliban militia, conspicuously absent from the summit. The Taliban do not allow girls to attend school or women to work outside the home. The declaration called for full respect for the dignity and the rights of Muslim women and enhancement of their role in all aspects of social life in accordance with Islamic principles.

The resolution comes after comments by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan comments about war lords, terrorists, drug dealers and others refusing to rise above their narrow factional interests. He said, The United Nations cannot do it alone. We must do it with partners such as the OIC and other international, regional organizations and arrangements whose experience and knowledge complement the resources and legitimacy of the United Nations. The United Nations, in spirit and in reality, is committed to that vision. A vision of a world of concert. A world where tolerance and mutual respect among and within all nations is the basis for global progres.

Iranian President Mohammad Khatami met Iraqi Deputy President Taha Yassin Ramadan on Thursday in the highest-level contact between the two countries since their 1980-88 war. Both men said after the 25-minute meeting on the last day of a three-day Islamic summit in Tehran that they had agreed to hold more talks to settle their differences.

Khatami confirmed Iran's good intentions in solving all outstanding problems with Iraq, the official Iranian new agency IRNA reported. We must solve our problems ourselves and not let other powers interfere in our affairs because our enemies don't want a strong Iran or Iraq in the region, Khatami said.

The killing of innocent people is forbidden in Islam, delegates said in a joint declaration to be read later today at the closing session of the three-day summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. The conference's 55 members adopted the declaration criticized Israel for what it called state terrorism and supported the creation of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital.

The summit, which drew 28 heads of state, prime ministers and crown princes, served as a forum for Iran to forge ties with countries long wary of its 1979 Islamic revolution. Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa said today that the meetings brought about a measure of conciliation, some understanding and some movement in the right direction.

Arab officials hoped, too, that the summit would pressure Turkey to reconsider two military agreements it signed with Israel in 1996, cooperation that was denounced during the debate. Turkey is the only Muslim nation to have concluded such agreements. While not mentioning Turkey by name, the declaration urged it to reconsider its military cooperation because of the danger it poses to the security of Islamic countries.

The declaration also criticized U.S. attempts to penalize countries doing business with Iran and Libya.