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5 9 1 8 3 4 Rebecca Popenoe Bruce Lawrence Nayereh Tohidi Elizabeth Picard and the Body: Female Fattening Neither nor Info Society Student Movement: The Harbinger Social Sciences Research on among in offers Hope of Global Equality of a New Era in Iran the Arab Mashrek (CERMOC)

At first glance, the arrival of the year 2000 AD seems unlikely to provoke any great reaction – much less spiritual anxiety – among most . Any West- ern ‘centurial mysticism’ surrounding the date 1 Jan- uary 2000 AD vanishes, after all, in the Hijri calendar A Sufi Apocalypse equivalent of Ramadan 24, 1420. But despite the out- ward irrelevance of the Gregorian 2000 to most of northwestern China, Bangladesh, Malaysia The ‘signs of the Hour’ the Arabian Peninsula, has charged Shaykh the u m m a h, one Islamic mystical brotherhood – the and . Linking the a n d the Mahdi Nazim with the spiritual preparation of his -Haqqani order – finds the advent of the across these diverse ethnic, social and his- The Naqshbandi-Haqqani order is virtually ‘helpers’ – the Muslims and non-Muslims who year 2000 one of several powerful symbolic events in toric settings are a set of defining features: alone among contemporary Sunni groups in will rally behind the ‘rightly-guided one’ which traditional Sunni ideas of the ‘Last Day’ inter- an uncompromising Sunni orientation, em- its accent on the Mahdi, the ‘signs of the when he declares his redemptive mission.2 Ig- sect with the millennial expectations of a new gener- phasis on s h a rıi ca h and s u n n a h, and a tradi- Hour’ and the end of this world. By virtue of noring occasional Muslim criticism of their ation of European and American converts to Islam. tion of full social and political participation their mystical visions, status and insights, prophecies and ‘fortune-telling’, both Shaykh in the world. the Haqqani shaykhs claim deep insight into Nazim and Shaykh Hisham selectively share Shaykh Nazim Haqqani (b. 1922) is the the unfolding events of the imminent ‘last their mystical foreknowledge of coming ‘grand-shaykh’ and namesake of the Naqsh- days’. Traditional Sunni eschatology is built events. On some ‘secrets’, however, they are bandi-Haqqani lineage. The son of a junior around the Qur’an’s urgent, vivid images of silent, maintaining they have not yet received DAVID DAMREL Egyptian colonial administrator in British cosmic anarchy (the ‘signs of the Hour’) and the Mahdi’s permission to speak. Cyprus, Shaykh Nazim’s spiritual education from a wealth of related Prophetic tradi- began in Istanbul; later, in Damascus, he tions. The decline of society and cataclysmic Ecumenical Apocalypticism The Naqshbandi-Haqqani order, with roots joined the order under Shaykh cAbd Allah events in the natural world announce the The Haqqani shaykhs mix traditional es- in , Cyprus, and Syria, has Daghestani (d. 1973). Deputed to Cyprus, ‘Last Day’, which climaxes in the physical chatological motifs with their own mystical emerged since the mid-1970s as one of the Shaykh Nazim ‘spread spiritual guidance resurrection and ultimate judgement of all interpretations of current times: the result is most visible and fastest-growing Sufi orders and Islamic teachings’ for seven years be- human beings. For Sunnis, belief in this final a shifting, event-driven script of the ‘last in Western Europe and North America. The fore eventually returning to Syria. day is part of i m a n (‘faith’), just as knowl- days’ that is at once timely and timeless. success of this conservative, s h a ri ca h- m i n d- Naqshbandi-Haqqani hagiographies por- edge of precisely when these events will Shaykh Nazim’s specific (and elastic) end- ed spiritual movement in attracting Euro- tray the period from the early 1950s until occur is Allah’s alone. But if the certainty of time predictions have ranged to explain peans and Americans to both Islam and Su- 1974 as one of intense spiritual activity for these eschatological events is agreed upon, new figures (such as the Russian ultra-na- fism stems from a number of sources. The Shaykh Nazim, marked by lengthy retreats the complex details of the apocalyptic script tionalist Vladamir Zhirinovsky) as well as order’s teachings promote time-honoured and extensive preaching tours in Syria and are not. The events, their order and the pre- dramatic developments including the Gulf and appealing mystical themes that include Cyprus. He encouraged people ‘to leave cise roles of such figures as cIsa (Jesus) and War and the fall of Communism. This ability spiritual growth, love, respect for the natur- atheism, secularism and materialism and to the Mahdi (‘the rightly-guided one’) and Da- to relate even the most unexpected events al environment and religious toleration, all come back to God,’ but his criticisms of the jjal (the ‘Deceiver’) are shadowy and con- to a larger explanatory framework – that is, of which, the order insists, are epitomized in Cypriot coalition government led to his ex- tested in a rich and unwieldy literature of to draw eternal meaning from the ‘chaos’ of the s u n n a h of the Prophet . The pulsion in 1965 and his eventual return to Muslim chiliastic traditions. the ephemeral world – may be the most message is effectively distributed to a wide D a m a s c u s . For the Naqshbandi-Haqqani shaykhs, powerful lure of almost all contemporary following on the internet, in books and The Haqqani branch, based around Shaykh however, mystical illumination allows no apocalyptic movements world-wide. pamphlets, and through a well-organized Nazim’s distinctive practice, emerged in confusion about the proper understanding There is much room within the evolving network of national Sufi centres and local 1973. Empowered by the spirit of the of the traditional Sunni sources – the Dajjal Naqshbandi-Haqqani mystical exegesis of circles that gather for weekly z i k r (a commu- Prophet Muhammad, Shaykh Nazim began and the Mahdi are presently alive, Armaged- world events for sharing apocalyptic themes nal ritual that ‘remembers’ Allah). The two his mission ‘to spread the light of Islam into don is imminent, and vast, profound and imagery. Striking examples of this bor- main leaders of the order, Shaykh Nazim the European countries.’ He travelled first to changes loom in the world. In 1992, Shaykh rowing abound. Shaykhs Nazim and Hisham Haqqani and his deputy Shaykh Hisham London and, encouraged by the followers of Hisham assured his listeners: speak easily of ‘Armageddon’ and ‘World Kabbani, reinforce these teachings and ce- Gurdjieff protégé John G. Bennett (d. 1974), ‘We are the only group expecting Mahdi and War III’, the ‘Anti-Christ’ and the ‘Saviour’, in ment powerful personal ties with their fol- established a centre. Each year since then, Jesus’ coming very soon. We are on the right their discussions with Muslims and non- lowers through almost constant touring and Shaykh Nazim has made it his custom to track. We have met them.’ Muslims in Europe and North America. Both t r a v e l . spend Ramadan in London before returning Moreover, the shaykhs maintain a vision- shaykhs also offer (and revise) their predict- Also included within the order’s teachings overland across Europe to the Middle East, ary spiritual connection with the two fig- ed beginnings for the last days (which have – but by no means its major focus – are spo- halting en route to teach about Islam and ures. included 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993 and 2000) radic references to an eclectic and complex the Naqshbandi order. His efforts expanded ‘What I am telling you is according to true in the Gregorian and not the Hijri calendar. apocalyptic scenario that is grounded firmly to include South and Southeast Asia, and by vision, not vague or imagined. Mahdi (s) and Though all the symbols noted above can in Sunni eschatology but driven by mystical- the late 1980s the Haqqani branch claimed Jesus (s) are among you.’1 have an Islamic provenance, they are also ly inspired visionary insight into current to have followers all over Asia, including The Naqshbandi-Haqqani shaykhs present instantly and unmistakably familiar to many events, politics, and the future. The result is thousands in and over 20,000 disci- an idiosyncratic and complicated agenda Western audiences in an entirely different a vision of troubled times ahead that res- ples in Sri Lanka. for the last days, all anchored with refer- context. The Haqqanis employ this shared onates powerfully with certain modern West- Shaykh Nazim’s first trips to the United ences to historic Muslim thinkers as diverse apocalyptic vocabulary to poignantly em- e r n audiences, whether Christian, Muslim or States and Canada were in 1991, with the re- as Ibn Kathir and Ibn Al-cArabi. At one point phasize how Islam and Islamic spirituality avowedly non-religious. sult (according to Haqqani literature) of England will peaceably convert to Islam, are vital to the lives of even their non-Mus- over 10,000 people becoming Muslims and and hidden saints will operate in Germany lim listeners. Rise of the Order Naqshbandis. That same year, Shaykh and China. Global Pax Americana will ensue Despite the frequent and spectacular fail- The Naqshbandi-Haqqani order is a mod- Hisham Kabbani (Shaykh Nazim’s son in-law before World War III erupts around Turkey. ures of Naqshbandi-Haqqani apocalyptic ern branch of the larger well-known Naqsh- and spiritual deputy) was named shaykh of Billions will die before Mahdi and cIsa ap- prophecy, the order’s popularity continues bandi order, a Sufi brotherhood that took its the order in the Western Hemisphere and pear to slay Dajjal and inaugurate their to rise. This is a salient clue to a deeper func- name and inspiration from the 14th c e n t u r y ordered to reside in the . miraculous reign of love, justice, peace and tion of ‘Mahdism’ in Naqshbandi-Haqqani Central Asian mystic Khwaja Baha’ al-din Today Shaykh Hisham oversees a network of happiness. Afterwards, the world and time rhetoric. For, while it may be curiosity or Naqshband. Historically, the Naqshbandis twenty-three mosques, centres and retreats, will conclude with the final judgement. concern over the ‘last days’ that might draw have enjoyed enduring popularity and are anchored by a ‘convention and retreat cen- Shaykh Nazim has been tapped for a special some initiates to the order, these initiates active today especially in Turkey, Afghan- tre’ on farmland in Michigan and by his own role in these last days. The Mahdi, presently are able to find satisfying reasons to stay istan, the Balkans, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, India, residence in northern California. occulted in a cave in the ‘Empty Quarter’ in Continued on page 6 2 ISIM I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

The Millennium is not an Islamic event, but it developed into a global event grant communities are not only confronted with views and customs of local making it difficult to ignore or avoid. Eschatological sentiments feed on glob- majorities, but also become part of local communities through schooling, ca- al occurrences such as the increase in armed conflicts, population crises, and reer and intermarriage, a process that put their social, religious and/or nation- the digital phantom of the Millennium Bug, but also on the desire for the ful- al identities to the test (Van den Bremen, p. 7; Amiraux, p. 30; Buitelaar p. 29; filment of prophecies of justice and social equality. The growing sense of Lewis p. 28). The situation of old Muslim minorities differs from that of migrant global interdependency – in particular in frames of (potential) conflict of inter- communities in that they put greater stress on preservation (of local majority ests or, conversely, of consensus – grants reliability and authority to advo- status; see Attané, p. 11) or on the idea(l) of re-establishing their communities cates of universalist schemes, including those elaborating upon the notion of (Armijo-Hussein, p. 12; Szajkowski p. 27). A remarkable situation exists in an equality through the New Media and those building upon seemingly more tra- area where the Muslim World converges with that of Ethiopian Christianity: re- ditional religious concepts. The champions of the information revolution may peated collective migration from the one religion to the other (Abbink, p. 24). well be critiqued for their social optimism (Lawrence, p. 9), but their appeal is In other cases not people but spirits seem to have migrated, as in the case of strong and the experiments impact on society (Lotfalian, p. 8). The millenari- Muslim Shamanism of Central Asia (Garrone, p. 15). ISIM Newsletter 4 December 1999 ans may not be representative of the larger communities Naturally, debates on fashion and social codes are also 40 pages of faith, but they are too indicative of the fluidity of devo- very common in predominantly Muslim societies (Popenoe ISSN 1 388-9788 tional practice and narrative. The remarkable mix of ima- p. 5; El Guindi p. 6;; Ahmad, p. 16; Ensel p. 23). What makes ges and ideas taken from diverse religious and spiritual the debates in these societies more pertinent is, perhaps, Editorial Office traditions and discourses by the Naqshibandi-Haqqani the different political significance of Islam – being the reli- Visiting Address E d i t o r i a l Rapenburg 71, Leiden leadership (see cover), combined with the extensive geo- gion of the majority of citizens or the religion of state, or Postal Address graphical spread of this Sufi order, illustrates the complex- both. In Europe, the US or China, Islam is on the political ISIM, P.O. Box 11089 2301 EB Leiden, The Netherlands ities of the current movements of people and ideas. The order embraces what agenda, but those speaking in its name do not, or hardly ever, set the agenda, T e l e p h o n e : are thought to be Christian concepts of the End of Time, synchronizes with the albeit that in the Balkans Muslim votes count (Chukov, p. 26). In many Muslim +31-71-527 7905 T e l e f a x : Gregorian calendar, and addresses concerns of a broader public in the West in countries Islam is integrated into the political system in the sense that govern- +31-71-527 7906 order to further its spread, in particular in North America. This trend of fusion ments and oppositional groups make use of its institutions and vocabulary, and E - m a i l : is not restricted to clearly transnational organizations such as the Naqshiban- like their constituencies ascribe to its general values. Political uses of Islam are I S I M N e w s l @ r u l l e t . l e i d e n u n i v . n l WWW Homepage di-Haqqani organization, also in the Middle East one finds a vivid es- not new phenomena, and the political relevance of Islam to modern state build- w w w . i s i m . n l chatological discourse in which elements adopted from Western millenarian- ing has been recognized by many, starting with the Ottomans (Rogan, p. 19). At E d i t o r ism play a prominent role. The shared historical sources of this particular reli- present its political potential often favours linkage between political and reli- Dick Douwes gious genre may partly explain this phenomenon, but, evidently, apocalyptic gious elites (Noor, p. 13; Van Hoven, p. 25). In internal or external conflicts mod- Desk and copy editor Gabrielle Constant imageries are open to a great variety of signs and omens, thus globalizing the ern Muslim conceptions of political rights and wrongs challenge alternative ex- Advertisements and Info Pages Millennium 2000 and making it relevant to – at the least some – Muslim audi- pressions; and often, as in the cases of and Jordan/Palestine, the politi- Nathal Dessing ences. The inclusion of recent and current events, for instance the Gulf War cal appeal of Muslim groups transgresses state boundaries (Rao, p. 17; Al-Kha- D e s i g n De Kreeft, Amsterdam and the wars in the Balkans and in the Caucasus, also puts the West on the zendar, p. 20-1). P r i n t i n g apocalyptic stage, even allowing for the endorsement of Western Clash of Cul- Research on societies and their systems of beliefs can only be pursued in a Dijkman Offset, Diemen tures and End of Histories theories (Furnish, p. 22). Merchandizing the Millen- successful manner when criticism is expressed. Subsequently, reviews of re- Coming issues nium occurs in the Muslim World, too, albeit not on a scale comparable to the cent research, even state of the arts reports, are vital. In this issue the study of ISIM Newsletter 5 Deadline: 15 Febrary 2000 West. It is mostly a highly fused phenomenon in which elements from ancient Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa (Brenner, p. 31) and in Post-Soviet (Bobrov- Published: April 2000 traditions are freely combined with high-tech imageries of global consumer- nikov, p. 32) are critically reviewed. News on institutes, projects and conferen- ISIM Newsletter 6 ism. In Gizeh, for example, a golden top is airlifted on the largest pyramid ces relevant to the study of Muslim societies and communities constitutes an- Deadline: 15 May 2000 Published: July 2000 when the hour of the Millennium strikes, a costly event which arouses opposi- other pillar of this N e w s l e t t e r. Given the multitude and wide variety of initia- ISIM Newsletter 7 tion from various circles, including Muslim ones. tives, both old and new, ISIM would like to invite as many contributions to this Deadline: 15 September 2000 Published: November 2000 But it is not only the final hours of a century that set the stage for transcultur- category as possible, also in view of the development of an electronic guide. al experiments: the constant migration of people and ideas can also be a cata- Linking of research – also to the study of non-Muslim societies – and access to The ISIM solicits your response to the ISIM News- letter. If you wish to contribute to the Newsletter, lyst to experimentation elsewhere. The romantic encounters between Paki- results of research remains problematic. Apart from conducting original re- style sheets may be obtained upon request from stani men and Philippine women in Hong Kong and the subsequent conversion search, ISIM aspires to connect the various traditions, trends and aspirations the ISIM Secretariat or on the ISIM website. In order of the latter to Islam are a case in point (Hawwa, p. 10). Several contributions to in the broad field of the study of Muslim society and to help in making them to offer update information on activities concern- ing the study of Islam and Muslim societies, along this issue show that the line between defending and inventing tradition is a c c e s s i b l e . ♦ with news on vacancies, grants, and fellowships, blurred in societal debates on what is considered fashionable and socially de- DICK DOUWES the ISIM relies on its readers. The information will be made available on the ISIM Website. sirable in the context of migrant communities. Transnational in character, mi- e d i t o r

The ISIM Newsletter is a tri-annual publication of the International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World (ISIM). Responsibility for the N E W S V A C A N C Y facts and opinions expressed in this publication rests solely with the authors. Their views do not necessarily reflect those of the Institute or its sup- porters. The ISIM Newsletter is free of charge. The University ISIM Chair: University

Staff ISIM • Muhammad Khalid Masud o f N i j m e g e n of Amsterdam Academic Director • Dick Douwes Academic Coordinator The ISIM and the University of Amsterdam invite applications for the ISIM Chair for the • Mary Bakker Joins the ISIM Study of Contemporary Islam at the University of Amsterdam, at the Faculty of Social Administrative Coordinator and Behavioural Sciences. This faculty organizes 11 degree programmes, an extensive • Nathal Dessing Education Coordinator It is with great pleasure that the ISIM welcomes the University of international study programme and conducts a series of research programmes at 8 in- • Afelonne Doek Nijmegen as a full partner in the Institute. The University of Ni- stitutes. The faculty employs over 400 permanent staff members and counts more than Website and D-base Manager • Manuel Haneveld jmegen – located in the east of the Netherlands – is one of the 7,000 students. A multidisciplinary approach and international cooperation are actively Information Systems Manager largest Dutch national universities. Founded in 1923 as a result e n c o u r a g e d . • Esther Oostveen Administrative Assistant of the emancipation of the Catholic community in the Nether- • Yenny Thung lands, the university developed into one of the main centres of Candidates should: D-base Assistant learning in the country. Today, it offers 73 training courses, at- – possess an established international reputation in the study of contemporary Muslim B o a r d tracting well over 12,000 students, and employs nearly 4,000 societies from the social science perspective; • Dr S.J. Noorda (Chairperson) staff members distributed over 9 faculties. – have extensive knowledge of one or more regions and be well versed in comparative President of University of Amsterdam • Dr Th.H.J. Stoelinga Over the last decades, the University of Nijmegen has con- social science research; University of Nijmegen tributed strongly to the development of the study of Islam and – have a strong record of field experience; • Drs J.G.F. Veldhuis President of Utrecht University Muslim societies in the Netherlands and beyond. The regional – have wide-ranging academic contacts, particularly in the Muslim world; • Drs L.E.H. Vredevoogd emphasis at the various relevant departments and institutes – have an excellent command of languages relevant to their field of research as well as President of Leiden University (Middle Eastern Studies, Anthropology, Centre for Women’s fluency in English; and Academic Committee Studies, Religious Studies, Third World Centre) is on the Middle – have experience in teaching and supervising postgraduate programmes. • Prof. P.T. van der Veer (Chairperson) East and North Africa. However, Sub-Saharan Africa and South- The holder of the ISIM Chair will be expected to carry out the following tasks at both University of Amsterdam • Prof. Mamadou Diouf east Asia, as well as migrant communities in Europe, constitute the ISIM and the University of Amsterdam: CODESRIA, Dakar part of the research interests. – develop research programmes and conduct research within the framework of the two • Prof. D.F. Eickelman Dartmouth College, Hanover, The University of Nijmegen was involved in the early stages of i n s t i t u t i o n s ; New Hampshire discussions leading to the foundation of the ISIM. With its par- – teach classes and provide supervision to undergraduate and graduate students; and • Prof. Gudrun Krämer ticipation, the ISIM strengthens its national basis. Profiting from – contribute to various other academic activities such as conferences and special Free University Berlin • Prof. Jean-François Leguil-Bayart the expertise in Nijmegen, the new input enables the ISIM to fur- l e c t u r e s . CERI, Paris ther expand its activities. As is the case for the other participat- This ISIM Professorship is a full-time position for a maximum of five years with the p o s- • Prof. J.F. Staal University of California at Berkeley ing universities, a special ISIM Chair will be established at the sibility of extension. Female candidates are especially encouraged to apply. • Sami Zubaida University of Nijmegen. The appointment will be announced in Birkbeck College, University of London • Prof. E.J. Zürcher the next ISIM Newsletter, but may well be published on the ISIM Review of applications will begin on 1 March 2000. Leiden University Website and elsewhere earlier. Applicants should send a full CV, including list of publications, to: Prof. Muhammad Khalid Masud • ( V a c a n c y ) ISIM, P.O. Box 11089, 2301 EB Leiden, The Netherlands Utrecht University • ( V a c a n c y ) University of Nijmegen I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 ISIM 3

Institutional news A P P O I N T M E N T ISIM Chair at

Martin van Bruinessen initially studied theoretical physics and mathematics, only later turning to an- thropology and Islamic studies. When still a student in physics, he took a number of long trips to the Mid- Utrecht University dle East that aroused his lasting interest in the re- gion. He then followed courses in anthropology and started learning Turkish and Persian. After a few years as a mathematics teacher, he received a re- search grant for fieldwork among the Kurds, which Professor Martin allowed him to spend two years in the Kurdish-inhab- ited parts of Iran, Iraq, Iran and Syria. He received his PhD from Utrecht University in 1978, with a thesis on the social and political organization of . One of the major themes in this thesis concerns the van Bruinessen social and political roles of Sufi orders (especially Naqshbandiyya and ) among the Kurds. Van Bruinessen has frequently revisited Kur- ung (West Java) for almost a year. Not surpris- among other things, a book on the ‘tradition- This work was established as one of the key texts on distan, and has published numerous articles ingly, perhaps, he found little radicalism but a alist’ Nahdlatul , which is probably the Kurdish society, and it was translated into various on Kurdish society and history, with a strong lot of magic and mysticism and discovered largest organization in the entire Muslim languages, including Turkish, Kurdish and Persian.* emphasis on the place of religion. In order to that ‘traditionalist’ Islam remains very vital in world. Van Bruinessen spent altogether al- give his work more historical depth, he took a modern urban setting. most nine years in Indonesia and has pub- up Ottoman studies and worked on a number Van Bruinessen’s next Indonesian experi- lished numerous articles in English and four of Ottoman sources about Kurdish society. ence was to be when Indonesia’s Institute of books in Indonesian on various aspects of Is- Some of this work was published as an edition Sciences (LIPI) invited him as a consultant for lam in Indonesia. and analysis of one of the major 17th-century field research methods (1986-90). He took Since 1994, Van Bruinessen has taught sources on Kurdish society, Evliya Çelebi’s fa- part, inter alia, in a large research project on Turkish and Kurdish studies in the Depart- mous travelogue (Evliya Çelebi in Diyarbekir, the worldview of Indonesia’s ulama, carried ment Oriental Languages and Cultures at Brill, Leiden, 1988). out by Indonesian researchers. This position Utrecht University, with a one-year interrup- Meanwhile, Van Bruinessen had moved on enabled him to travel throughout the Muslim tion as a guest professor of Kurdish Studies at to another part of the Muslim world, Indone- parts of Indonesia and get to know numerous the Institute for Ethnology of Berlin’s Free sia. A stroke of good luck landed him a tem- ulama and Muslim intellectuals. Having en- University. He was involved in drawing up porary research position at the Royal Institute countered many ulama affiliated with the ISIM’s research profile and was initially a of Linguistics and Anthropology (KITLV) in Naqshbandiyya, he began collecting material member of the academic committee but Leiden, which allowed him to spend consid- for a systematic survey of that Sufi order (pub- withdrew from it to apply for the ISIM chair at erable time in Indonesia (1983-84). His first re- lished as a book in Indonesian in 1992: Tare- Utrecht University. search project was concerned with whether kat Naqsyabandiyah di Indonesia, Mizan, His present research interests include shift- the Islamic resurgence and Islamic radicalism Bandung). ing religious and ethnic identities in Turkey, were triggered by rural-to-urban migration In 1991, after a brief period in the Nether- the transformation of Sufi orders in modern and relative deprivation, as has often been as- lands and in Kurdistan, he returned to Indo- urban settings, contemporary developments serted to be the case in the Middle East. In- nesia to teach sociology of religion and relat- in Muslim socio-political thought and civil so- stead of starting with Muslim radicals, howe- ed subjects at the State Institute of Islamic ciety, and transnational Muslim networks. ♦ ver, he decided to look at the situation of ru- Studies (IAIN) of Yogyakarta, within the ral-to-urban migrants who clearly experi- framework of the Indonesian-Netherlands * A revised English version was published in 1992 enced relative deprivation and register their Cooperation in Islamic Studies (INIS). He re- a s Agha, Shaikh and State: The Social and Political responses. He lived in an urban slum in Band- mained there until early 1994, and wrote, Structures of Kurdistan, Zed Books, London.

