October  28, 2002

Mubarak addresses meeting of Arab Thought Foundation

    That establishing of Arab thought foundation with its capabilities, aims, objectives has a special importance at that critical stage through which the Arab nation and the whole world round us currently experience .It is no doubt that this stage, through which we live, is considered, at all standards, a new one on the humanity. It gathered the results of three great revolutions: technology, communication and information. This has its great effect on the speed and the rates of the development to the degree of saying that what the world has achieved during the last ten years of the 20th century equals what it has achieved during 20 centuries.

    These three revolutions, really, made the whole world as a small village, where the communities connect together and the cultures exchange. It was expected that this would be achieved in brotherly atmosphere surrounded by mutual respect, governed by equality, and all making dialogues under the umbrella of law and mind. However, the beginning of the third millennium surprised the East and the West with what was not expected. Pressure directions and unexpected events came to the spot and, then, replaced sadness instead of optimism and caused disappointment instead of hope.

    At that stage, which Arabs became more awareness with what surrounded them from developments and events and are affected, sometimes, positively and many times negatively, it became very necessary to perform a great cultural action, in which the authorities support each other and the capabilities integrate. Before all of that, The burning issues should be discussed with freedom and bravely ,depending on defining terms, crystallizing the concepts and exchanging points of view with the aim of reaching the most proper form for an intellectual and cultural project, upon which the nation agree, gain more power and go forward not backward.

    Ladies and gentlemen:

    During my meeting with the head of the national council of culture in Qatar, Sheikh Soud bin Mohammad Al Thany, he said: you did well with your wise choice of the pivots of your first conference, held in Cairo. These pivots which differ, but, at the same time integrate and link directly to a group of most important issues of Arab nation, on the top of which comes the importance of relationship between the East and the West. This relationship dates back to hundreds of years through the deferent stages of history and characterized sometimes by strength and peace, and other times with weakness and war. However, we, at the present time, became in bad need to reformulate it in a new way, in the frame of equal exchange of interests and cultures and with a noble aim,namely, achivieng the common benefits for both sides.

    What attracts the attention is that pivot, which will be discussed in the conference, to reply on an important question. Namely: how will be the situation if the peace choice failed? In fact, such a question would not be put forward. But Arab people see daily the inhuman violations of the Israeli army in Palestine against its unarmed nation and innocent children.

    In fact, that Palestinian issue, which became really a tragedy of more than 50 years, is subject to a very critical stage; say the most serious one in the time. All of that attributed to the current Israeli government pays no heed to all the resolutions of the United Nations and the Security Council as well as all international calls and the world opinion. Undoubtedly ,the continuing of such tragedy is considered a disgrace in the history of the international community and the civilization of this time, which calls for peaceful coexistence and respecting of human rights.

    The basis of the new world order cannot be validated, with such a human tragedy facing the world conscience day and night. It is unexpected for international agreements to be respected while the sinner and the sinned against are equally treated. It is unjustifiable for modern civilization to be condemned by history for its double-standard policies, are its dealings with one people or the expense of another. Regrettably, the leaders of the Arab nation adopted the peace strategy and extended their hands to Israel whereas its present administration did not reciprocate but it damaged the peace process that could have yielded to all the peoples of the region more stability and prosperity instead of tension and devastation.

    Therefore, it is befitting to float this question for discussion: what if the peace option failed? This question has become a part and parcel of the citizen’s concerns in the Arab world. He is also wondering if war is likely? And will it end with one victorious party or its ordeals will get all?

    As for the education cause in the Arab world, allow me please to have a little pause here. Education has always been a cornerstone for any progress and a headway for any development. Education was the course of the Arab and Islamic civilization, and by education Europe emerged out of the medieval ages to that of the Renaissance with the qualitative education, the contemporary world has come to be divided into developed and developing ones. In fact the education base in the Arab world has been widened its fields diversified and specializations increased. Its universities now embrace millions of youngmen eager to acquire knowledge and all what is new.

    But all of us need continued development; derived from reality, responding to world innovations, combining originality with modernity, providing the sons of the Arab world with all sought-for and sound qualification that creates competitiveness and directly usher them to the care of the modern age.

    Closely related to the education cause is the cause of the development or technology which is, in the first place, a mental cause that urges the Arab men of thought to orient lay peoples on the importance of its acquisition and the necessity of partaking in its making and creation.

    Ladies and Gentlemen:

    Politics is not separated from economy and they undoubtedly achieve the best of results if they are well-planned in a frame of an integrated strategy. Obviously, our Arab nation, in its various countries, has advanced in great strides in the rood of democracy. This is witnessed in the People’s Assembly, the Shura House, trade unions and the multi-party system.

