Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)

Lecture Prepared By: Arslan Zahid Khan

Member Faculty at ICEP CSS – PMS, Lahore.
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 Agenda

• Introduction
• Historical perspective of OIC
• OIC charter
• Strengths and Successes
• Weaknesses and challenges
• Conclusion

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 Introduction

OIC is an international organization whose status as to whether it is

religious organization or an intergovernmental organization is disputed
and a matter of debate among many scholars. However, it has a total of
57 members as of 2016 and the organization states that it is the
collective voice of the Muslim world, working to safeguard and protect
the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international
peace and harmony. Although it is the second largest international
organization – the first being the UN – it has been unsuccessful in
meeting its objectives and has become increasingly dysfunctional with
time.

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 Historical Perspective of OIC
Formation of the Organization
It came into being in 1969 in a historical summit in Rabat, Kingdom of
Morocco, where a Charter was signed as a consequence of the
criminal arson of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem. The crime
was perpetrated by an Australian Christian fanatic but the incident
became emblematic of the struggle for control of Muslim holy sites in
Jerusalem. The organization was originally formed around the idea of
Muslim solidarity, particularly protecting the Islamic holy sites, assisting
the Palestinian cause, eradicating racial discrimination, and improving
economic cooperation. Its first Summit took place in Jeddah in 1970.
Expansion of Membership
Originally, the organization had 25 members but over the years, its
membership has expanded to a total of 57 with a total population of
approximately 1.7 billion Muslims (last estimates are at 1.6 billion as of
2011). Due to the human rights violations in Syria since the start of the
Syrian Civil War, Syria has been suspended from its membership.
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 Historical Perspective of OIC

Charter of the organization- 11th Summit

The current Charter according to which the organization operates was
signed during the 11th Summit held in Dakar, capital of Senegal, in
March 2008. The Charter contains in it the objectives and principles of
the organization and the fundamental purposes to strengthen the
solidarity and cooperation among its member states, as well as the list,
composition and duties of its main organs

Ten Year Program of Action

Due to the new challenges faced by the Muslim Ummah with the dawn
of the new millennium, a program was drafted for the promotion of
tolerance and moderation, modernization, extensive reforms in all
spheres of activities including science and technology, education, and
trade enhancement. Furthermore, it emphasized good governance and
promotion of human rights in the Muslim world, especially with regard
to rights of children, women and elderly, and the family values
enshrined by Islam.
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 Charter of the OIC
Strengthening bonds and cooperation: to enhance the bonds of
fraternity among the member states and to strengthen intra-Islamic
economic and trade cooperation with the aim of establishing an Islamic
Common Market.
Issues of Common Interest and legitimate causes of member
states: to safeguard and protect such issues and coordinate with each
other to help member states with their legitimate causes especially
where the restoration of complete sovereignty and territorial integrity of
a member state under occupation is concerned specifically Palestine.
Interstate Relations: to ensure that such relations are based on
respect for the principles of sovereignty, political independence and
territorial integrity, non-interference in domestic issues, and are based
on justice, mutual respect and good-neighbourliness for the attainment
of global peace and justice.
Islamic Civilization: to protect, promote and enhance the image of
Islam, its teachings, culture and heritage.
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 Charter of the OIC

Development and advancement in member states: to exert efforts

for sustainable and comprehensive human development and economic
well being as well as advancement in the fields of science and
technology through research and cooperation.
Human Rights: to reaffirm the rights of people as stipulated in UN
Charter and international law, with special attention to the rights of
women, children, elderly and the minorities in Muslim majority
countries.
Dealing with Crime: to cooperate to combat terrorism, organized
crime, drug trafficking, money laundering etc.
Humanitarian Emergencies: to cooperate and coordinate in
humanitarian emergencies such as natural disasters.