Institutional activities MUHAMMAD KHALID MASUD ISIM Cairo Meeting

The ISIM is organizing sounding board meetings in the and cooperation between the western and tegic Studies, the International Institute of Participants in the Cairo Meeting: intellectual capitals of the Muslim world. The first of non-western scholarship for the study of Islamic Thought and the American Universi- this series was held in last May. In October 1999, contemporary Islam. The first day a number ty. A short courtesy visit was made to the – Mona Abaza (American University of Cairo) an ISIM delegation visited Cairo for a joint meeting of scholars of Cairo University as well as Mashikhat al-Azhar. – Saif El-Din Abdel-Fattah ( F E P S / I I T ) with the Center for the Study of Developing Countries from various other institutes such as the – Ola Abou Zeid ( F E P S ) at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science (FEPS) American University of Cairo, the Centre d’É- Local printed materials – Wadouda Badran ( F E P S ) of Cairo University. The ISIM delegation also visited a tudes et de Documentation Economique, The ISIM was especially interested in the number of other institutes in order to explore the pos- Juridique et Social (CEDEJ) and the Al-Ah- possibilities for the acquisition of local print- – Martin van Bruinessen ( I S I M ) sibilities of cooperation, in particular in view of the col- ram Centre, presented their current re- ed materials, in particular gray literature and – Dick Douwes ( I S I M ) search. The second day consisted in a pre- ephemera, and local periodicals. This type of lection of local printed materials. The choice for Cairo – Han den Heier ( N V I C ) was an obvious one: the city has been a centre of Islam- sentation of the ISIM research pogrammes literature is vital for the study of contempora- ic learning since the early days of Islam and has been a and plans and a panel discussion. ry movements and trends but is not general- – Raufa Hasan (Centre of Women Studies, cradle of reformist, modernist and revivalist move- The second objective was to explore the ly acquired by university libraries. The ISIM Sana’a University) ments in the last two centuries. This city of teeming mil- possibility of cooperation for the recruit- has initiated the production of an index of re- – Iman Farag ( C E D E J ) lions has a large number of publishing houses that pro- ment of students for the ISIM. For this pur- cent scholarly publications on contemporary – Hasan Hanafi (Faculty of Philosophy, CU) duce an abundance of Islamic literature, demonstrat- pose the Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Islam and Muslim society in local languages. ing the scholarly vitality of the city that also hosts - Cairo (NVIC) organized a seminar. In cooper- Existing reference tools like Index Islamicus – Dina Khawaga ( C E D E J - F E P S ) jor trends in Islam today. ation with the CEDEJ, a number of potential provide information only about materials – Muhammad Khalid Masud ( I S I M ) PhD students from the region, including the published in Western languages. Equally sig- – Hoda Mitkis ( F E P S ) The main objective of the sounding board , were invited. The students present- nificant research material in non-Western – Nivine Mos’ad ( F E P S ) meeting was to discuss the problematics in ed their research work and discussed the languages often goes unnoticed. ISIM plans the study of Islam in the modern world. For possibilities for further research. A number to publish this index as an annex to its News- – Hala Mustafa (Al-Ahram Center) this purpose, a two-day workshop (October of Dutch and Flemish PhD students who letter and on its Website. This project enables – Nadia Mustapha ( F E P S ) 26-27) was organized at the Center for the conduct research in Egypt also participated. the production of analytical bibliographical – Mustapha Kamil Al-Sayyed ( F E P S ) Study of Developing Countries at Cairo Uni- The ISIM delegation paid visits to several surveys and of state of the arts surveys in the – Mohammed El-Sayyid Selim ( F E P S ) versity. Dr Mustapha Kamel al-Sayyed, the institutes and publishing houses in order to region. ♦ Director of the Center, provided informa- introduce the Institute and to explore possi- – Iffat Al-Sharqawi (Ain Shams University) tion on the dynamics of the organization. ble cooperation with them. Muhammad – Gino Schallenberg ( N V I C ) Hasan Hanafi, a leading intellectual, pre- Khalid Masud gave a talk on ‘Shatibi’s Phi- – Sami Zubaida (Berkbeck College, sented the keynote address. He surveyed losophy of Islamic Law and its impact on University of London) the major trends in Islamic Studies and Modern Muslim Thought’ at al-Azhar. Other Muhammad Khalid Masud is the ISIM Academic stressed the need for mutual understanding visits included the Al-Ahram Center for Stra- D i r e c t o r . 4 ISIM/Institutional I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Joint seminar report ED VAN HOVEN Transformation Processes

Transformation Processes and Islam in Africa was the Professor Louis Brenner (keynote speaker) ence brought to light the multifaceted mani- discussed in the combined presentation of theme of a conference held on 15 October 1999 at from the School of Oriental and African Stud- festations of Islam and Islamic identities on Caroline Angenent (Leiden, LISOR) and An- the African Studies Centre (ASC) in Leiden, the Neth- ies (SOAS, London), elaborated on the kind of the African continent. Marloes Janson (CNWS, neke Breedveld (African Studies Centre, Lei- erlands. The conference was co-sponsored ISIM. transformation represented in the case of the Leiden University) discussed the attempts of den). That Islam in this region is receiving new volunteer association, the model of Muslim the female bards, who colour the streets of impulses with the Islamic movements opting The conference addressed the various ways in socio-political organization in contemporary many Gambian towns, to legitimize their of- for purification with far-reaching consequen- which Islam is making its presence felt, not . One of the questions raised by Professor ten-contested profession in terms of an Islam- ces for the moral discourse on gender rela- only in the regions of the continent which for Brenner was whether the epistemic shift from ic discourse. Kirsten Langeveld (University of tions, was argued by José van Santen (Depart- centuries have belonged to Islam’s sphere of esoteriscism to rationalism, to which his well- Utrecht) argued that in the neighbouring Cas- ment of Anthropology, Leiden University). - influence, but also those that until recently documented paper testified, is in fact a prod- amance region (Senegal), the Jola Kumpo rin Willemse (Department of Non-Western have remained virtually untouched by Islam. uct of the increasing influence of Islam or a mask performance is under severe attack by History, Erasmus University Rotterdam) dis- Dutch research on Islam, having traditionally consequence of the conflicting social and po- Muslims though it still remains a (supernatu- cussed the phenomenon of Islamism in the focused on Indonesia and the Middle East, litical forces of the societies to which Muslims ral) force with which to be reckoned. Ed van case of West Sudan and showed that Islamic testifies to the renewed interest in sub-Sahar- belong. The second keynote speaker was Pro- Hoven (CNWS, Leiden University) examined discourses on gender entail both femininity an Africa, a field which is rapidly gaining im- fessor Lamin Sanneh from Yale University the various attempts to ‘muridize’ Senegal’s and masculinity. portance at the international level. These is- (USA), who raised the issue of mobility and national culture, and the efforts of the state to Further south, in Tanzania, Marc de Meij sues, as well as the role Islam plays as a vehi- liminality, physical as well as symbolic, in the mould political affiliation in terms of the (IIMO) analysed the Muslims’ attitudes to- cle of economic, political and ideological re- processes of transformation and the contest- sheikh/murid relationship. wards the pluralistic state and the role of Swa- orientation in many African societies, con- ed identities they generate. Drawing on the The role of Islam and the motivation to trav- hili as a religious language. Wim van Binsber- necting them to broader society and appeal- work of Van Gennep and Victor Turner, and el of the Fulbe pastoralists living in Central gen closed the conference with a well-docu- ing to more universal ideas and values, were the latter’s notion of communitas in particu- Mali was discussed by Mirjam de Bruijn (Lei- mented analysis of the role of Islam as a con- discussed by Professor Wim van Binsbergen lar, Sanneh isolated various types of marginal- den, African Studies Centre), while Frauke Jä- stitutive factor in so-called African traditional (Philosophy Faculty, Erasmus University Rot- ity of which ‘prescriptive marginality’ exem- ger (Berlin, Germany) analysed the adapta- religion. ♦ terdam) in his opening speech. plified in the hijra is particularly relevant for tion of Islam to specific socio-religious con- Professor Muhammed Khalid Masud, Aca- the understanding of Muslim movements in texts with examples from Northern Nigeria Dr Ed van Hoven is a post-doctoral researcher at the demic Director of the ISIM, discussed the no- sub-Saharan Africa. and Northern Cameroon. The role ethnicity School of Asian, African, and Amerindian Studies, tion of transformation in Islam as a complex Travelling from the west to the east of Afri- plays in the process of conversion to Islam in University of Leiden, the Netherlands. phenomenon of a public and sacred nature. ca, the various contributions to the confer- the North West Province of Cameroon was E-mail: [email protected]

Summer Academy – Working Group Modernity and Islam GEORGES KHALIL Notions of Law and Order

The 4t h International Summer Academy of the Berlin- covering regions from the Maghreb to Chi- searchers, offering them a forum to present discipline and order. Working days were based Working Group Modernity and Islam (see I S I M na, have participated in Summer Acade- and discuss their research. The programme long and rather intensive with discussions N e w s l e t t e r 2) took place from 13-25 September 1999 mies that were held under the themes of differs from the normal lecture-hall or con- being based on the projects of the partici- at the Fondation du Roi Abdul-Aziz Al Saoud pour les ‘Modernity and Islam’, ‘Processes and ference set-up, since the main contributors pants and a collection of basic readings, Etudes Islamiques et les Sciences Humaines in Casa- Counter-Processes of Modernisation’, ‘Cri- are the young researchers themselves. which had been made available to the par- blanca, Morocco. About 30 junior and senior scholars sis and Memory’ and ‘Notions of Law and Leading international scholars participate in ticipants in a reader. Working days started from various disciplines and geographical back- Order in Muslim Societies’. They have taken the Academy as tutors, adding their own with a lecture by one of the tutors and grounds discussed questions relating to ‘Notions of place in Berlin, Beirut and Casablanca and methodological concerns and questions. closed with a plenary session in which a re- Law and Order in Muslim Societies’ at one of the ma- have been funded by the German Federal The idea is to draw up a sort of interim sta- cent paper or article by the tutor was dis- jor research institutions in the Muslim world. The Ministry of Education and Research. tus report that can be integrated into the cussed, to be continued in the evening in Summer Academy was directed by Professor Gudrun The scholarly programme of the Working work of the young as well as the more estab- more informal settings. A number of guest Krämer from the Institute of Islamic Studies of the Group Modernity and Islam tries to link re- lished scholars. lectures by renowned Moroccan scholars Free University of Berlin. search undertaken i n the Muslim world to Under the quite provocative title of ‘No- and intellectuals linked the academy work research o n the Muslim world carried out in tions of Law and Order in Muslim Societies’ to the ongoing debate on law and order in ISIM, the Institute of Since 1996 the Working Group Modernity Germany and other parts of the non-Muslim discussions focused on issues such as the the host country. Most of the time, however, Islamic Studies of the and Islam has been organizing annual two- world. The programme is not confined to , legal interpretations of the law, was devoted to discussions within working Free University of Berlin, week summer academies as an attempt to contemporary Middle Eastern studies but the role of the practitioners of the law, law groups of five to seven participants and two and the Wissenschafts- internationalize its scholarly programme. rather emphasizes systematic questions re- and gender, law as a political symbol, good tutors, where the projects of the partici- kolleg will cooperate in So far more than 100 junior and senior lated to the complex phenomenon of mod- governance, legal reform, change and plu- pants and the general themes were debat- academic meetings in scholars from about 20 different countries, ernity, including its historical dimension. ralism, techniques and methods of legal de- ed. As the academy had a workshop charac- 2000 and in the Summer with their disciplinary backgrounds ran- The Summer Academy is primarily ad- velopment, the use of legal sources for so- ter, the major challenge for everyone was to Academy 2001. ging from anthropology to psychology, dressed to doctoral and post-doctoral re- cial history as well as moral discourse, social present and rethink his or her work, which in most cases was highly specialized, relating M I S C E L L A N E O U S V A C A N C I E S it not only to the overall topic of the acade- my but also making it relevant to the other participants. ISIM MPhil New ISIM Fellowships As shown by their written evaluation, the participants found the Summer Academy The ISIM invites applications and research proposals for various fellowships throughout exhausting but also stimulating in terms of Programme in 2000. Applications from candidates in all fields of the social sciences, humanities and re- helping them to broaden, clarify and refine ligious studies will be considered. All candidates should be competent in academic Eng- their approaches as well as to meet and lish. communicate with colleagues. Islamic Studies The Summer Academy 2000 will be held at The ISIM fellowships include: the Institute of Islamic Studies of the Free The one-year ISIM MPhil Programme in Islamic Studies was inau- – PhD Fellowships: ISIM PhD fellowships are granted for a period of up to 4 years. The ap- University of Berlin on the theme: History gurated in November 1999. The programme is interdisciplinary plicants should hold an MA degree or similar qualification in their field. Most of the and Historiography. New Perspectives of Re- in approach and focuses on Islam and Muslim societies in the PhD fellowships are placed within one of the ISIM Research Programmes. However, in- search. The deadline for applications is 15 context of modernity and globalization. It consists of five cours- novative individual PhD research proposals are also invited. January 2000. ♦ es and a thesis. Seven students, from Egypt, Germany, Indone- – Postdoctoral Fellowships: ISIM postdoctoral fellowships are granted for a period of up sia, Lebanon, and Pakistan as well as the Netherlands, were ad- to 2 years and are available to young scholars who have received their PhD degree less mitted to the programme in this first year. In addition to the aca- than 5 years prior to application. For a full list of participants, see ISIM Newsletter on demic staff of ISIM and participating universities, a number of – Visiting Fellowships: ISIM visiting fellowships are granted for a period of up to 3 the ISIM website. internationally renowned scholars are involved in teaching. In months. Some of these senior research fellowships will be offered upon invitation, December, Brinkley Messick (Columbia University) lectured the others will be awarded in open competition. For information contact: Arbeitskreis Moderne und MPhil students. Others, including Richard Bulliet (Columbia Uni- – Sabbatical Fellowships: the ISIM offers facilities to academic staff of participating and Islam Geschäftsstelle: Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, versity), Reinhard Schulze (University of Bern), and Stephen other universities to conduct research. In specific cases, the ISIM makes funds avail- Wallotstraße 19, D–14193 Berlin, Germany Humphreys (University of California, Santa Barbara) will follow able to finance the temporary replacement for teaching at the home university. Fax: +49 - 30 - 89 00 12 00 suit in 2000. Georges Khalil, MA, works at the Wissenschaftskolleg The MPhil prospectus for 1999-2000 and an application form For more information on the various fellowships and to download an application form, see the ISIM Website: zu Berlin / Institute for Advanced Study as the may be requested from the ISIM. Review of applications will h t t p : / / w w w . i s i m . n l coordinator of the Working Group Modernity and begin on 1 January 2000. or write to: ISIM Fellowship Programmes, P.O. Box 11089, 2301 EB Leiden, The Netherlands Islam. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 General Issues 5

Anthroplogy of the body REBECCA POPENOE Islam and the Body:

Is there a specifically Islamic vision of the body? Giv- en the nuanced nature of cultural understandings of the body and Islam’s own variable expressions, this question is probably unanswerable, and indeed Female Fattening poorly phrased. Phrased another way, however, the question of the relationship between Islam and the body becomes more interesting: how do bodily prac- tices in different Muslim societies articulate with dif- ferent versions of lived Islam? My research among among Arabs in Niger Arabs in remote northwestern Niger on the aesthetic of corpulent female bodies, and the practice of force- lam’, I want to distinguish their form of lived ory to the body that Islam upholds as pure feeding young girls to achieve it, speaks to this issue. goes through puberty, she slowly Islam from Islam as some essentialized cate- and virtuous. This, at least, seemed to be the ‘learns the value of fatness herself’ and gory. The Islam of the Arabs of the way in which ‘read’ Islam. The approximately 20,000 Arabs who today no longer needs an overseer, though if shares elements with Muslims everywhere, live in the Azawagh region in Niger arrived she has the good fortune to be married, but also has its own local particularities. ‘Openness’ and ‘Closedness’ there a century ago from what is now Mali, her mother-in-law may encourage her Although no one I spoke with ever con- This particular Islamic understanding of and before that lived further north in what is progress. Adult women continue to try nected the practice of fattening to Islam (as, the body played itself out in one of the most now . Resembling the of Mau- to maintain their fat by ingesting large say, people in some societies mistakenly common tropes used by Azawagh Arabs to ritania in their use of Hassaniyya Arabic, a quantities of grain, washed down with claim for female circumcision), the practice analyse illness: ‘openness’ and ‘closedness’. nomadic way of life until recently, and the milk or water. nevertheless contributed to a life that was Sickness was widely considered to be due to fattening of girls, they call themselves sim- in keeping with Azawagh Arabs’ lived un- and to result in bodily ‘openness’, and an at- ply ‘Arabs’, but I have chosen to call them There are complex ethnotheories of nutri- derstanding of Islam. For heuristic purposes tractive and desirable woman should be ‘Azawagh Arabs’ after the region where they tion and fattening that prescribe what foods I divide these connections between Islam ‘closed’, as well as ‘hot’ (the two qualities in- reside. to eat when and what foods to avoid, all and fattening into two categories: ideas deed go together). Women, with their many closely bound up with the maintenance of about the sexes and reproduction, and natural openings (mouth, anus, and espe- Fattening among Arabs proper ‘heat’ in the body. Women with ideas about the body. cially vagina), needed to be particularly o f t h e A z a w a g h stretchmarks and folds of fat are celebrated careful to keep their bodies closed. Fatten- While a corpulent female aesthetic is com- in song as well as everyday conversation. Islam and Fattening ing contributes to the ‘closedness’ of the mon in societies around the world, the prac- When I asked men and women directly The three ‘simple’ answers I received to body in several ways: by closing off the tice of fattening is less so, though it too oc- why girls fattened and why women strove the question of why girls fattened were body’s openings amidst swelling flesh; by curs in many places, including among Tuar- for such corpulent forms, they answered me grounded on three unstated assumptions increasing the ‘heat’ of the body, which egs who are neighbours to Azawagh Arabs in one of three ways: ‘because it is good/at- about the sexes and reproduction which keeps the body from leaking; and by making and Moors, and in a number of sub-Saharan tractive (z a y n)’, ‘because men like it’, and found legitimation in a particular reading of it physically more difficult for women to African and Pacific societies. Many visitors ‘because it makes a girl grow into a woman Islamic scripture: (1) that men and women move about, thereby containing them in to the and have commented faster’. My own research, based on one and should be as different from one another as less danger-laden inner spaces of the tent or possible, because God decreed that it yard. should be so, and fattening enhanced this This trope not only made sense in light of difference; (2) that desire was born of this Islamic rules about the necessary state of difference and that desire was positive, if the body for prayer, but was also itself ap- acted upon appropriately, and fat was sexy plied to Islamic scripture. For example, the in its extreme difference from masculinity; body’s ‘openness’ and ‘closedness’ was a and (3) that a girl’s (and a boy’s) God-given central trope of the creation story as it was duties were to marry and produce children, related to me by an old woman. Both Adam and that fattening speeded up a girl’s ability and Eve bit into the apple, but for Adam it to reach this goal, by bringing her more stuck in his throat, creating the Adam’s ap- quickly to puberty. In these ways the self-ev- ple, while for Eve it flowed right through ident attractiveness of corpulent women her, creating her menstrual period. Eve’s was at least indirectly grounded in a vision punishment was, in a sense, that the female of the sexes and of the life course that Islam body became plagued with uncomfortable upholds. To fatten, therefore, is a way for a and impure secretions, while the male body girl to accede to a God-given order, for it was able to contain things and keep its constitutes an active embracing of sexual boundaries clear, enabling life in spirit- and difference, as well as an embracing of wom- wind-laden open, public spaces. an’s destiny and purpose as a Muslim. The struggle of women against their bodi- Islam also provides reinforcement, if you ly ‘openness’ emerged in another religious will, for a particular way of understanding context as well: how heaven was imagined. the human body. During one of my first In addition to flowing milk and the ever-pre- weeks in the field, an incident occurred that sent company of female relatives, women’s brought this home to me. While making a representations of heaven also included rest stop on a trip, I pricked myself on a bodily wholeness and containedness. In the thorn, and quickly sucked off the drop of words of one young woman, in heaven, ‘you blood that emerged. A teenage boy in the won’t defecate, or have mucous, or be sick.’ Young on the female aesthetic there previously. a half years in the Azawagh in the early pick-up truck we were travelling in turned In short, while Azawagh Arab women’s unmarried women Ibn Battuta had already remarked on it 1990s, found that behind these simple ut- and said to me immediately: ‘Muslims don’t bodily practices were in no way determined (some divorced) among in what is now Mali in 1356; terances lay a more complex story. This sto- do that. Things that come out of one’s body by Islam or even read explicitly as grounded at a baptism. in 1799 the Scottish explorer Mungo Park ry, though focused on notions of appropri- are not pure.’ in Islam, they fit with ways of understanding wrote poetically about ’a prevalent taste for ate male and female behaviour, sexuality, By requiring ablutions, the emptying of all the body that were also upheld by the Islam unwieldiness of bulk’ among Moor women; and health, was not unrelated to Islam. Be- bodily wastes, and the cleaning of all sexual of Azawagh Arabs. Even though fattening numerous European explorers and colonial- fore I explore these connections in more de- fluids from the body’s surfaces before every and notions of the body’s ‘openness’ and ists made passing reference to it; and, in the tail, however, I want to say something about prayer, Islam could be said to send a strong if ‘closedness’ almost certainly have their 1980s the French anthropologist Aline Tauz- ‘Islam’ in the context of Azawagh Arab life. unarticulated message: that the body as the roots in a pre-Islamic world, local expres- in finally put it in a more ethnographically physical icon of the person is most holy and sions and understandings of Islam, and local sensitive light in her writings on Mauritania. Islam for Azawagh Arabs most valued by Allah when uncontaminated ideas about the body, coincided with and The practice among Azawagh Arabs is, in Unlike many other nomadic Arab peoples, by the flows, accretions, and processes of reinforced one another. In this particular brief, as follows: for whom Islam has been described as regular physical life. By forbidding prayer context, it may not be inappropriate to something of a backdrop to more immedi- when there is any kind of discharge from speak of a n Islamic vision of the body. ♦ When a girl of the higher caste loses her ate tribal or ethnic concerns, the Azawagh women’s bodies, Islam portrays the uncon- first baby teeth, an older woman is Arabs, both men and women, asserted their tained, unbounded, leaking body as prob- charged with overseeing her fattening Muslim-ness above all other aspects of their lematic, and holds up the whole, ‘closed’ process ( a l - b l u u-h). Until the girl reaches identity. They consider themselves to be di- body as pure and desirable. That is, while the puberty, she is given a large bowl of rect descendants of the companions of the body in many ways constitutes a vehicle for milk or porridge several times a day and Prophet, and hold their own Muslim-ness to religious expression (ablutions, prayer pos- is enjoined to empty its contents, under be of a higher, truer standard than that of tures, wearing of amulets), some aspects of Rebecca Popenoe is assistant professor of Social threat of physical force at times. As a girl the peoples around them. Although they bodily nature, especially women’s bodily na- Anthropology, Linköping University, Sweden. themselves hold their Islam to be ‘true Is- ture, are perceived as profoundly contradict- E-mail: [email protected] 6 General Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Veiling FADWA EL GUINDI Veiled Men,

Research on the contemporary Islamic movement that emerged in Egypt in the 1970s, after the Rama- dan war, revealed a centrality of the dress code adopted by the I s l a m i y y i n (Islamic activists), which Private Women has spread throughout the Arabic-speaking and Is- lamic region. The newly constructed dress form was visible and dramatic. Too much focus, however, was on the fact that previously secularly dressed college women had adopted conservative clothing, which in- in Arabo-Islamic Culture cludes veiling.

