Nazeem Sanwal
PAKISTAN AND THE MUSLIM WORLD
ZULFIKAR ALI BHUTTO
Reproduced By: Sani H. Panhwar Member Sindh Council, PPP
Pakistan and the Muslim World;
Copyright © www.bhutto.org
1
Speech delivered by Mr. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the Foreign Minister of Pakistan to the Pakistan Islamic Council for International Affairs, Karachi, June 13, 1965
An essential feature of the foreign policy of Pakistan is its marked emphasis on the extensive civilization of Islam as a force of emancipation and progress. The nature of this emphasis has passed through its own variations from the earlier days of Islam in this subcontinent. The quality of belief and the intensity of intellectual and spiritual preoccupation with its objectives, however, have not been impaired by the passage of time. At the centre of the Islamic world, stability and security had given rise to an attitude of mind akin to unconcern. On the contrary, the frontier regions which had to struggle against hostile forces never ceased to manifest an intense loyalty to the unity of Islam. The Muslims of the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent which formed part of the zone of confrontation were always dedicated to the concept of a central Islamic authority. Even though the Caliphate had, since the middle of the tenth century, lost all effective power, it was remarkable that there remained a solitary corner of the Islamic world which still looked towards the centre, passionately striving to restore its pristine image and authority. To further this end and to preserve the unity of the ummat, mighty rulers of Hindustan like Mahmud of Ghazni, Iltumisk and Balban sought, with utmost humility, the approval of the Caliphate of their rule over kingdoms which they had carved out by themselves. Even though the Mughals who came to power in 1526 refused to acknowledge the Turkish Sultan as Caliph, it did not prevent them from taking an active interest in all Islamic and pan-Islamic affairs.
ASCE DA CY OF THE COLO IALISTS With the
ZULFIKAR ALI BHUTTO
Reproduced By: Sani H. Panhwar Member Sindh Council, PPP
Pakistan and the Muslim World;
Copyright © www.bhutto.org
1
Speech delivered by Mr. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the Foreign Minister of Pakistan to the Pakistan Islamic Council for International Affairs, Karachi, June 13, 1965
An essential feature of the foreign policy of Pakistan is its marked emphasis on the extensive civilization of Islam as a force of emancipation and progress. The nature of this emphasis has passed through its own variations from the earlier days of Islam in this subcontinent. The quality of belief and the intensity of intellectual and spiritual preoccupation with its objectives, however, have not been impaired by the passage of time. At the centre of the Islamic world, stability and security had given rise to an attitude of mind akin to unconcern. On the contrary, the frontier regions which had to struggle against hostile forces never ceased to manifest an intense loyalty to the unity of Islam. The Muslims of the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent which formed part of the zone of confrontation were always dedicated to the concept of a central Islamic authority. Even though the Caliphate had, since the middle of the tenth century, lost all effective power, it was remarkable that there remained a solitary corner of the Islamic world which still looked towards the centre, passionately striving to restore its pristine image and authority. To further this end and to preserve the unity of the ummat, mighty rulers of Hindustan like Mahmud of Ghazni, Iltumisk and Balban sought, with utmost humility, the approval of the Caliphate of their rule over kingdoms which they had carved out by themselves. Even though the Mughals who came to power in 1526 refused to acknowledge the Turkish Sultan as Caliph, it did not prevent them from taking an active interest in all Islamic and pan-Islamic affairs.
ASCE DA CY OF THE COLO IALISTS With the