A report on the Commission for Media and Cyberspace of the Africa-Arabic region in the 7th General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly

News News of the Seventh Summit of the General Assembly Africa and Arab countries

Saturday, 03 September 2022

On the second day of the 7^th General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, the Commission for Media and Cyberspace of the Arabic-African region was held in Hall No. 2 of the Iran International Conference Center in Tehran with the presence of Shia scholars and intellectuals.

On Friday September 2, 2022, on the second day of the 7^th General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, the session of the Commission for Media and Cyberspace of the Arabic-African region was held in Hall No. 2 of the Iran International Conference Center in Tehran with the presence of Shia scholars and intellectuals.

In this session, pointing out the importance of cyberspace, Ayatollah Dorri-Najafabadi stated, “We must use the capacity of virtual space properly.”

“To support, make policies and protect programs in the field of cyberspace, the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly must be active. Of course, besides that, we should seek to expand communication networks around the world,” he continued.

“In the coming decades, the cyberspace will become the governance environment. Of course, we do not accept the western version of cyberspace, and we accept it with a rightful, not arrogant view,” added the member of the Supreme Council of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.

“When a sincere person takes up the work, it will be successful. An example of this issue can be seen in the spread of E’tekaf in the society, as well as the ceremony of Hosseini (a.s.) infants,” he said, referring to the importance of sincerity.

Further in the session, admitting the words of Ayatollah Najafabadi, Ayatollah Ramazani, Secretary- General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly stated, “He is one of the prominent figures of the Islamic Republic and has brilliant records such as the ministry and representation of the Majlis (Iran’s Parliament). He has actively attended the meetings of the Assembly since the first day of its inception.”

“We are in the era of change of the Assembly, and everyone should play an active role in realizing the objectives. Everything that is expressed in the commissions must be followed up in the next four years,” he continued.

“We are planning to hold regional conferences. The General Directorate of Cyberspace, one of the departments of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, has spent hundreds of hours to compile the booklet presented to the members of the 7^th General Assembly,” he said.

Also, referring to the change in the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, Sadraei Aref stated, “In the text of the appointment of the Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, the Supreme Leader of the Revolution emphasized the change. One of the developments in the Assembly is the formation of the General Directorate of Cyberspace.”

“Cyberspace is the governance environment, and now the ruling over minds and territories is done through this environment. More than fifty most viewed websites in the world are social media websites. Just one the social media platforms, has three million members,” he continued.

“The fourth most popular magazine in the world, that charges subscription fees, is dedicated to games! In the near future, games will cover all aspects of our lives and will affect our lives and children. Now the common games are very different from the past games and the user lives in them!” Sadrai Aref said.

“The General Directorate of Cyberspace works both in content production and in the management of network and communication portals,” he added.

“In the cyberspace, we are not looking for users, but we are looking for activists to influence others. As an objective, we want to dominate the cyberspace,” continued the General Director of cyberspace of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.

Further in the session, pointing out the importance of cyberspace, Abdulkamel Abbas stated, “Today’s world revolves around cyberspace and while we were sleeping, our enemies have made great progress in this environment. They have been able to implement many of their plans without doing physical activity and moving from their seat.”

“Cyberspace is like a double-edged sword. It means that it can be either for used for good or evil. We are influenced by others in the cyberspace, so we must try to influence others in this environment. By cyberspace, the world has progressed so that a person at his home, using cyberspace, can shop from another continent,” he continued.

“The AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly have paid attention to the cyberspace so far, but it didn’t this in an independent department,” Abdulkamel Abbas added.

“Of course, if we don’t bridge the gaps, others will fill these gaps with evil means. We missionaries must answer what we have done so far to prevent people from sinning in this environment,” he stated.

Referring to the methods of influence in cyberspace, Mustafa Gholam Abbas from Kuwait stated, “We must cultivate figures in cyberspace so that they can influence the new generation, especially women and children, and we can spread AhlulBayt (a.s.) culture.”

“We should create a Shiite version of Amazon so that Shiites can sell their products, including material products, such as halal goods, cosmetics, and Shiite books to each other. We should also create a Shiite version of YouTube in which the content of Shiite activities in different parts of the world will be published,” the Kuwaiti thinker added.