‘The veil’ had become problematized in the Drawing upon these various bodies of 1970s – not the conservative dress code. entered very cautiously, literally rub- knowledge, the analysis of the veil reveals a And gradually there was an avalanche of bing against the wall trying not to look fundamental code underlying many aspects discourse and publications on ‘women’s Is- in the direction of the women until he of Arabo-Islamic culture, which embodies lamic veiling’. Most used a ‘women’s studies reached a curtain diagonally hung in the related concepts that are meaningful in tex- approach’ which confined the issue to wom- corner of the room. He went behind it tual and social contexts. I contend that the en’s clothing and behaviour, invariably pre- and sat facing the women from behind modesty-based code (modesty-shame-se- senting it as reflecting women’s invisibility the curtain. That is, it was the man who clusion) represents an ethnocentric imposi- and anonymity, linking veiling to seclusion both face-veiled when with women and tion on Arabo-Islamic culture. Clustering and seclusion to institutions such as ‘the sat behind the hijab (curtain). His shad- these notions obscures the nuanced differ- harem’. Reductionist explanations ranged ow showed him lifting the kufiyya off his ence that is characteristic of Arabo-Islamic from female subordination to patriarchal face and letting it down to his shoul- culture. The modesty-honour gendered op- ideology to women’s nature. Ethnographic ders, but keeping it on his head. position is equally inappropriate. evidence challenged these observations He proceeded to discuss Qur’anic In the course of this anthropological ex- and claims. suras, particularly those pertaining to the ploration it became evident that veiling Upon close examination it was revealed hijab, according to the interpretation by consists in a language that communicates that the code underlying the dress should Mawdudi (1972, 1985; see note 119). The social and cultural messages, a practice that be the focus and not the dress form per se. women asked him questions, and mildly has been present in tangible form since an- Indeed the disproportional focus on wom- challenged some of his comments, but cient times, a symbol ideologically funda- en’s veiling is misleading, and once this was all in all did not seem to be awed by or mental to the Christian, and particularly the re-framed it became evident that men (col- subservient to his performance. They Catholic, vision of womanhood and piety, lege youth) were also ‘veiling’ as it were. In were abiding by their own self-imposed and a vehicle for resistance in Islamic socie- one sense they materially veiled by wearing rules of ritualized cross-sex encounters in ties. the kufiyya as head cover. But they also used public space. After about thirty-five min- The commonly produced linkage of h a r i m The veil is currently the centre of scholarly it on specific occasions to partially cover utes, he excused himself, and went with seclusion and sex derives from a per- debate on gender and women in the Islamic their face. through a ritualized exit, similar to his spective that embeds the phenomenon of East. In movements of Islamic activism, the In the course of my fieldwork, I personally e n t r y . the veil (and its assumed environment, the veil occupies centre stage as a symbol of observed one such incident which occurred harem) in the sphere of gender, rather than both identity and resistance. The veil, veil- on the university campus in Cairo. This turned Veil: Modesty, Privacy and Resistance, in the broader contexts of society and cul- ing patterns and veiling behaviour are out to be ethnographically and analytically p . 1 1 8 . ture. First, the ethnographic evidence ex- therefore, according to my analysis of Arab revealing: plored in this study shows that veiling occurs culture, about sacred privacy, sanctity and without seclusion and seclusion occurs with- the rhythmic interweaving of patterns of It was during the semester when college Through both this incident and additional out veiling. Analysis of historical records re- worldly and sacred life, linking women as lectures were in session, and I was en- observations, and also after examining text veals that seclusion of women more accu- the guardians of family sanctuaries and the gaged in fieldwork, that is, spending and ethnography, it became evident that in rately describes Christian (Mediterrane- realm of the sacred in this world. I argue for time on campus observing and talking order to understand the phenomenon of an/Balkan) culture than it does Muslim socie- the centrality of the cultural notion of priva- with students in and outside the move- veiling, the study cannot be restricted to ty. And in the Christian culture seclusion is cy, as one that embodies the qualities of re- ment. While I was with women students the superficially obvious or the obviously more associated with religion and religious serve, respect and restraint as these are in the women’s lounge, a man knocked visible (women veiling). It must, rather, ex- concepts of purity which are absent in Islam. played out in fluid transformational bi- on the door. tend to intangible spheres and hidden Finally, there is a need to fill the historical gap rhythmic space. Dress in general, but partic- The women scrambled for their hijabs codes. The ‘dress’ movement, as it turned in the scholarly coverage of women’s roles. ularly veiling, is privacy’s visual metaphor. and qina’s. Moments of confusion and out, was carried out by men and by women, The veil is clearly a complex phenomenon. My argument (developed in Part II of the tension passed, after which the man and was similar in manifestation among The research which led to the publication of book) is that veiling in contemporary Arab knocked again on the door. Finally, al- b o t h . Veil: Modesty, Privacy and Resistance c o m- culture is largely about identity, largely though still unsettled, the women lead- The empirical inference that men do ‘veil’ prised a journey into history, scriptures, eth- about privacy – of space and body. I con- ers among them invited him in. I looked opened the research exploration further nography, poetry, and even photography. A tend that the two qualities, modesty and se- out of the door and saw a man in a gal- and led to findings on men’s veiling in vari- search was conducted through different clusion, are not adequate characterizations labiyya (an ankle-length white, unfitted ous Arabo-Islamic contexts. This challenged bodies of data and across national borders. of the phenomenon as it is expressed in the gown with long sleeves). He pulled his single gender explanations for veiling. And How far back does the evidence for this Middle East. In their social setting, veiling kufiyya (head shawl) over his face and it was not a matter of ‘add men and stir’. The practice go? Who practised it? Is it every- proxemics communicate exclusivity of rank overall approach was to be reconsidered. where the same phenomenon? Does it have and nuances in kinship status and behav- the same meaning across eras, empires, and iour. Veiling also symbolizes an element of Continued from front page: A Sufi Apocalypse / b y David Damrel religions? The quest for answers became a power and autonomy and functions as a ve- voyage of discovery. hicle for resistance. It was no accident that Accordingly, the veil was examined in colonizing powers and authoritarian local even when the predictions are discredited. many contexts in a synthesis of many sour- states both consistently used the veiling of Explaining the year 2000 – and not the year ces of data. In addition to ethnography and women (and dress form for men as in Iran 1420 – becomes the point of entry to a larg- historical materials, the study consulted Ar- and Turkey) as their theatre of control. ♦ er project of inviting a generation of Euro- N o t e s abic Islamic-textual sources as well as con- peans and North Americans to discover 1 . Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, (1993), temporary and historical materials to pro- Islam. ‘Last day’ imagery serves as a timely Mercy Oceans Secrets of the Heart, Haqqani Islamic duce a new understanding. The procedure I Fieldwork for the book was conducted in Egypt and and effective teaching tool with which the Trust, Fenton, Michigan, p. 10. I am grateful for Mr used in exploring text was contextual and was complemented by observations from research shaykhs drive home to their followers more Mateen Siddiqui’s help in clarifying the meaning relational. Segments of text relevant to my trips to the Arab East, South Asia, and Andalusian subtle spiritual teachings about the afterlife, of this passage. subject were examined against other seg- Spain. Support was provided by the UCLA African mystical praxis and Islam. The Haqqanis ments in the same source. That is, a relevant Studies Center, the Ford Foundation, and the speak to modern millennial anxieties, reli- 2 . Shaykh Muhammad Nazim Adil al-Haqqani an- concept that is located in a particular a y a h Fulbright Fellowship programme. gious disenchantment, interest in prophesy, Naqshbandi, (1994), Mystical Secrets of the Last in a s u r a was examined against its presence and the search for spiritual truth – familiar D a y s, Haqqani Islamic Trust for New Muslims, Los in other a y a h s in the same s u r a and also in Fadwa El Guindi is adjunct full professor themes informing some of the most diverse Altos, California, pp. 125-129. other s u r a s . Information in the Qur’an was of anthropology at the University of Southern and dynamic expressions of spirituality in examined against t a f s i r and in h a d i t h. This California, USA. She is the author of the newly the modern West – and change the conver- Dr. David W. Damrel is a lecturer in the Department procedure had to be systematic to yield the published monograph Veil: Modesty, Privacy sation from one about the end of this world of Religious Studies at Arizona State University, observations and meanings I was able to de- and Resistance. Oxford: Berg Publishers. to an Islamic dialogue concerned with life in Tempe, Arizona, USA. rive. These are then examined against eth- E-mail: [email protected] the next. ♦ E-mail: [email protected] n o g r a p h y . h t t p : / / w w w - b c f . u s c . e d u / ~ e l g u i n d i I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 General Issues 7

V e i l i n g CINDY VAN DEN BREMEN A Modern

Veiling has been – and still is – the subject of much discussion in Europe, the Netherlands being no ex- ception. Some argue that the veil counters women’s rights. Others even see it as a provocative gesture Interpretation against European values. From a seemingly more practical point of view, the question of safety has al- so entered the debate on wearing headscarves, in particular during sports activities. of the Headscarf

Since the arrival of migrant labourers with their families in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and with it the appearance of the headscarf in public life in Europe, the prac- tice of veiling has become a major issue. This also holds for the Netherlands. The scarf was not associated with fashion, but rather with the issues of cultural discord and discrimina- tion against women. Although in Western fashion the wearing headscarves was a ma- jor trend in the 1950s and early 1960s, veil- ing by/of Muslim women has become the subject of debate in terms of whether it con- tributes to or inhibits the integration of Mus- lims in European societies. Instances of being forbidden to wear headscarves in the Netherlands have oc- curred with some frequency. Muslim girls and women here have filed many a com- plaint with the Committee for Equal Treat- ment, a state institution created to fight dis- crimination on grounds of race, gender, and conviction. Some years ago, this committee declared that no-one should be denied the right to wear a headscarf, however, more re- cently the same committee stated that the commonly worn headscarves created a pos- producing an already-existing solution, Outdoor model sible danger during sports activities. It was such as a hood or a cap. These alternatives suggested that girls simply wear a swim cap are an offer without engagement. There- Skate model Aerobics model with a high turtleneck instead. No Muslim fore, I designed an accessory with its own girl took this alternative seriously. Many con- originality and charm; one that refers to the tinued to skip gym class. Because it is held headscarf and thus carries its religious val- that gym class is meant to stimulate team ue. At the same time, due to the stigmatiza- building and interaction among students, tion, I wanted to create something that did the controversy may constitute a hindrance not too literally refer to religion. That way it to further integration. would be seen as simply an accessory – As a designer, the veil poses an interesting wearing it not necessarily meaning one is a challenge for me: how to come up with a so- Muslim. Many Muslim girls and women that lution which combines Islamic precepts I interviewed during my research com- with Dutch regulations and expectations. I plained that they constantly felt that they had to design a new headscarf that is safe had to defend their choice of wearing a for sports and at the same time covers the headscarf. head, hair and neck. I also had to avoid re- While designing the sport headscarves, I did not only focus on the target group: I de- Tennis model signed a head-cover that is still suitable for Is- lamic purposes, yet without having to convey that message. I created a line of sports acces- sories that can be worn by anyone, regardless their choice of function, religion or even gen- der. Four types emerged, each with special colours, materials and shapes depending on the particular sport. For instance, for the ‘ten- nis model’, I looked into conventional tennis clothing for women, which includes a short skirt. However, many Muslim women would never wear such a skirt. Nonetheless, since it is so characteristic of the sport I assimilated it in the collar. I also designed a black and white tricot ‘Aerobics model’, a dark and light grey lycra ‘Skate model’ with neon accent, and a dark red fleece ‘Outdoor model’. During the design process I asked Muslim girls for their My choice to undertake this subject was not eigners’ and yet to others they are perceived opinions. Since I myself do not wear a head- only motivated by the will to help resolve as ‘Dutch’: perhaps they are both. While em- scarf, their feedback on the choice of design, the problem of Muslim girls in gym class, but phasizing their individuality, they find com- material, colours and the way they close was also to create awareness in the Western fort in wearing the headscarf – symbolic of vital. This cooperation proved interesting and world that many women do actually choose their religion and beliefs. Many women even useful, as it revealed, for example, the impor- to cover themselves. In the Netherlands, the experience wearing the headscarf as a free- tance placed on the fact that the headscarf opinion that ‘all girls wear them because dom. They can interact and integrate with- should not make noise and that using a zip- their fathers tell them to’, and that ‘all wom- out loosing their own values and without be- per at the neck is uncomfortable. Besides vis- en wear them because their husbands tell ing judged by their own community. ♦ iting the various organizations that deal with them to’ is far outdated. Many girls who are Muslim women, I also sought the advice of an born in the Netherlands but raised with the Imam so as to have my designs judged in culture and values of their immigrant par- Cindy van den Bremen is a designer (concept, design terms of Islamic regulations. He was very en- ents, find themselves struggling with identi- & styling) in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. thusiastic about this undertaking. ty. They are, in the eyes of some, still ‘for- E-mail: [email protected] 8 General Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Science and Technology MAZYAR LOTFALIAN Understanding Muslim

With Islamic resurgence, there has been an increased concern that science and technology are not value- free agents that can be appropriated and expropriat- ed without inducing social and cultural violence. T e c h n o s c i e n t i f i c There is a complex relationship between culture, reli- gion and society on the one side, and science and tech- nology on the other, that is far from being value free. The way people understand and adopt this relation- ship between culture, science, and technology, can be I d e n t i t i e s termed ‘technoscientific identities’. This relationship has seldom been explored in the Islamic world. Competing discourses ered. The resurgence of Islam in Malaysia dialogue between these different articula- The quest of Muslims in the late 20t h c e n t u- since the 1970s has aimed to recast the socio- tions of foundational ideas, discourses, and It can be argued that the resurgence of Is- ry is to find appropriate cultural and institu- political structure of the country. The result programmes, interacting and affecting one lam and the changes in the identity of secu- tional models for implementing science and has been the creation of many intellectual, ac- another in the metalinguistic landscape. lar states in the Islamic world have opened technology. Islamic countries today are far ademic, and non-governmental interest The deconstructive role that the resur- up new spaces for the transformation of different from the time when Europeans ar- groups and agencies that suggest new poli- gence of Islam has played needs to be theo- technoscientific identities, creating a ‘meta- rived in Egypt, for instance, and ‘found’ it cies to, or criticize, the Malaysian govern- rized in this performative landscape in order linguistic landscape’, a landscape of global ‘unplanned’ and ‘undisciplined’, as they set ment. In 1984, Islam was introduced into the to be able to draw reconstructive pro- scope. There are different modalities of dis- out to subject Egypt to new disciplined spa- national curriculum of primary and secondary grammes. What can the recent debates over course that are interacting, each making a ces in order for them to be understood ac- education. Almost ten years later, in the 1996 technoscientific identities in Malaysia teach linguistic landscape. Ideas and concepts, cording to new rules of scientific methods. Educational Act, yet a different direction was us? In this context of different modalities whether technological or discursive, are The late 20t h-century Islamic world is a con- forged when the government allowed for the that cut across and also constitute the land- formed in these landscapes and affect one struct of hybrid norms and forms: on the one privatization of the universities, thus ending scape of technoscientific identities, the Is- another. hand, scientific discourses from the West de- the enforcement of a national unified curricu- lamic challenge is aimed at the hegemonic fine life and its natural milieu through instru- lum and yielding the creation of a variety of discourses of technoscience. The remaking Technoscience and Islam mental reason. On the other hand, Islamic private schools. Foreign universities could of technoscientific identity is not program- in debate discourses challenge this adoption of West- now establish themselves in Malaysia and matic. Rather it is a performative act of In the late 1800s, the Islamic reform move- ern epistemology based on instrumental Malaysian universities could open branches meaning making, through dialogue among m e n t Salafia, facing the onslaught of West- reason. The condition of technoscience, in the region. emerging views, a process of revealing what ern scientific and institutional discursive therefore, consists of competing discourses The effect of these changes in socio-politi- will be the future of Muslim technoscientific practices, sought to prevent the perceived about how science and technology should cal structure, e.g., the global Islamist move- identities. ♦ marginalization of Muslim tradition. Al-Af- be implemented, taught, and practised. ment and changes in the state, is evidenced ghani argued that science in the West is the in the establishment of transnational univer- continuation of the medieval Islamic sci- ‘Science studies’ as an interdisciplinary sities and institutes, such as the International ence and therefore Muslims can adopt it approach to the study of science and Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), based in the while remaining Muslim and following their technology is scarce in the contemporary US, the International Islamic University (IIU), traditions. In this interpretation, science Islamic world. In this project I am at- and Institute of Islamic Thought and Civiliza- and the effect of European planning were tempting to delineate the relationship tion (ISTAC). The resurgence of Islam in Ma- understood as inherently and potentially Is- between science, language, religion, cul- laysia, by drawing on Islamic metaphysical lamic. Science and discursive planning, ture, and society. The complex relation- and cultural norms, has become a mobilizing such as Timothy Mitchell explores in his ac- ship among these categories is what I force for social change, affecting Malaysia’s count of the effects of European colonial refer to as technoscientific identities. The technoscientific identities. Debates that are powers on the urban structures and life in problem about which is being theorized indexical of larger global concerns of Islam, Cairo,* were understood not in the context here has to do with understanding the such as the epochal understanding of the of the modern epoch as a set of interrelated fluid scene where many levels of dis- West, have been localized and have been episteme, but rather as a disjointed body of courses, institutions, and individuals are translated into particular institutional discur- objects that might even bear Islamic roots. interacting. Current work on the philoso- sive frames. This moment was marked by intellectual phy of language is an important contribu- In addition, there is the appropriation and debates on the relevance of Western sci- tion to the study of Muslim techno- expropriation of technoscience as instrumen- ence (such as Darwinian evolution or Galile- science. The relationship of language, cul- tal reason. Whereas the appropriation of the o’s astronomy) to Islam and the creation of ture and science can be understood as a latter from the West has typically been associ- new imaginaries through the work of cul- set of linguistic enactments that con- ated with the emergence of the secular state, tural translation (e.g., theatre and cinema, struct institutional, epistemological, and in the present condition this is happening in or the formation of the ‘new curious indi- cultural bases for science and technology. different ways. An interesting case is the joint vidual’ as a knowledge seeker). These de- project between Malaysia and the Massachu- bates came to an end around the 1920s, Linguistic enactments are discursive and per- setts Institute of Technology (MIT) to open a when secular states adopted a hegemonic formative articulations of ideas that float be- university of science and technology, in that view of science as universal, value and cul- tween individuals and institutions. These ar- in the initial planning, the desire was to in- ture free. Consequently, Islam and other lo- ticulations, in turn, are indexical of some clude the actual physical layout of MIT. The cal cultural traditions were increasingly events, including: the demise of medieval Is- idea behind importing the MIT model as an rendered irrelevant. lamic science and the effort to explain its his- institution formed through Western episte- The debates over the identity of technos- torical and cultural roots; the reform move- mology based on instrumental reason, re- cience have been re-opened in this turn of ment of the late 19th century to revive Islam flects the view of Western science as embod- the century. Now, however, a new condi- and reconcile it with modernity and the at- ied in the cultural, social and spatial ways in tion frames the relationship between tech- tendant emergence of the epochal under- which it is practised. The hegemony of neo- noscience and the Islamic world. This con- standing of the West; and, most recently, liberal political economy allows this appropri- dition can be illustrated in the following what one might call the demise of the secular ation to take place in a manner similar to that way: first, with the resurgence of Islam, state and the role of Islam as a political force of the earlier part of the 20th century. Howe- which is a source of cultural and political for the reconfiguration of the state in the ver, what has changed is the landscape in identity formation, the structure of state global context. These events have played de- which competing programmes co-exist, and of scientific and educational institu- constructive roles in recent reconfiguration of namely, the Islamic institutions that have tions is undergoing some changes and/or Muslim technoscientific identities. However, been emerging alongside Islamic resurgence. challenges. Second, there is a new emerg- the articulation of these events into institu- The apparent lack of understanding of the de- ing discursive view, based on both Islamic tional settings must be understood in the signers of this initiative, as well as other polit- metaphysical foundations and historical larger discursive field of many competing ical events such as the crisis over Anwar Ibra- developments of the West, that sees the modalities. There is a global context for the him, point to the complexity of this current West as an epoch, a set of interrelated epis- latter where multi-mediations, actors/institu- landscape of competing discourses. teme. Third, references to Islamic meta- tions/technologies, frame the dynamics of These institutional discourses are situated N o t e physical foundations have become de-lo- change. This is what is referred to here as the in global/local modalities. For example, Islam- * T. Mitchell, (1988), Colonizing Egypt. Cambridge: calized, travelling through transnational metalinguistic landscape. ization can be seen in the local institutional- Cambridge University Press. movements of people and technological ized forms of affirmative action and educa- devices such as the Internet. And fourth, Malaysian experiences tion curriculum as well as in the global project Mazyar Lotfalian has a PhD in anthropology and is Muslim experiences of modernity/post- To illustrate the ways in which technoscien- of Islamization. Other instances include the a visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of modernity are multileveled, trans-local, and tific identities are shifting, Malaysian experi- rise of inter-regional educational activities. Technology (MIT), Program in Science Technology i n t e r a c t i v e . ences of institution building can be consid- These modalities become scenes of constant and Society, USA. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 General Issues 9

Debate BRUCE LAWRENCE Neither Civil nor

There is a new stress on civil society. It has come in the aftermath of the Cold War, and in some sense it still perpetuates the Cold War. Equated with , the market, and pluralistic culture – the fa- Info Society miliar teleological mantra of neo-liberalism – civil so- ciety is trotted out as the answer to all issues of glob- al competitiveness and national reconstruction. offers Muslims the The history and current deployment of the use of civil society apply but obliquely to Arab civil society, as is apparent from the most sig- nificant study yet on this crucial topic: R. Au- gusus Norton, Civil Society in the Middle East, 2 Hope of Global Equity vols. (E.J.Brill: Leiden, 1995-1996). The scope of this edited volume is vast and includes an In a deft move, at once original and produc- time that they have created innumerable tially.’ In other words, the commercial class- overview of Middle East and North Africa, and tive, Roy then goes on to note how both networks which reconfigure indeterminate, es and those related to them who need then country-by-country analyses. If the les- models – the liberal pluralist and the Gram- atomized groups of individuals into new vir- commerce-enabling information still have sons for civil society in the Middle East are so- scian resistant – presume a certain kind of tual communities. What is emerging, in his the greatest access to, and use of, the Inter- ber, they depend on grappling with an elu- state. Both presume that there is a unitary view, is a global network society. The dark net. And so information technologies re- sive term that does not resonate at the same state, but with limited powers. They also side of the Information Age does not escape main inherently conservative. They rein- level for all researchers. In the preamble to a presume that pluralism is invariably good, Castells. He notes how informational poli- force global capitalist structures and asym- study of the Jordanian case, we are told that: at once welcoming difference and promot- tics renders the state less powerful in its su- metries, as Sasken has demonstrated, and ing tolerance. Further, they presume that pervisory, regulatory and disciplinary func- they do not augur a new or revisionist no- ’In traditional western writing … civil there exists a kind of social contract about tions, and most conservatives would wel- tion of civil society. What we are likely to see society has been associated with the de- what counts as good. Finally, they aver what come that shift, but informational politics as the lure of cyberfantasies expands is the velopment of capitalism, with the right Michael Walzer calls ‘speaking in prose’, that also reduces the protective and redistribu- further marginalization of the already mar- to private property, and the need to is, a normal life. Yet Roy goes on to demon- tive functions of the state, which most liber- ginal. protect other individual (initially, male) strate that neither of these models can ap- als would not applaud. Moreover, Castells Euro-American elites, together with their rights … Civil society is defined by three ply in Gaza because neither the state nor the laments the ‘black holes of informational Asian, African, and Arab counterparts, will elements: associational life (including society is unitary; not only moral consensus capitalism’. They give rise to social exclusion continue to project interests and promote political parties outside the state), citi- but even normality are elusive, if not fictive. and the rise of what he terms ‘the fourth options via the Net, but most of their ener- zenship (meaning full rights and re- The result? ‘The possibility of civil unrest’, world’. The radically divided benefits of the gies will be directed to non-political goals; sponsibilities), and civility in interaction concludes Roy, ‘appears greater than the ca- Information Age portend a global economy neither a new civil society abroad nor a re- … It is concerned above all with a liber- pacity of civil society to address it.’ Let us that is at once mercurial and criminal, and constituted civil society at home is high on alization process, with carving out an call this the Liberal Model (of civil society), its outcome may well be a prolonged expe- their list, and to the extent that the under- even larger realm for civil non-state, as- in a phrase from Michael Gilsenan, Turned rience of the ‘New World disorder’. valued become less visible as also less em- sociational activity and for civil rights.’ Inside Out. Central to Castell’s argument is the role of powered, we may well wonder how socially Even while there is keen attention to the world cities, and world cities as the sites of transformative the revolution, which Cas- A quite different, more nuanced, model of benefits of civil society in many quarters, immigrant experience. It is, above all, urban tells has deemed the biggest since the in- civil society appears elsewhere in the same there are also other moves to go beyond the location that defines the current diasporas vention of the Greek alphabet in 700 BCE, volume. On the one hand, ‘civilian rule, citi- traditional concept and use of civil society. If of the post-Vietnam and now post-Cold War will be. Muslims, especially the urban poor zenship, civisme, civility, civil liberties – all Roy questions its applicability in the desper- eras, in both North America and Western Eu- in Africa and Asia, will likely be the least of are remedies to different forms of despotism ate circumstances of current day Gaza, oth- rope. Among those refining and developing its beneficiaries. ♦ and all are evoked by the term “civil society”. ers note that it no longer applies at the top an urban accent for the immigrant experi- …Yet not all these remedies go together end of the global/local hierarchy, to those ence in late 20t h-century America is the fem- and none of them is easily achieved … The empowered by the Information Age. It may inist theorist, Saskia Sassen. Her G l o b a l i z a- protection of individual liberty, for instance, be time to explore a radical prospect: civil tion and its Discontents: Essays on the New proscribes imposing conformity of values or society has been, or is about to be sur- Mobility of People and Money (1998) docu- identity upon the citizenry and hence con- passed by, cyber society. ments the pernicious effect of ‘cyber-seg- tributes little to nurturing the de- Are we perhaps witnessing not merely mentations’ or increasingly disparate and mocracies require. Civil liberties and civic new forms of social practice and labour that unfair distribution of economic wealth, so- spirit may then be modestly conflicting limit the utility of civil society, as in Gaza, cial benefits and life options. For Sasken glo- goals, and (we should not be surprised) that but also the rapid shift from a state-civil so- balization is above all the hyperlinkage of democracies everywhere experience a con- ciety model to an all-pervasive information global cities through international nodes flict between the goals of liberty and com- society? Whether we call it an information which constitute a new transterritorial ‘cen- munity.’ Neither of these definitions, or the society or cyber society, its very possibility tre’ of global economic activity. Yet it is diffi- cases they explore, calls into question the underscores the radical technological shifts cult to give specificity to particular groups relevance of civil society to Arab/Muslim so- that envelop both the state and its adjuncts, of immigrants, mostly labourers from third cieties. Not so in the case of Gaza. When we including civil society, especially but not world countries, who participate in this sys- look at the evidence of Gaza, civil society ap- solely in Western Europe and North Ameri- tem from the margins even while seeking pears in a starkly different light. Sara Roy, au- ca. It was Marshall Hodgson, the major Is- citizenship on new terms. Civil society drops thor of the essay on Gaza, challenges extant lamic historian of the 20t h century, who out of the discourse, except insofar as it is models of civil society as they apply, or do warned us in an essay published over 30 inflected through the international human not apply, to Gaza. She begins by posing a years ago (in 1967) that the speed and rights agenda, and the specific groups with contrast between the liberal pluralist model scope of technicalism would overwhelm not whom we began this survey only reappear and the Marxist model à la Gramsci: only Orientals but also Occidentals: both the as foreign others – not the domestic others West and the East would be transformed by who are both Arab and netizens. Jon Ander- ’The liberal pluralist model posits an ‘the expectation of continuous innovation’ son has made a singular effort to address arena of potential freedom where citizens and its (often unintended) consequences. what he calls ‘cybernauts of the Arab Dias- can engage in voluntary associations Among the major respondents to techni- pora’. Yet electronic mediation in transna- apart from, but not in opposition to, the calism has been Manuel Castells. A Berkeley tional cultural identities has impacted over- state. By contrast, the Gramscian model urban sociologist, Castells has tried to theo- seas Arab emigres, exiles, labour migrants, privileges civil society over the state. It rize the unexpected advent of the computer students and new professionals unevenly, sees civil society as a weapon against cap- and also to assess its long-term social im- yet they are often glossed as global citizens, italism, not an accommodation to it. Civil pact. Looking at what Hodgson termed the difficult to analyse socio-economically or to society becomes the sphere of resistance, latest phase in the cumulative history of the identify with particular cities, whether in where those who are marginalized, domi- whole Afro-Eurasian Oikumene, Castells Western Europe or North America. nated, and exploited can struggle against calls it the Information Age. Like Hodgson’s To the extent that the Internet has begun state control. Who struggles? The family, earlier trilogy, Castells’ The Information Age: to connect the global with the local, the political parties and labour unions, in- Economy, Society and Culture ( B l a c k w e l l ’ s : overseas with the home, we are told that Bruce B. Lawrence is professor of Islamic Studies deed, all those who are intent on mobiliz- 1996-98) is at once spatially comprehensive ‘the members of Middle East diaspora com- and History of Religions at Duke University, where ing opposition to state-directed, capital- and boldly predictive. Castells traces how munities most able to reconnect with the he chairs both the Department of Religion and ist-motivated hegemonic practices.’ computer-driven telecommunications have homelands through the Internet are (above the Wiegand Comittee on Pivotal Ideas of World intensified global interactions at the same all those) engaged in business, at least ini- Civilizations. E-mail: [email protected] 1 0 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

