Treatise for the Alleviation of the ills effecting Modern Muslim Societies by A.R.

A citizens of a global brotherhood which consists of numerous ethnic, religious, social, linguistic, and historical groups, we must affirm our foremost and resolute conviction to the cause of Islam and Muslims where ever it may be needed. We are a people who have traversed and spread from the rich Congo Basin to the exquisite tropics of the Malay islands. The time of ignorance and neglect of the worldwide impact and life of Islam throughout the world is over. No longer are we just Arabs, Persians, Turks, Indians, Africans, or any other single group alone. We are Muslims, the legacy of Islam, united by one faith and one goal. The goal of obedience to God and to establish a just, noble, and equitable order for all of humanity.

From under the imperial boot of the West have we been raised. Two hundred years of destitution, helplessness, and slavery have we endured under this unjust tyranny. Being robbed of any way back to our glorious past, we must struggle to bring and actualize the dreams of our noble ancestors in the present, which is to establish the rule of God on Earth. Thus it is imperative to strive for the alleviation of the ills which afflict the Muslim populace as befits the majesty and nobility of our great religion and our pure, yet vanishing way of life.

The foremost issue which the Muslims of the world must contend with is that of the rapid spread of poverty which we have to gradually eliminate as it stands in the way of our social, political, and religious independence. A nation of starving and ignorant, destitute beggars has no place in the influence of global politics and no authority to spread the word of God and the His law to others. It pains me to say this, yet it is something which must be told, or even more, understood by the Muslims living in the modern era. Unless we deal with this issue, our efforts to accomplish anything else shall be severely limited.

Concerning the modern Muslim community worldwide, it is my belief that the only way forward is through local grassroots action. It is rather apparent that the vast majority of governments to which Muslims belong as citizens, and some of which even refer to themselves as "Islamic," have no interest in uplifting of their downtrodden populations. It is no longer the time to give elegant and flowery speeches of the need to gradually eliminate poverty in the distant future, but it is required for us to engage in forthright, dynamic, and well-planned grassroots action to achieve "real" results. We do not have the luxury of delaying any longer.

To accomplish a more equitable balance of power in today's world, we must stress the use of a number of tools which we may utilize to reach our desired goal of concrete and lasting political, social, and religious independence. Among these, the most important ones are an emphasis on education and reform of the current educational systems, a more equitable distribution of wealth in Muslim societies, and the cultivation of a collective consciousness of the Muslim populace in relation to their place in history, their past, and their future.

Education is imperative to the uplift our downtrodden and oppressed masses. Education is required for providing the tools for the development of skills in the use of better employment, consequently resulting in social mobility. It is the one concrete method which shall yield immediate and permanent results. It is the primary means which must be used for the betterment of the masses. In this regard, we must concentrate in the fields of medicine, engineering, natural sciences, and law. Medical practitioners are desperately needed to heal and care for our multitudes of sick and dying brothers and sisters. Physics and mathematical sciences are necessary for the maintenance and advancement of civilian, governmental, electrical, and nuclear infrastructure, without which a modern society cannot function. The natural sciences serve to expand and broaden human understanding in the studies of the human body, domesticated animals, crops, astronomy, effects of population, and numerous other issues which may concern a developing society. A thorough and complete understanding of Western law (whether English Common law, American law, or French Civil law) to provide for us a framework by which we may effect changes in the law by which the vast majority of nations in the world are governed so as to reach an egalitarian and socially just society. In addition to education in these fields, knowledge of the basics of Islam, Islamic history, Shariah (Islamic law), and Islamic philosophy are needed so as to establish a pious, moral society which si both conscious of its spiritual sphere and its material sphere, and how both are related, not in opposition. The importance of enlightened religious education cannot be stressed enough as it serves to differentiate and instill a unique characteristic pride in our struggle as compared to other movements, and as we believe, gives us God's blessings in our endeavor.

Unfortunately, there are numerous false teachers with insufficient and, many times, incorrect knowledge of religion who may deceive or misguide our people about the true nature of Islam. The only method by which we can rid ourselves of dependence on these false teachers is by learning for ourselves the true teachings of Islam. Once people achieve a higher level of understanding and more comprehensive knowledge of the religion, they will inevitably be able to distinguish between true teachers of Islam and false teachers whose knowledge of Islam is unsatisfactory and an obstacle for the betterment of our people.

Along with education and knowledge of religion, there will arise a more equitable distribution of wealth. As citizens of a vast global civilization, we must petition our leaders to enact reforms which will alleviate the dire poverty in our midst.

The main culprits to blame for this unequal distribution of wealth are corruption, foreign privatization of natural resources and the products of human labor, and the moral bankruptcy of the upper classes to the plight of their brethren.