Referring to the weakness of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly in communication with the Shiite activists, Sheikh Bashir Adel from the Kurdistan region of Iraq stated, “The Assembly is weak in communication with activists and this issue is criticized by Shiite activists.”

“Today, the sworn enemies of Islam and Shia use every tactic to strike. Because they dominate technology and cyberspace and came to the field with all their power to attack Islam and Shia,” he continued.

Further in the session, pointing out problems in the propagation of Shia, Sabouri, the representative of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly in Namibia, stated, “One of the problems we Shiites have in propagation is not using a long-term strategy. By studying the propagation methods of Wahhabis, Christians and Bahais, we realize this shortcoming of ours.”

“Iran built the first mosque in Namibia. But looking at the situation of the country, it seems as if others entered Namibia fifty years before Iran and started their activities! For missionary work, missionaries must go to a particular place for long-term period,” he continued.

 “Missionaries like us have financial problems. But we can organize virtual programs from Iran for the audience of the target countries” Sabouri said, mentioning the problems of the missionaries.

“To sell Shiite books abroad on sites like Amazon, members of the assembly should help,” he added.

Referring to the influence of YouTube in the society, Samer Obeid from Syria stated, “YouTube has gained a high influence among the youth and children of Syria. On YouTube contents can reach a large audience. Also, animations have a lot of influence on children. Therefore, we should produce suitable animations for children.”

“Teenagers and the youth like computer games very much. Therefore, we should look for alternative games for our children,” he added.

In this session, while referring to the status of Itikaf in the society, Hojat al-Islam Alireza Tekiyei stated, “The young generation has a high presence in the Itikaf, a topic that was mentioned by the Supreme Leader in the Statement of the Second Phase of the Islamic Revolution.”

“Ayatollah Javadi Amoli considered Itikaf as a comprehensive worshipping. Although Itikaf is recommended (not wajib), it can support the wajibs. Also, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei considered Itikaf as the manifestation of morality and worship in Islamic society,” he continued.

“Itikaf is held in 83 countries, and scientific, literary, and artistic works from 69 countries have been created about it. Also, a 6-volume encyclopedia on Itikaf have been authored,” Tekiyei added.

“Itikaf festival is held every two years, and the call for the seventh edition of it has been announced. Interested people from different countries can participate in the fesrival,” he said.

Also, referring to the need for independence in cyberspace, Sheikh Helal Hassan from Oman stated, “As long as our pages are not independent from Google and social media, we cannot perform our duties in cyberspace well.”

Referring to the impact of cyberspace on life, Mohammad Ali Canani from Mozambique stated, “There is no doubt about the importance of cyberspace. In the near future, cyberspace will be central to all programs. Young foreign students who study in Qom seminary should receive training related to virtual space.”

“We must enter the cyberspace vigorously and provide strong content. For example, Prophet Yusuf series with Portuguese translation has been published in cyberspace,” he added.

“Dissemination of deviant thoughts among young people is done through cyberspace. Therefore, we need a committee to respond scientifically to these deviant thoughts,” Canani said.

Referring to the soft war in cyberspace, Abdullah Firoz from Kuwait said, “This is not a classic war and is considered a fun war! and it has devastating effects on the family. We have to do something in this regard.”

“Entertainment and having fun are permissible in Islam. But excesses in this regard have destructive effects. Therefore, along with acquiring technical preparations for soft war in cyberspace, we must institutionalize the balance of entertainment in the society,” he continued:

Mentioning the need to support missionaries in cyberspace, Sayed Mohamed Birago from Burkina Faso stated, “African missionaries who work in cyberspace should be supported. Because the cost of internet in these countries is very high and missionaries can’t afford it.”

Also, on the characteristics of cyberspace, Mohammad Amin Niyadi from Sierra Leone stated, “Cyberspace was created by Westerners who are anti-Islam. Therefore, no matter how much we progress in this field, the westerners still have more experience in cyberspace. Battle of Truth vs Falsehood is always going on and we should not think that with a single victory in cyberspace, the war is over.”

7th General Assembly Africa AhlulBayt (a_s_) World Assembly Arab Commission Media and Cyberspace