France is the second country in Western Europe, after Belgium in 1998 (see ISIM Newsletter 2, p. 26), to have elected a representative Muslim council. T h e formation of the Conseil Franais du... Show moreFrance is the second country in Western Europe, after Belgium in 1998 (see ISIM Newsletter 2, p. 26), to have elected a representative Muslim council. T h e formation of the Conseil Franais du Culte Musulman (CFCM) was carefully controlled by the Ministry of Interior and despite the substantial support it has received for its general purpose of consultation, many have questioned the degree to which the CFCM truly reflects the composition of the Muslim community. Show less
Islam in South Africa is characterized by an exceptional diversity that might be compared to that of the Muslim world in general. Despite the relatively low number of Muslims in South Africa ... Show moreIslam in South Africa is characterized by an exceptional diversity that might be compared to that of the Muslim world in general. Despite the relatively low number of Muslims in South Africa (approximately 550000 Muslim inhabitants, or 1.36 per cent of the entire population -one of the smallest minorities in the country- they form an integral and visible part of the society. This is especially true in the urban areas of the Western Cape, Natal, and Transvaal regions. Show less
Since the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 Islam has become increasingly associated with intolerance and violence in public debates in Europe. However, in the aftermath of 9/11 'good' images... Show moreSince the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 Islam has become increasingly associated with intolerance and violence in public debates in Europe. However, in the aftermath of 9/11 'good' images of Islam have also been highlighted in opposition to 'bad' Islam. Governments and political parties in various European countries, including France and the UK, along with the stigmatization and criminalization of 'bad' Islam, have contributed to the elaboration of this more 'positive' imagery. The differences between French and British approaches in this process of 'othering' towards Islam are much less real than they are often believed to be. Show less
The ISIM and Felix Meritis (European Centre for Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam) organized a series of lectures and debates on 'Islam, Authority, and Leadership' in 2002 and 2003. The series,... Show moreThe ISIM and Felix Meritis (European Centre for Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam) organized a series of lectures and debates on 'Islam, Authority, and Leadership' in 2002 and 2003. The series, consisting of five meetings, dealt with the presence of Muslim intellectuals in the media, views on how to live a Muslim life in Europe, the principle of separation of church and state, the position of Muslim women in the Netherlands, and Dutch integration policy. Show less
In the months leading up to the US invasion of Iraq, I did not believe, and said so in public, that Iraq was in any way directly responsible for 9/11, or that the Iraqi regime had any substantive... Show moreIn the months leading up to the US invasion of Iraq, I did not believe, and said so in public, that Iraq was in any way directly responsible for 9/11, or that the Iraqi regime had any substantive links with al-Qa'ida, or that it was likely that Iraq was actually able to field weapons of mass destruction. I believed that Iraq had probably tried to obtain weaponsgrade plutonium, and I knew that it had actually obtained centrifuges from Germany, as well as the means to manufacture chemical and biological weapons from Germany and the US. I surmised, from a position of total scientific ignorance, that Iraq probably possessed most of the ingredients necessary to manufacture weapons of mass destruction, but that it was some way off from actually doing so. Show less
The arrival of female genital cutting to northeastern Africa predates that of Christianity and Islam, and Muslims, Christians, and Jews continue the practice today. Popular association of the... Show moreThe arrival of female genital cutting to northeastern Africa predates that of Christianity and Islam, and Muslims, Christians, and Jews continue the practice today. Popular association of the practice with religious ideals has justified its continuation, and beliefs that the practice contradicts religious principles have justified its abandonment. Anthias and Yuval-Davis (1989) argue that strategic use of 'gender symbols' concerning the sexuality of women can reproduce religious boundaries, and this process of differentiation may involve national or transnational political bodies that endorse or oppose selected symbols. This framework helps to understand the diverging prevalence of female genital cutting among Christians and Muslims in Egypt. Show less
Edward Said was thoroughly secular; his secularism was not anti-religious as much as a-religious. His interest in Vico is indicative of his own position. Giambattista Vico, in his New Science (1725... Show moreEdward Said was thoroughly secular; his secularism was not anti-religious as much as a-religious. His interest in Vico is indicative of his own position. Giambattista Vico, in his New Science (1725), separated the domain of the divine from the domain of the human, concentrating on the latter in his analysis and using the terminology and concepts of his time. He was interested in the history of the gentiles, a history made by people and not the history ordained by God. Likewise Said was interested in human endeavor and history, in all that was made by human beings, not by supernatural forces, and thus in what can be changed by human beings. For Said, it is futile to discuss God's ways partly because he had no taste for it, and partly because what can anyone say to someone who tells you God is on his side? How can one have dialogue and exchange with such 'holiness' and 'fundamentalism'? Once you are one of the elect, or once you are convinced that your people are the 'chosen people' -and chosen by no less than God Himself- then there is no room for human intervention, no place for human agency or endeavor. Show less
Until recently the number of newly built mosques in the Netherlands was marginal, but over the last few years several larger mosques have been built while others are in process. The architectural... Show moreUntil recently the number of newly built mosques in the Netherlands was marginal, but over the last few years several larger mosques have been built while others are in process. The architectural styles of these new mosques have provoked public debate about whether architects should fall back on traditional designs typical of those in Dutch Muslims' countries of origin or whether their designs should be more innovative and in concert with the local environment. Show less
The relationship between the phenomena of modernity and religion has exercised scholars in many fields over recent decades. For example, one of the original exponents of the secularization paradigm... Show moreThe relationship between the phenomena of modernity and religion has exercised scholars in many fields over recent decades. For example, one of the original exponents of the secularization paradigm in the late 1950s and 1960s, sociologist Peter Berger, had, by the end of the millennium, recanted his earlier position saying: 'The big mistake, which I shared with everyone who worked in this area... was to believe that modernity necessarily leads to a decline in religion.' Steve Bruce, sociologist and firm adherent of the secularization thesis, quotes this statement in an article in which he attempts to rescue Berger from the folly of his recantation.1 While Bruce's view may now be regarded as 'unfashionable' in sociology of religion circles, echoes of the 'modernity-religion' dichotomy are very much present in studies related to modernity, contemporary Islam, and fundamentalism. Show less
The ISIM project 'Rights at Home: An Approach to the Internalization of Human Rights in Family Relations in Islamic Communities' organized four Capacity Building Workshops in Yemen and Tanzania in... Show moreThe ISIM project 'Rights at Home: An Approach to the Internalization of Human Rights in Family Relations in Islamic Communities' organized four Capacity Building Workshops in Yemen and Tanzania in the summer of 2003. In close cooperation with the local counterparts, the Yemeni Forum for Civil Society and the Tanzanian Sahiba Sisters Foundation a total of 150 participants were invited to come to San'a (21-24 July), Taiz (26-29 July), Aden (31 July-4 August) and Mwanza (9-17 August) respectively to enhance their knowledge and practical implementation of human rights issues within the local family. Show less
Histories tell us how, threatened by state power and by various pressure groups, resisting communities have chosen to go underground, surviving clandestinely as a whole or partly concealing their... Show moreHistories tell us how, threatened by state power and by various pressure groups, resisting communities have chosen to go underground, surviving clandestinely as a whole or partly concealing their activities. This phenomenon testifies to the permanence of dynamic, antinomian trends in societies. A particular type is expressed by the tales of religious dissimulation - practised by Jews, Christians, and Muslims - referred to in the Islamic idiom as taqiyya. Show less
The international conference, jointly hosted by the ISIM and the Research Centre Religion and Society (ASSR), on 'Religion, Media and the Public Sphere' was held from 6 to 8 December 2001 at the... Show moreThe international conference, jointly hosted by the ISIM and the Research Centre Religion and Society (ASSR), on 'Religion, Media and the Public Sphere' was held from 6 to 8 December 2001 at the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The theme of the conference evolved out of three prominent debates in the 1990s: the crisis of the post-colonial nationstate, the increasing global proliferation of electronic media, and the rise of religious movements. Show less
The ISIM programme 'Rights at Home: An Approach to the Internalization of Human Rights in Family Relations in Islamic Communities' held its second series of Sounding Board Meetings in Tanzania from... Show moreThe ISIM programme 'Rights at Home: An Approach to the Internalization of Human Rights in Family Relations in Islamic Communities' held its second series of Sounding Board Meetings in Tanzania from 19 until 23 June 2002. The venue was in Dar es Salaam from 19 to 20 June, and on the island of Zanzibar from 22 to 23 June. The meetings were organized together with the NGO Sahiba Sisters Foundation in Dar es Salaam, a Muslim women's network to promote a positive role of Muslim women in Tanzanian society. Show less
Hardly is any historical Indian Muslim figure of the 1 9th century as controversial as Sayyid Siddiq Hasan Khan al-Qannauji al-Bukhari (1832-1890). The reason for all the contrasting assessments of... Show moreHardly is any historical Indian Muslim figure of the 1 9th century as controversial as Sayyid Siddiq Hasan Khan al-Qannauji al-Bukhari (1832-1890). The reason for all the contrasting assessments of his personality was his astonishing career: he rose from an impoverished scholar to the son-in-law of the Prime Minister at the court of Bhopal. In 1871, the widowed ruler of this principality, Shah Jahan Begum (r. 1868-1901) chose him as her second husband. After his marriage, Siddiq Hasan Khan established the reformist movement Ahl-e Hadith (people of the prophetic traditions), which soon became a dominant Muslim group in Bhopal. But as soon as Siddiq Hasan's career had started, it came to a sudden end. Show less
Much has been written recently about the so-called 'crimes of honour' in Jordan. By now, the facts and fiction about those heinous crimes have become widely known. According to official statistics,... Show moreMuch has been written recently about the so-called 'crimes of honour' in Jordan. By now, the facts and fiction about those heinous crimes have become widely known. According to official statistics, about 25 women on average are killed every year for the sake of their families' 'honour'. The number of deaths that could also be categorized as such crimes but are recorded as suicides or accidents is much higher. Show less
For almost thirty years, the Shica Imami Ismacili community in Canada has been remarkably active and diverse in terms of countries of origin, ethnicities, and languages. However, at issue is the... Show moreFor almost thirty years, the Shica Imami Ismacili community in Canada has been remarkably active and diverse in terms of countries of origin, ethnicities, and languages. However, at issue is the backdrop of the Canadian policy of multiculturalism, which has incited assimilatory threats to the Ismacili collective identity, despite its role of establishing the community in its pluralism. The following deals with this paradoxical positioning of the minority Ismacili community in the construction of multicultural Canada. Show less
Days before the American campaign against Afghanistan began, an editorialist of the government journal Al Thawra chose, to give an indication of the general mindset of people in Yemeni streets, to... Show moreDays before the American campaign against Afghanistan began, an editorialist of the government journal Al Thawra chose, to give an indication of the general mindset of people in Yemeni streets, to publish the words of a corn vendor and some of his clients located on the Sanaa Aden route in the heart of the old country. 'How dare America claim that it is combating terrorism, while it itself terrorizes the entire world?' asked the vendor. 'How dare they accuse us of not being able to protect the ""Cole"" [destroyer] whereas they themselves were not able to protect their Pentagon?' 'Not a bad analysis', noted the editorialist, 'maybe we should have him appointed to Foreign Affairs in Sanaa.' 'You're not spot on yet', said his travel companion with a note of irony, 'it is in Washington, at the State Department, that he should be appointed!' Show less
From 5 to 7 July 2002 a workshop on 'Scholarship and Activism in Islamic Family Law' was held at the Freie Universitat Berlin, organized jointly by the Interdisciplinary Centre 'Social and Cultural... Show moreFrom 5 to 7 July 2002 a workshop on 'Scholarship and Activism in Islamic Family Law' was held at the Freie Universitat Berlin, organized jointly by the Interdisciplinary Centre 'Social and Cultural History of the Middle East' at the Freie Universitat Berlin (Katja Niethammer, Anna Wurth), the AKMI (Arbeitskreis Moderne und Islam at the Wissenschaftkolleg Berlin, Georges Khalil), CIMEL (Centre of Islamic and Middle Eastern Law at SOAS, London, Lynn Welchman) and ISIM (Annelies Moors). Show less
