(International Conference on Rights of Aged People - An Islamic Perspective (1999

International Conference on "Rights of Aged People - An Islamic Perspective"

Who

organized by IOMS

from 18-21 October, 1999 (9-12th of Rajab) in Kuwait

What

International Conference on "Rights of Aged People - An Islamic Perspective" organized by IOMS from 18-21 October, 1999 (9-12th of Rajab) in Kuwait

General Recommendations

In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful

Praise to be to Allah, the Cherisher of the Worlds and peace be upon Prophet Mohammed, his Household, Companions and righteous followers till the Day of Judgment.

True to its interest in fields of research dedicated to man's worthiness, the Islamic Organization for Medical Sciences (IOMS) has dedicated many activities to emerging medical and health issues and problems from an Islamic perspective. In this repsect, major topics taken up included the right of fetus of survival, the beginning and end of human life, morbidity, illnesses and accidents may call for transplantation of an organ or a transplantation cosmetic surgery, serious illnesses such as AIDS or any alternation or engineerinng of human genes.

IOMS has also taken up issues related to food, drink and medication with a view to trace any prohibited or profane input or any other substance therein that may adversely affect life or physical psychological and spiritual soundness as well as any other related issues.

In line with the interest taken by IOMS in this regard, it deemed it fitting to organize this Seminar to take up the issue of the rights of elderly from an Islamic perspective during 1999, the Year of Aged, as declared by the United Nations.

This Seminar was organized in collaboration witht he following organizations:

1. 1- Islamic Education, Science and Culture Organization (ISESCO);
2. 2- World Health Organization East Mediterranean Regional Office (WHO EMRO);
3. 3- Islamic Fiqh Council, Jedda (Saudi Arabia); and
4. 4- Confederation of INternational Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS).

The Seminar was held under the auspices of H.H. Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the Amir of the State Kuwait from 9th through 12th of Rajab, 1420 A.H., (18-21 October 1999 A.D.).

A galaxy of noted scholars, doctors and scientists were invited to take part in its activities. The inaugural session was held at the Auditorium of the Al-Marzouq Centre for Islamic Medicine. It started with a recitation from the Holy Qura'n followed by speeches by H.E. Dr. Mohammad Al-Jarallah, Minister of Health, Government of Kuwait, in his capacity as the Representative of H.H. the Amir of Kuwait, under whose auspices the seminar was organized, His Eminence Dr. Mohammad El-Habib Bin El-Khoja, Secretary General, Islamic Fiqh Council, Jedda (Saudi Arabia), H.E. Dr. Abdelaziz Al-Twaijri, Director-General, ISESCO, H.E. Dr. Hussein Al-Jazayeri, Regional Director, WHO EMRO, the Honorable Dr. John Bryant, President CIOMS and H.E. Dr. Abdulrehman Al-Awadi, President, IOMS.

Following the inaugural and key-note speeches, Justice Abdullah Al-Issa, Member, Board of trustees, IOMS, on behalf of the organization, paid homage to the memory of the late Hakim Mohammad Saeed, President, Hamdard Foundation, Pakistan and Member, Board of Trustees of IOMS, who was assassinated in Pakistan. This was followed by a memorial lecture by Professor Ezzeldin Ebrahim on "The Latter Years of Life in the Light of Islamic Injunctions".

The participants called on H.H. the Amir of the State of Kuwait. Soon after that, the Seminar started its working sessions at the Meridien Hotel, Kuwait City. Four topics were discussed; namely:

1. 1- Increasing rate of aged to total population in Arab and Muslim region;
2. 2- Illnesses associated with ageing and relevance of a preventive approach thereto;
3. 3- Contry reports on services to, and care of elderly; and
4. 4- The rights of elderly.

Roundtable on euthanasia

Concurrently, a roundtable on euthanasia was organized where the following resourcepersons took part:

His Eminence Dr. Yususf El-Qaradawi;

His Eminence Sheikh Mohammad El-Mokhtar El-Sallami; His Eminence Sheikh Mohammad Mahdi El-Taskheeri; Dr. John Bryant; Dr. Essam El-Sherbini; and Dr. Gamal Zaki.

It was agreed that recommendation on the outcome of this roundtable be included in the recommendations of the Seminar.

A drafting sub-committee was formed in respect of each of the four topics of the Seminar. After discussing the draft recommendations finalized by the four sub-committees, the Committee on

Recommendations

Recommendations finalized the following recommendations:

1. 1- To take all measures to maintain elderly's health as from the fetus and childhood stages and continue the same for adolescents and adults; to promote social relations network in family; school, locality and community; to strengthen their submission to God and their commitment to the teachings of religion and protect them from harmful practices such a staking drugs and alcoholics; and to prevent environmental pollution.
2. 2- To make the elderly aware of whatever ameliorates their health conditions especially balanced nutrition, moderate physical exercises, suitable hobbies, preservation of social relations as much as possible and spiritual furtherance that supports faith, tranquillity and self-satisfaction.
3. 3- To provide the elderly with suitable primary health care, clinical care and all levels of health care; to adapat health services so as to take into account elderly's needs; and to train physicians on discovery and treatment of physical and psychological illnesses which may have symptoms that different from those in younger people.
4. 4- To ensure justice and equality in providing health services to elderly men and women and to introduce an integrated health and social insurance system that covers all the segments of elderly including farmers, craftsmen and small wage earners who are not covered by the outstanding insurance systems.
5. 5- To encourage the conduct and financing of topical and field research works on elderly physical and psychological health; collect data related to their activities and health problems, analyze the same and make them available to decision makers to help them take proper decisions; and to pass appropriate laws to ensure elderly care.
6. 6- To encourage mass media to highlight elderly health issues, sensities them and their families especially as related to their nutrition, physical activity, prevention against accidents and hazards and to observe medication intake time; and to allocate special programmes for recreation and amusement.
7. 7- To include elderly health, medicine and care in curriculae of schools of medicine, nursing and other health disciplines; and to create geriatric medicine and nursing and other health disiciplines; and to create geriatric medicine and nursing departments in different health educational institutions.
8. 8- To imbibe religious values and teachings that evoke benevolence to parents and high esteem of elderly especially through curriculae of various levels of education which should include subjects to enhance the awareness of the elderly, stress their position and rights in the family, showing faithfulness and good treatment to the elderly, paying visits to them in their gathering places and urge students to follow healthy behaviour which enables them to remain in good health as they become aged, make them avoid smoking, drugs and all other harmful habits and make them aware of how to take care of the elderly.
9. 9- To benefit from the ederly's rich resources of knowledge and experience by involving them as much as possi ble in briunging up younger generations. In this respect, decision makers may consult the elderly people experienced in public affairs.
10. 10- To boost the family role in taking care of the elderly, to be keen to keep the elderly always in a familial atmosphere whether with their our families with other families or in elderly houses that have to be in close relation with the family, provide the familial atmosphere and all condition that preserve the elderly's dignity and provide their required physical, psychological, social and spiritual care. The elderly houses should be distributed all over localities so that every elderly house becomes a nucleus for participation in the locality's social, cultural and religious activities.
11. 11- To encourage voluntary and non governmental organizations and all the other civic society institutions to perform their role in providing health and social care for the elderly men and women, especially for those whose share in familial in diminished.
12. 12- To make the authorities and decision makers aware of the importance and special needs of the elderly in lights of Islamic Jurisdiction including raising retirement age, intorducing a penalty for disobedience of parents, helping the needy to support their elderly and establishing a higher council for elderly care where all the concerned parties are represented, and which will have appropriate competence and sufficient resources.
13. 13- To provide the elderly with the necessary privileges and facilities, particularly the priory in public places and allocation of seats for them in means of public transportation, gardens, theaters and social and cultural clubs, provision of means of mobility for the handicappped or disabled, and granting them suitable deductions in the fares of land, sea and air transport and membership fees of clubs and all other instituions that provide social and arecreational services, sports, etc.
14. 14- To enable the elderly to define their own needs, give them opportunity to fully utilize their long experiences and skills for their benefit and th ebenefit of their societies, to enhance their initiative taking, to train them on self-reliance, to help them perform activities that suit their capacities and abilities and to found up associations to be managed by the elderly themselves through which they develop self satisfaction by active participation in the society.
15. 15- To conduct continuous governmental evaluation of the demographical changes an dtransformations, to take them into account in drawing comprehensive social development plans and to make special emphasis on the considerable projected increase of the elderly of especially women; and to take the necessary procedures to adapt with the projected situation.
16. 16- To use words denoting respect while addressing or referring to the elderly.
17. 17- To prepare the elderly psychologically before retirement in order to avoid the shock that may result from solitude and idleness.
18. 18- To encourage care-givers to allocate endowments for the benefit of the elderly.
19. 19- To call upon IOMS to publish a book on 'the elderly ordinance' that includes the rules of rites, transactions and other juristic rules related to the elderly.
20. 20- To appeal to OIC, ISESCO in cooperation with IOMS to issue, then declare, a document on elderly rights from an Islamic perspective.
21. 21- To set up a committee follow up the implementation, of such recommendations. Organizers of the Symposium shall be on the follow-up committee.
22. 22- To adopt a decaration titled "Kuwait Declaration on Elderly Rights".

The participants in this Seminar would like to express heart-felt thanks to H.H. Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the STate of Kuwait, May Allah save him, for graciously giving consent that this Seminar be organized under his auspices and for the continuous support to IOMS.

The participants also express their sincere thanks to H.E. Sheikh Sa'ad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the STate of Kuwait for his continuous support to IOMS. They would like to express many thanks to H.E. Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Acting Prime Minister, First Deputy Prime Minister and MInister of Foreign Affairs of the STate of Kuwait, the people and Governmnet of kUwait for the warm welcome and hospitality accorded to them. They wish the people of Kuwait all success under the leadership of H.H. the Amir and pray to Allah Almighty to bestow mercy on the departed souls of Kuwaiti martyrs oand hope that Kuwaiti POW's will be expeditedly freed.

The participants entrust H.E. Dr. Abdelrehman Abdullah Al-Awadi, President, IOMS with sending cables of thanks and appreciation to H.H. Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the STate of Kuwait, H.H. Sheikh Sa'ad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and H.E. Dr. MOhammad Al-Jarallah, Minister of Health, Government of Kuwait.

link

http://islamset.net/healnews/aged/hrights_of_aged.html

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