We are quite crowded. Our population is around 1.5 billion.
Most of us are poor. But there are rich people among us. Our countries account for 36 percent of world oil exports. We earn around 550 billion dollars from their exports.
We pay back nearly half of this 550 billion dollars by purchasing weapons, mainly from the countries to which we export oil.
In other words, we finance the arms industry that kills mostly the poor.
Our education situation is not very good. Average education is 5.6 years. When our countries are excluded from the list, the world average increases to 9.5 years.
We are almost non-existent in high technology exports. Our share in that market is merely 4 per thousand.
How will you produce high-tech products when education is broken? You can’t. However, we use it with great relish, thus becoming a good customer for those who can manufacture them.
Who am I talking about when I say ‘we’?
Of course, member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
As you know, the Organization of Islamic Conference, formerly known as the Islamic Conference, was founded thanks to the efforts of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia after the Al-Aqsa Mosque was set on fire by an Australian Christian.
During the weekend, the OIC held an extraordinary meeting in Riyadh, this time debate the massacre committed by Israel in Gaza.
They included the ‘Arab League’ in the meeting, either because of the importance of the meeting or to purposefully eliminate the Arab summit.
Did we expect the meeting to make a decision that would stop the massacre or upset Israel?
Of course, we didn’t expect it.
There was much talk, but nothing of substance came out of the weekend. Wait, there was something. Members called upon the world community to do this, to do that to stop the bloodshed.
Can’t member states themselves do anything directly?
For instance, a course of action that puts them under any kind obligation if hostilities don’t cease?
To be honest, there was such an action. What decision was that? A collective oil embargo?
Or is it a blanket boycott on Israeli goods, which their poor citizens are doing?
By the way, these impromptu boycotts are kind of weird. Many people participate in the soda and chocolate boycott, but no one in the automotive field sacrifices their brand.
Was there a resolution to cut some of the defense imports, which amount to 250 billion dollars annually, in order to warn regimes such as the USA, France and Germany that support Israel.
No oil, no brand boycott, no arms imports.
They don’t want to anger the bosses.
They authorized the General Secretariats of the OIC and the Arab League “to establish digital media platforms that will expose Israel’s illegal actions and inhumane practices.”
Don’t bother. Across the world, people with any sense of conscience are already doing it.
Excerpt from conservative columnist Yusuf Ziya Comert, published by KARAR Daily.
Follow our English language YouTube videos @ REAL TURKEY: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKpFJB4GFiNkhmpVZQ_d9Rg
And content at Twitter: @AtillaEng
Facebook: Real Turkey Channel: https://www.facebook.com/realturkeychannel/