I have stressed the problem with corruption as it is the main obstacle by which monetary wealth is redirected from the starving public. Many Muslim governments have encouraged and even striven to push their civil workers into engaging in bribery, nepotism, and misappropriation of funds. The only solution to this problem is to use the popular sentiment of the lower classes and the tools of media distribution to make corruption transparent and expose corrupt officials to the public. This campaign must be thought-out in advance and there is not room adequate to address this topic in further detail in this paper, suffice to say it is very much necessary. Another tool by which the people are robbed of their labor and natural resources is through the government supported privatization by foreign governments of internal industry, which should benefit indigenous companies instead. It is because of these profound and vile methods by which Muslim countries are kept form achieving their true potential. The construction, management, and profit from internal industry should remain within the country from which it is developed, to be taken and used for the benefit of the people. It is time for all the third world countries, and in particular the Muslim ones, to join together in economic solidarity to prevent this exploitation and looting from world powers such as the United States, Russia, China, and the European nations.

Economic independence will inevitably result in political, social, and religious independence. We should all strive toward these aims.

Concerning the upper classes of Muslim societies, there has been much said and yet there is much which remains unacknowledged. The issue is not with just the the members of upper class society, but with the oppressive system which facilitates their continued primacy in the affairs of military, top government positions, and leadership roles in political parties. It is the very nature of capitalism which is the source of inequity and oppression of the lower classes. Any attempt by the government, political parties, religious leaders, or segments of the populace to distill the power and influence of these families has always been met with utmost retaliation and hostility. Many upper class families in Muslim society exercise influence not only in domestic affairs, but have support and complicity from foreign powers. This is quite evident throughout modern Islamic history as promising movements advocating religious preeminence and social equality have been crushed and demonised. It is important to realize that our goal of social equality will never be accomplished with the status quo which exists today in Muslim countries. We will have to succeed in either winning the upper classes to our cause or dislodging the present powerful families from their position. Most likely a combination of both shall be necessary in the pursuit of a more just order. The present unjust and exploitative social reality cannot and must not last forever. It is up to us to hold the reigns of our destiny, free from the oppression of upper classes and economic dependence on others. This can only be done by waging an intellectual battle for the minds of the Muslim populace, wealthy and impoverished both.

In this present age, we must summon up the collective courage of our past scholars, heroes, and mystics, and strive wholeheartedly toward a glorious future of scientific, economic, social, and religious ascendancy. We must realize that in this modern age the Muslim population remains blind, deaf, and mute of their political and historical reality. The collective consciousness of our goal in life and how to effectively pursue it is simply non-existent. We area society which have lost all semblance of organization, unity, and independence whatsoever. The Muslims have been pushed into this position by a combination of the efforts of our enemies, both internal and external, and our own lack of vision. It is now incumbent upon us to realize the position in which we find ourselves and strive to change it. Only now are we able to appreciate, for the lack of a better word, how far we have fallen and what predicament do we find ourselves. For many Muslims, it is simply too depressing or too frightening to cope with. We must ask ourselves, do we allow these injustices to continue perpetually or should we do something about it.

Concerning our unique situation, it is my opinion that physical action on a transnational, or even national, scale is not advisable at this point in time. We must resolve ourselves to work at local levels with only the short-term goal of bringing concrete changes to the lives of our people, while contemplating the long-term goal of eventual social redistribution of wealth and the achievement of political, social, and religious ascendancy in our societies. It is the idea, not any central organization which should bind us. For we must work by small-scale local action and also engage in the production of thought-provoking literature aimed toward the common people, religious scholars, social activists, and western educated upper classes to expound upon them the need for change from the present decadence and hopelessness we find ourselves in. Though multitudes of beneficial and throughly researched material is available at the present time, there continues to be no consensus on the eventual solution. Even as we speak, there exist forces ready to dissolve our Islamic renaissance in its infancy. Unless we gain the appeal of the masses in the Muslim world transcending differences in language, culture, history, and religious viewpoints, we shall never achieve anything substantial enough to change the present order.

Now and not tomorrow is the time to act for the salvation and betterment of our respective societies and for our global brotherhood at large. the people of the world have lived under several centuries of exploitation, tyranny, and injustice. It is our duty as the global consciousness of mankind to achieve the actualization of a more just and equitable order on the principles of the Islamic way of life. once we have accomplished this great undertaking, the oppressed people of the world will naturally unite with us and embrace our universal ideals of brotherhood. It is incumbent on us as Muslims to follow the teachings of our religion and to strive to fulfill God's will of justice and respect of fellow human beings in all its dimensions. By confining Islam to the status of a mere "belief", we wrong not only ourselves of our great potential, we withhold the divine answer tot he goals of human life from all of humankind.