East Asia SITHI HAWWA R e l i g i o u s

Islam is one of the fastest growing religions in the world and is often perceived as the favourite of the discriminated against and economically underdevel- oped. It has drawn a huge influx of converts in recent C o n v e r s i o n decades, despite endless assertions about the declin- ing influence of religion in the lives of people in the wake of modernization and globalization. Islam’s manifestation and continuity in Hong Kong is surpris- ing because religious affinity is less recognized or re- of Filipino Domestic warded. The popular religions here are Buddhism, Taoism and Christianity, adherents to Islam constitut- ing only 1% of the population. However, a notable number of conversions to Islam amongst Filipino do- mestic workers in Hong Kong are occurring. Helpers in Hong Kong

According to Hong Kong’s Majid Ammar ing rise to the circumstances conducive to told me that they react to such powerless- foods, such as beef or chicken. Some wear Mosque, conversions in the territory aver- potential conversion. Apart from romantic ness by converting to Islam. In doing so, loose clothes, instead of the h i j a b, and may age 60–70 per year, and more than 70% are involvement and inter-marriage with Paki- they empower the men and seek to obtain pray during the absence of their employers Filipino domestic helpers. The vast majority stani men, their prior contact with Muslims, moral identity, gain respect among the men or during their leisure time instead of pray- are women. This, added to the fact that work experience in the Middle East, influ- and secure themselves protection from har- ing at the times designated by Islamic laws. there is a long history of bitter relations be- ence from converted family members, em- assment by men in their public and private Though the women are primarily brought tween Muslims and Christians in the Philip- ployers or co-workers, dissatisfaction with lives. Catholic and Islamic laws concerning to Islam through their boyfriends, one can- pines, makes the confluence of these factors their former religion, mere curiosity, or a de- inter-marriage, economic responsibilities not discount their genuine strength of be- unique in the worldwide experience of con- sire for enlightenment also motivate poten- toward their respective families, cultural dif- lief. If their relationship with the man is version to Islam. tial converts. Pakistani migration to Hong ferences between the two ethnic communi- stronger during their transition period (from Kong began during the colonial era, when ties, and their immigration status in Hong Christianity to Islam), most turn into com- Filipinos in Hong Kong most served as policemen and soldiers. Kong become factors influencing marital mitted converts. Many women face physic- Migration is not a new phenomenon, es- Many now work as private watchmen and success. Employment conditions in Hong al, psychological, financial and marital prob- pecially not to Filipinos, since their country security guards. Kong such as the compulsory one paid 24- lems and are conflicted over many issues, has been facing severe economic crisis for Religious conversion is not an impulsive hour holiday per week and statutory holi- such as the position of a converted woman well over two decades. What started as a overnight decision and many converts un- days, the absence of immediate family pres- whose Christian husband refuses to convert temporary measure to alleviate economic dergo a difficult period of transition. Often sure to conformity, strong social network, along with her, how to avoid staying alone pressure, has became a permanent way of converts are seen as deviant and face ostra- the recognition by the mosque of their im- with a male employer, how to handle pork life for many Filipinos. Hong Kong became cism from their own group. Financial, emo- mediate needs, and above all, their need for when cooking for employers, how to justify a popular destination due to its proximity tional and social support derived from a physical space to escape the stigma at- wearing the h i j a b to the employers, how to to their motherland and the higher wages. among new organizational and social ties tached to their gathering at public places, avoid confrontations over religion with their In the early 1970s, Hong Kong began to ex- provides inner strength to endure such all favour the conversion of Filipinos. family and friends and how to convince the perience enormous urbanization and in- challenges. Many of the converts undergo family to carry out Islamic burial arrange- dustrial development resulting in a huge several or all of the following stages.* Encounter and interaction ments. demand for labour. Local women escaped with the advocate domestic service for regulated and well Context, Crisis and Quest One person stands out as a prominent fig- Gender and conversion paid factory jobs, which led to a shortage of Though Pakistanis and Filipinos in Hong ure in Islamic conversion in Hong Kong: Sis- Though there is little evidence from previ- female domestic workers in Hong Kong. Fil- Kong possess ample similarities – such as ter Madiha, a Filipino convert who assists ous studies as to whether women or men ipinos became the best option because of their relatively low status in Hong Kong, a the newcomers. Under her guidance, three most often convert to Islam elsewhere, the their reputation for language skills, educa- large component of single people, the large hundred women have already embraced Is- overwhelming majority of the converts tional levels and pleasant personalities. Ini- size and minority status of each group, and lam in 5-6 years. Her nationality, language, among Filipinos in Hong Kong are women. tially employed by a few expatriate com- English language ability – there are two religious background, Islamic and biblical The main reason is that there is an imbal- munity members, their number steadily sharp distinctions – their educational attain- knowledge, and occupation are very ap- ance in the population distribution of Filipi- rose to 141,000 (September 1999), making ment and religious affiliation. Filipinos are pealing to the newcomers. Being a Filipino nos in Hong Kong based on gender. The in- them the largest non-Chinese community generally credited with high educational at- domestic worker with a fluency in Tagalog tensity of religious faith of Filipino women in Hong Kong. tainment where as Pakistan’s literacy rate is and English, and herself a convert, Sister and their prior tendency to shift among dif- low compared to the developing world’s Madiha becomes the ideal model for sisters ferent denominations within Christianity standards. As far as the religious difference undergoing conversion. are also instrumental in facilitating conver- is concerned, Islam is predominant in Pakis- The mosque provides a comprehensive s i o n . tan, while Catholicism is the dominant reli- training programme that includes compara- The general slow down of the economy in gion of the Philippines. These similarities tive religion lectures, Islamic knowledge Hong Kong, particularly the inability of the and differences play an important role in classes, elementary Arabic lessons, Mosque to fund sisters in terms of financial their relationship. reading sessions, open forums and discus- crises, the absence of a physical space for Marital laws in the Philippines, such as the sion of the converts’ social problems. It em- converts with terminated contracts, and the denial of divorce, severe restrictions on ploys various retention programmes, such unwillingness of fellow Muslims to employ birth control methods and a legal ban on as conversion ceremonies where previous the converts, leave them vulnerable to re- abortion, can result in marital dissatisfaction converts are invited to witness new con- version to their former religion. In some cas- and single motherhood. At the same time, verts pronounce the S h a h a d a h ( d e c l a r a t i o n es Muslim men behave in ways that dissatis- marriage in Pakistan is viewed as an obliga- of faith), converts gatherings, and picnics. fy many of the women, whose lack of knowl- tion toward family and arranged marriage is Converting to Islam requires one to exhibit edge of Islam allows them to make gross the rule, sometimes leaving little room for certain expected public and private behav- generalizations about the teachings of Islam romance. Migration to Hong Kong gives iour and the women face resistance from and cultivate negative images of Islam and both the Filipinos and Pakistanis greater au- their employers, friends and family in the Muslims, thus sometimes contributing to re- tonomy and a sense of liberation. They try course of performing their new religious ob- v e r s i o n . ♦ C o n v e r s i o n Filipinos nonetheless comprise the most to exert their influence over their new mari- ligations. ceremony of disfavoured community in Hong Kong. Dis- tal choices here. The Hong Kong govern- Filipino women crimination is reflected in particularly strict ment’s restrictive rules on the entrance of Commitment and held at the Masjid immigration rules and pay slashes for do- the domestic workers’ families forces many c o n s e q u e n c e s Ammar Mosque mestic workers by the Hong Kong Govern- of the women to live a single life. At the The first recognition of a convert as a Mus- i n W a n c h a i , ment, public criticism of their weekend same time, the Pakistani men’s perceived lim comes from the conversion ceremony, a H o n g K o n g . gatherings in public spaces, and labour fear of the influence of alien culture on their symbolic ritual that marks the first day of abuses such as the inordinate monitoring of immediate family members results in a simi- her transformed religious life. The basic ob- their work areas by employers. These are lar situation. Both may have already estab- ligations of Islam, including the wearing of N o t e only a few examples; many others occur lished a family back home. h i j a b, consumption of h a l a l food, and the * See also Louis R. Rambo (1993) U n d e r s t a n d i n g more subtly. Filipinos resist this discrimina- The lower position of women in Pakistan, performing of the five daily prayers exert Religious Conversion. Yale University Press. tion by forming strong social networks especially non-Muslim minority women, is enormous pressure on the converts. Some among themselves, which become the pri- reflected in Pakistani men’s treatment of Fil- balance the religious obligations and situa- Sithi Hawwa is currently pursuing an MPhil degree mary agency through which Filipinos come ipinos in Hong Kong. Often, ill treatment re- tional context of Hong Kong by abstaining at the Hong Kong University of Science and into close contact with Pakistani men, giv- sults in conflict relationships. Women have from pork, but not from other non-h a l a l Technology. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 11

East Asia ELIZABETH ATTANÉ Fertility and

With the end of the reign of the Manchus who gov- erned the Chinese Empire for three centuries, and with the advent of the Republic (1911), the minority issue took on a dimension impossible to imagine in I d e n t i t y : 1 9t h-century China. Aware of the fragility of national cohesion in this immense land of heterogeneous population groups, Sun Yatsen, founder of the Re- public, still minimized the influence of minorities, af- firming the supremacy of the Han, the majority eth- Muslims in Xinjiang nic group and founders of one of the first Chinese dy- nasties. The question of numbers quickly became a power. Migration alone, however, does not tion, to be the precursor of the vague at- where they hold the majority – which focus of debate. Proclaiming that, of a population to- suffice. tempts at autonomy or independence that has given rise to ethnic, cultural, and even tal of 400 million inhabitants at the time, the minori- Indeed, parallel to this population policy were to become exacerbated especially in separatist claims. ties represented only slightly more than 10 million, with its assimilationist aims – yet in order to the decade that followed? Xinjiang (‘new frontier’) has only been Sun Yatsen implicitly called upon them to disappear avoid aggravating the political and strategic part of China since 1759, when it was con- into the Chinese melting pot. The statistics published contention – China conceded substantial The Chinese birth control policy, more tol- quered by the Manchu dynasty. From then at the time, however, contradicted the President’s privileges to the frontier minorities in dem- erant towards its minorities than towards until 1949, only ten generations went by, assertions by listing 26 million non-Han Chinese. ographic terms. This was done, however, at the Han, played an incontestable role in which is relatively short when considered in the risk of seeing, in the end, the effects of widening the gaps in fertility. But that is not the light of the collective memory of a peo- divergent demographic growths jeopardize the only reason. Although many Sunni Mus- ple, and their sinization is but superficial. In China, the 55 national minorities (m i n z u) Han supremacy in these regions. lims are critical towards birth control, the Moreover, contrary to the Hui, these Turkic recognized (nearly 120 million persons to- high fertility rates of the people of Xinjiang speaking peoples had their sights set on day, 10% of the total population) are identi- Is religion influencing are not imputable to a religious factor alone: places of ‘high civilization’: those being Is- fied on the basis of ethnic, cultural, and – fertility? we have seen that Islam did not by any tanbul, Samarkand or Boukhara, rather than paradoxical for a country led by an officially In a national context of strict limitation of means impede the fertile transition of the Peking. During this period, the links with the atheist party – religious criteria. Ten of the births, China allows its minorities a much Hui, themselves Sunni Muslims. However, central powers remained very loose, to such 55 minorities are adepts of Islam, the most greater demographic growth than that of the high fertility of the Turkic speaking pop- an extent that on several occasions Xinjiang important of which together constitute a to- the Han. Accordingly, in the latest popula- ulations, which naturally translates into a found itself in a situation of quasi independ- tal of 18 million persons: Hui (approximately tion census of 1990, Uygur women, Kazakhs more abundant population, seems to rein- ence. Since 1949, Xinjiang has been increas- 9 million), Uygurs (7.5), Kazakhs (1.2) and and Kirghizes, had an average of two times force the centripetal inclination. It is indeed ingly firmly tied with China and is the target Kirghizes (0.2). more children than Han women and 1.5 disconcerting that their fertility is far superi- of massive colonization: from 7% in 1953, times more than Hui women, the latter or to that of their cousins in the ex-Soviet re- the percentage of Han within its total popu- The ‘cooked’ and the ‘raw’ nonetheless being Muslim. These minorities publics (Uzbekistan, Kirghizstan, etc.) and is lation has risen to 40% today. In this con- The Hui, descendants of Arab and Persian of Xinjiang have thus not obeyed the gener- even greater than any other Turkic speaking text, maintaining a high level of fertility – merchants that had settled by the thou- al rule: while there was a rapid decline in fer- area in the world, where fertility has fallen even higher than that of their Kazakh or Kir- sands in China beginning in the 7t h c e n t u r y , tility rates for the Han (the average number to a level below those of developing coun- ghiz neighbours in the ex-Soviet republics, and the Muslims of Central and Western of children per woman dropped from 5.2 in tries. an average of one child more – seems to be Asia brought by the Mongolian army in the 1970 to 2.6 in 1990) and for the Hui (5.5 in The example of the Hui demonstrates very the most elementary means, but perhaps 1 3t h century, belong the category referred 1970, 3.1 in 1990), they continued to bring a well that the stricto sensu religious factor ac- eventually the most efficient, to resisting to as the ‘cooked’ (s h o u, cooked by the civil- higher number of children into the world, 6 tually has little influence on the process of the Chinese invasion. ization, submissive, acculturated). By mar- in 1970, and still 4.6 in 1990 (Figure 1). transition in fertility rates. Furthermore, it China, apparently contravening its own riage with Han women, the Hui were able to The behaviours of the Hui, Chinese Mus- leads one to conclude that the atypical be- long-term interests, concedes to minorities assure their reproduction, but this exogamy lims, have evolved parallel to those of the haviours of the Xinjiang Muslims entail an- occupying the most sensitive zones of fric- led to their rapid sinization: they would no Han, with hardly one child more on average. other dimension, which could well be politi- tion – Tibetans of Tibet and Muslims of Xin- longer be distinguishable from the Han Remaining completely disconnected with cal. jiang in particular – the privileges important (customs, traditions, physical appearance) the Muslim minorities of Xinjiang, the Hui, a in terms of limitation of births, thus author- apart from their religion, Islam, and the con- group that is geographically diffused and High fertility to affirm izing a demographic growth far greater straints which it imposes (dietary prohibi- mixed with the Han population, have adopt- i d e n t i t y ? than that of the Han. Because Islam remains, tions, particularly severe in the rejection of ed as it were the reproductive norms of their Following the example of other minority China being no exception, a political force pork, the most appreciated meat of the surroundings. The cultural factor has clearly groups aspiring, if not to autonomy, than at to be reckoned with, the Chinese govern- H a n ) . held pre-eminence over the religious factor: least to obtaining greater recognition, the ment is in a way bound to satisfy the need Uygurs, Kazakhs and Kirghizes belong to the Hui, by their fertility, are much closer to Turkic speaking Muslims of Xianjiang seem for ethnic and religious affirmation of the the category of the ‘raw’ (s h e n g, unrefined, the Han than to their Turkic speaking co-re- to have found, in this high fertility, a means peoples of Xinjiang, this region being an im- independent, having kept their original cul- ligionists. to affirm their ethnic identity and to rein- portant strategic zone as well as a precious ture). Their largest majority being concen- The phase difference of the Uygurs, Ka- force their resistance to the Han. The Hui, link to the Muslim world and the oil emir- trated in Xinjiang (Chinese Turkestan), this zakhs and Kirghizes in relation to the Han, who are spread across the territory in a rath- ates. Hardly being able to counter their na- category forms the most visible Islamic and all the more so in relation to the Hui, er homogenous fashion, who are today tive traditions, China tried to dilute the ef- community in China. Cousins of the Turkic was substantial: throughout the 1980s, the strongly sinized and have never had their fects of their natural growth rates through speaking Muslims of the ex-Soviet Republic women of these minorities gave birth to at own territory, greatly differ from the Uygurs, Han immigration. borders, they speak Turkic languages and least two more children each than the Han Kazakhs and Kirghizes, who have cultivated However, this policy seems short-sighted. consider Chinese a foreign language; they or Hui women. Was this demography, signif- a strong sense of identity – bound to their If the current rhythm of Muslim population have rich cultural traditions, common to icantly disconnected from the rest of the na- geographic concentration in their own terri- growth in Xinjiang is maintained (+2.5% an- those of Central Asian Muslims, and have nually, compared to the +1.5% for the Han) nothing in common with the Han. Their on- Figure 1. Evolution of the average number of children per woman for it will double between 1990 and 2020. It will ly connection was made under constraint, t h e Han and the principal Muslim ethnic groups, 1970 – 1 9 9 0 then become – should the installations of after the capture and annexation of Xinjiang Han migrants in Xinjiang cease – with its 18 by the Qing in the 18t h century. million people, a majority of approximately The communist regime in 1949 broke off, 70% in this region, as compared to its slight- at least in its discourse, from the homoge- ly over 50% currently. nizing views of the nationalists by insisting, At present, China is attempting to fill in contrary the latter, on the multinational the gaps by waves of controlled migrations, character of China. However, according to and is using repression to maintain its hold the facts, it was under this regime that the on Xinjiang: closing Koranic schools and policy of sinization by population transfer mosques, imprisoning imams, confiscating began to veritably boom. Thus, between the religious works, and arresting dissidents. censuses of 1953 and 1964, the number of But can the nation-state resist much longer Han in Inner Mongolia had doubled, passing the centripetal manifestations, especially from 5.1 to 10.7 million. In Xinjiang, the when these receive the reinforcement of number had multiplied by seven (from 330 such an impressive demography? ♦ thousand to 2.3 million), and further dou- Source: Attané, E., Courbage, Y., bled between 1964 and 1982. More so than (1999), ‘Transitional stages and its discourse, these colossal population dis- identity boundaries: the case o f ethnic minorities in China’, Dr Isabelle Attané is researcher at the Institut placements of Han in the border zones Population and Environment. translate, at best, the strategic fears, and at National d’Etudes Démographiques (INED), worst, the hegemonic views of the central Paris, France. E-mail: [email protected] 1 2 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

East Asia JACQUELINE ARMIJO-HUSSEIN Resurgence of Islamic

In the years immediately following the end of the decade known as the Cultural Revolution (1966- 1976), the Muslims of China1 lost no time in rebuild- ing their devastated communities. After ten years of Education in China intensive and often violent persecution by govern- ment forces in which all forms of religious expression almost all of those who have completed were outlawed and hundreds of religious leaders their studies there have chosen to stay. In- were imprisoned, Muslim communities throughout deed, this student spoke very highly of the China began slowly to restore their religious institu- quality of the education and living condi- tions and revive their religious activities. The re-es- tions of the Chinese students in Iran. tablishment of educational institutions plays a vital role in this still ongoing process. As this research project continues to ex- pand, I will interview Chinese Muslim stu- dents studying in other centres of Islamic The first priority of Muslims in China was to re- learning throughout the Muslim world, as build their damaged mosques, thereby allow- well as return to China several times over the ing communities to create a space in which next few years to document their impact on they could once again pray together, but also their communities upon their return. How so that the mosques could reassert their role their experiences overseas influence their as centres of Islamic learning. Over the next identities as both Muslims from China and two decades, mosques throughout most of members of an international Islamic commu- the country organized classes for not only nity, is one of the issues that will be ad- children and young adults, but also for older dressed. Recent studies of globalization have people who had not had the opportunity to all focused on Western cultural influences, ig- study their religion. noring among many other important move- When asked how to explain this recent re- ments, the globalization of Islamic values. surgence in Islamic education, religious lead- A graduation ceremony for a h o n g (from the Persian a k h u n d) who have completed However, by concentrating on the role of in- ers, teachers, students and members of the their studies in a village in central Yunnan. ternational centres of Islamic learning, one community cite two main reasons: a desire to can reveal both the independent as well as in- rebuild that which was taken from them, and tion). In the past this consisted of intensive in- had over 500 full and part-time students ran- terrelated flows of different Islamic educa- the hope that a strong religious faith will help struction in classical Chinese, whereas today ging in age from 5 to 85. In addition to offer- tional traditions throughout the world. ♦ protect their communities from the myriad of it includes the study of modern Chinese with ing a wide range of day and evening classes, social problems presently besetting China in Chinese history and culture, together with Ar- the school also was very active in community this period of rapid economic development. abic language and Islamic studies. All the development work in the more impoverished My present interest in the resurgence of Islamic Muslim teachers and scholars with whom I Muslim villages in the region. education is the result of several years living in Early Islamic education in have spoken have emphasized the impor- Kunming, the provincial capital of Yunnan southwest China tance of mastering the Chinese language and Expanding networks Province in southwest China, where I first First settled by Muslims from Central and studying traditional Chinese culture and his- While travelling to different relatively re- carried out my doctoral research and then wrote Western Asia in the Yuan period (1271-1368)2, . One explanation given to me by a lead- mote regions of China, I was struck again and up my dissertation. Upon completing my Yunnan has for centuries attracted Muslim ing imam was that ‘while we are proud of the again by the extent to which Muslim villagers dissertation, which concentrated on the early students from throughout the region and the fact that our ancestors were Arabs and Per- were informed not only about the situation of history of Islam in China, I decided to begin country. As early as the Ming period (1368- sians, we must acknowledge that today we their co-religionists living in other parts of fieldwork on contemporary issues facing the 1644), Muslim scholars from Yunnan were in- are Chinese, and in order for us to strive for- China, but also about the latest issues con- Muslim minority population of China today. vited to teach in other parts of China, and ward we must use both of our legs.’ cerning the Muslim communities throughout After several months travelling to different scholars from outside were invited to teach in the world. This phenomenon is in part the re- regions and meeting with Muslim villagers and Yunnan, thus creating networks linking the ’Educate a woman, sult of the large number of Chinese Muslims religious leaders, I came to the conclusion that Muslims of Yunnan with Muslims in the rest of educate a nation’ travelling to different regions of China to a study of the recent resurgence of Islamic Another area in which Islamic education in study, but also the increasing number of stu- education would provide a significant Yunnan is unique concerns the role of wom- dents who go overseas to study. Although contribution to our understanding of Muslim en. Of the twelve major independent Islamic there are no official records kept, it is estimat- society in China. Through the course of this schools, four are for women only, and most of ed that there is a total of between 500 and research, which concentrated on southwest the other schools, while predominantly male, 1,000 Chinese Muslims presently studying in China, but included interviews with Muslims do allow women to attend. The female gradu- Egypt, Syria, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Lib- living in the northwest, I learned of the ates of these schools have taken a very active ya, the Sudan, Turkey, Malaysia, and Indone- increasing number of students studying role in spreading Islam. Most become teach- sia. Al-Azhar has the largest number, with ap- overseas at Islamic universities. I subsequently ers themselves upon graduation, either work- proximately 300 students. Most of the stu- travelled to the Middle East to interview ing in Islamic schools that are already estab- dents are sponsored by their family and com- students there as well. lished or helping to establish new schools in munity, and receive a small stipend at which- poorer regions. Several recent graduates ever Islamic university they attend. The stu- have also established Islamic pre-schools and dents at Al-Azhar spoke of the difficulty in after-school programmes for Muslim chil- adapting to life in such a crowded and over- dren. whelming city, but were also very cognizant The women with whom I spoke expressed of the importance of Al-Azhar and its role in clearly and confidently the importance of Is- Islamic history. Some, however, expressed lam in their lives, their commitment to Islamic disillusionment with the realities of living in a education, and their determination to edu- modern Muslim society. For the Muslims of Students in the China and Southeast Asia. Throughout this cate others. I met several young women who China, who have always been a small minority This research project was funded initially with girls’ evening period, Islamic education took place in had volunteered upon graduation from Is- amongst the Han Chinese majority and who a grant from the Wenner Gren Foundation for school class in a mosques and was known as jingtang jiaoyu lamic colleges to teach in remote impoverish- have survived for centuries isolated from the Anthropological Research. village in central (education in the Hall of the Classics). Begin- ed villages, isolated from friends and family. I rest of the Islamic world, often experiencing Y u n n a n . ning in the late Qing period (1644-1911), Mus- also met several exceptionally strong-willed intense periods of persecution, the idealistic N o t e s lims were once again allowed to make the pil- women who had established independent Is- expectations they have of Islamic countries 1 . The combined population of these Muslim groups grimage to Mecca and study in the major cen- lamic girls’ schools. One spoke of the funda- can become the basis of considerable disap- is presently conservatively estimated to be over tres of learning in the Islamic world. During mental role women played in society and the pointment. 20 million. this period several Muslim scholars from Yun- importance of the role of education; for as she The students studying in Damascus 2 . The degree of government control on religious nan studied abroad and when they returned put it, ‘by educating a woman, you educate a seemed the most content. They spoke en- activities varies from region to region. they started a movement to revitalize Islamic nation.’ Sitting in a small village in a remote thusiastically about their studies, the Syrian Government control in Xinjiang is the strongest, studies there by translating the most impor- part of China, she listed to me the various people, and their lives in Damascus. With and there even small schools within mosques tant Islamic texts into Chinese, rendering ways in which a young girl’s education could over 100 Chinese students studying there are not allowed. them more accessible. have a major impact on the health and social and a constant flow of new students and vis- While in other parts of China Islamic educa- well-being of her future children and grand- itors from China, they were able to keep Dr Jacqueline M. Armijo-Hussein is assistant tion has always concentrated on the study of children. Another woman in a large industrial abreast of conditions back home. I was also professor and coordinator of the Chinese Studies Arabic, Persian and Islam, in Yunnan the tradi- city in northwest China spoke to me about able to meet with a student who had gradu- School of International Affairs and Development, tion has always been one of Zhong-Ah bing how she established a women’s Islamic ated from an Islamic university in Iran. Little Clark Atlanta University, USA. shou (Chinese and Arabic side-by-side educa- school, which had quickly grown, and now is known of the students studying in Iran, for E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 13

