KL Summit 2019, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

“The KL Summit, which brings together Muslim leaders, intellectuals and scholars, was conceived with the noble objectives of identifying the problems afflicting the Muslim world and finding solutions to them.

We have heard the quote repeatedly, attributed to the nineteenth-century Egyptian scholar and jurist, Muhammad ‘Abduh, who once said:

“I went to the West and saw Islam, but not Muslims; I went back to the East and saw Muslims, but not Islam.”

It is but a stark reminder of our failures, our inability to live by the basic principles of Islam, to make Islam ad-deen, our way of life.

Muslim nations are at extremes: we have rich nations, much richer than the richest, and poorer, poorer than the poorest.

We proclaim that all Muslims are brothers, and yet our nations are engaged in endless civil wars, sectarian wars, wars with our Muslim neighbors, and inviting non-Muslim nations to help us in our wars with other Muslims.

For too long we have been associated with poor governance, endemic corruption, and a breeding ground for terrorism.

We can continue to cry out that such labels, especially being breeders of terrorism, are cruel anti-Islam propaganda. We know that it is indeed true, but our weakness and disunity have given credence to this propaganda.

Such is the state of affairs among our nations that Muslims end up on the shores of nations ruled by people of other religions and the fate of our brothers rests solely at their mercy.

It is against these backdrops that the KL Summit was hatched and the desire to want to contribute to the improvement of the state of affairs between Muslims and Muslim nations.

But no matter how many brilliant ideas the KL Summit generates, without the support of the leaders and governments of Muslim nations, these ideas will remain ideas.

I fervently hope that the participants in this KL Summit will take up this challenge of turning all our declarations and decisions into realities.

Featuring regional and international leaders from various fields, the KL Summit will be guided by a comprehensive contemporary understanding towards the achievement of the highest values of Islam and the sovereignty of Ummah.

At the KL Summit we need to deliberate frankly on these issues and find new and viable solutions to the problems affecting Muslims. It is in the exchange of our knowledge and experience that we will be able to choose what is best for us, and for our countries.

I look forward to a lively dialogue and I hope that it will become one more step towards achieving something that our countries need.

We have always reflected on how great, enriching, and powerful Islamic civilization was. It was a chapter in history and we long for its return. It will remain a longing unless we do something about it.

Thank you.”

Tun Dr. Mahathir Bin Mohamad
Prime Minister of Malaysia and President of KL Summit