Islam and the West

156 Pages·2008·2.02 MB·English

Islam and the West :
Annual Report on the State
of Dialogue
January 2008
AttheWorldEconomicForum: Theviewsexpressedinthispublication
KlausSchwab ExecutiveChairman donotnecessarilyreflectthoseof
RickSamans ManagingDirector,WorldEconomicForum theWorldEconomicForum.
FionaPaua HeadofStrategicInsightTeams
SherifElDiwany Director,HeadMiddleEastand WorldEconomicForum
NorthAfrica,WestandIslamDialogue 91-93routedelaCapite
Community(C-100) CH-1223Cologny/Geneva
SamanAhsan GlobalLeadershipFellow,Manager,West Switzerland
andIslamDialogueCommunity(C-100) Tel.:[phone]
Alistair SeniorAdviser,WestandIslamDialogue Fax:[phone]
Macdonald-Radcliff Community(C-100) E-mail:[email protected]
www.weforum.org
Editors:
NancyTranchet WorldEconomicForum
DiannaRienstra PhoenixInkCommunications ©2008WorldEconomicForum
Allrightsreserved.
Creativedesign: Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedortransmitted
KamalKimaoui WorldEconomicForum inanyformorbyanymeans,includingphotocopyingand
EKZE Geneva recording,orbyanyinformationstorageandretrievalsystem.
Report Partners
IslamandtheWest:AnnualReportontheStateofDialogueisaprojectoftheWorldEconomicForumCommunity
ofWestandIslamDialogue(C-100).TheForum,anot-for-profitfoundationbasedinGeneva,Switzerland,isthe
globalcommunityoftheformostbusiness,political,faith,mediaandthoughtleadersaddressingglobalchallenges.
TheCommunityofWestandIslamDialogue(C-100)bringstogetherForummembersandpartnersworkingtogether
topromotedialogueandunderstandingacrosssegmentsofsociety.
PresidentJohnJ.DeGioiaofGeorgetownUniversityisservingasleadauthorfortheannualreport.Locatedin
Washington,DC,GeorgetownUniversityisagloballeaderintheinterdisciplinarystudyofreligionandthepromotion
ofinterreligiousunderstanding.Twoofitsresearchcentreshaveprovidedacademicoversightforthereportproject:
TheBerkleyCenterforReligion,Peace,andWorldAffairs;andthePrinceAlwaleedbinTalalCenterforMuslim-
ChristianUnderstanding.
IslamandtheWest:AnnualReportontheStateofDialogue2008wasproducedinPartnershipwith:
-HRHPrinceHussambinSaudbinAbdulazizalSaud
-GallupOrganization,USA
-KingdomFoundation,SaudiArabia
-MiddleEastCenterforPeaceandEconomicCooperation,USA
-XenelGroup,SaudiArabia
Contents
Isla
m
a
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d
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e
st:
Letter of Introduction 4 An
n
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e
p
Preface 6 ort
o
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th
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1. Introduction 8 ta
te
o
f
D
ia
2. The Gallup Muslim-West Dialogue Index 20 log
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e
1
3. International Politics 28
C
o
n
4. Citizenship and Integration 42 ten
ts
5. Religion, Ethics, and Ideology 56
6. Education and Intercultural
Understanding 72
7. Economic and Social Development 86
8. Media Coverage 102
9. Conclusions and Paths Forward 122
Annex 1: Public Opinion on the State
of Muslim West Dialogue 130
References 144
List of boxes
Isla
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e
st:
1.1 West-MuslimDialogue:ACriticalChallenge LordCareyofClifton 11 An
n
u
a
1.2 TheMeaningofDialogue KarenArmstrong 12 lR
e
p
1.3 TheStateofWest-IslamicDialogue HRHPrincessLolowahAlfaisal 16 ort
o
n
1.4 ADialogueforResults JohnL.Esposito 18 th
e
S
3.1 ThreeSimpleQuestions JanPetersen 29 ta
te
3.2 RethinkingModeratesandExtremists HRHPrinceHussambinSaudbinAbdulazizalSaud 30 of
D
ia
3.3 PublicDialogue MarcGopin 32 log
u
e
3.4 West-IslamicDialogue:WhatitisReallyAbout HHSheikhaMozahBintNasserAl-Missned 35
3.5 TheWestandIslam: HESheikhaHayaRashedAlKhalifa 37 3
ChallengeforaMeaningfulDialogue
L
3.6 Excerpts:AddressattheAnnualMeetingof TzipiLivni,Vice-PrimeMinister 39 ist
o
theWorldEconomicForum,January2007 andMinisterofForeignAffairs,Israel f
b
o
x
4.1 IslaminEurope:IdealsandRealities MustafaCeric 45 es
4.2 Respect MariaJ.A.vanderHoeven 47
4.3 CivicValues IsmailSerageldin 48
4.4 TheImperativeofIntegration DanielSachs 50
4.5 TheImperativeofModerationand MuhammadSa’adAbubakar 53
TolerationintheGlobalEnvironment
5.1 IslamandtheWest:TheMythoftheGreatDichotomy AnwarIbrahim 58
5.2 ContextandContinuityisCrucial JaneDammenMcAuliffe 61
5.3 RecapturingtheSpiritofJewish-MuslimDialogue RabbiDavidRosen 63
5.4 FriendshipAcrosstheGreatDivide AkbarAhmed 64
5.5 TheCircleofDialogue ThomasBanchoff 67
5.6 Avoidingthe“ClashofCivilizations” JimWallis 70
6.1 ThePowerofDignity HRHCrownPrinceHaakonofNorway 73
6.2 CommonalitiesAcrossTraditions PeterBisanz 75
6.3 IslamandtheWest:TheInternetDimension ShimonSamuels 78
6.4 YoungPeople:TheImperative SheikhaHessaAlKhalifa 80
6.5 DignityDay JohnHopeBryant 83
7.1 Africa’sPluralChallenges NgoziOkonjo-Iweala 88
7.2 TowardsaFuturewithHopeandTrueEquity KatherineMarshall 91
7.3 Women,InterculturalCooperation MaryRobinson 95
andGlobalChallenges
7.4 WhoSpeaksforWomenintheMuslim-WestDialogue? IngridMattson 96
7.5 InformationandtheInternet: EricSchmidt 99
DeliveringHopeandPeacetotheWorld
Letter of Introductio
Foreword
Isla
m By Klaus Schwab, Trustisanessentialcurrencyofsocial
a
n
dth Executive Chairman collaboration.Oursuccessinaddressingthe
e
W globalchallengesofeconomicwell-being,
e
st:A T heremarkablefeelingofproximity politicalrelationsandsocialpeaceisafunction
n
n
u
al betweenpeopleandnationsisthe ofthedegreeoftrustthatnationsandcultures
R
e
po unmistakablerealityofourglobalized areabletosustaininternationally.
rt
o
n world.Encounterswithotherpeoples’waysof
th
e
S life,currentaffairs,politics,welfareandfaiths Whilemanynationstateshavemadeagreat
ta
teo aremorefrequentthanever.Wearenotonly dealofprogressinbuildinginstitutionsoftrust
f
D
ia abletoseeotherculturesmoreclearly,but withintheirborders,regrettablythelevelof
lo
g
ue alsotoseeourdifferencesmoresharply.The publictrustinglobalinstitutionsisfarfrom
informationintensityofmodernlifehasmade satisfactory.Thecurrentlevelsofinternational
4
thisdiversityofnationspartofoureveryday conflict,thepersistentperceptionofeconomic
Le consciousnessandhasledtothecentralityof andsecuritythreats,andthescaleandlevelof
tte
ro cultureindiscerningourindividualandcollective violenceallpointtoaseveredeficitintrust
f
Intro viewsoftheworld. internationally.
