DUBAI
– The global financial crisis taught the world how profoundly
interdependent our economies have become. In today’s crisis of
extremism, we must recognize that we are just as interdependent for our
security, as is clear in the current struggle to defeat ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria), also known as the Islamic State.
If
we are to prevent ISIS from teaching us this lesson the hard way, we
must acknowledge that we cannot extinguish the fires of fanaticism by
force alone. The world must unite behind a holistic drive to discredit
the ideology that gives extremists their power, and to restore hope and
dignity to those whom they would recruit.
ISIS
certainly can – and will – be defeated militarily by the international
coalition that is now assembling and which the UAE is actively
supporting. But military containment is only a partial solution. Lasting
peace requires three other ingredients: winning the battle of ideas;
upgrading weak governance; and supporting grassroots human development.
Such
a solution must begin with concerted international political will. Not a
single politician in North America, Europe, Africa, or Asia can afford
to ignore events in the Middle East. A globalized threat requires a
globalized response. Everyone will feel the heat, because such flames
know no borders; indeed, ISIS has recruited members of at least 80
nationalities.
ISIS
is a barbaric and brutal organization. It represents neither Islam nor
humanity’s most basic values. Nonetheless, it has emerged, spread, and
resisted those who oppose it. What we are fighting is not just a
terrorist organization, but the embodiment of a malicious ideology that
must be defeated intellectually.
I
consider this ideology to be the greatest danger that the world will
face in the next decade. Its seeds are growing in Europe, the United
States, Asia, and elsewhere. With its twisted religious overtones, this
pre-packaged franchise of hate is available for any terrorist group to
adopt. It carries the power to mobilize thousands of desperate,
vindictive, or angry young people and use them to strike at the
foundations of civilization.
The
ideology fueling ISIS has much in common with that of Al Qaeda and its
affiliates in Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia, Yemen, North
Africa, and the Arabian Peninsula. What most worries me is that a decade
ago, such an ideology was all that Al Qaeda needed to destabilize the
world, even from a primitive base in the caves of Afghanistan. Today,
under ISIS, adherents have access to technology, finance, a huge land
base, and an international jihadist network. Far from being defeated,
their ideology of rage and hate has become stricter, more pernicious,
and more widespread.
The
destruction of terrorist groups is not enough to bring lasting peace.
We must also strike at the root to deprive their dangerous ideology of
the power to rise again among people left vulnerable by an environment
of hopelessness and desperation. And, on this note, let us be positive.
The
solution has three components. The first is to counter malignant ideas
with enlightened thinking, open minds, and an attitude of tolerance and
acceptance. This approach arises from our Islamic religion, which calls
for peace, honors life, values dignity, promotes human development, and
directs us to do good to others.
Only
one thing can stop a suicidal youth who is ready to die for ISIS: a
stronger ideology that guides him onto the right path and convinces him
that God created us to improve our world, not to destroy it. We can look
to our neighbors in Saudi Arabia for their great successes in
de-radicalizing many young people through counseling centers and
programs. In this battle of minds, it is thinkers and scientists of
spiritual and intellectual stature among Muslims who are best placed to
lead the charge.
The
second component is support for governments’ efforts to create stable
institutions that can deliver real services to their people. It should
be clear to everyone that the rapid growth of ISIS was fueled by the
Syrian and Iraqi governments’ failings: the former made war on its own
people, and the latter promoted sectarian division. When governments
fail to address instability, legitimate grievances, and persistent
serious challenges, they create an ideal environment for hateful
ideologies to incubate – and for terrorist organizations to fill the
vacuum of legitimacy.
The
final component is to address urgently the black holes in human
development that afflict many areas of the Middle East. This is not only
an Arab responsibility, but also an international responsibility,
because providing grassroots opportunity and a better quality of life
for the people of this region is guaranteed to ameliorate our shared
problems of instability and conflict. We have a critical need for
long-term projects and initiatives to eliminate poverty, improve
education and health, build infrastructure, and create economic
opportunities. Sustainable development is the most sustainable answer to
terrorism.
Our
region is home to more than 200 million young people. We have the
opportunity to inspire them with hope and to direct their energies
toward improving their lives and the lives of those around them. If we
fail, we will abandon them to emptiness, unemployment, and the malicious
ideologies of terrorism.
Every
day that we take a step toward delivering economic development,
creating jobs, and raising standards of living, we undermine the
ideologies of fear and hate that feed on hopelessness. We starve
terrorist organizations of their reason to exist.
I
am optimistic, because I know that the people of the Middle East
possess a power of hope and a desire for stability and prosperity that
are stronger and more enduring than opportunistic and destructive ideas.
There is no power stronger than that of hope for a better life.
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai.
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