    And this was positively reflected on the liberalization of economy that achieved its big boost, qualifying it to be on equal footing with the world economy. However, the Arab nation still needs more of a broadened circle of democracy and rationed economy. This will never materialized in its Desired form unless we completely eradicate illiteracy which still curbs the human development and subsequently in realizing full employment of all the society forces. Illiteracy passes a hurdle on the way of development. The dwindled participation of women in their society’s issues represents another obstacle that must be cleared with The Arab though, in a clear- cur and bold vision. Undoubtedly, the Arab women’s participation in the various Fields over history was positive. The participation was always associated with marked backwardness and weakness. Therefore, providing education Opportunities and Appropriate Employment circumstances for the Arab girl naturally herald the way to unleash her gift and talent which are by no means lesser than that of a man. Consequently, it must be deeply sealed in the contemporary Arab though that arbitrary distinction between men and women is created by customs and traditions confined by time and place and nor derived from the teaching of our sublime Islamic religion that gave women absolutely equal right with men evermore it recommended good treatment to them and made the paradise under the mothers' feet.

    Ladies and Gentlemen:

    It is becoming to say that thought and language will remain the two Sides of the same coin,and that relation between them is an organic one: they go up together and one comes down when the other does. Therefore, Intellectual prosperity and scientific progress will step up the Arabic to higher level of excellence.

    Allow me to frankly say that I feel immense pleasure when I find the sons of the new generation eager to learn modern technologies and admirably deal with computers and the Internet websites. This will certainly reflect on their thought, and consequently will have positive Impact on there using the language with more accuracy and clarity of expressionand wording.

    Though I share with you the realization of the problems plain Arabic suffers, which surely have their cause, I always take the side of those optimistic with its future according to comparison with its condition before and in and the 19th century when it reached its nadir in terms of styles and terminology and was void, or almost , of creativity in concocting and derivation and got heavy with rhetoric styles whose makers thought that they were rejuvenating it by so doing. Yet, since the early 20th century, and with the real beginning of the Arab peoples’ renaissance and widespread of public and university education as well as wide-ranging mass media, with journalism in the vanguard, Arabic language was able to recover from illness and weakness and to help connection among the four corners of the Arab world. Moreover, it exceeded this to universities and research centers in all advanced countries where it became one of the recognized languages, namely translated from and into in the United Nations and its agencies.

    It should be taken into consideration that the 20th century has witnessed breakthrough of a number of our Arabic writers in various scientific and literary domains who have far-reaching effect in developing the Arabic language, and they had their readers and admirers, such as Al-Zayyat, Al-Rafe’, Shawki, Hafez, Al-Aqqad, Taha Hussein, Ahmed Amin and Zaki Naguib Mahmoud. Those are just examples from Egypt alone, not to mention their great counterparts from Saudi Arabia, the Gulf,Iraq,Sudan and North African countries.

    Ladies and Gentlemen:

    More than any other time, contemporary Arab thought is strongly called upon today to take off in full capacity to get out of isolation, introversion, disappointment and despair into wide vistas of creativity and positive participation and communication with the march of world thought. This would not be new or strange, as our Arab thought has all along history been characterized by richness, diversity and openness to both old and contemporary worlds’ thought. In this context, Wisdom House, which was established by Caliph Al-Ma’moun, remains a witness of the movement of translation into Arabic from other languages for Arabs to get acquainted with fruits of world thought.

    It is well known that they had not got satisfied with translation or derivation, rather they argued such thought and went neck-to-neck with its pioneers. They also added and improved it till Europe took hold of its torch to get out of the Medieval into the Renaissance Age. In the Modern Age, especially in Egypt, the following meeting between Arabs and modern Western civilization took place to promptly result in a strong translation movement that was followed by another movement of heritage revival and renaissance that we live its outcome today.

    Thus, Arab thought will never hesitate or retreat from facing the new thought coming this time under the banner of globalization. And I am firmly confident that Arab thought will absorb and argue with it to come out at the end, as it did before, adhering to its constants and gaining many new features.

    Here I could assert that the Arab World is currently witnessing a completely favorable period for the Arab thought to flourish with no limits or obstacles. On the contrary, Arab governments, non-governmental organizations and individuals assigned awards and other honoring forms that pioneers and talented deserve in recognition of their endeavors and evaluation of their legacy and encouragement of their initiatives.

    Greetings be to all those in charge of the Institution of Arab Thought and with my best wishes for its first conference, held in Cairo, hoping that its events run in the best scientific climate for sought objectives to be fully realized.

    May God guide you in the way of success.

    Peace be with you.