FNC proposes path for Muslim parliaments to forge Islamic entente

Talks between governments are not the only way to settle disputes between Muslim nations, Emirati delegates tell Islamic parliamentarian conference in Uganda.

KAMPALA // There are 243 ongoing disputes between Islamic nations on record, many decades long. Yesterday, politicians from the UAE began lobbying to create a channel for Muslim parliaments to help settle some of them.

The hope is that parliamentary diplomacy could provide an alternative avenue for discussing points of contention among the 57 Muslim states in the Organisation for the Islamic Conference (OIC). Members of the Federal National Council discussed setting up a standing committee to deal with disputes on the sidelines of yesterday's meeting of the Parliamentary Union of the OIC Member States (PUIC) in the Ugandan capital.

The proposal will be discussed tomorrow in the conference's main meeting. It is understood that several countries, including Iran, will oppose it. Dr Mahmud Erol Kilic, the PUIC's secretary general, said some parliamentarians believed that such issues should be left for governments to discuss. But Dr Mohammed al Mazrouei, the secretary general of the FNC, said the peaceful settlement of disputes stood at the heart of the union's charter. He said governments and parliaments had separate roles, and discussing disputes among parliamentarians did not necessarily contradict the work of the governments.

"The union should meet its goals of working towards ending disputes between Islamic countries through all means," Dr al Mazrouei said. The UAE delegation is headed by Abdul Aziz al Ghurair, the FNC Speaker, who has met counterparts from Middle Eastern and African countries to discuss the plan and other issues. The UAE's proposal was approved by the executive committee of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union in Muscat this month. The FNC distributed a document yesterday explaining the need for a committee.

"The UAE delegation's proposal focuses on establishing a permanent committee rather than a temporary one," the document said. "The presence of 243 points of tension means forming 243 temporary committees. This is counter to logic." One issue is the UAE's long-standing dispute with Iran, which occupied three islands Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunbs in 1971. The UAE has called for direct negotiation, international arbitration or international courts to settle the dispute, but Iran has resisted discussing the issue in international forums.

For years, members of the FNC have promoted the use of parliamentary diplomacy during their foreign trips. "Parliamentary diplomacy has more room for manoeuvre and can lay the groundwork for decision makers," Dr al Mazrouei said. "One of the FNC's roles is to defend the causes of the country in all international and regional forums. The council is very active in parliamentary diplomacy." Hesaid the dispute over the islands was "one of [the] most important causes".

Dr Kilic argued that parliamentary diplomacy would exacerbate tension among members of the union. "Parliamentary diplomacy can be one of the instruments but the right place to solve the conflict is inter-governmental," he said. "If we open this gate, at all conferences we will witness some hard discussions and fighting, so it will be against the principle of unity." However, Amin Ahmed Mokharish, a member of the Yemeni parliament, said involving parliamentarians in talks could bridge gaps.

Mohammed al Zaabi, an FNC member from Sharjah, said most members of the union favour the UAE's position. "Iran is the strongest opponent and are lobbying against it," he said. [e-mail]