Statement On The Speech Of President Barack Hussein Obama At Cairo University

By Abhoud Syed M. Lingga


The speech of President Barack Hussein Obama at Cairo University was a landmark as far as relations between the Muslim world and the United States is concerned. If followed by concrete actions it will certainly change the landscape of the relationship in the future.

Although short of specifics but the speech was the boldest, balanced and frank statement coming from a president of the United States.

His acknowledgement of the Muslim’s contributions to human civiliztion and in building the American nation, as well as the suffering of Muslims under colonialism, is a good starter for fruitful dialogue between the U.S. and the Muslim world.

I really appreciate the President’s candidness in discussing the major sources of tension and what he intend to do in addressing them.

Specifically, what interest me are his proposals on engaing the Muslims through education, science and technology, and economic development. These programs will not only benefit Muslims in Muslim-majority countries but also Muslim minorities like the Bangsamoro people.

The concept of creating “a new corps of business volunteers to partner with counterparts in Muslim-majority countries” is indeed interesting because it juxtapose with the idea that I always hold that development of Muslim communities in the Bangsamoro homeland has to be driven by Bangsamoro entrepreneurship to be sustainable, not by programs of government and aid agencies.

The President’s reference to “America and Islam” can be confusing for the two are not the same. While America is a nation, Islam is a religion, a way of life. Defining the similarities and differences would have been clear if the term “Muslim world” is used to refer to the collectivity of Muslim nation-states and the Muslim minorities.

Although he made the commitment that as president of the United States he will fight against negative stereotypes of Islam wherever they appear but no mention as to what he will do to change the perception of around 46 percent of the respondents of the latest survey in the United States who held unfavorable view of Muslim countries. (The author is the Executive Director of the Institute of Bangsamoro Studies / aslingga@yahoo.com)