d
u
c
tio
n Ourchallengeshavealsobecomeglobal. Perhapsthemostspecificandsevereinstance
Thedestiniesofnationshavebecomedeeply ofthisdeficitintrustisfoundbetweenthe
interconnected.Nomatterwhereintheworld WesternandMuslimcommunities.Thisdeep
welive,wearetouchedbythesuccessesand divisionbetweenIslamandtheWestiscaptured
failuresoftoday’sglobalorder.Yetourresponses bythelowlevelofoptimismreportedinthe
toglobalproblemsremainvastlydifferent,not 2007GallupOrganizationSurveyofPopulation
onlyasaresultofrivalryandcompetinginterests, PerceptionsandAttitudes.Theaveragescore
butlargelybecauseourculturaldifferenceis forthe21countriessurveyedis37(where100
thelensthroughwhichweseetheseglobal isthemostoptimistic),reflectinganalarmingly
challenges. lowlevelofoptimismregardingdialoguebetween
IslamandtheWest.Inallbuttwocountries
Culturaldiversityisnotnecessarilyasourceof surveyed(BangladeshandPakistan),amajority
clashesandconflict.Infact,theproximityand believedtheinteractionbetweenWesternand
cross-culturalencountersveryoftenbringabout Islamiccommunitiesisgettingworse.
creativechange–achangethatismade
possiblebywell-organizedsocialcollaboration. Thisannualreport,IslamandtheWest:Annual
Collaborationacrossbordersisgrowing ReportontheStateofDialogue,publishedby
primarilyintheareaofbusinessandeconomic theWorldEconomicForumCommunityofWest
activity.Collaborativenetworksforinnovation, andIslamDialogue(C-100)isthefirsteffortof
productionanddistributionareemergingas itskindaimedatbenchmarkingthestateof
thesinglemostpowerfulshaperoftheglobal thisdialogue.Itsscopecoversfivedialogue
economy. agendaitems:internationalpolitics;citizenship
on
Isla
andintegration;religion,ethicsandideology;education Internationalpoliticsremainthesinglemostvisibleissue m
a
n
andinterculturalunderstanding;andeconomicandsocial shapingthedialoguebetweenIslamandtheWest.However, dth
e
development.Itdrawsonapopulationperceptionsurvey,a citizenshipandintegrationinEuropeappearpositionedto W
e
dialogueactivitysurveyandamediacontentanalysis. rapidlygainequalinfluenceonthedialogue.Morereporting st:A
n
n
u
oncitizenshipandintegrationwasdetectedinEuropethan al
R
e
TheForumtruststhatthisbenchmarkingstudycanbring inanyothercountryorregioncoveredbythemediacontent po
rt
o
tobearanintensificationofeffortsbygloballeadersfrom surveyconductedin2007.TheroleofEuropeangovernments n
th
e
government,business,religion,mediaandacademiato ingrantingcitizenshiprights,enforcingthelawanduniting S
ta
addressthemostpressingissuesthatwillhelptoshape diversecommunitiesisvisiblyreportedintheEuropean teo
f
D
thedialoguepositively. media,accountingfor62%ofthecoverageofthisissue. ia
lo
g
u
e
Thefinalizationofthisannualreportcameataperiodof Thecombinedeffectsoftheagendasettingimpactofmedia
5
timewhenasenseofoptimismsurfacedfollowinganumber andthedemographicshiftsinEuropeareboundtopropel
ofexchangesbetweenMuslimandChristianscholars.Vatican theissueofcitizenshipandintegrationtothecentreof Le
tte
officialsrespondedpositivelytotheinvitationtodialogueissued West-Islamdialogueinthecomingyears.Thepercentage ro
f
byMuslimscholars.Afewdaysearlier,theKingofSaudi ofMuslimpopulationintheEU-15isexpectedtorisefrom Intro
d
ArabiaheldahistoricmeetingwiththePopeattheVatican. 4.3%in2006toapproximately10%to15%by2025,with uc
tio
Thesignificanceoftheseexchangesstemsfromtheiremphasis ahigherconcentrationinurbanareasofupto30%incountries n
onthevalueofexpressingrespecttowardthe“other.” suchasFrance,GermanyandHolland.Byinference,any
deteriorationontheinternationalpoliticalfront,ordisputeon
Suchdevelopmentsareparticularlyimportantgiventhe theotheragendaissues,willbefeltmostseverelyinEurope.
“asymmetryinrespect”detectedbytheGallupOrganization’s
surveyofPopulationPerceptionsandAttitudes.Thesurvey TheWorldEconomicForumbelievesthatlikeallother
notesthatwhileonaverage65%ofrespondentsinMuslim globalchallenges,itwilltakethecollaborativeeffortofall
majoritycountriessayMuslimsrespecttheWest,60%feelthat stakeholdersfromgovernment,business,religion,media,
theWestdoesnotrespectMuslims.Onaverage,60%of academiaandcivilsocietytopre-emptanycrisis,create
AmericansandEuropeansagree.Continuationofsuchconfidence alliancesandfindsolutions.Overthecourseof2008,the
buildingexchangesisthereforecertainlyneededtoimprovethe CommunityofIslamandtheWestDialoguewillinvite
stateofthedialoguebetweentheWesternandIslamiccommunities. leadersfromvariouswalksoflifetoengageinaconcerted
dialogueanddebateofthemostimportantissues,in
Animportantfindingworthyofourcloseattentionisthe particulartheareaofcitizenshipandintegration.
adventofthecitizenshipandintegrationissueasthesecond
mostpowerfulshaperofthestateofdialoguebetweenthe ThisfirstIslamandtheWest:AnnualReportontheState
WestandIslamafterinternationalpolitics.Thepotencyof ofDialoguehasclearlyhelpedtodefineinmoreprecise
thecitizenshipandintegrationissueisespeciallyclearin termstheissuesthatareshapingthedialogue.TheWorld
Europe.Anoverwhelmingmajorityofthesurveyedpopulations EconomicForumismostgratefultoallthepartnerswho
inEuropebelievethatgreaterinteractionbetweenIslam havemadethisachievementpossible,butespeciallyto
andtheWestisathreat.ThisisincontrasttotheUS, DrJohnJ.DeGioia,PresidentofGeorgetownUniversity,
wheretheoppositeviewisheldby70%ofitspopulation. whohastakentheleadasitsprincipalauthor.
Preface
Preface
Isla
m John J. DeGioia, President, globalscopetopragmaticresponsestospecific
a
n
dth Georgetown University, Washington, DC communityproblems.Atthesametime,media
e
W coverageofissuesattheintersectionofIslam
e
st:A T oday,dialogueattheintersectionof andtheWesthassurged.
n
n
u
al theWestandtheMuslimworldisa
R
e
po vitalandexpandingenterpriseatthe Unfortunately,theproliferationofdialogue
rt
o
n international,nationalandlocallevels.Butour effortshashadadisappointingimpactsofar.
th
e
S knowledgeofitsevolvingcontoursremains Monologueoftendominatesoverdialogue.
ta
teo inadequate.IslamandtheWest:AnnualReport Initiativesandprogrammesoftencompeteand
f
D
ia ontheStateofDialogueaimstoelevatethe overlap.Awarenessofparalleleffortsisweak
lo
g
ue globalvisibilityofdialogueeffortsandtopromote andopportunitiesforsynergiesaremissed.
greaterunderstandingandcooperationata Themediaandpublicopinionfocustoooften
6
criticaljunctureinhistory. onviolenceandterrorismandreinforce
Pre polarisedperspectivesandcrudestereotypes.
fa
ce Thisreportisdesignedtobeaglobalreference
forleadersacrossmultiplesectors,including Thefragmentationandlowvisibilityofdialogue
government,business,media,education,civil effortsisexacerbatedbydeep-seatedand
societyandfaithcommunities.Itseeksto long-standingknowledgegaps,evidentatthe
advancecommunicationandpromotecolla- levelofinternationaldiplomacy,aswellasin
borationaroundglobalchallenges,including nationalandlocalaffairs.
combatingextremismandviolence,building
peacefulandvibrantcivilsocieties,and Manydialogueeffortsaredesignedtodemystify,
furtheringeconomicandsocialdevelopment. enlightenandbuildknowledgeoftheunfamiliar.
IslamandtheWest:AnnualReportonthe Othersseekoutareasofcommonground
StateofDialoguealsoincludesanin-depth anchoredincorereligiousandcivicvalues.
analysisofpublicopinionandadetailed Someinvolvepragmatic,materialeffortsto
assessmentoftrendsinmediacoverage identifyandhelpaddressspecificproblems.
across24countries. Commontomanyofthemisthevisionofa
commonfuturegroundedinidealsofequality
Theexplosionofdialogueinitiativesinthe andrespect.
yearssince9/11offersmuchhope–butalso
presentsapictureofsomeconfusion. Inmappingthemanydifferentkindsofdialogue
unfoldingaroundtheworld,thisreport
Politicalleadersroutinelyrefertotheimportance emphasizesthediversitybehindtheterms
ofbettertiesbetweentheWestandtheMuslim “Islam”andthe“West”.IftheWestandthe
world,lacingtheirspeecheswithcallsforgreater Muslimworldwerecoherent,self-contained
interculturalandinterreligiousunderstanding. entities,dialoguewouldbeimpossible.Because
International,nationalandlocaldialogue theyintersectandoverlapinmultipleways,
initiativesrangefromlong-termeffortswitha dialoguepresentsanopportunity.
Isla
However,abetterfutureforMuslim-Westrelationsata Dialogueisnosubstituteforpoliticalleadershipandpractical m
a
n
globallevelandwithinnationalsocietiesdependsonmore problemsolving.Butthedialogueeffortsoutlinedinthis dth
e
thandialogue.Itdemandsprogressonoutstandingconflicts, report–effortsorientedtoactionaroundsocial,political W
e
includinganIsraeli-Palestinianpeacethatcombinessecurity andeconomicagendas–haveavital,stillunderappreciated st:A
n
n
u
withself-determination.Italsodemandsgreaterstability, importance.Dialoguecanincreaseknowledgeandtrust, al
R
e
prosperityanddemocracythroughouttheMiddleEast, pointtobothcommonalitiesanddifferences,andframe po
rt
o
Africa,andSouth,CentralandSoutheastAsia. jointeffortstoaddressthepressingglobalchallengesof n
th
e
thenewmillennium. S
ta
AbetterfuturenecessitatesequalcitizenshipforMuslims teo
f
D
andnon-MuslimsinEurope,NorthAmericaandaround ia
lo
g
theworld,markedbybroad-basedeconomicgrowth, ue
upwardmobilityandaccesstoeducationandhealthcare.
7
P
re
fa
c
e
Introduction
1
Introduction
Islam Muslim-Westdialogueiscriticalin Thisinherentdiversityhasledsomeobservers
a
n
dth today’sworld.Terrorismandanti- torejecttermssuchas“Muslim-Westdialogue”
e
W terrorismefforts,theUSoccupation asbothvagueandinaccurate.Othersobject
e
st:A andsectarianviolenceinIraq,theenduring thattheterminologyreproducesthebroad
n
n
u
al Israeli-Palestinianconflict,EuropeanUnion andmisleadingoppositions,popularizedby
R
e
po effortstointegrateagrowingMuslimminority, SamuelHuntington’sClashofCivilizationsthesis.
rt
o
n andtheprospectsfordemocracyintheMiddle
th
e
S East–theseandotherissuesinvolvecomplex Thesecriticismsmissthemark.Whetherwe
ta
teo strategic,politicalandeconomiccalculations. likeitornottheconcepts“West”,“Western
f
D
ia Atthesametime,suchissuesdemonstrate world”,“Islam”,“Muslimworld”,andothersare
lo
g
ue theimportanceofdialoguetogetherwith heretostay.Similartoothercontestedterms,
greaterunderstanding,mutualrespect,and suchas“humanrights”and“globalization”,
8
sustainedcooperationintheserviceofpeace. theyarepartofourpoliticalvocabulary.We
In mustdoourbesttodefineanddeploythem,
tro
d
u Noneoftheseissuesorothercontroversies whileremainingfullyawareofthecomplexand
c
tio
n juxtaposesauniformWestandamonolithic multifacetedrealitytheydescribe.
Islam.Insomerespects,aWestthatincludes
theUnitedStatesandSwedenisnomore
“The affirmation and realization
cohesivethananIslamthatunitesIndonesia
andSaudiArabia. of universal human principles is
a challenge that goes beyond
Muslim-West relations to
encompass the state of the
world as a whole.”
LordCareyofClifton
Isla
m
Islam and the West Dialogue
a
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d
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e
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of The World Economic Forum e
st:
A
n
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TheWorldEconomicForumrepresentsadiverseconstituency,includingleadersfromgovernment,business,media, po
rt
o
education,religiouscommunities,andcivilsociety.Eachhastheresponsibility–andtheopportunity–tocontribute n
th
e
todeepeningdialoguebetweentheWestandtheMuslimworld. S
ta
te
o
f
D
Politics:Politicalleadershaveclearresponsibilitiestoaddressthemajorareasoftensionamongandwithinnations. ia
lo
g
Throughbothtraditionaldiplomacyandsophisticatedpubliccommunications,theyareuniquelyplacedtobuild ue
crosscuttingalliancesthatbringtogetherbothMuslimsandnon-Muslimstoaddressconcreteproblems.
9
Business:Inadditiontofosteringeconomicgrowthandenhancingjobopportunities,businessleaderscan In
tro
d
advancecorporateculturesattentivetogrowingculturalandreligiousdiversityinbothMuslimmajorityandnon- u
c
tio
Muslimmajoritycountries.Asactivecorporatecitizens,businessleadersbringavital,results-orientedphilosophy n
tothechallengesofMuslim-Westdialogue.
Media:Inthecontextofglobalization,themediahaveemergedascriticalshapersofpublicandeliteopinion
concerningtheWestandtheMuslimworld,aswellasinteractionsacrossthem.Newspapersandmagazines,radio,
televisionandtheInternetpurveythenews,opinion,imagesandanalysisthatframenationalandinternational
debates.Theneedforreasonedandbalancedcoveragehasneverbeenhigherthanitistoday.
Faithcommunities:Religiousleadersareactivelyengagingindialogue,supportingcivicvaluesandmediatingto
defuseexplosivecommunitytensions.Theseeffortsbeliethewidespreadviewthatextremistsaredrowningout
constructivevoices.Butthepersistenceofthatmisperceptionunderscorestheneedforagreatervisibilityand
coordinationofdialogueefforts.
Educationandculture:Educationprofessionalsatthesecondaryandpost-secondarylevelsareespeciallywell
positionedtofosterdialoguethataddressesknowledgegapsandpreparescitizensforaworldmarkedbycultural
andreligiousdiversity.Youthexchanges,curricularreformandliteracydrivesareamongthemostimportantmeans
toachievethis.Artsandsportsalsoprovideopportunitiestostrengtheninterculturalandinterfaithunderstanding.
Civilsociety:Tobeeffective,dialoguebetweentheWestandtheMuslimworldmustreachdeepintocivilsociety
toengagewomen,ethnicandracialminorities,andprofessionsincludingeducation,lawandmedicine.
Communicationiscritical.Bringingtogetherleadersoflocalinitiativestosharetheirexperiencesandcoordinate
eventsandcalendarsenhancestheoverallimpactofdialogueefforts.