Former President of the United States Jimmy Carter, former Norwegian PM Gro Harlem Brundtland and former Irish President Mary Robinson visit the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar during the trip of ‘The Elders’ to Egypt in support of the current democratic transition applauding the role of Al-Azhar in this transition.
On Tuesday 23rd October, former President of the United States of America, Jimmy Carter, leading a senior international delegation of former world leaders visited the office of the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar to meet with Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb, Shaykh al-Azhar. The trip was part of the efforts of the international organisation called ‘The Elders’ brought together in 2007 by Nelson Mandela, which is an independent group of global leaders who work together for peace and human rights (http://www.theelders.org).
From among the ten members of The Elders, three were part of this trip to Egypt headed by Jimmy Carter (former President of the United States and Noble Peace Laureate) and included Gro Harlem Brundtland (first woman Prime Minister of Norway) as well as Mary Robinson (first woman President of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights).
During the meeting, Jimmy Carter emphasised the need for political leaders to seek to achieve peace alongside the religious leaders of the world. He underscored that the organisation of The Elders, which the delegation represented, recognised the importance of Egypt under the new regime and looked forward to the realisation of the country’s new constitution which will lead towards peace and progress. The meeting addressed the Palestinian issues and the circumstances people of Palestine are faced with as well as reconciliation between Fatah, Hamas and other factions. Commenting on the position and standing of the historic institution of Al-Azhar, the former President further stated that during their earlier meeting with the Christian community of Egypt, the Christian religious leaders reiterated the role played by Al-Azhar under the leadership of its current Grand Imam, Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb, and expressed their keenness to continue cooperation with Al-Azhar, which they see as their first home.
The meeting was also attended by members of Egypt’s national federation established by the efforts of the Grand Imam called ‘Egyptian Family House’ including Dr Mahmoud Azab (the Grand Imam’s Advisor for Dialogue), Dr Mahmoud Hamdi Zaqzuq (Secretary General of the Egyptian Family House), Dr Mustafa al-Fiqi (Egyptian diplomat and writer) as well as Bishop Yohanna Qulta (Deputy Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt), Dr Rev Safwat al-Bayadi (President of the Evangelical Community of Egypt) and Bishop Armia (Secretary to the Pope of Egypt).
During the meeting, Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb severely criticised the silence of the West in relation to the crimes committed against the Palestinian people. Regarding Egypt, he stressed that Al-Azhar plays a critical role in Egyptian unity especially in light of recent events by putting an end to conflicts and disputes in the political and religious spectrums of Egypt and solving internal problems between Muslims and Copts by eliminating these conflicts from the roots by the renewal of religious discourse through the mechanism of the Egyptian Family House project. Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb also elaborated on the ‘Al-Azhar Document’ initiative upon which all factions of the Egyptian populace agreed, especially in matters relating to rights and freedoms including in religion and in personal affairs, and in the pursuit of creativity and scientific research. He further added that Al-Azhar is in the process of issuing a document clarifying the rights and role of women in the modern era as well as a document outlining citizenship following valuable mutual discussion within the political and religious spheres of Egypt. The former President Jimmy Carter received these initiatives well and welcomed them.
Aside from Egyptian national affairs, the discussion also focused on foreign matters in particular how to bring an end to the continuing violence in Syria. Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb emphasised the urgent need for a genuine understanding of the ground reality in Syria and to put an immediate end to the massacres taking place. There is need for international and legal mechanisms to function effectively in bringing an end to this situation. Jimmy Carter mentioned that this difficulty cannot end without foreign intervention particularly from the European Union and the United States of America. The discussion also focussed on the issue of Palestine whereby Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb condemned the silence of the West in relation to the terrible crimes committed against the Palestinian people and presented to Jimmy Carter ways of reconciliation between the two movements of Fatah and Hamas, something to which Al-Azhar has called repeatedly and will not hesitate in putting effort towards achieving.
Returning to internal matters, Jimmy Carter heard first-hand about the initiative of the Egyptian Family House that began as a joint venture between Al-Azhar and the Church. The issues and matters pertaining to the new constitution of Egypt are discussed through this mechanism especially those concerning the Copts. Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb elaborated upon Article 2 of the Egyptian constitution and explained the details of the draft. Representing Al-Azhar, there exist members of Al-Azhar who sit on the board of the Constituent Committee. Jimmy Carter expressed his keen interest in the efforts made within the formulation of the country’s new constitution and hoped that it will achieve the aspirations of the Egyptian people and he praised the role played by Al-Azhar through its various initiatives of great importance.
Commenting on this meeting, the political thinker Dr Mustafa al-Fiqi stated that this meeting shows the developing relations between America and Egypt in light of a new political reality in Egypt and also points to the fact that Al-Azhar is a strong fortress that is capable of bringing together all segments and factions of the Egyptian people for it is home to all Egyptians.
For details of this visit in Arabic, visit: http://www.waag-azhar.org/news_archive1.aspx?id=1294 and http://onazhar.com/page2home2.php?page=3&page1=4&page2=1731.
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