LONDON,
January 27, 2006 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Prince
Charles, heir to the British throne, signed a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) in London between his charities and the Islamic
Development Bank (IDB) Thursday, January 26.
The
agreement is aimed at creating job opportunities for Muslim youths in
Britain and the Middle East.
"With
the support of the Islamic Development Bank, my charities will be able
to increase their efforts to address the challenges we face in
Britain's cities and help those younger British Muslims who feel they
have little or no stake in society to play a fuller part in the
country's affairs," Charles said at the signing ceremony,
reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Shortly
after the 7/7 attacks in London, the British Trade Unions said Britain
must do more to create jobs for British Muslims and increase funding
to tackle widespread poverty and poor health, the root causes for
fueling extremism.
The
1.8-million Muslim minority, making up just under three percent of
Britain's population, has been suffering increasing harassment since
July 7 London attacks that killed 56 people including four bombers,
three of them are Britain-born Muslims of Pakistani origin.
Nearly
half a million Muslims contemplated leaving Britain after the
terrorist attacks, with one in five saying they or a family member
have faced abuse or hostility since the attacks.
The
spiritual leader of the Church of England, Rowan Williams, warned
after the attacks against making Muslims "scapegoats" for
the London bombings after a number of attacks on mosques.
Mideast
Youths
The
agreement is also focusing on combating towering unemployment rates in
the Middle East.
Prince
Charles said the charity Youth Business International was also working
to develop initiatives to help youngsters in Morocco, Egypt and
Jordan.
"I
hope that Youth Business International will be able to play a greater
role in the Middle East... to address the future challenge of creating
the millions of jobs which are required if there is to be any chance
of reducing the alarmingly high levels of youth unemployment in those
countries," he added.
The
MoU was signed at a London hotel between Prince Charles in his
capacity as the president of The Prince's Charities and the IDB's
president Ahmad Mohamad Ali on the occasion of the bank's 30th
anniversary.
The
prince's charities are a group of 16 not-for-profit organizations that
raises funding for business development, as well as matters concerning
education, health and the environment.
Prince
Charles personally supports Islamic projects in London and speaks in a
very positive way about Islam.
Through
his several speeches on Islam and the West, he has stressed the need
for the two to live and work together. He supports dialogue between
the Islamic and Western civilizations.
The
Prince of Wales is also a staunch advocate for bridging the gap
between Islam and Christianity.
During
a London ceremony in June of last year, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of
Brunei awarded Prince Charles an international prize for his
contribution to understanding Islam in the West.