Southeast Asia FARISH A. NOOR Islam vs Secularism?

The political drama in the Malay archipelago contin- ues to be played out in terms of the traditional Mal- ay-Indonesian shadow theatre: the Wayang of Kera- jaan. But it is impossible to deny that the latest de- The New Political velopments in Malaysia and Indonesia have also marked a major shift in the political terrain of the two countries, with the Islamic parties and movements there poised to enter the charmed circle of k e r a j a a n politics once again. This is something to which both Terrain in Malaysia the governments and the intellectual communities of the region cannot be indifferent.

The results of the recent Indonesian elec- a n d I n d o n e s i a tions were quite surprising for many observ- ers of Indonesian politics. Up to the last Malaysian race-centred politics, voters tend own Islamic agenda on a passive electorate The governments of Malaysia and Indonesia minute, there were those who felt that vic- to vote along racial, rather than ideological who would follow them obediently. Malay- therefore need to address the rapidly tory for either the liberal democrat Mega- lines. The Malays have traditionally split sia experimented with its own version of ‘of- changing socio-cultural terrain of their own wati Sukarnoputri or the conservative B. J. their votes between the conservative UMNO ficial Islam’ from the 1980s, as soon as Dr communities in order to make sure that Habibie was certain. It was expected that party and the Islamist PAS party. It is easy to Mahathir Mohamad came to power. Dr Ma- they will not be wrong-footed in the future. the Muslim parties in the middle would see why PAS has scored a victory here: the hathir’s own brand of progressive Islam With Islam now firmly planted on the politi- have made strong gains, and that popular Party has effectively placed itself on the po- seems rational and acceptable enough to cal map as one of the most important (and Muslim leaders like Abdulrahman Wahid litical map of Malaysia as the main opposi- most sensible people: He opposed the fa- unpredictable) variables, the elite in Malay- and Dr Amien Rais would eventually rise to tion party in the country, brushing aside the naticism and intolerance that can be found sia and Indonesia need to be conscious of take up the role of kingmakers in the new liberal and leftist alternatives, the DAP, PRM in other parts of the Islamic world and called how they proceed. The cost of failure will be government. But few could have guessed and PKN. The Islamist discourse that PAS es- on the Malay-Muslims to be open-minded, great, for it will have serious implications for that the mantle of the state would fall onto pouses has become part of mainstream po- worldly and practical in their orientation. the creation of democratic space and civil the leader of the Nahdatul Ulama, one of the litical discourse in the country, and like it or But unfortunately for the government in society in both countries. ♦ two biggest Islamist movements in Indone- not, all the other parties are forced to recog- Malaysia, Islamic discourse, like political dis- sia, Abdulrahman Wahid himself. nize that a new agenda has been laid on the course in general, is not something that is Observers, experts and laymen alike, are t a b l e . easily controlled and policed. Despite the now stumped to give adequate answers and many measures made to develop a progres- explanations for this radical turn in Indone- Flawed perceptions sive brand of modernist Islam in the country sian politics. For years, the Indonesian state Why is it that the Malaysian government (via initiatives such as the International Is- has tried to ensure that Islamist organiza- and the UMNO party in particular have man- lamic University, the Islamic Research Insti- tions and parties would never be allowed to aged to lose so much support from the Ma- tute, the state’s Islamic Centre, etc.), there mobilize strongly enough as to be able to lays? To compare Malaysia to Indonesia has now appeared a more popular brand of challenge the status quo. The Indonesian ar- would be unfair, for the simple reason that Islamist discourse which is shaped by devel- my (ABRI) played its part in keeping the so- the two countries are literally worlds apart. opments both at home as well as abroad. called ‘threat’ of political Islam at bay, even Yet both the Malaysian (and Indonesian) po- Developments in foreign lands such as the when the appearance of Islamic groups litical elite have miscalculated on several Gulf War, the continuing struggle in Pales- such as the Islamist separatist movement in major points: Malaysia and Indonesia re- tine, the persecution of Bosnians and Aceh, North Sumatra, actually represented main essentially Islamic countries where the Chechnyans, and the emergence of extrem- the genuine grievances of poor and alienat- majority of the populations are Muslim ist Islamist movements in the Arab world, ed Indonesians who felt that their rights had (60% in Malaysia, 90% in Indonesia). Thus it have all contributed to the formation of a been trampled on by the political elite is clear from the start that the governments new politicized Islamist discourse that has based in Jakarta. of both countries could not neglect the cul- taken a life of its own and is beyond the con- But the signs were there for those who turally specific demands of their respective trol of the state. were able to see them: from the late 1980s, electorates. What made matters worse for the Indonesian elite began to accommo- the rulers of both countries was that the rul- Enter the new discourse date itself to the changes in the public’s ing elite were seen to enjoy a standard of This is why the political and economic cri- mood. The government opened up Islamic life so radically different from that of the sis that began in 1997 that affected Malaysia think-tanks and research centres, and be- masses. and Indonesia were quickly reconfigured on gan to patronize Islamic conferences and in- Secondly, the governments of both coun- Islamist terms and turned into a religious tellectuals. It was clear that the powers-that- tries made the mistake of neglecting Islam struggle against the incumbent political be in Jakarta could not afford to neglect the and Muslim concerns at the beginning, and leadership of both countries. It is ironic that demands of this massive constituency out- later compounded the error by trying to do- Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who first introduced side the corridors of power. When Dr Amien mesticate Islam when it was seen as a the Islamization programme to Malaysia, is Rais declared that he and his movement, the ‘threat’ to their political and economic liveli- now being attacked by young Islamists on Muhammadijah, would no longer support hood. In Indonesia, the rulers regarded the grounds that he is ‘secular’ and ‘un-Is- the Suharto government in 1998, it became many of the Islamist movements as essen- lamic’. Unflattering comparisons between clear to all that the Islamic consensus had tially rural concerns run by backward peas- him and the Shah of Iran, the Pharaoh of been broken and that the Islamist move- ants and village preachers. The Islamic party Egypt, and the devil himself have become ments were no longer going to tolerate the in Malaysia was likewise treated as a farm- the norm in the Islamist jargon of the excesses and corruption of the Suharto yard phenomenon. Later when these Isla- streets. The prevalence of this popular Isla- clique. The rest is history. mist movements and parties grew more mist discourse will shape the terrain of polit- Today in neighbouring Malaysia, a similar powerful, the governments of both coun- ical struggle in the years to come, and un- scenario seems to be on the verge of unfold- tries tried to defuse the threat they felt by doubtedly create new political frontiers and ing. After decades of uninterrupted rule, the trying to co-opt the Islamists into the domi- political identities in the process. Malaysian government which is made up of nant power structure. In Malaysia, this hap- In the past, political struggles in the Malay the ruling National Front (Barisan Nasional) pened when the UMNO party co-opted the archipelago have been configured along alliance and led by the Conservative-Na- leader of the Islamic youth movement, An- the lines of secular politics where the main tionalist UMNO (United Malays National Or- war Ibrahim, into the government. Anwar objectives were winning control of the state ganisation) party, is facing the worse crisis later rose to become the Deputy Prime Min- and distribution of resources. But today the of its history. ister of Malaysia until he was removed and struggles have been injected with an ethical The biggest gains in the 1999 Malaysian arrested in 1998. But by then the Islamists and religious dimension as well, colouring election (though not necessarily in terms of had penetrated into practically every ad- the actors and agents concerned and up- Dr Farish A. Noor is a Malaysian academic who has parliamentary seats) were made by the Is- junct of political, governmental, economic ping the stakes in the contest itself. The Mal- taught at the Centre for Civilisational Dialogue, lamic opposition Parti Islam Se-Malaysia and educational life in the country. The co- ay political world made up of Malaysia and University of Malaya. He is currently a research fellow (PAS). PAS has been the major nemesis of optation of Islamists in Indonesia did not Indonesia will now be battling for more hosted by the Wissenschaftskolleg of Berlin. UMNO since the 50s, and its tactic has been help the Suharto government either, as they than control of governments and the ma- He is also the Secretary-General of the International to slowly whittle away support for UMNO later withdrew their support from him dur- chinery of state. What has become the ob- Movement for a Just World, a Malaysian-based NGO from the Malay-Muslim constituency that ing the 1997-1998 crisis. jective of political struggle is the soul of the which campaigns for human rights while working happens to be the main supporter of both Thirdly, the governments made the mis- people themselves. Trying to grapple with with and within religious communities. parties. (Because of the polarized nature of take of thinking that they could force their this new development will be a task in itself. E-mail: [email protected] 1 4 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Southeast Asia MARTIN RAMSTEDT M u s l i m – H i n d u

The collapse of the Soeharto regime has undermined the three legitimatory pillars of the Indonesian state: the much acclaimed economic development of the country is thwarted; the alleged preoccupation of the R e l a t i o n s Indonesian government with economic and political equity has been recognized as the rhetorical decorum of ‘crony-capitalism’; and the lauded socio-political stability has finally erupted in social unrest and per- turbation, gradually dissolving the ‘social glue’ pro- in Contemporary vided by Indonesia’s ‘civil religion’, the p a n c a s i l a p h i- losophy. The repressed ghosts of nationalist imagina- tion – political Islam and the disruption of centre-pe- riphery relations – walk again. Apart from gender, ‘re- ligion’ became an issue in the run for presidency. I n d o n e s i a

Ever since the independent, unitary state of Since October 1998, the sensitive rela- by the p a n c a s i l a, which is still supposed to to the famous Tanah Lot Temple. Since that Indonesia came into being in 1950, Indonesi- tions between Indonesian Muslims and be the ideological basis of the Indonesian time, protest against (Muslim) Javanese sell- a’s ‘Hindus’ have had to fight against cultur- ‘Hindus’ have suffered a further setback s t a t e . ing Balinese religion to the tourist industry al and religious discrimination on the part of from what has come to be known as the has never really subsided. the central government in general and the ‘A.M. Saefuddin Affair’. The whole affair Hindu protests In spite of Balinese agitation, Habibie Ministry of Religion, representing mainly the started on 14 October 1998, when the Minis- When, due to Balinese pressure, then eventually refrained from removing A.M. interests of the Muslim majority, in particu- ter for Nutrition and Horticulture, A.M. Sae- President Habibie agreed to demand an of- Saefuddin from office. The president closed lar. First of all, it was not until 1958 that ‘Hin- fuddin, who had then recently joined the ficial apology from his minister, matters be- the whole affair after another official apolo- duism’ was recognized as ‘religion’ by the vanity fair of those competing for the Indo- gan to escalate, for Saefuddin’s apology gy had been forwarded by the recalcitrant Ministry of Religion. Since religion was de- nesian presidency in the 15 November 1999 rang a rather contemptuous and insincere minister. Meanwhile, some prominent u l a- fined as being a universal and monotheistic elections, was asked by a journalist to assess note. In response to his half-hearted apolo- m a and Muslim intellectuals had urged the creed, based on a holy book which had been his chances v i s - à - v i s Megawati Soekarnopu- gy, Bali went into strike and continuous Indonesian Council of Islamic Theologians conceived by a holy prophet in divine revela- tri, the popular daughter of the charismatic demonstration, demanding that Saefuddin (Majelis Ulama Indonesia, MUI) to issue a f a t- tion, recognition was initially granted only to former president Soekarno. Megawati had be removed from office and stand trial for w a on whether a woman can or cannot be- Islam and Christianity. The various ‘animist’ just won massive support as a presidential having endangered the national unity. Sev- come president. On 7 November 1998, the traditions throughout the Indonesian archi- candidate at the congress of the Fighting In- eral Balinese even went so far as to threaten same day that Saefuddin apologized for the pelago were classified as primitive and su- donesian Democratic Party (Partai Demok- to call for an independent Balinese state second time, an Islamic Congress (Kongres perstitious belief systems, which were des- rasi Indonesia, PDI, Perjuangan), taking (Negara Bali Merdeka), should their de- Umat Islam) voted against women becom- tined to be transformed into local variants of place in Bali from 8-10 October 1998. mands not be granted by Habibie. ing president or vice president. On 1 June the modern Indonesian culture by the mod- The ambitious minister boasted that his The demonstrations and strikes were ac- 1999, this vote was officially expressed in ernizing policy of the Indonesian govern- chances against Megawati would be very tively supported by most segments of Bali- something stronger than a f a t w a, i.e. in a so- ment and by the spread of religion. The Bali- good, since he himself is male and a Muslim, nese society including representatives of called amanat – a mandate of the Indone- nese immediately reacted to the threat of whereas Megawati is female and a Hindu, the tourist industry and a considerable sian Muslims represented by the Indonesian being proselytized by either Islam or Christi- insinuating that the Muslim majority of the number of Muslims living in Bali. During the Council of Islamic Theologians. During the anity by redefining the tenets of their tradi- Indonesian people would not approve of a demonstrations and strikes, every Hindu Ba- actual elections for presidency in October tional belief system, originally called ‘Shiva- Hindu president. linese wore white traditional clothing usual- 1999, it became apparent that the Muslim Buddha-Religion’, and by reforming those When accusing the liberal Muslimah Meg- ly donned during prayers, rituals and cere- vote prevented a woman – at the least for aspects of their culture that were not in awati of being Hindu, Saefuddin referred to monies. People even brought along some the time being – from becoming president keeping with the modernist requirements of a photo which had been published in sever- musical instruments (b a l e g a n j u r), which are of Indonesia, notwithstanding her large the Indonesian government. Having stream- al Indonesian newspapers. It showed Mega- normally used in ritual processions, and popular support. ♦ lined their theology and ritual practices ac- wati joining the prayers in one of the Bali- sang ritual songs like traditional Balinese g e- cording to the definition of religion by the nese temples. This breach of orthodox Mus- g u r i t a n and India-derived k i r t a n. Hundreds Ministry of Religion, they succeeded in lim convention was hitherto considered to of banners cursed A.M. Saefuddin and achieving the recognition of ‘Hinduism’ in be quite a normal act for Indonesian politi- threatened, for instance, to throw him into a 1958. cians and bureaucrats visiting Bali. That it box together with pigs. The decorum of the was now made an issue by Saefuddin public protests revoked similar actions of New order Hinduism aroused massive protest and demonstra- Balinese self-defence which took place at With the onset of Soeharto’s ‘new order’, tions in Bali. the beginning of this century, i.e. the dra- ‘Hinduism’ became the umbrella-institution matic p u p u t a n or ritual self-destructive for various other local traditions (i.e. Aluk To Saefuddin himself is a representative of the fights against the Dutch colonizers. Dolo and Ada’ Mappurondo of the Sa’dan- more radical faction of Indonesian Islam. Be- Smaller demonstrations also took place in and Mamasa-Toraja as well as the tradition of sides, he shared much common ground Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya where there the Towani Tolotang in South Sulawesi, Pe- with B.J. Habibie, the short-serving succes- are large numbers of Balinese students, gov- mena of the Karo-Batak, Kaharingan of the sor of Soeharto. Like Habibie, Saefuddin ernment officials and businessmen. In the Ngaju- and Luangan-Dayak in Central and studied engineering in Germany and is other ‘Hindu’ areas in Indonesia, protest was East Kalimantan) whose adherents have hence also a member of the Union of Alum- almost non-existent. There, the ‘Hindus’ be- turned to ‘Hinduism’ with the hope of being ni from German Universities (Perhimpunan long to the politically, economically and ed- able to continue their ritual practices under Alumni Jerman) and the Union of Indone- ucationally marginalized minority even the protection of a more tolerant religion. sian Engineers (Persatuan Insinyur Indone- among their own respective ethnic groups, The integration of these new ‘Hindu sects’, as sia). He is furthermore a member of the the majority of which have already either they are called, into ‘Indonesian Hinduism’ Guiding Council of the Committee for the converted to Christianity or Islam. Hence, has nurtured the prejudice against Hinduism Co-operation for Indonesian Muslim Board- they often do not dare to protest against a still prevailing among Muslims and Chris- ing Schools (Majelis Pimpinan Badan Kerjas- kind of cultural racism which they have tians. Until today, Hinduism has frequently ama Pondok Pesantren Indonesia) and a come to regard as almost normal. The Bali- been accused of being polytheistic and ani- member of the Council of Experts of the As- nese, on the other hand, who have devel- mistic, hence of not being a ‘religion’, or at sociation of Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals oped a strong affluent middle class, have a least a religion equal to Islam and Christiani- (Ikatan Cendekiawan Muslim Indonesia, very strong Hindu identity. And it is their re- ty. During the Soeharto regime, Indonesia’s 6 CMI), which was headed by Habibie before ligious symbols that have frequently be- million ‘Hindus’ were protected against at- he became president. come the target of religious defamation. Re- tempts at Muslim and Christian proselytizing Both moderate and fierce critics of Sae- cent examples are the scandalous photo of by the government party GOLKAR and by the fuddin in and outside Bali agreed that his a Balinese offering containing a golf ball army both of which promoted ‘religious tol- statement had unnecessarily dragged pri- which was published in the brochure B a l i erance’ as one tenet of the state ideology, the vate matters of religion and belief into the Kini in order to advertise the respective so-called p a n c a s i l a philosophy. Since the fall political arena, even that he had selfishly tourist facilities of the island, or the plans to of Soeharto and the subsequent de-legitimi- tried to use religion against his political ri- build a huge Garuda statue in the south of zation of GOLKAR, the army, and the p a n c a s i- val. Criticism differed, however, on whether Bali in order to greet tourists arriving by Martin Ramstedt is a European Science Foundation la philosophy, the non-Balinese ‘Hindus’ Saefuddin had scorned Hinduism in general plane. In 1995, Bali-wide demonstrations at- (ESF) Alliance fellow at the International Institute have again become the target of Islamization and whether he had therefore violated the tempted in vain to prevent the construction for Asian Studies (IIAS), Leiden, the Netherlands. and Christianization. principle of religious tolerance prescribed of the Bali Nirwana Beach Resort right next E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 15

Central Asia PATRICK GARRONE B a k s y l y k:

It was in Central Asia that the shamanism of the Turko-Mongolians and the Islam of the Arabo-Per- sians were to meet. This zone is bordered by the Cas- pian Sea, Afghan Turkestan to the south, Hindu A Muslim Declination Kouch, the Pamirs, the Tian Chan and Altaï to the east, and southern Siberia to the north. Today, sever- al states, in part or in whole, are found in this quadri- lateral: Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyr- gyzstan, Tadjikistan and . The ancestral of Shamanism shamanism of the Central Asians had to, after the Muslim take-over (8t h century), progressively com- pants occupy three sides. The open side promise with Islam. The result was an Islamized sha- principally indicates the direction of Mecca. manism generally known as b a k s y l y k. Placed in front of the ill person, on a , are a bowl filled with the sacrificial blood, a glass of water, a plate of flour, a couple of The term b a k s y l y k can be translated as ‘to bills of money and lit candles. In each of his do the b a k s y’. Its officiant is in fact, most of- hands, as well as on his head, bouquets of lit ten, called b a k s y, b a k h s h i or b a k s h i . The lat- candles are placed momentarily, being re- ter are local variants of a common root. The moved at the beginning of each ceremony. theories which attribute a Turkish or Chi- Herbal fumigation is conducted as well. nese origin to bakshi (this form of the word The session consists in repeating, until the is used henceforth) are insufficiently sus- ill person is healed, the ritual models called tained. The term, in fact, is derived from the k h a l q a. During a k h a l q a, the b a k s h i, beating Sanskrit term for Buddhist monk, b h i k s h u. his d o j r a, invokes his spirits by beginning B a k s h i did not always refer to the Central songs of a Muslim character. His aids signal Asian Islamized shaman as it does today. It the arrival of the spirits by belching, yawn- has designated the Buddhist priest, the sec- ing and gurgling. In order for the course of retary to Turk chancelleries, the wandering treatment to be successful, during a k h a l q a, bard and even a dignitary of the Mogul ar- a trance must seize the ill person and the my. However, from the 13t h and 14t h c e n t u- aids of the b a k s h i, the latter doing nothing ries, b a k s h i took on, in Central Asia, the more than simply accompanying. The ill sense of shaman, while conserving some of person (to whom several symbolic hits are A female b a k s h i the preceding meanings elsewhere. given) and the aids then improvise a sort of using the whip Two types of b a k s y l y k coexist.* One, jahrî (chanting out loud) that the b a k- and the knife northern (nearly all of Kazakhstan, certain s h i leads. At the closing of the d h i k r, the f o r healing; regions of Kyrgyzstan and Chinese Turke- group exits the room after the ill person Altaï Valley area stan), results from an environment marked takes hold of a coloured fabric from among (on the border by nomadism. The other, more southern those laid out near him. The colour of the between Tajiki- (Uzbekistan, certain regions of Kyrgyzstan, cloth should correspond to that of the Evil stan Pamirs and Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Afghan Turke- Spirit that appeared to the ill person during K y r g y z s t a n ) . stan), is the expression of a sedentary envi- the trance. Once outside, one removes the ronment. The ‘nomadic’ b a k s y l y k has a par- cloth and thus the Evil Spirit. All re-enter the oxysmic character, more evocative of tradi- nied by an illness or an accident which oc- (the ideal model of this expulsion is that room and the b a k s h i, as always, accompa- tional shamanism. This type of b a k s y l y k i s curs before, during or sometimes after the which is effectuated by the ‘hole of smoke’ nied by the d o j r a, sings in order to dismiss less Islamized, the Muslim influence exert- status has been conferred. Theoretical in- of the tent, opening to the Invisible). The the Auxiliary Spirits and render the ill person ing itself more strongly in the sedentarized struction of the Elected one then calls for session ends with feasts regulated by di- his freedom. He then purifies those who zone. The ‘sedentary’ b a k s y l y k allowed a the intervention of an experienced b a k s h i. verse proscriptions. have assisted by depicting circles around number of the characteristics of the original For each of the two b a k s y l y k , a structure them with his dojra, rustling the chimes. He shamanism to fade. type can be deduced. In the ‘nomadic’ vari- Sedentary and nomadic sometimes practices divination in their ho- Generally, men officiate in the ‘nomadic’ ant, divination – prerequisite for establish- v a r i a n t s nour. The evening closes with feasts where b a k s y l y k and women (b a k s h a) in the ‘seden- ing a diagnosis – habitually consists in play- The b a k s y l y k of the ‘sedentary’ type is the part of the sacrificed animal that was tary’ b a k s y l y k . The reason for this stems ing the k o b u z, a sort of rudimentary violin, in much less violent and paroxysmal than his not disposed of or that would not be taken from the greater presence of Islam in the ur- order to call upon the spirits and be in- ‘nomadic’ counterpart. Islam has left a more by the b a k s h i is eaten. ban zones of Central Asia. Shamanism, even formed by them. The b a k s h i can also burn visible mark on this type and the ritual is far The two types of sessions that have just if it was more or less impregnated with Is- the shoulder blade of a sheep or execute more codified and formalistic. Divination been succinctly evoked have various local lam, was placed in the periphery of social numerical combinations of rocks and de- here also constitutes a necessary precondi- variants and have only been presented here life and was recuperated by the women. It duce teachings by observing them. Divina- tion, clearly separated from the actual cere- in general terms. In certain zones, even hy- otherwise went beyond Syr-Daria where the tion is in principle separated from the ses- mony. The b a k s h i (or the b a k s h a) interro- brid forms of b a k s y l y k can be found to take incessant movement of the populations sion as such. The latter generally takes place gates his spirits by invoking them through part in two models simultaneously. To treat prevented Islam from profoundly penetrat- during the night, inside of a dwelling (tent chants supported by playing his d o j r a, drum these aspects would have been beyond the ing the society. Shamanism thus remained or house) and an offering to the spirits in the consisting of a circle of wood set with scope of this article, but they are well worth masculine there. However, the exceptions form of an animal sacrifice (often sheep or chimes over which animal skin of a specially further reading as they comprise part of the are not rare of the b a k s h i officiating in the goat) is necessary. The b a k s h i and the ill per- sacrificed animal (goat) is stretched. The extraordinary wealth of Islamized shaman- ‘sedentary’ b a k s y l y k and the b a k s h a in the son are in the middle of the audience. Play- skin is spangled with drawings made with ism in Central Asia. ♦ ‘nomadic’ type. ing the k o b u z, the b a k s h i invokes the figures the sacrificial blood (e.g. sun, moon). Re- of orthodox and popular Islam as well as flective surfaces, such as a mirror or a glass The ritual spirits. He describes the arrival of the latter of water in which one throws cotton, some- N o t e The b a k s h i continues to intercede with and captivates the audience by recounting times serve in divination. Once the diagno- * Apart from b a k s h i and its variants, one principally the Invisible but carries out, as does the the stories of the Invisible. He urges his spir- sis is established, the b a k s h i can envisage a finds, designating Central Asian Islamized northern Siberian shaman, rituals that inter- its to combat the forces of Evil. He lets his cure session. shamanism: porhan, parhon, parihon (Persian p a r î est the entire community. He intervenes on- kobuz fall, swirls around, gesticulates, cov- The above assumes a character less public k h w â n, p a r î, ‘fairy, spirit’ + k h w â n d a n, ‘to read, ly upon the request of individuals or small ers the Evil Spirits with his imprecations and, than that of the ‘nomadic’ b a k s y l y k. The rea- to call’), t a b u p (Persian t a b î b, ‘doctor’), h o d z h a groups. The most important affair of the at the height of the trance, he testifies, by son for this discretion stems from the pres- (Persian k h w â j a, name of a lineage of honour), b a k s h i, who does not wear a specific cos- such exploits as walking on razor blades or sure exerted by Islam. The session can take folbin, falchi, palchi, palbin, or p a l b u n (f â l b î n, tume, is the healing session during which he by licking incandescent fire, to his condition place day or night, the two types being from Arabic f â l, ‘destiny, oracle’ + Persian Tadjik combats the Evil Spirits responsible for the as superior to that which is profane. Scream- equally attended. The women generally aid b î n, from d i d a n, ‘to see’) d a r g e r and k i n n a c h i illness. In order to do so, he is aided by his ing and imitations of animal cries succeed the b a k s h i. They have to be in a state of ritu- (Uzbek k i n n a, ‘bewitchment’ + c h i, indicating Tutelary Spirit; itself often assisted by Auxil- one another while he hits the ill person so as al purity with respect to Muslim prescrip- activity). Despite several particularities, iary Spirits of inferior rank. The b a k s h i r e- to expulse the Evil Spirits. In order to do so, tions and ‘know the n a m â z’ (prayer). The ill these differently named shamans reveal as ceives these spirits by various means: inher- he may only use his hands or one instru- person – blindfolded, head covered with a essential that which one would say of the b a k s h i. itance (for example, gift of an ascendant), ment. One of the most widespread tech- white cloth, certain parts of the body voluntary quest (for example, by sleeping niques consists is utilizing one part of a sac- anointed with the blood of a sacrificed ani- Patrick Garrone, PhD candidate, is secretary of close to a tomb of a saint) or by the decision rificed animal (often the lungs) to beat the ill mal (often a goat) before the ceremony, and t h e Society of Islamic Culture and author of of spirits that appear in a dream or in ‘reali- person and then disposing of it, for it is held the b a k s h i up against his back – is placed in Chamanisme et islam en Asie centrale ty’. The election of the b a k s h i is accompa- that it is then charged with bad influences the centre of the room in which the partici- (forthcoming). E-mail: [email protected] 1 6 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

South Asia MUJEEB AHMAD Da’wat-i Islami:

There has been considerable attention for the working and significance of the Tablighi Jama’at, established in 1927, but little has been done to study the origin and rapid expansion of the more recently formed An Aspiring Da’wat-i Islami (Invitation to Islam), whose motto is ‘love for the Prophet and Medinah’. The Da’wat-i Isla- mi was launched by Mawlana Muhammad Ilyas Qadiri in 1981.* Today, the spate of green turbans, its trade- mark, can be seen not only in the rural areas of Pakis- T r a n s n a t i o n a l tan, but also in its metropolitan cities.

When the military regime in Pakistan in 1977 banned all political activities and parties, Is- M o v e m e n t lamic political parties were shocked for they had launched the mass movement for Islam- preaching. Its main characteristic is to sette are also regarded as sources of inspira- wearing the green turban as compulsory ic Order (nizami-i Mustafa) that paved the preach ‘what is righteous and what is forbid- tion for the members of the Da’wat-i Islami. (sunnat-i mu’akkadah). In fact, they hold that way for the military take-over. The military den’. The members of the Da’wat-i Islami are The Da’wat-i Islami also publishes works by any type of cape, or white or black coloured legitimized its rule on a religious basis so keen on following the s u n n a h that they al- other Barelwi scholars, particularly works of turban can be used to cover one’s head. shared by these parties. The three main reli- ways wear white clothes, a green turban and Mawlana Ahmad Rida Khan Qadiri Barelwi Leading Barelwi scholars also object to call- gio-political parties, the Jama’at Islami, the a m i s w a k (a wooden stick used in place of a ( 1 8 5 6 - 1 9 2 1 ) . ing Mawlana Ilyas Qadiri the amir-i ahl-i sun- Jam’iyyat Ulama’i Islam and the Jam’iyyat toothbrush) in their pockets. The Da’wat-i Islami has a considerable n a t. Da’wat-i Islami requires each of its mem- Ulama’i Pakistan were hoping that the new The Da’wat-i Islami advocates the univer- hold on its members. From the very begin- bers to become a m u r i d (pupil) of Mawlana regime would allow them a broader role. sal brotherhood among the Muslims. The ning, it was a centralized movement, revolv- Qadiri. The critics of the movement regard They had jointly campaigned for the estab- Hanafi school of thought of the Da’wat-i Isla- ing around the personality of Mawlana Ilyas this as a reflection of his desire to maintain lishment of the Islamic order and now were mi is the official school of the movement, Qadiri. The centre in Karachi, authorized control over this entire rapidly expanding, experiencing a dilemma: should they sup- but followers of the other rites count among a m i r (chiefs) of provinces, cities and towns to even perhaps transnational movement. ♦ port the new military regime or not? its members. Since the primary objective is work in accordance with the directions of The Jam’iyyati Ulama’i Islam and the Jam’iy- to promote unity among the Muslims, theo- the centre. Local a m i r s come regularly to the yat Ulama’i Pakistan both furthered the im- logical and political controversies are dis- centre for training and guidance. So as to plementation of the Hanafi school of law. couraged in the Da’wat-i Islami. have close contact with the different branch- They, however, differed on certain details. es of the Da’wat-i Islami, Mawlana Qadiri reg- The former was supported by the Deobandis Expansion of the movement ularly travels all over Pakistan. The members while the latter by the Barelwis, the Ahl al- During its early days, the Da’wat-i Islami must show their commitment to the Islamic Sunnat wa’l Jama’at, popularly called Sunnis. held its weekly meeting at the Gulzar-i- way of life as is reflected compendiously in The Deoband, a reformist educational insti- Habib Mosque, Soldier Bazar, in Karachi ev- his Faidan-i Sunnat. The centre discourages tution established in India in 1867 was critic- ery Thursday after the evening prayer. After the reading and discussing of anything oth- al of a number of popular religious practices recitation from the Qur’an and the salutation er than the Faidan-i Sunnat in the weekly to which the Barelwis adhered. Contrary to of the Prophet, one of its preachers would meetings. In addition to male participants, it these two parties, Jama’at Islami criticized give a speech on a spiritual and moral topic, has a considerable enrolment of Pakistani both groups for their adherence to Sufi or- followed by a speech of Mawlana Ilyas Qadi- w o m e n . ders and law schools; they favoured a puri- ri, who explained day to day problems in N o t e tan interpretation of Islam. The three soon terms of Islamic law. The following day, after Although the Da’wat-i Islami is supported on * Mawlana Qadiri was born in July 1950 in a Karachi- fell apart on the question of supporting the the Friday prayer, a small group of preach- its aims to build character in its individual based Memon family. He is a k h a l i f a h ( v i c e g e r e n t ) new regime. The Jama’at Islami joined hands ers, under the leadership of Mawlana Qadiri, members, particularly the young generation, of Mawlana Muhammad Diya’ uddin Ahmad Qadiri with the regime while the Jami’yyati Ulama’i visited other quarters of Karachi. They of- and to establish religious institutions, it nev- Madni (1877-1981), a Sialkot-born religious Islam publicly supported it. The Jam’iyyat-i- fered the remaining prayers at the central ertheless attracts diverse criticism about scholar, who migrated to Medinah in 1910. Ulama’i Pakistan decided not to cooperate mosque of the area. In between prayers, some of its practices. Its over-emphasis on with the Martial Law Regime. Mawlana Qadiri briefed local residents about wearing the green turban not only irritates Mujeeb Ahmad is a lecturer in history at the F.G. The Jam’iyyat-i Ulama-i Pakistan, founded the basic teachings of Islam. The Da’wat-i Is- common Muslims, but also scholars are re- Quaid-i-Azam College, Pakistan. in March 1948, was the leading religio-politi- lami expanded rapidly in Karachi; in one luctant to endorse it. They do not consider E-mail: [email protected] cal party of the Barelwis. This state of isola- year’s time these weekly meetings began to tion and political dormancy was the main be held in some 300 mosques. From Karachi, A D V E R T I S E M E N T cause of frustration among the young Sunni the movement expanded quietly in the Barelwi intelligentsia. Da’wat-i Islami Sindh and then throughout Pakistan. It then emerged as a catharsis to this desperate became conspicuous and influential, and state of affairs. In response to the leadership started to spread over other parts of the crisis among Sunni Muslims and the frustra- world, thus constituting a veritably transna- tion of young and middle class Sunnis, Dr tional t a b l i g h i m o v e m e n t . Muhammad Tahir ul-Qadiri (born in Februa- There is no secretive nature of the Da’wat- ry 1951 at Jhang Saddar, Panjab) founded i Islami or any long-term/short-term strateg- the Idarah-I Minhaj ul-Qur’an (Institution of ic agenda. However, it struggles for the im- Qur’anic Path) in October 1980 in Lahore. His plementation of the n i z a m - i M u s t a f a ( t h e intentions were to enter into the political system of the Prophet) in Pakistan through arena under the guise of religion. Later, in peaceful preaching so as to create an Islamic May 1989, he formed a political party, Pakis- society. In addition to the weekly meetings tan Awami Tehrik (Pakistan People’s Move- in the various larger and smaller cities and ment). However, because Mawlana Ilyas towns of Pakistan, it holds its annual meet- Qadiri was more respected as a religious and ing in different metropolitan areas of Pakis- devout scholar and more clearly associated tan. Thus far, it has held annual meetings in with the Barelwis when compared to Tahir Karachi, Hyderabad, Lahore and Multan. The ul-Qadiri, the former managed to obtain a Da’wat-i Islami established secretariats in constituency among a large number of Sun- both Karachi and Lahore, naming them Faid- nis. Nowadays he is known as the a m i r - i a h l - i an-i Medinah (Blessing of Medinah). s u n n a t (Leader of the Sunnis) among his fol- In nearly every city of Pakistan, the Da’wat- l o w e r s . i Islami has established religious schools and The Da’wat-i Islami, catapulted by the Sun- libraries. It has its own edifying literature, the nis, comprising middle and lower-middle most important of which is Faidan-i Sunnat strata of the Pakistani society, was founded (Blessing of the Sunnah), (Karachi: Maktabat- on the principles of d a ’ w a h (invitation) to ul Medinah, N.D.) compiled by Mawlana follow the s u n n a h, prophetic way. It aimed Qadiri. In this voluminous work, Mawlana to promote and deepen the love for the Qadiri narrates the s u n n a h of the Prophet re- Prophet and the early community of Mus- garding affairs of daily life. Besides F a i d a n - i lims in Medinah. The movement stands for S u n n a t, some booklets, lectures and speech- the revival and resurgence of Islam through es of Mawlana Qadiri recorded on audio cas- I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 17

South Asia A PA RNA RA O S e l f - D e t e r m i n a t i o n

This past year has witnessed India and Pakistan bat- tling over an area that has known little peace since 1947. While the two states speak of ‘’, ‘secularism’ or ‘Muslim unity’, and various Islamist in Kashmir: organizations call for j e h a d, most Kashmiris speak of ‘self-determination’ and ‘Kashmiri identity’. The idea of self-determination as independence was first for- mulated in 1947 by the last Hindu Dogra Maharaja, Hari Singh. The concept of a distinct Kashmiri identi- Identity, Islam, and ty (k a s h m i r i y a t) evolved in the 1930s with a move- ment, explicitly involving both Muslim and Hindu in- telligentsia, against feudal-cum-colonial rule. The notion of a discrete Kashmiri citizenship goes back to the 1920s, when Kashmiri Hindus, facing competi- the Search for Justice tion from Punjabi Hindus, pressed for a formal defi- nition of ‘state subjects’. emerged which could ill afford to be openly movement for ‘Khalistan’ now encouraged with the mainly rurally recruited Hizb-ul Mu- anti-India, while participating in a sullen op- Kashmiri Muslims to conceive of their own jahidin (HM), the JI’s armed wing, dominat- position to Indian rule. Economic gains per- empowerment in terms of Islam. With Kash- ing from 1990 onwards. India responded With South Asian decolonization and the colated down to the villages, but migration miri Hindus increasingly considered pro- with about 400,000 soldiers and militia, who creation of Pakistan and India in 1947, the to towns continued and the number of un- Congress, hence pro-India and thus anti- battled the militants, but also shot many Kashmiri struggle attained international employed youth grew. With issues of social Kashmir, Kashmiri identity became synony- suspects and resorted to extreme physical proportions. While Hari Singh signed the justice neglected, muffled dissent and una- mous with Kashmiri Muslim identity. and psychological repression. Soon count- conditional accession of the state to the In- bated Pakistani propaganda, the idea of less families grieved over those killed, tor- dian Union, and India and Pakistan fought Kashmiri nationalist resistance also grew. Resorting to arms tured, or raped; thousands were arrested; their first war, the Jammu and Kashmir Lib- The Algerian struggle against France, the Indian policy now changed from co-op- hundreds disappeared without a trace, and eration Front (JKLF) was formed to free Vietnam war and the Palestinian movement tion to confrontation, and in 1987 the Mus- hundreds are still in prison. Kashmir from both India and Pakistan. The all had their impact. Working-class Muslim lim United Front (MUF), a conglomeration of With arms and money flowing in, factional United Nations cease-fire declaration in teenagers often demonstrated, many being opposition groups voted for by some 60% shoot-outs escalated. By 1993 several Af- 1949 split Jammu and Kashmir into roughly routinely arrested, manhandled, and humili- Kashmiris, was declared defeated. Waves of ghans, Sudanese, Palestinians and Yeme- 65% (east and south of the cease-fire line) ated. strikes, assassinations, bomb blasts, kidnap- nites joined the battle; the JKLF no longer and 35% (to the west and north) controlled pings and arson swept the Valley, peaking in received much Pakistani help and became a by India and Pakistan respectively. The Paki- The emergence of religion 1990. The components of the MUF formed prime target of the HM. To survive, it de- stani portion is inhabited mostly by non- a s a factor armed outfits (Al Barq, Al Fateh, Al Jehad, clared a unilateral cease-fire in 1994 that led Kashmiri Sunni Muslims, with Shias in pock- In 1972, following the third Indo-Pakistan etc.), and thousands took up arms supplied to its further splitting and to many of its ets. The Indian portion consists of several war and the formation of Bangladesh, India by Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI); men joining the Jama’at-ul Ulema-e Islami distinct areas, the Valley, inhabited over- and Pakistan signed the ‘Simla Accord’, ex- the first of these grew into the armed wing (JUI)-linked Harkat-ul Ansar/Harkat-ul Muja- whelmingly by Kashmiris (largely Sunni, plicitly ignoring the wishes of the Kashmiri of the JKLF. Coming from urban families hidin or the Markaz-ul Dawa-ul Irshad- with Shia, Hindu and Sikh minorities), being people. Also in 1972, while members of the who had failed to penetrate the existing linked Lashkar-e Toiba (LT), demonstrating the most problematic. Plebiscite Front were debarred from con- economic networks, the militants were dan- that no discrete boundaries divide ‘funda- Till 1953 efforts towards social justice con- testing elections, the Indian Congress Party gerous to the Indian state, but also to the mentalists’ from ‘non-fundamentalists’ – tinued: feudal rule was abolished, and land ensured the Jama’at-e Islami (JI) a victory Kashmiri ruling class. A violent movement simply shades of grey representing varying and tax reforms were undertaken by the Na- against the NC in five seats. The notions of contesting the appropriation of resources ad hoc strategies based on different aspects tional Conference (NC) government under k a s h m i r i y a t and self-determination ap- by a chosen few was imminent. Aspiring to and degrees of faith and on attempts to ful- Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. Welcomed peared more dangerous to Indian rule than political power, expecting more direct help fil personal commitments to principles of especially by the unbelievably poor rural Islamic fundamentalism. Politically, the JI re- from Pakistan and the West, and under-rat- specifically Islamic justice. These principles Valley Muslims and lower-caste Hindus to mained weak and won only one seat in the ing the Indian army, the middle class sup- are also instrumentalized by various organi- the south, they antagonized wealthy Mus- first and last fair elections in 1977, but it was ported the militants, setting aside internal zations – the JI, the JUI, the ISI – to fight their lims and Hindus, notably the landed gentry, inculcating fundamentalism and inciting socio-economic contradictions and averting own battles in Kashmir. who received no compensation. The NC’s hatred and contempt for non-Muslims in the dangers of f i t n a. With ISI training and To curb in-fighting, many militant organi- urban popularity continued, largely be- schools in villages where state schools often arms, the militants proclaimed j e h a d for po- zations, including the JKLF and the JI, cause of Abdullah´s adherence to k a s h m i r i- existed only nominally. Hindu fundamental- litical justice and k a s h m i r i y a t. This justified formed the All Parties Hurriyat Conference y a t. While the Valley waited impatiently for ists now also began inculcating a brand of extortion, kidnappings, and forcible entry (APHC) with the common objective of press- the promised plebiscite, to the south, citing Hinduism entirely alien to Kashmir. Between into wealthier Muslim homes; monetary ing for ‘self-determination‘ and the estab- Indian nationalism, the communal and ob- 1933 and 1986 the Valley witnessed no ‘contributions’ were accepted in lieu of tak- lishment of a society that is in keeping with scurantist Praja Parishad – many of whose communal riots, yet mutual mistrust and an ing up arms. Islamic values. By spring 1999 there was rel- members were adversely affected by the uneasy co-existence characterized Muslim- The attempt to combine radical Islam with ative peace in the Valley, with hundreds of land reforms – and the Rashtriya Swayamse- Hindu relations. k a s h m i r i y a t failed, however. The call for j e- armed ex-militants from various groups em- vak Sangh incited fear among Hindu and By the 1980s, facing increasing competi- h a d, coupled with the murder of some Kash- ployed by the Government to take suspects Sikh refugees from Pakistan about renewed tion from Muslims and feeling discriminated miri Hindus, threats to many others, and the and terrorize their kin. Like the Afghan Hizb- atrocities by Muslims, were a plebiscite to against by the Kashmir government, many Indian campaign to depict the issue as a e Islami and the Al-Badr Mujahidin, the take place. Against this background the educated Hindus took up jobs in India. Si- ‘communal’ conflict terrified the vast major- APHC supported the 1999 invasion by Pakis- ‘Delhi Agreement’ was signed in July 1952, multaneously, increasing migration among ity of Kashmiri Hindus into accepting Indian tan and the United Jehad Council (an apex spelling out the mutual limits of authority of Muslim professionals to the Gulf and the help to flee the Valley. With their rapid de- body of fourteen Islamic organizations) in the Kashmiri and Indian states and reneging West and the resulting remittance economy parture, the concept of k a s h m i r i y a t d i e d ; northern Kashmir; as the LT put it, this is ‘a on the promised plebiscite. It denied the created a nouveau riche, whose opulent but its demise was inevitable anyway: k a s h- war between Islam and paganism‘. More ethos of k a s h m i r i y a t and was never accept- lifestyle clashed with that of the conserva- m i r i y a t meant little to Srinagar´s wealthy than ever before, the concepts of ‘self-de- ed by most Kashmiris. All vestiges of democ- tive working and lower-middle classes. Muslim Punjabis, who largely favour acces- termination‘ and ‘Kashmiri identity‘ defy racy were shed in 1953 with Abdullah’s dis- While socio-economic disparities grew, mid- sion to Pakistan, rather than independence; d e f i n i t i o n . ♦ missal by the Indian government and his in- dle and lower-middle-class Muslims aspired k a s h m i r i y a t was irrelevant for the ‘libera- carceration till 1968. to greater political power. With the NC re- tion’ of areas outside the Valley; the mystic- While crushing dissent, India now em- peatedly giving in to blackmail by the C o n- ally-oriented Islam typical for the Valley and barked on creating a consumer culture. The gress, most Kashmiris looked for an alterna- part and parcel of k a s h m i r i y a t was suspect- Valley had a dense structure of ties cutting tive political party. Hoping to crush opposi- ed by the funding agencies. Hence, k a s h m i r- across trade, bureaucracy, artisanship, cash tion, the Congress played the ‘religious’ i y a t was discarded and replaced by more crop horticulture and politics. Both those card and harped on the differences be- militant Islamic concepts (e.g. jehad, muja- who wanted independence and those who tween Kashmiri Muslims and Hindus; Paki- hid, shahid, Nizam-e Mustafa). Though at- favoured accession to Pakistan – and these stani propaganda echoed this theme. Politi- tempts to enforce veiling, attendance at Fri- included many among the Muslim landed cal and economic conflict was interpreted in day prayers and a ban smoking all failed, gentry and the mercantile class – were part ‘religious’ terms by all concerned, and in- women’s hair dressing salons and cinema of these networks. Political opponents were creasingly Kashmiris sought solace in ortho- houses were forcibly closed, cosmetics and now co-opted into the system of economic dox forms of their respective religions. The alcohol were prohibited and bands of benefits, primarily through Indian subsidies. Iranian revolution, the Soviet (‘India’s armed youngsters combed the bye-lanes to Little moral opprobrium was attached to friend’) defeat in Afghanistan, India’s cold check on proper behaviour. Islamic guerrilla Dr Aparna Rao is a social anthropologist who has the massive corruption that resulted, since shouldering the Afghan resistance, the rise groups – Allah Tigers, Al-Umar Mujahidin, been conducting research on Kashmir since 1980, ‘Indian money‘ was involved. A middle class of the Central Asian republics and the Sikh Hizbullah, Ikhwan-ul Mujahidin – multiplied, and has published extensively on the area. 1 8 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Middle East NAYEREH TOHIDI Student Movement:

The Islamist regime in Iran is in crisis, ideologically, economically and politically. A more visible sign of this crisis manifests itself in the factional conflict be- tween the ruling conservatives who support an abso- The Harbinger of lutist theocracy, i.e. the supreme rule of the jurispru- dence (velayat-e faqih), and the reformists who are after a sort of Islamic pluralism, democracy and rule of law. But a more subtle and profound dimension of the present crisis is reflected in the growing disillu- a New Era in Iran sionment and frustration among the Iranian youth and students vented against the conservative’s re- ed by these clerics, have taken on a life of Iran’s 65 million people are now below 25 ers, as well as their demands for rule of law pressive policies. their own, becoming real players in the cur- years of age. It is no surprise that the major- and security, have been raised in a voice of rent power struggle. One can witness a re- ity of those arrested during the July crack- reason and in a non-violent manner. The Neither any opposition group, the eight- birth of dissident student movement – this down on students were under 20. predominant discourses among student ac- year war with Iraq, nor the often-blamed time ironically among the very students Along with demographic changes, there tivists are still very similar to those used by ‘Great Satan’ has dealt as serious a blow to hand-picked by the ruling clerics them- have been both quantitative and qualitative the new reform movement reflective of the the authority and legitimacy of the ruling Is- selves, for example, the two leaders of the changes in the student body. Except for a ‘new thinking’ among Islamic liberal and lamists in Iran as have their own children. recent student uprising, Tabarzadi and Mo- brief period of decline in the number of uni- leftist intellectuals as well as within secular Today, two decades after the 1979 Revolu- h a m m a d i .1 versity students – from 140,000 before the nationalist trends. While one hopes for a tion that gave power to the Shi’a clerics in revolution to 117,148 after the ‘Cultural Rev- peaceful and constructive evolutionary Iran, the majority of the children born and Several factors have contributed to this re- olution’ (1982-83 academic year) – there process of reform, there is a continuous and raised under the Islamist regime, do not birth of pro-democracy student activism. was an annual growth rate of 13% for the violent interruption in that process by the identify with its ideology and dictated be- For one, Khatami’s election in May 1997 in 1980s and still a higher rate after the war retrogressive forces. The lack of profound havioural codes. The failure of the Islamic which the massive participation and sup- with Iraq. Prior to Khatami’s election there improvement in the legal system, civil and Republic in its cultural and ideological pro- portive votes of the youth and women were 1,150,000 students in universities and human rights, and economic conditions jects has recently manifested itself during played a crucial role, was a result of the pro- higher education institutions. could result in a revolutionary explosion, es- two exhibitions of defiance by the youth: found change in the political culture of Iran. Since the revolution, the ethnic, class, and pecially among the increasingly restless and the spontaneous national jubilation over a Students’ sense of victory about the surpris- gender composition of the student body in outraged youth. ♦ game between Iranian and American foot- ing results of the presidential elections was universities has also changed in important ball players in Lyon in June 1998, and the a turning point in the recognition of the sig- ways. After the 1979 Revolution, the num- massive nation-wide student demonstra- nificance of their own political role. More- ber of rural and lower class students in state tion against state-run repression in July over, a subsequent slow lift of the totalitari- universities increased tremendously. The 1999. an hold on the cultural and intellectual do- exodus of many upper and upper-middle Students have constituted one of the mains of society gave rise to new currents of class students to universities in foreign most dynamic forces in the recent history of political and cultural expression among stu- countries, purging of secular students, the Iran. They played a major role in the move- dents. admission policy based on moral and ideo- ments that paved the way to the 1979 Revo- During the past two years, a series of logical standards and also admission quotas lution and the downfall of the Shah. In the peaceful student rallies was held around po- for war veteran family members, resulted in establishment of the Islamic Republic (IR) litical and non-political grievances relating an increase in the proportion of students too, a large segment of the student body to freedom of press, political prisoners, from traditional, poorer and provincial played a key role by taking over the Ameri- housing issues, and quality of food in dormi- backgrounds in state universities. Ten years can Embassy in 1980 and creating the tories. Such protests, however, have been later, the gender composition of the stu- ‘hostage crisis’. The clerics then effectively quickly dispersed or crushed by the police dents began to change dramatically. In manipulated students’ passion and the and vigilantes (Ansar Hezbollah) that are 1999, for the first time in the history of Iran- ‘hostage crisis’ towards their own goals in still under the control of the ruling conserv- ian higher education, the number of female the struggle for the state power, eliminating atives. Furthermore, Khatami’s reform ef- students in universities surpassed that of liberals, seculars and leftists from various or- forts have been sabotaged and interrupted male students by about 20,000 (4%).3 R e- gans of power, and eventually consolidat- by totalitarian Islamists through various gardless of their background, these stu- ing a theocratic rule. In their ‘Cultural Revo- means, including constant pressure on pro- dents have now come to represent the aspi- lution’ campaign, the Islamist clerics pitted gressive press, intimidation, terror and the rations and orientations of a new urban Islamist students against other groups and assassination of a number of prominent op- middle class, rather than those of the rural pursued violent suppression of any student position leaders, writers and intellectuals. or the bazaar subcultures. organization supportive of secular and Is- Another turning point resulting in further lamic dissident trends on various campuses. erosion of legitimacy and sanctity of the ‘The futureless future- They carried out ideological cleansing of clerical rule in the eyes of the students was m a k e r s ’ faculty and administration and began the violent raid of student hostels by the po- The recent shift in the state’s population screening student admissions on the basis lice and plain-clothed security forces in July policy toward family-planning and the suc- of ideological and moral standards as neces- 1999. Instead of punishing the perpetuators cessful decline in the fertility rate are too sary steps towards the ‘Islamization’ of uni- of violence, hundreds of students were ar- late to address the huge demands of the versities. When this campaign met with re- rested and sentenced to long prison terms. new generation of youth for education, sistance, the Revolutionary Council issued For instance, Ahmad Bateni, the student pic- jobs, and leisure. By the late 1990s, facing an order to close universities for two years tured on the cover of the E c o n o m i s t m a g a- increasing unemployment, high inflation, beginning on 5 June 1980. zine (7-15-99), holding the bloody shirt of and bleak economic outlook, many students The success in suppressing the indepen- another fellow student, was sentenced to 10 lost hope in being able to secure a decent dent student movement and the subse- years in prison. Voicing its outrage, the pro- future. Student activists sarcastically ask the quent co-optation of students and universi- reform K h o r d a d daily wrote: ‘Holding a ruling clerics: ‘Why are you calling us “fu- ties that lasted for over 15 years played a bloody T-shirt is a crime, but making a T- ture-makers” while you have left us with no N o t e s crucial role in the consolidation of the cler- shirt bloody is not a crime!’2 future (ayandeh-sazan-e bi-ayandeh) ? ’ 1 . See, for an excellent analysis on the recent student ics’ rule. They have been keen on closely Since Khatami’s presidency there has movement, Ali Akbar Mahdi, ‘The Students linking traditional religious seminaries and Demographic and social been a decrease in the intrusion by Islamist Movement in the Islamic Republic of Iran’, modern universities, turning for example, c h a n g e vigilantes into the private lives and personal J o u r n a l of Iranian Research and Analyses, 15, the main quad of the Tehran University To better understand the significance of choices of the youth and women, and the November 1999, p. 5-46. campus into the site of weekly Friday the prospective trends in student activism, dress and behaviour codes have also been 2 . Cited in the Tehran daily Asr Azadegan, prayers led by conservative clerics. it is necessary to account for certain struc- less strictly monitored. Yet, the sense of de- N o v e m b e r 15, 199, p. 2 In line with its initial populist nature and tural and demographic transformations that spair among many youngsters continues. 3 . See Mahdi, p. 14-15. ongoing revolutionary rhetoric, the IR has have turned the Iranian society of the late The recent crackdown has further intensi- 4 . Saeed Madani, ‘Shouresh-e Novo-Javanan’ promoted mobilization of the youth and 1990s into one very different from that in- fied insecurity, resentment, and above all (Rebellion of the Youth), Iran Farda, 57, 17 students, especially during the war with herited by Khomeini in 1979. Recent drastic the identity crisis among the youth.4 A n Shahrivar 1378 (August 1999). Iraq. But this politicization of the youth, like demographic change, due in part to the alarming rate of depression among young 5 . See, e.g., the report by Azam Kamgouyan, Z a n a a n, that of women, has gradually turned into a pro-natal policy of the state and its rein- girls in certain parts of Iran, like Qum, has No. 57, Aban 1378/November 1999, p. 60. double-edged sword for the conservatives, forcement of motherhood as the primary been documented by official reports.5 who have increasingly lost their influence role of women in the war-stricken years of The new student movement is still in flux, Dr Nayereh Tohidi is assistant professor at California on the direction and nature of student ac- 1980-1988, has shifted the character of the inexperienced and loosely organized. So far, State University, Northridge, and research fellow at tivism. Many Islamic Associations of Stu- population in Iran, the size of which dou- students’ demands for freedom of thought, the UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies, USA. dents, originally supported and even found- bled between 1978 and 1996. Over 70% of of assembly, of press, and of political prison- E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 19

Middle East EUGENE ROGAN Ottoman Muslim

Western missionaries are credited with introducing many changes to Middle Eastern societies in the 19t h century. Their influence on the Ottoman state is less well known. Competing with Protestant and Catholic Missionaries and the missionaries for the minds, souls, and bodies of its Arab subjects, the Ottomans adopted Christian mis- sionary methods to beat them at their own game. Transjordan Frontier

and the state, such as education and medi- six centuries ago.’ The cost of constructing with my feelings on learning that the Turks cine. They embarked on ambitious building the mosque, with a school attached, was es- are sending fourteen fully trained Moslem projects to provide churches, schools and timated by army engineers in the region of missionaries to Kerak, and these are on their clinics. Initially, they met with support and 300,000 piasters. Over the next two dec- way now.’ The Dominican priest Antonin even gratitude from the local Ottoman offi- ades, old mosques were restored and new Jaussen claimed that the Muslim missionar- cials. By the 1880s, however, the Ottomans ones built along the length of the Transjor- ies made little impression on the natives of moved to impose stricter limits on Christian dan frontier, by local initiative and with gov- the Karak region. Some results were ob- missionary activities in Greater Syria, and in ernment support. tained in getting the to observe Transjordan in particular. The missionaries The Ottomans were equally concerned to the fast of Ramadan, though respect for the responded by turning their attention to the counteract the proselytizing of Christian fast was localized: more fasting in the town, southern reaches of Transjordan, to the Kar- missionaries among Muslims. The state con- less among the plateau lands of Karak, and ak district, which still lay beyond direct gov- sistently sought to provide spiritual gui- no observation at all among such independ- ernment rule. dance to Muslim communities within reach ent tribes as the Bani Hamida, Bani Sakhr In February 1888, CMS missionaries Henry of European missionaries. For example, to and Huwaytat. Sykes and Frederick Connor set out on a counteract the work of Christian missionar- The injunction to pray five times daily, he tour of Madaba and Karak to assess the ies in the Hawran in 1886, the provincial au- claimed, was even less respected. According prospects for mission work there. Connor thorities in Damascus dispatched Quranic to Jaussen, the Bedouin found the prostra- was most enthusiastic: ‘If the CMS avails it- teachers to work with the tribes, ‘provided tions of prayer dishonourable and dis- self of the present opportunity, it will gain with a tent and a camel to carry it when the missed the practice as ‘the prayers of the an undisputed footing in Kerak before the tribe removes from place to place.’ Similarly, e f e n d i s (officials)’. Once having learned to Turkish authorities enter it.’ Here was a tol- Sultan Abdülhamid II called for the posting pray, Jaussen claimed the knowledge was erant society reminiscent of the Transjordan of ‘village preachers’ (köy imamlari) to every only used out of political motives as part of of the 1860s. ‘The people are only nominal village in those districts of rural Syria where ‘official life’ when visiting government offi- Moslems, and have not the same fanaticism ‘Muslim children are sent to schools opened ces in town. He cited as an example mem- as Moslems of Palestine and Syria. The door by foreigners.’ He also called for the provin- bers of the Huwaytat tribe who ‘had them- for evangelization in East and West Pales- cial printing presses to publish books and selves initiated in the a r t of prayer and sub- tine is practically closed; in the Kerak district treatises for distribution as a means of mitted to those practices only when they it is open.’ reaching the literate. went to the Saray (government offices).’ The south-eastern corner of Ottoman Syria As it turned out, the CMS only opened its These calls for Quranic teachers to work It is regrettable that our records provide lay beyond the reach of the government’s mission in Karak after the Ottomans entered among the tribes and for village preachers no local reactions to the Ottoman mission- authority until the second half of the 19t h the town in 1893. The Latins too re-estab- became particularly acute after the Otto- aries to balance the opinions expressed by century. A thinly-populated contact zone lished their mission in Karak in 1894. The Ot- man entry into Karak, given the determina- such interested parties as the Catholic and between the desert and the sown, the peas- toman state they confronted was deter- tion of the Latin and Protestant missionaries Protestant observers. All that can be said of ants and Bedouin of Transjordan had more mined not to allow agents of foreign powers to make inroads among the Muslims there. the European accounts is that they confirm in common with each other than they did to disrupt their delicate work in Transjor- In 1896, the CMS was represented by Fred- the dispatch of Ottoman missionaries. In all with the urban cultures of neighbouring Jer- dan’s newest frontier. The Ottoman govern- erick Johnson, an accredited medical doc- probability, the Hanafi missionaries met usalem, Nablus and Damascus. This was par- ment had to provide the services which they tor. The audacity of the British medical mis- with no more success than the Protestants ticularly true in terms of spiritual affairs. Far forbade missionaries to deliver. They recog- sionary was confirmed in April 1897 when or Catholics in trying to impose new values from the centres of orthodoxy, the residents nized the dubious religiosity of the tribes- Dr Johnson travelled the short distance on the people of Transjordan. For when, in of Transjordan had grown highly unortho- men at the Transjordan frontier. The prob- from Karak to Qatrana to visit ‘the Hajj Pil- 1910, the people of Karak revolted against dox in their religious practices. The large lem was more aggravated the further one grims on their outward journey with the the state’s centralizing initiatives, they Christian minority abstained from alcohol moved south. Ottoman assessments of the idea of discovering the existence or not of sacked the Friday mosque along with all the and pork and some Christian men were inhabitants of the Karak district did not dif- opportunities for the Medical Missionary.’ other structures built by the Ottoman au- known to take a second wife when the first fer from those of the missionaries. As the He met with the ‘Pasha of the Hajj’ and oth- thorities as another symbol of repressive failed to conceive. The Muslims, for their governor in Damascus wrote in 1894: er officials and, not surprisingly, was dealt a state rule. ♦ part, imposed none of the restrictions on warning six months later from the British Christians common in urban Syria or Pales- ’Although there are in excess of 50,000 Consul in Damascus ‘enclosing a copy of a tine. Christians were free to ride the same Muslim tribesmen estimated to be living Note Verbale received from the Sublime size mount as Muslims, to wear any colour within the region of Macan [i.e. southern Porte in which further complaint is made of of the rainbow, and to trade insults and Transjordan, including Karak], they have your action in the matter of proselytism blows with Muslims as among equals when long been born into savagery and igno- among Moslems.’ they had a falling out. Indeed, it was even rance of Islamic religious duties and reg- reported that Muslims would take their in- ulation of prayer. …One does not en- Muslim missionaries fants to be baptised by a Greek Orthodox counter one man in a thousand who Ottoman officials continued to follow the priest to protect them from harm. performs his prayers… Given the ab- work of European missionaries in the Karak sence of mosques and prayer rooms it is district very closely. The governor in Damas- An Open Door only natural that they should abandon cus sent a telegram to the imperial palace in Following the establishment of direct Ot- prayer, for even if they so desired there December 1898 with the familiar refrain of toman rule in northern Transjordan in 1867, are no places of worship to be found.’ ‘Latin and Protestant foreign missionaries Christian missionary societies were quick to opening unlicensed schools and educating enter the field. British and German Protes- wild and uncivilised Arab Muslim children tants of the Church Missionary Society The Ottoman response devoid of Islamic beliefs.’ However, his solu- (CMS) and French and Italian Roman Cathol- To forestall missionary work among Mus- tion was to imitate the societies they sought ics dispatched by the Latin Patriarch of Jeru- lims, the Ottoman government sought to to suppress, and to dispatch Hanafi Muslim salem were attracted by the high degree of build on the Muslim identity preserved ‘missionaries’ (m i s y ö n e r l e r) to the Karak dis- tolerance which they encountered in Trans- among those who observed none of the trict to work in pairs among the tribes on jordan. Not only could they hope to win outward practices of Islam. On entering Kar- state salaries of 150 piasters each. Similarly, over large numbers of Greek Orthodox ak, the Ottoman government sought to en- the office of the Sheyhülislam dispatched Christians, but they believed Transjordan to dow its new regional capital with a Friday salaried preachers to remedy the ignorance Eugene Rogan is director of the Middle East Centre, be the one place in which they might win mosque. The governor of Syria petitioned of Islamic practice in Macan in July 1899. St Antony’s College and lectures in the modern Muslim converts – particularly among the the Imperial Palace with the drawings and The news of the Muslim missionaries was history of the Middle East in the University of Oxford. Bedouin tribes. costings for a new structure built on the site received with alarm by the CMS, and dis- He is the author of Frontiers of the State in the Late The missionary societies provided a wide of the ancient mosque ‘founded by Faruk missed with derision by the Latins. CMS mis- : Transjordan, 1850-1921. range of social services hitherto neglected [i.e. the Caliph cUmar] at the time of the [7t h sionary Henry Harding wrote to a British Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. by both the Ottoman religious authorities century] conquest of Syria, destroyed five or supporter in 1899 asking him ‘to sympathize E-mail: [email protected] 2 0 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Middle East SAMI AL-KHAZENDAR The Jordanian

The positions and beliefs adopted by the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) on aspects of the Palestinian issue, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s, are of major in- terest as they directed MB policies and enabled it to M u s l i m Brotherhood’s mobilize opinion against Jordan’s foreign policy re- garding Palestine. The framework of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood’s views on Palestine was based on the Islamization of the Palestinian question by the prophetic claim that Jerusalem-Palestine is one ‘Is- Perceptions of lamic land’ and by asserting the religious duty of Jor- dan to play a strategic role in defending an Islamic cause. Also, they believe that the conflict with Israel is a religio-civilization conflict, not a political one, between Islam and Judaism. t h e P a l e s t i n i a n 1 For the MB the Palestine problem is central. The liberation of all of Palestine (including the land controlled by Israelis in 1948) is con- I s s ue sidered as both a religious and an Arab na- tionalist duty, given the historic importance made clear by the MB, although it does the PLO was not the sole legitimate repre- The MB and the peace of Jerusalem and Palestine as an ‘Islamic recognize Judaism and the Jews as a reli- sentative of the Palestinians. The MB differed i n i t i a t i v e s land’. The MB was deeply concerned with gious community, but essentially the MB be- from the Jordanian government in that it The MB believed that all present peaceful the Palestinian issue at an early stage and lieves that conflict with the Jews and Zion- was more concerned with the PLO’s ideolo- initiatives and agreements – be they Ameri- shared the belief that Jordan had a special ism is a conflict between two opposing civil- gy and policy than with the issue of the can, Israeli, Arab, or Palestinian – should be role to play, based on its proximity to Israel izations based on religion. PLO’s representation of the Palestinian peo- rejected because they surrender part of Pal- and its vulnerability to Israeli ambitions. The From the MB perspective, to give up Pales- ple, whether inside or outside Jordan. The estine. As for the stand of the MB concerning MB also believed that the land of Jordan is, in tinian, Arab, and Islamic rights in Palestine is MB in Jordan was far more hostile to the PLO the Palestinian-Israeli peace treaty (Oslo, an eschatological sense, ‘the land of mobili- unacceptable as far as the Islamic Shari’ah than were other branches of the Internation- 1993) and the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty zation and constancy’ (Ard al-Hashd wa al- and faith are concerned. Not a single inch of al Muslim Brotherhood (IMB), particularly in of 1994, the movement declared, through its R i b a t ) for the whole Muslim world in its bat- the land ‘blessed by Allah’, the first q i b l a h Egypt. In the early 1980s, the attitude of the political and official statements and through tle for the liberation of Palestine. This reli- (the Muslims’ prayer orientation) for Mus- MB towards the PLO appears to have been its deputies at the Jordanian Parliament, its gious perspective is taken from the MB’s un- lims, nor the third most sacred shrine in Is- more flexible than in the late 1980s after the rejection of the above-mentioned treaties. In derstanding of the meaning of a h a d i t h, in lam can be given away. This land can never appearance of Hamas. There was an inner fact, it had launched a number of peaceful which it was reported that the Prophet said be subjected to bargaining since it is a trust feeling or common belief among some lead- demonstrations as a means of protest. Fur- Muslims will fight and defeat the Jews one whose preservation is the responsibility of ers of the MB that the PLO was ‘a Palestinian thermore, the MB demanded that the Jorda- day before the end of the world, and that the all Muslim generations until the Judgement Front which represents “part” of the Pales- nian-Israeli peace treaty be frozen as one of place of Muslims will be on the east side of Day. Any concessions constitute an act of in- tinian people.’ In a personal interview, Ziad its conditions to end its boycott of the 1997 the Jordan River, while the Jews will be on justice to future generations and an arbitrary Abu Ghanimah, a former spokesman of the Parliament elections. the west side (i.e. the so-called East and West measure that is rejected by the Islamic reli- MB said, ‘We are the ones representing the It rejected all UN resolutions, in particular Banks). Most h a d i t h compilations mention gion. The opinion of non-governmental [Palestinian] issue, not others such as the Ar- Resolution(s) 181, 242, and 338, because that the Muslims will be victorious in the Muslim scholars and organizations has re- ab Governments or the PLO.’ they were deemed inconsistent with stand- fight against the Jews, but they do not indi- mained unchanged in f a t w a s issued in 1937, ards of Islamic justice. The MB further assert- cate the place of battle, excepting one fa- 1947, 1956, 1968, and 1979. In a recent f a t w a MB and the Palestinian ed that negotiation or conciliation with the mous h a d i t h transmitted by Nur al-Din ‘Ali issued after the intifada began in December A u t h o r i t y Zionist enemy, ‘the usurper of Muslim land’, al-Haythami (d. AD 807) in his M a j m ac a l - 1987, a group of Muslim scholars (including The MB’s position and views vis-à-vis t h e in a way which leads to the surrender of Zawa’id wa Manbac a l - F a w a ’ i d .2 MB leaders) stated the following: Palestinian Authority (PA) came into exist- Muslims’ rights and land, were opposed by The MB’s literature and interviews with its ence following Oslo Accords (September Islamic law. leaders confirm that it continues to believe ‘By virtue of the covenant which Allah 1993 ). To begin with, it should be clear that The practical means of asserting Palestini- in these prophecies. They have, in fact, be- put upon us in order to proclaim the the PA is almost a complete offshoot of the an Islamic rights was j i h a d. The MB believed come a source of the MB’s philosophy and truth and explain it to the people, we Palestinian Liberation Organization, which that this was the sole means of liberating ideology regarding the Palestinian issue. MB hereby declare that jihad is the sole was there before signing the aforemen- Palestine from the Zionists and those who leaders believe that the Muslims will liberate means to liberate Palestine, that it is not tioned agreements. The MB has so far de- are behind them. The starting points for j i- the whole of Palestine and will gain a reli- permissible under any circumstance to clared no clear position regarding the recog- h a d are the Muslim peoples, supporters of gious victory in their battle with the Jews, in concede a single square inch of the Land nition of the PA as the sole and legitimate the Palestinian Muslim people, and the Is- accordance with the Prophet’s promise. As it of Palestine to the Jews, and that no per- representative of the Palestinian people. In lamic lands, in particular the lands of the was succinctly put by Yusef al -Azam, a lead- son or organization has the right or the other words, the MB has adopted the same front-line states.5 ing MB figure and former minister of social authority to consent to the Jewish claims view as Hamas; the PA, for them, is only one Abdullah al-Akailah, former deputy leader affairs: ‘The victory is inevitable but it needs in Palestine or concede any part of it to part of the Palestinian people. Therefore, of the Islamic Action Party and MP, pointed a long breath.’ the Jews or recognize their existence on they do not recognize the political legitima- o u t : The MB also believes that Israel was creat- any part of its soil.’3 cy of the PA leadership of the Palestinian ed as a foreign ‘infection’ in the Islamic people. This, however, does not mean that ‘If we do not own the means of jihad or world and that its expansion is motivated by In the same statement they also called for Is- the MB refuses to co-exist with the PA as a de defence now, we demand of the Jordan- the ambition to divide the Arab and Islamic lamization of the Palestinian issue. f a c t o leadership. On the other hand, the MB ian and other Islamic governments and world. The MB’s view of the Jews is based on This view of the MB contrasts with that of takes Hamas as its Palestinian brother in Pal- people to prepare themselves. We do many Quranic verses and historical events. the Jordanian government, which recogniz- estine. It is not surprising that the two sides not want to compel our government to The MB has described the Jews as ‘dishon- es the Israeli state. The MB accepts the Jew- share the same ideology and close policies. become involved in a military confronta- est’, ‘defilers of the prophets’, ‘liars’, ‘God’s ish minority, which was settled in Palestine tion with a powerful enemy in this stage adversaries’, and ‘corrupt’. The distinction before 1918 (before the British colonized it), The MB and Jordan’s relation of weakness. Power is not everlasting between Jews, Zionists, and Israelis is not as was expressed by Ibrahim Ghushah (for- with the West Bank and weakness is not to continue for mer MB leader and the spokesman of Ha- With regard to Jordan’s relationship to the e v e r . ’ ‘The political involvement of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) in mas), but under Muslim majority rule. It fur- West Bank, the MB expressed through its for- Jordan goes back to the establishment of the state. It was estab- ther accepts the establishment of a Palestin- mer spokesman in Parliament, Yusef al Azam, lished upon Jordanian Independence in 1946 with King Abdul- ian state in any part of liberated Palestinian the belief that ‘we are in the two Banks one The MB and the Palestinian- lah’s approval. It formed many offices and branches in Palestin- land, but only as a step toward full liberation. nation in blood and in family. We are one Jordanians ian cities such as Jerusalem and in the West and East Banks. It people not two.’4 On this basis the MB tend- With regard to the Jordanians of Palestin- participated in the 1948 war against the Jews in Palestine, under The MB and the Palestinian ed to support the annexation of the West ian origin, the MB expresses supreme loyal- the first MB leader, Abd al-Latif Abu Qaurah. The MB joined with l e a d e r s h i p Bank to Jordan after its liberation from the Is- ty to Islamic precepts, and priority is given other members of the IMB (International Muslim Brotherhood) in Given this position of the MB, Palestinian raeli occupation. It seemed that this support to the promoting of an Islamic identity. As mobilizing Arabs to participate in the war. They trained fighters, nationalist organizations were not consid- was based on the MB’s principle of calling for a result of this, it refuses to admit any dis- collected money, bought weapons, cooperated with the other ered important. In fact, as regards the MB’s Islamic world unity, more than on its political tinction between a Jordanian and Palestin- popular Arab organizations and with the Arab League, and exert- position and views vis-à-vis the PLO, in the support for the Jordanian government’s poli- ian identity. Both peoples, it insists, must ed popular political pressure on the government to become early and mid-1980s, the literature of the MB cy towards the West Bank. The MB therefore have equal rights in citizenship and in Pal- more effective in the struggle.’ generally did not view the PLO positively. At rejected the government’s decision to disen- estinian and Jordanian affairs, regardless of the same time it did not declare directly that gage from the West Bank in July 1988. their citizenship or origin. This does not I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 21