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 Strengths and Successes
Platform for the Muslim World: it provides the Muslim world with a
platform which is of great importance given the current scenario where
conflict and hostilities within the Muslim world and between the West
and Islam are on the rise.
Voicing Concern over Issues: the organization has raised its voice
over a number of issues that are of common interest to the Muslim
Ummah such as blasphemy and caricatures as well as on issues that
concern specific Muslim states but have widespread repercussions all
across the Muslim world such as the recent support for a referendum in
Kashmir.
Early Momentum: in its early years, the organization played a positive
role, its stance and role in the incidents of Black September 1970 and
Ramazan War 1973 as well as the oil crisis of 1973 being cases in
point.

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 Strengths and Successes
Speaking against the West: the organization has time and again
highlighted the hypocrisy of the West when it comes to matters of
human rights and their violation West treats Israel and Western states
differently from the Muslim world.
Permanent Diplomacy: without regards to the strife between different
Muslim countries, the OIC provides them with a framework where they
can resolve their issues in the background.
Great Potential: the organization has a great potential if it is given
proper attention and is made a functional body instead of looking for
divisive coalitions such as the 34 nation coalition brokered by Saudi
Arabia.

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 Weaknesses and Challenges
Failure to Resolve Major Issues:
The organization has failed to achieve anything of value with regards to major
issues faced by the Muslim Ummah, some of which include:
• Israel/Palestine Issue: while the OIC advocates a two-state solution to the
problem, the Muslim world seems divided over its stance on the issue of
acceptance of Israel as a state. While economic sanctions clause remains
in place, it has not been implemented and many countries continue to
maintain their diplomatic and economic ties with Israel. Egypt was excluded
from the OIC in 1979 but reinstated in 1984 for example. Moreover, Egypt
even supported Israel in its 2010 blockade of Gaza though it opened its
blockade after the Turkish flotilla incident. The issue overall is an example of
the failure of the OIC in particular and of the Muslim world in general.
• Blasphemy: the issue of caricatures and blasphemy raises its head time
and again and yet the organization has been able to negotiate nothing in the
UN and now the UN has even been urging Muslim countries to revoke their
draconian blasphemy laws.

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 Weaknesses and Challenges
• Human Rights: this is a very controversial issue since 9 of the
countries where human rights conditions are worst in the world, are
members of the OIC. The organization has adopted its own Cairo
Declaration in Human Rights in Islam 1990 despite the fact that
member states are signatories of the UDHR 1948. When an arrest
warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court for war
crimes, for Sudans President Omar-al-Bashir in 2009, the OIC
retaliated by pointing out the Wests double standards when it came
to the Muslim world and Israel.
• Terrorism: the Muslim world has been least collaborative when it
comes to dealing with terrorism. Rather, they have been fueling such
acts in other countries to bring them under their own sphere of
influence. This has led to long proxy wars between Muslim nations,
primarily between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The Syrian issue has
brought to the forefront, all underlying rivalries prevalent in the
Muslim world which has led to a surge in terrorist activities.
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 Weaknesses and Challenges
Dysfunctional:
The organization has largely failed because it is dysfunctional and that is
because:
• Undemocratic: this refers to political systems in Muslim countries and
practices of the organization itself where Saudi Arabia and Iran, and to
some extent, Pakistan have dominated the proceedings due to their
economic and military might.
• Undecided Nature of the Organization: there is still an ongoing debate on
whether the organization is religious in nature or is an intergovernmental
organization which has so far failed to achieve its objectives of cooperation
in various fields.
• Undecided Goals of the Organization: while Turkey sees the organization
as a forum for cultural exchange and revival of the glory of Islamic heritage
and teachings, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan want the organization to
have a much more active political role within the Muslim world. Run on a
Shoestring Budget: since most of the member states are poor and are faced
by economic crises, the organizations budget is metaphorically, peanuts.
Most of the economic resources are supplied by Saudi Arabia and Iran
though the latter’s contributions have decreased in the past few years.
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 Conclusion

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