UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- Malaysia's prime minister urged the U.N. General Assembly Monday to stop the unfair stereotyping of Muslims around the world.
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said, "We must cease associating Islam with violence, poverty and indignity."
He said there is an urgent need to clear up the confusion linking Islam with international terrorism which was really a clash of civilizations, not religion.
Giving as an example his own country's economic growth and respect amongst religions, cultures and ethnic groups, Badawi said, "Islam is not an impediment to modernity and to democracy."
As the chairman of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, he said he hopes for a supportive dialogue designed to create understanding between peoples and civilizations, which could lead to "real action and effect changes at the societal level."
Speaking later at a news conference at the United Nations in New York, he promised to do what he can for the OIC but was concerned about Islam being hijacked by groups with their own agenda.
Acknowledging the United Nations as a forum to create peace and justice, he called world leaders to commit and abide by multilateralism and to ensure that "never again should the United Nations be sidelined."
