World Crisis and the Pathway to Peace — Page 106
106 I believe that the cause of such conflicts and divisions is not only religion or beliefs and it is not merely a question of differences be- tween Western and Muslim nations. In fact, a major root cause of the discord has been the global financial crisis. When there was no recession or credit crunch, nobody ever bothered about the influx of immigrants; Muslims or non-Muslims or Africans. However, the situation is now different and that has caused all this. It has even affected the mutual relationships of European countries, and so anger and resentment between the people of certain European nations and the people of other European countries is increasing daily. This state of despair is visible everywhere. The formation of the European Union has been a great achievement on the part of European countries, for it has been a means of uniting the Continent. Thus, you should make all possi- ble efforts to preserve this unity, by honouring each other’s rights. The fears and worries held by members of the general public must be removed. To protect each other’s society, you should be will- ing to accept fair and just demands of one another, and of course, there should be fair and just demands by the people of each and every country. Remember that the strength of Europe lies in it remaining united and together as one. Such unity will not only benefit you here in Europe, but at a global level will be the means for this Continent to maintain its strength and influence. In fact, speak- ing from an Islamic perspective, we should strive for the entire world to unite together. In terms of currency, the world should be united. In terms of free business and trade, the world should be united and in terms of freedom of movement and immigra- tion, cohesive and practical policies should be developed, so that