Signs abound that clearly show our present world is rapidly moving towards extremism and violence. In an increasing number of countries, forces of extremism and advocates of violence are gaining the upper hand in national affairs over the moderates. Indeed, some of them are already for some time now on the centre stage of national politics holding positions of power that deliberately seek to suppress the legitimate interests of the rest of society. In some other countries, though not in positions of power but significantly helped by new enablers, particularly the new media and communication technology, extremists are able to multiply their numbers and amplify their phobia with messages of hate against the other whom they perceive to be their enemies. Then, there are countries where, in the name of religion or political ideology, extremist groups are waging insurgencies against established governments that go hand in hand with killing of innocent lives and destruction of properties of the ordinary people.
Such is the state of affairs in our present world. But sad to say, forces of moderation and advocates of peace seem to be powerless in countering this threat of growing extremism and violence in our global community. Although believers in moderation and peace are supposed to be in the majority, their voices appear to have been silenced by those of the extremists. This dangerous situation should not be allowed to prevail in our global village. According to the Quran, it is the righteous – the peacemakers and adherents of the wasatiyyah way of life – who are the truly worthy inheritors of the Planet Earth (21:105). It is in the light of its heightened awareness of this growing threat of extremism and violence in the present world as well as its awareness of the heavenly reminder of the necessary condition for the Earth’s sustainability that ISTAC-IIUM (International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation, International Islamic University Malaysia) took the decision to organise and host this historic international event, which is to be known as World Ummatan Wasatan Forum (WUWF).
The term ummatan wasatan is taken from the Quran (2:143). Literally, it means “the middle community.” Conceptually, however, as generally understood in Islam, the term conveys the idea of a community that is essentially characterised by moderation and balance. The human community thus conceived is to serve as the ideal in which light all community constructions Page 2 of 6 ought to be evaluated and judged. What makes possible such a community or society with universal and inclusive characteristics to be realised is the adoption of wasatiyyah values as the foundation of its construction and their empowerment, especially through education. Wasatiyyah values that are to be nurtured, developed, and sustained both at individual and collective levels of human life are themselves universal and inclusive in nature. The universality and inclusivity of these ideas would enable us to identify their equivalents in other religious or spiritual traditions. This fact confers extraordinary meaning and significance to the doctrine of ummatan wasatan to serve as a defining element of a global agenda on the empowerment of moderation and peace and simultaneously on the marginalisation and eradication of extremism and violence.
It is the overall objective of WUWF to articulate and help realise the idea of ummatan wasatan in unison with its equivalents in other cultures and civilisations as the presiding idea of 21st Century New World Social Order, examine their historical cross-cultural societal manifestations, and explore their roles in shaping the future global community.