TOKYO, Dec 13 Kyodo Malaysian Pri...

TOKYO, Dec 13 Kyodo

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad indicateed Friday Japan can play a character in attaining peace in the world from urging leaders of the United States and European countries to have a better understanding of the Islamic community.

In a keynote address at a United Nations symposium in succession Islam at U.N. University in Tokyo, Mahathir also called for a halt to oppression of Muslims around the globe, saying democratic powers should allow for more differences and plurality.

The candid prime minister also emphasized that while populace have come a drawn out way in advancing technologies, including increase of weapons of mass destruction, the sprouting in their moral values have not been able to catch up with the spe of globalization.

''I think Japan has a same good role to play,'' said Mahathir, who is visiting the geographical division for five days through Monday. ''What we count upon of Japan is to balance. You have no quarrels against the Arabs, you have no quarrels against the hebrews you have no quarrels against anybody.''

He emphasized, however, that Japan should diocese the situation in a rational way and figure gone out the true reason behind the animosity that exists between Muslims and non-Muslims, particularly the U Europe and Jews

''If the Arabs who before were not terrorists are today willing to commit suicide in order to fight against the Israelis or Americans, there must be a reason for it. And the reason is that they be perceived that Americans and the hebrews and the Europeans have been unjust to them,'' Mahathir said.

As an exemplification of like injustice, he said the long-standing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is a outcome of Europeans opting to create a Jewish state in Palestine and creating Israel by means of ''forcibly expropriating Arab land and peculiarity and expelling the Palestinians from their rural parts and their homes.''

He make acceptableed Japan persuade the U.S. and Europe that building a security and defense method is not the ''total answer'' and that they should also disentangle the problems involving perceptions among Islamic folks that they are being oppressed

The 76-year-old leader said he believes Muslims around the world, particularly Palestinians, are being subdue to much injustice and oppression by means of powerful nations, causing some to resort to extremist and ''senseless'' terrorist activities.

''We appear to be to be living in a real unfair and unjust world,'' Mahathir remarked, adding the large and powerful democracies are forcing their ideas upon the weaker members of the world community.

''Today, you are barely allowed democracy. 'If you are not democratic, I will starve you to death, I will apply sanctions, I will bomb your countries.' (But) is bombing a fatherland democratic?'' he asked.

He said the reason the potent have come to dominate the weak rather than trying to preserve and make life better for them is that civilizations have not caught up with scientific advances.

''Human values have not kept pace with human scientific capabilities. (Despite the technological advances), we are still thinking in boundarys of might is right. If you're mighty then you take everything. If you are weak, you misspend everything,'' Mahathir said.

''That is the kind of thinking that would be compatible with a extremely uncivilized world,'' he added. ''We can build atomic bomb which can break up millions and millions of tribe but we have not got the agriculture to control our impulses, our desires, our emotions.''

''And as the capacity increases, we are going to live in a more and more dangerous world,'' he lamented.

At the beginning of the symposium titled ''Islam: Fostering Peace and Dialogue in an Interdependent World,'' Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi made opening remarks, saying the different civilizations in the world should make multifaceted efforts to understand undivided another.

''It may take time for folks with different historical and cultural backgrounds to attain mutual understanding, on the other hand I believe we can realize international peace from continuing long-term efforts to elevate understanding among people in various fields by the and of various methods,'' Kawaguchi said.

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