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YMP to launch Youth Summit |
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Written by Editor
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Tuesday, 09 December 2003 |
The Young Muslim Professionals will be launching the 2003 National Muslim Youth Summit with the theme “Balancing Spirituality and Modernity Towards Peace and Development”. The said summit had been tentatively scheduled on December 20 to 21, 2003 at the Asian Institute of Management (AIM).
THE YMP
 YMP members take a pose during their General Assembly in October, 2002. They will be organizing a Youth Summit this coming December.
Since mid 2002, the YMP conducted the Leadership Training Workshops for the young leaders of Sulu, provided relief operations for the victims/refugees of the total war of the government against the MILF, conducted two Inter-Faith Dialogues involving other organizations, coordinated with other NGOs in sponsoring short-term scholarship grants for deserving Muslim students, created and maintains the bangsamoro.com that serves as the binding agent of the YMPers and the YMP’s potent medium in communicating/ reaching-out to the global community.
RATIONALE
Islam is in the world stage again. The September 11 attack had every human being in the world pry on Islam as a religion, and Muslims as “blind” followers of a “violent and oppressive” way of life. Muslims themselves began to examine what misconceptions may actually be real. How can a religion of peace have suicidal members? How can a religion of oneness (tawheed) be so repressive of its member’s development? How can a religion that flourished in antiquity be not flexible enough to accommodate the changing times? How can one Muslim transcend prejudice, religious restrictions, and still be truly steadfast to his/her faith despite being tagged ludicrous by non-believers?
At the outset, the main cause of strife in Mindanao had always been a legitimate claim to historical and cultural domain. It may be inappropriate to capsulate a long history of claim to self-identity, but needless to say the continuing conflict in Mindanao has metamorphosed into that of marginalization. But is it fair to blame it all to the mainstream society? Can they be at fault for having the right capabilities and frame of mind towards development? Is Islam holding us back from our way towards peace and development?
Despite attempts to understand and pacify Mindanao, peace and development remains elusive. This is because Muslims have myriad realities and complexities. To address their problem, one must find Islam as the only way, but keep in mind their actual and unique conditions. Because to speak of peace and development for Moros as of this point in time is essentially an issue of access to and opportunities for education, employment, entrepreneurship, and social and cultural respect. There should be emphasis on the need for skills, capabilities, and right attitude in managing a functional Muslim community. Building empowered (i.e. educated, capable, enterprising and open-minded) Moros is therefore a mix and a balance between deep-rooted Islamic spirituality and receptiveness towards change.
Through this assembly, there is hope that the Moro youth as stakeholders, shall begin to act as catalysts of change. The challenge on the other hand is to be able to make realizations on the broader perspective on the tenets of Islam juxtaposed modernity and the fast-changing world. It also aims to encourage the Muslim youth to become proactive members of the society and strive even harder to achieve proper education, get employed, engage in entrepreneurship, and understand the true virtue behind jihad. Their thoughts on Islam and the advent of modern values, technology, education, art forms, pop culture, and world polity will be challenged and enhanced.
To achieve this endeavor, the Young Moro Professionals Network Incorporated (YMPN) is willing to implement the program. YMPN is a non-stock, non-profit, non-political organization with the primary purpose of serving the common interests of the Moros (defined as Muslims in the Philippines). The YMPN with a global perspective and customized approach for the Moros and from the highest ideals and teaching of Islam strives to promote volunteerism and fellowship through collective activities that emphasize Islamic consciousness, unity, justice and culture of peace.
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