KUALA  LUMPUR  DECLARATION ON INTERNATIONAL  TERRORISM

 

ADOPTED AT THE  EXTRAORDINARY  SESSION  OF  THE  ISLAMIC  CONFERENCE  OF FOREIGN MINISTERS  ON TERRORISM

1-3- APRIL 2002

 

1.      In the name of Islamic solidarity, we, the Foreign Ministers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), have gathered in Kuala Lumpur to state our collective resolve to combat terrorism and to respond to developments affecting Muslims and Islamic countries in the aftermath of the 11th September attacks;

 

2.      We recall earlier measures adopted by the OIC in combating international terrorism, including the Code of Conduct for Combating International Terrorism, the OIC Convention on Combating International Terrorism, which, inter alia, provides a definition of terrorism, and the Declaration of the 9th Extraordinary Session of ICFM as well as relevant OIC Resolutions on combating international terrorism;

 

3.      We take note of the important inaugural statement by The Honourable Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, which constitutes an official document of this Extraordinary Session;

 

4.      We reaffirm our commitment to the principles and true teachings of Islam which abhor aggression, value peace, tolerance and respect as well as prohibiting the killing of innocent people;

 

5.      We reject any attempt to link Islam and Muslims to terrorism as terrorism has no association with any religion, civilization or nationality;

 

6.      We reiterate that preventive action taken to combat terrorism should not result in ethnic or religious profiling or the targeting of a particular community;

 

7.      We unequivocally condemn acts of international terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including state terrorism, irrespective of motives, perpetrators and victims as terrorism poses a serious threat to international peace and security and is a grave violation of human rights;

 

8.      We reiterate the principled position under international law and the Charter of the United Nations of the legitimacy of resistance to foreign aggression and the struggle of peoples under colonial or alien domination and foreign occupation for national liberation and self-determination. In this context, we underline the urgency for an internationally agreed definition of terrorism, which differentiates such legitimate struggles from acts of terrorism; 

  

9.      We also underline the imperative of respect for international humanitarian law protecting civilian populations;

 

10.  We reject any attempt to link terrorism to the struggle of the Palestinian people in the exercise of their inalienable right to establish their independent state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital; 

 

11.  We reject any attempt to associate Islamic states or Palestinian and Lebanese resistance with terrorism, which constitutes an impediment to the global struggle against terrorism;

 

12.  We condemn Israel for its escalating military campaign against the Palestinian people, including the daily brutalization and humiliation of its civilians, resulting in mounting casualties, strangulation of the Palestinian economy, systematic and indiscriminate destruction of houses and residential facilities as well as infrastructure, institutions and structures of the Palestinian National Authority;

 

13.  We emphasize the importance of addressing the root causes of international terrorism, convinced that the war against terrorism will not succeed if the environment that breeds terrorism, including foreign occupation, injustice and exclusion, is allowed to thrive;

 

14.  We reaffirm our commitment to international action in combating international terrorism undertaken in conformity with the principles of the Charter of United Nations, including the principles of non-intervention in internal affairs and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as international law and relevant international conventions and instruments;

 

15.  We reject any unilateral action taken against any Islamic country under the pretext of combating international terrorism, as this will undermine global cooperation against terrorism;

 

16.  We reiterate our call for the convening of an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations to formulate a joint organized response of the international community to terrorism in all its forms and manifestations;

 

17.  We thus reaffirm our commitment to action at national level and through international cooperation in combating terrorism and agree to the following Plan of Action:

 

Plan of Action

 

  1. We hereby establish a 13-member open-ended Ministerial-level OIC Committee on International Terrorism[1] with the mandate to formulate recommendations on the following matters:

 

1.1  measures to strengthen OIC cooperation and coordination in combating international terrorism;

 

1.2  ways of expediting the implementation of the OIC Code of Conduct and the Convention on Combating International Terrorism;

 

1.3  measures in projecting the true image of Islam.  These include holding seminars and workshops to promote a better understanding of Islam and its principles;

 

1.4  measures in strengthening dialogue and understanding among different civilizations, cultures and faiths, for instance, by building on initiatives such as the United Nations Dialogue Among Civilizations and the OIC-EU Joint Forum on Harmony and Civilization;

 

1.5  other measures, as appropriate and in accordance with the Charter of the OIC as well as Summit and ICFM resolutions, in response to developments affecting Muslims and Islam arising from action to combat terrorism.

 

We agree that the Committee will present its recommendations to member states and to the ICFM for consideration and action.  The Committee is mandated to study the work of other international organizations in matters related to international terrorism.  Member countries of the Committee are mandated to contribute to the work of the OIC Group in New York in matters related to international terrorism.

 

  1. We will work towards the early conclusion of a Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism.  In this regard, we reiterate our support to the positions adopted by OIC member states at the ongoing negotiations on the said Convention.

 

  1. We will work towards an internationally agreed definition of terrorism and terrorist acts, which shall be differentiated from the legitimate struggle and resistance of peoples under colonial or alien domination and foreign occupation for national liberation and self-determination, for incorporation into the draft Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism.

 

  1. We will work towards the early convening of an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations to formulate a joint organized response of the international community to terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

 

  1. We will, at all relevant multilateral fora, maintain a united front in    upholding the principled position on the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples under colonial or alien domination and foreign occupation for national liberation and self-determination.

 

  1. We will continue to work through the United Nations Security   Council and directly with countries concerned to put an end to the escalating Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, provide the necessary international protection for the Palestinians and undertake efforts to secure a just, comprehensive and durable solution to the Middle East conflict based on UNSC Resolutions 242, 338 and 425, UNGA Resolution 194 and the principle of land for peace.   In this context, we will exert every effort to realize the Arab Peace Initiative adopted by the 14th Arab Summit in Beirut on 28 March 2002.  Further, we will continue to provide political, material and moral support and assistance to the Palestinians.

 

  1. We will continue to work with other countries and support efforts of the international community in combating international terrorism undertaken under the auspices of the United Nations in a transparent and impartial manner and in conformity with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations, international law and relevant international conventions and instruments.  These include implementing relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions, particularly UNSC Resolution 1373, as well as expediting our accession to or ratification of relevant international Conventions and Protocols relating to terrorism.

 

  1. We will make every effort at the international level to promote a collective security regime responding to security and development needs of all countries as well as to promote conducive political, socio-economic environment that will stifle support for terrorist activities and eliminate the causes of terrorist acts.

 

  1. We will, at the national level, continue to pursue policies and strategies aimed at enhancing the well-being and prosperity of our peoples, as well as addressing and resolving domestic factors that contribute to terrorism.

 

Adopted this 20 Muharram 1423H

3rd day of April 2002 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

[1] Members of the Committee comprise the Troika of the Summit, current ICFM Chairman and 3 members each representing the African, Arab and Asian Groups.

FROM : http://www.oic-oci.org/english/fm/11%5Fextraordinary/declaration.htm