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G. Gabchiya: Address to World Summit 2022, Session VIII
Written by Dr. Goni Muhammad Ali Gabchiya, chief imam, University of Maiduguri; co-founder Taha Islamic Centre, Nigeria
Saturday, February 12, 2022
Address to World Summit
February 11-13, 2022
In the Name of God, the Most High, may God bless you all.
My name is Imam Muhammad Ali Gabchiya. I am the chief imam of the University of Maiduguri Mosque in Borno State of Nigeria. It is my honor to be invited to this World Summit 2022, addressing the important theme of reconciliation and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
I appreciate the founder of UPF and host of this summit, Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, for bringing us together in this forum. I thank the co-chairs, H.E. Samdech Hun Sen, the prime minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and H.E. Ban Ki-moon, the former secretary-general of the United Nations, for their leadership in facilitating this forum.
It is important of build a world of peace, especially during a time when international relations are strained, and there are threats on a variety of fronts, including the COVID pandemic, conflict between nations, climate change, poverty, family breakdown, etc. This cannot be overemphasized.
Peace on the Korean Peninsula is of great importance, being the last divided country from the Cold War era. Since it has taken so long for peace to be restored in the peninsula, if we can achieve this now, it will give hope that peace can be established globally. The steps we take to create a breakthrough for peace on the Korean Peninsula can then be emulated by other nations.
The situation on the Korean Peninsula is complicated by geopolitical competition among superpowers, not only during the 20th century’s Cold War but even today. We must work toward building trust, mutual respect, reconciliation, and cooperation.
In fact, it has become clear that military means alone cannot bring about lasting peace. There are a variety of other ways in which peace can be pursued that may involve civil society, trade and commerce, humanitarian relief, interfaith dialogue, cultural exchange, tourism, etc. And this does not have to be on a huge worldwide scale only.
Conflict, even among citizens of the same country, is never a good thing. For example, in Nigeria we are dealing with the Boko Haram crisis among Nigerians, and we witnessed the Maitatsine riots in the 1980s. In both cases, we as imam have worked tirelessly to resolve the situation. At my level, I am still countering Boko Haram narratives and teachings, among other things, that seek to divide our people.
I consider the people of North and South Korea to be the same. You are all brothers and sisters. Even your culture, food, and way of life are very similar. It will benefit you both, far beyond your expectations, if you open lines of communication and let brothers and sisters meet. Prophet Mohammed (PBH) says: "All mankind are descendants of Adam, created from dust. There is no preference between people, white or black, Arabs or non-Arabs, except for piety."
We call on the governments of North and South Korea to create a more conducive atmosphere for interaction between the two sides.
I thank UPF once again for this summit and for the opportunity to share these few words.
To go to the World Summit 2022 Schedule page, click here.