The development of the East-West dialogue should be based on mutual need, according to an Indonesian professor.

“Both sides must feel that they need each other. The East needs the West for its scientific and technological advancement, and the West needs the East for its moral values and natural resources,” Din Syamsuddin, global Islamic politics professor at Jakarta State Islamic University (UIN), said, according to a statement released in Jakarta on Saturday.

He made the remarks while concurring with the views expressed by Al-Azhar Grand Shaikh Prof. Dr. Ahmad Muhammad Al-Tayyib at the conclusion of the Bahrain Dialogue Forum, which was held in Manama on November 3–4, 2022.

Al-Tayyib said that the East-West dialogue must be developed.

Syamsuddin, who attended the forum, highlighted several prerequisites to the realization of the dialogue.

First, there needs to be equality between both sides, without any side considered superior or inferior, he said.

Second, both sides must feel that they need each other, he added.

Third, there needs to be an immediate effort to put an end to an attitude of phobia and a tendency to discredit the other side, he said.

The Bahrain Dialogue Forum has added to positive initiatives to create global peace, he added.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Muslim intellectual Prof. Muhammad Quraish Shihab drew attention to the phenomenon of phobia toward religions during the 16th regular session of the Hukama Muslimin Council in Manama, Bahrain.

Shihab also highlighted the climate change issue while addressing the session.

As a trans-national forum for Muslim experts and ulemas to strengthen co-existence values, the Hukama Muslimin Council saw the urgent need to discuss the challenges, he said.

According to him, the council saw the dialogue not only as a response to reality, but also as a fundamental option that will be valid forever.

Source: Antara News