A N N O U N C E M E N T mean that the MB accepts the Israeli idea clearly indicates the pragmatic nature of the of the ‘Jordanian option’ for the Palestini- movement’s political behaviour, as well as ans. It totally rejects it. Through Islamizing its ability to strike a balance between its ide- the Palestinian issue, the distinction be- ological stands on the one side and all varia- British Journal of tween Palestinians and Jordanians, and bles on the regional and Jordanian political that between Palestine and Jordan are dis- arena on the other. ♦ solved. Middle East Studies Summarizing these issues in a personal in- terview, Dr Isaac Farhan, one of the leading figures of the MB and the former Secretary- N o t e s Seeks Additional General of the Islamic Action Front Party, 1. For more details, see the MB memorandum to the starkly expressed the contrasting view of the Palestine National Council (PNC) held in Amman MB of Palestine: in 1984; the election programme of the MB S u b m i s s i o n s candidates in the parliamentary elections in 1989; ‘We consider the Palestinian issue a and the speeches of the MB members in the basic and key issue for three reasons. Parliament. See, for example, the minutes of the The British Journal of Middle East Stud- Prof. Ian Netton First, on the ideological side, the defence Jordanian Parliaments in 1984, 1985, 1986,1992 ies (BJMES), one of the leading academic Editor, BJMES of Palestine is defence of the Islamic ide- and 1993. See also the political statement of the journals on the Middle East, is seeking ad- Department of Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies ology. Second, on the national side MB statement entitled ‘Why the MB rejects Madrid ditional submissions. The new Editorial University of Leeds (umma), the Israeli existence inside the conference and rejects the bilateral and team would like to increase the number of Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom nation’s body divides and destroys the multilateral negotiations with our Jewish enemy’, manuscripts being proposed for inclusion E-mail: [email protected] nation. Third, as homeland ( w a t a n ) , 1992. in his twice-yearly refereed journal. A full Palestine is an Arab and Islamic land and Also, for more details, see Sami Al-Khazendar, range of Middle Eastern topics are cov- Dr. Bruce Stanley the homeland must not be surrendered.’ (1997), Jordan and Palestine: The Role of the Islamic ered in each issue. We are looking for sub- Associate Editor (Social Sciences, Notes and and Left Forces in Foreign Policy-Making. Ithaca missions on subjects from medieval Islam Q u e r i e s ) The MB’s perceptions of the Palestinian is- Press, Reading. to modern politics, political economy and Department of Politics sue were based on an ideology deriving 2 . Nur al-din Ali al-Haythami, (1982), M a j m ac a l - international relations. Literature, political Amory Building from purely religious views, but as Jamil Abu Zawa’id wa Manbac a l - F a w a ’ i d. Vol. VII, Dar al-Kitab philosophy and theology submissions are University of Exeter Bakir, MB spokesman, in a personal interview a l -cArabi, Beirut, p. 347-349. welcome. We have added a new section Exeter EX4 4RJ, United Kingdom pointed out, although the Palestinian issue 3 . Our Stand Towards the Settlement, the Information called ‘Notes and Queries’ for short, 500- Email: [email protected] was a ‘holy cause’, the MB wanted to avoid Office, Hamas, June 1991. 1000 word discussions of particular points conflict with the Jordanian government, 4 . Yusef al-Azam, MP and member of the MB, Minutes or issues. Dr. Zahia Salhi even though it opposed the peace process of the Jordanian Parliament, first meeting in the If you are looking for a site for your next Reviews Editor and possible consequences such as econom- first regular session, 21 January 1984, p. 12. article, please contact the Editor to pro- Department of Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies ic and cultural cooperation between Jordan 5. The Election Programme of the MB, op.cit, pp 24-25. pose an article: University of Leeds and Israel. Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom It can be said that the MB, despite its ideo- logical view, has always avoided collision Please note: with the government, even with all the ‘U- Dr Sami Al-Khazendar is director of the Academic – We are also looking for additional reviewers for books. If you would like to serve as one of our turns’ the government has chosen, in so far Center for Political Studies, Amman, Jordan. reviewers, please contact Dr. Salhi. as the Palestinian issue is concerned. This E-mail: [email protected]

A D V E R T I S E M E N T 2 2 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Middle East TIMOTHY FURNISH Mahdism Among scholars of Islam and some Muslims today, a curious misperception dominates: that only the Shica believe in the coming the awaited Mahdi. Sunni Arab views of the Mahdi since the Six Days War of 1967 have reached heretofore unplumbed depths of es- in the Sunni Arab chatological belief and the vigorous debate among the Arab intelligentsia concerning these beliefs, as well as the degree to which they impact the Muslim social and political realms, have followed suit. World Today

Modern discourse, particularly in the Ameri- the 1880s in Sudan. Several other Mahdist- true Mahdiyah will not come by means of a useful oppositional paradigm to unjust re- can media, tends to distil Islamic ideological type movements in the last two centuries supernatural individual but via renewing gimes. More prosaic is the criticism of Mah- categories into only two: ‘fundamentalists,’ succeeded by transforming into separate re- and reforming Islam. dism found in the anonymous work, T h e who are portrayed negatively, and reform- ligions: the Baha’is of 19t h-century Iran, the This Sunni scepticism about the Mahdi Cutting Sword–The True Explication of the ers, who are depicted in a more positive Ahmadis of 19t h-century India. In recent has given way, in recent years, to positive Book ‘The Life-span of the Islamic Community light. However, this reductionist paradigm years only two such movements have devel- conviction about him. Muhammad Ibrâhîm and the Nearness of the Appearance of the fails to take into account the eclectic views oped in the Middle East: that of a self-styled al-Jamal, in The Aggression and the Awaited M a h d i (Cairo, 1998), which critiques that of many Muslims, not least that group which Mahdi in Saudi Arabia in 1979, which met Mahdi (1980), says the Mahdi will come pro-Mahdist book for adopting irrelevant expects the imminent arrival of the Mahdi with a violent end; and the sub rosa m o v e- amidst unmistakable signs, but that Khome- Western concepts like ‘the end of history’ and attempts not only to anchor eschatolo- ment that accompanied the success of the ini is (was) not the one. Hamzah al-Faqîr in and for fostering the dangerous idea that gy in current events but also to reconfigure Ayatolloah Khomeini, in which whisperings Three Whom the World Awaits: the Expected the Arabs must re-take Jerusalem before the the politico-military context so as to hasten that he was the Mahdi (Hidden Imam to Mahdi, the False Messiah, Messiah Jesus ( A m- Mahdi can come. his arrival. S h icites) went undenied. man, 1995), is one of a growing number of As this brief survey of modern Arabic works supporters of Mahdism who adduces Sayyid confirms, Mahdism, which has existed almost Eschatological figures Mahdism today (d. 1966), the Egyptian Muslim Broth- as long as Islam, shows no signs of waning. in Islam The Muslim world today is devoid of Mah- erhood strategist. More than most writers, For although Muslims are a-millennial, they The term ‘al-Mahdi’, meaning ‘rightly- dist claimants – so far. However, an Arab de- however, al-Faqîr attempts to link current do expect the coming of a m u j a d d i d, or ‘re- guided’, surprisingly appears nowhere in bate about the truth of Mahdism, and its events to those presaging the Mahdi’s ap- newer,’ every 100 years – an idea which can the Qur’an. Rather, the characteristics and meaning today, has been gathering steam pearance: particularly, he sees the ‘tyranni- be easily fused with that of the Mahdi. And role of the eschatological Mahdi, as well as and began boiling over after the Six Days cal rule’ of the exploitative ‘petty states’ un- since the next Muslim century begins in the political context in which he will appear, War of 1967. There are several reasons for der which most Muslims live as crying out 2076, ‘eschatological ideas will continue to are described in a number of h a d i t h, or tra- this. One is that millenarian movements for redress by the Mahdi, who will also hum- play an important role in the Islamic world in- ditions. Three of the six major 9t h-century CE within the entire Judaeo-Christian-Islamic ble ‘Pharaoh,’ otherwise known as the Unit- to the twenty-first century.’3 ♦ compilers of hadith – Ibn Mâjah, Abu Dâ’ûd milieu escalate sharply in a period of socie- ed States. A more idiosyncratic view is that and al-Tirmidhî – do mention the Mahdi. tal angst, which 1967 proved to be for the of Kâmil Sacfân, The Twenty-Fifth Hour: the However, the two most authoritative com- A r a b s .1 Another is widespread frustration at False Messiah, the Mahdi, Gog and Magog pilers, al-Bukhârî and Muslim b. al-Hajjâj, es- the failure of Arab economies to effectively (Cairo, 1995), who manages to work the P r o- chewed such accounts. The source of Mah- raise living standards, of Arab governments tocols of the Elders of Zion, the Masonic dist narratives plays into whether one ac- to achieve unity and of the embarrassing Lodge and Jeane Dixon (the American psy- cepts the idea as legitimate, as we shall see dependence upon the world’s lone super- chic) into his philosophy of Mahdism. Amîn b e l o w . power, the United States. Finally, although Muhammad Jamâl al-Dîn, in The Life-span of Just who is this Mahdi, according to the non-millenarian in the true sense of the the Islamic Community and the Nearness of traditions? He is one of the five major es- word – Latin m i l l e n i means 1000, a period of the Appearance of the Mahdi (Cairo, 1996), chatological figures of Islam, along with Je- time which holds no resonance for Muslims argues that the Mahdi’s coming is very close sus, the Dajjâl or ‘Deceiver’ (Antichrist), the – the Islamic world has been unable to im- and will be immediately preceded by a Dâbbah or ‘Beast,’ and the collective entity munize itself against the influence of the world war – which he terms H a r m a g i d d u n Yâjûj and Mâjûj, ‘Gog and Magog’. The par- world’s largest religion, Christianity, and its (Armageddon) – between al-Rûm, the West, allels with Christian eschatology, m u t a t i s de facto world calendar. Secular millennial and either China, Russia and the communist m u t a n d i s, are obvious: all of these end-time issues like the Y2K bug, in tandem with reli- countries or Iran, Iraq and the Shica nations. figures appear in the New Testament, espe- gious aspects like the second coming of A more ‘ecumenical’, less polemical ap- cially its final book, Revelation. However, Je- Christ, have fanned eschatological flames proach is that of Bâsim al-Hâshimî in T h e sus will reappear not as the Son of God and within the Arab portion of the Muslim Savior between Islam and Christianity: A Judge but as the Muslim prophet sent back w o r l d . Study in the Cooperation between the Mahdi to assist the Mahdi in defeating the Dajjâl The slice of this debate examined here is and the Messiah (Beirut, 1996). He adduces and establishing socio-economic and politi- that taking place within the Arab print me- Qur’an, h a d i t h and New Testament to argue cal justice on earth. The Dajjâl will be the dia – specifically books.2 The analysis can be that the Mahdi and Jesus will cooperate to miracle-working leader of the unbelievers summed up in the following paradigm: create a ‘united world state’. and will be killed by Jesus. The enormous One final example of Mahdist believers is Dâbbah will emerge from the earth and L i t e r a l i s t s Fahd Sâlim who, in his 1996 book, The Signs mock unbelievers while the semi-human ar- 1 . Qur’anic – No Mahdi in Qur’an, so false of the Hour and the Attack of the West before mies of Gog and Magog will escape from the 2 . H a d i t h [the end of?] 1 9 9 9, maintains that the Mahdi prison built for them by Alexander the Great a . Not in Bukhârî or Muslim, so false will be preceded by an Iranian – Shîcî – Daj- to pillage across the planet until destroyed b . In other compilers, so true jâl. Sâlim is one of several Arab authors who by God at Jesus’ behest. Other end-time conflate Francis Fukuyama’s idea of the ‘end events include earthquakes, great fires, ap- F i g u r a t i v i s t s of history’ (the triumph of democratic capi- pearance of false prophets, speaking ani- 1 . Mahdi pernicious superstition talism) with Samuel Huntington’s ‘clash of mals, increase in immorality, the sun rising 2 . Mahdi benign superstition civilizations’ (religio-cultural fault lines be- in the West, the striking of all words from tween cultures engendering conflict) into the pages of every Qur’an and the predomi- Many opponents of Mahdism take their an ancient plot by the West against Islam. nance of unbelief. Finally, at some point Je- cues from the brilliant Ibn Khaldûn (d. 1406 Sâlim also has an interesting way of explain- N o t e s sus and the Mahdi will die natural deaths CE). This intellectual, considered by some ing the h a d i t h references to end-time war- 1 . Thrupp, Sylvia, ed. (1970), Millennial Dreams in and, in the eschatological denouement, the as the father of sociology, saw the Mahdi as fare being fought with swords: after Americ- Action: Studies in Revolutionary Religious angel Isrâfîl will blow his trumpet twice: at a pernicious Shici heresy which had crept a’s nuclear Armageddon against the Mus- M o v e m e n t s. New York: Schocken Books, pp. 31-42 the first all humans will die; at the second all into Sunnism via the . This is the lims, those will be the only extant weapons. and Ajami, Fouad (1981), The Arab Predicament: will be resurrected for the Judgement. view of two modern opponents of Mah- Also, interestingly enough, he adduces Nos- Arab Political Thought and Practice since 1967. Throughout Islamic history many religio- dism, cAbd al-Karîm al-Khâtib in The Await- tradamus’ 16t h-century predictions in de- New York: Warner Books, Inc. political leaders have claimed Mahdi-hood. ed Mahdi and Those Who Await Him ( C a i r o , fence of his arguments. 2 . English translations are given throughout the Most rapidly faded back into obscurity. 1980) and cAbd al-Qâdir Ahmad Atâ in T h e The non-Mahdist Muhammad Farîd Hijâb, article for Arabic titles. Some gathered followers, however, and a Awaited Mahdi between Truth and Supersti- in The Awaited Mahdi between Religious Doc- 3 . Hamblin, William and Peterson, Daniel (1995), few took power. The most successful such tion (Cairo, 1980). In fact both adduce Ibn trine and Political Meaning (Algeria, 1984), ‘Eschatology,’ The Oxford Encyclopedia movements were the Abbasids in the 8t h- Khaldûn’s motive for rejecting Mahdism: it has the most philosophical deconstruction of the Modern Islamic World, p. 442. century CE Islamic heartlands, the Fatimids is Sufi-transmitted Shicism. Al-Khâtib also of the Mahdist idea: that it is a conflation of in 10t h-century CE Egypt, the Almohads in calls upon the u l e m a to abandon such fool- the motifs of the ancient Near Eastern deliv- Timothy Furnish is a PhD candidate in Islamic 1 2t h-century CE North Africa and, most re- ishness and turn their attention to renew- erer, Plato’s philosopher-king, and Machia- History, Ohio State University, USA. cently, Muhammad Ahmad’s followers in ing Islam, while cAtâ maintains that the velli’s strong man which survives today as a E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 23

North Africa REMCO ENSEL Resurgent Voices

Ever since the early stages of Islamic conversion, the Shurafa have been successful in sanctifiying their in- dividual personae and collective presence in Moroc- can society. Countervoices that questioned the legit- Profanation of imacy of their religious stature have, however, never been fully silenced. In recent times, state formation and the concurring processes of the spread of public education and electronic media have given a new im- petus to these resurgent voices. Anthropological re- t h e Shurafa in search shows how, for some of these modern reli- gious contestants, protest against Sharifi authority is part of a profound emancipatory struggle. M o d e r n Morocco

Contesting Sharifi descent as the basis of so- humble status was to protest against the cial distinctions and marker of identity has a practice of taking descent as foremost criteri- long history in Morocco. Jacques Berque even on of one’s personal identity. With respect to once suggested complementing Lévi- the Shurafa they raised particular objections Provençal’s Les historiens des Chorfa (Paris; to the use of honorifics. Thus when French 1922) with a repertory on Les opposants des presence enabled them to migrate to Chorfa.1 In the modern era, fundamental criti- Casablanca, these Haratin, who ‘had been cism of the saint’s cult and descent-based so- taught to say sidi and lalla’ to the local Shu- cial distinctions was particularly articulated in rafa back home, were no longer prepared to connection with the growth of the Salafi re- do so when on leave from their urban jobs. form movement. Originating in 19th-century These youngsters, as was noted in a report in Egypt, this movement aimed to return to the 1955, ‘scandalize the elders who have main- Sharifa ancestry original prescriptions of the faith. Adherents tained their servile mentality and who refuse and local saint- opted for a scripturalist Islam, in a later phase to follow them on their revolutionary path.’5 hood often merge objecting to hereditary sainthood and the no- It seems from research conducted in the in the Moroccan tion of Sharifi descent. The influence of this 1990s that the struggle over the use of hon- c o u n t r y s i d e : modernist movement in Morocco at the gov- orifics has not yet been toned down. This a Sharif poses ernmental level can be seen from a law, pro- even appeared humorously in a joke told by a with the relics of claimed as early as 1949, that made it obliga- Sharif: the 16t h- c e n t u r y tory to hand over a notarial act when claiming village saint. to be a Sharifi, in particular cAlawı¯, surname A Sharif and a Hartani are having a quar- and honorific. It remains to be said that an rel. At one point, the Hartani announces ambivalent attitude characterized even the that practices expressing differences Ibrahim’s aversion to naming practices, which Prophet, the Shurafa began paying civil ser- severest critics. Thus, both the cult of saints among human beings have to be abol- he considered out-dated, was also apparent vants to make them print mulay in front of the and ‘Sharifianism’ were never repudiated by ished: ‘Everybody is equal, so from this in his then recent name-change. His parents first name on their ID. The Shurafa thus also all Salafi adherents. Some took great pride in day on everybody has to be addressed had named him Fatih, but once settled in turned their ID into a symbol of their personal their own Sharifi descent.2 Moreover, socio- with the honorific mulay’. So the Hartani Casablanca, he had changed his name into identity. In 1985, however, the government political criticism of the state was often trans- goes home, where he tells his relatives Ibrahim. Fatih was a name that was particular- passed a law that put an end to this printing lated into a dispute between Sharifi lineages, about his decision, and they agree. The ly carried by cAbı¯d and Haratin. Ibrahim’s re- practice. i.e., Idrissı¯ criticism of the cAlawı¯ state. After next morning his young son wakes up birth, as symbolized in his name-change, can Fed by an emerging public domain in independence, Sharifi descent remained a and asks his mother: ‘Mulay mama, where be connected to his interest in religious ideas which discussions on the current state of af- major point of discussion at the state level. is Mulay papa?’ His mother replies: ‘Mulay that came to him through the texts of Ab- fairs in and outside Morocco take place, Sharifi privileges were severely restricted son, Mulay papa has put the Mulay bas- dessalam Yassin, a large collection of cas- resurgent religious voices like those of when King Hassan II successfully blocked pos- kets on the Mulay donkey, filled them settes and an illegal videotape of the Algerian Ibrahim and other Haratin signal the seeds of sible dynastic ambitions of alternative Sharifi with the Mulay manure, and gone to the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS). Young Haratin a process of individualization in Moroccan collectivities. More importantly, state policy Mulay field’. like Ibrahim are not afraid to contest well-ac- society. It remains to be seen whether this increasingly put pressure on the privileged cepted divisions of ethnicity, disputing ‘tradi- socio-cultural transformation leads to the status of the Shurafa through monopolization Notwithstanding the obvious ridicule over tional ways’ of religious expression and in- disappearance of the privileged stature of of education, arbitration and religious autho- the Hartani’s inability to differentiate be- stead putting themselves forward as the ideal Shurafa and the persistent ethnic strife in the rization. The state thus deprived local special- tween the human and the natural world – a model to follow. Arguing against rural prac- southern oases. ♦ ists of their functions and appropriated reli- fundamental quality of any civilized person – tices and rules (qawnı¯n) that keep the social gion as the ultimate source of legitimation. the joke signals the ongoing emancipatory distinctions alive, they suggest that the uni- Central in the religious debate on the struggle of Haratin against Sharifi authority. versal Shariah should be superior to these meaning of Sharifi descent has been the in- local ‘laws’. They furthermore protest against congruity between the fundamental equality Everyday resistance the persistent practice of taking descent as of members of the Islamic community, as for- From talks with Ibrahim, a young migrant determinant of one’s identity. Showing their mulated in the Quranic verse 49:13, and the living in a suburb of Casablanca, it appeared national ID, they made clear that their birth- privileged position of the descendants of the that the aversion of Haratin to the use of hon- place, instead of their descent, should be the Prophet, as read from verse 33:33.3 One cru- orifics indeed stems from its connotation with decisive marker of identity. cial point of dispute was whether only con- the persistent system of social distinctions Ibrahim’s adversary in the quarrel was inter- N o t e s temporary members of the Prophet’s family that had kept them in their humble position ested in the same issues as Ibrahim. This 1 . Berque, Jacques (1982), Ulémas, fondateurs, were entitled to public respect or also his de- for so long. Ibrahim had left his natal village Sharif acknowledged that it was necessary to insurgés du Maghreb. XVIIe siècle. Paris: Sindbad, scendants. When applied to social reform, the down south as a teenager, yet he still saw his reflect upon some aspects of the Islamic faith. pp. 232-233. question was whether social equality is an former villagers, some of whom were Shurafa. But he suggested that people who, like 2 . Munson, Jr., Henry (1993), Religion and Power in ideal to pursue on earth or rather something Ibrahim told me of his involvement in a quar- Ibrahim, argue in favour of practices regard- M o r o c c o. New Haven: Yale University Press, attainable only in the afterlife.4 Induced by rel with a Sharifi migrant from his former vil- ing dress, table manners and praying, that fol- pp. 87-114. the spread of education and electronic media lage. Once when they met in the public bath, lowed the Prophet or his companions, should 3 . ibid., 11. as well as by urban migration, elements of Ibrahim had refused to use the honorific instead follow the example of members of 4 . Agnouche, Abdellatif (1992), ‘Les Chorfa face these scriptural discussions are instilled at the mulay. When the Sharif asked for an explana- ‘the House of the Prophet’. à l’état de droit dans le Maroc contemporain’. local level. tion, Ibrahim’s answer was simple: ‘Did one It has become increasingly difficult in an In: Jean-Claude Santucci, Le Maroc actuel. say mulay to the Prophet Muhammad? There urban context to be acknowledged as de- Une modernisation au miroir de la tradition? Descent-based distinctions are only human beings, all equal before God. scendant of the Prophet. Sharifi descent still is Paris: CNRS, pp. 273-283: 276. i n d e b a t e It is impossible to pay respect to people, just an important source of pride and public es- 5 . Moureau, Cpt. (1955), Les sociétés du Bani: In the stringent social hierarchy of the oasis because they are born as members of a cer- teem in Morocco and continues to be a valu- Les Haratins. