International scientists and scholars have adopted a resolution supporting Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s call for “enlightenment against ignorance” to end global Islamophobia.
Participants from 35 countries converged at the recent eighth annual Congress of the World Society for the Study, Preservation and Popularization of the Cultural Legacy of Uzbekistan (WOSCU), with representatives from the International Organization of Turkic Culture, Muslim World Islamic League, the Al-Furqan Foundation, the International Turkic Academy and the Arab World Institute.
A resolution was agreed that education concerning Islam should be the main objective for WOSCU’s forthcoming heritage project.
According to the declaration, improved understanding is vital for addressing irrational fears or hostility towards the religion of Islam and Muslims in general.
“On behalf of more than 300 participants from 35 countries, including 15 academicians, 40 professors, 103 doctors of science, 54 directors of museums and libraries and others, we are firmly convinced that the work on studying and preserving cultural legacy is of paramount importance for the sustainable development and prosperity of not only Uzbekistan, but also the entire world community,” says the statement.
In a letter to President Mirziyoyev, conference participants noted his broad support for the idea of a humane Islam that he expressed in an address to the United Nations and his emphasis on the importance of spiritual enrichment –
“We fully support your initiatives and are ready to become the most active participants in large-scale projects to preserve the cultural legacy of Uzbekistan for world civilization,” wrote President Mirziyoyev.
The Congress, held partly in Uzbekistan’s capital Tashkent and partly in Samarkand, approved 150 new WOSCU projects around the world, “aimed at revealing the great contribution of Oriental scholars who have made a significant contribution to world civilization”.
One scholar praised Uzbekistan’s investment in Tashkent’s Center of Islamic Civilization and the Imam al Bukhari Spiritual Center near Samarkand, both of which are currently under construction.
“We consider it our most important task not only to join the activities of the Center of Islamic Civilization, but also to create a powerful and rapidly developing scientific and cultural platform that will become a bright beacon of enlightenment and knowledge in the East.”
The Declaration, adopted at the congress’s plenary session says that it recognizes the importance of establishing the Center of Islamic Civilization –
“This cultural and humanistic mega-project will give a powerful impetus to research dedicated to the worthy contribution of great Islamic scholars and thinkers for the future development of world science and civilization. We are concerned about the situation in the world and believe that the truly humanistic and educational essence of the religion of Islam are worthy of the closest attention.”
Created in May 2017 in Tashkent and Samarkand, WOSCU brings together scientists from more than 20 countries, and in August 2019 was registered with a headquarters in Paris. It is sponsored by Eriell Group and Enter Engineering.
The organisation project is unique in terms of geographical coverage, research fields and organisation, and has created a global database that lists the historical and cultural objects of the peoples of Uzbekistan, that are currently housed in many countries worldwide.
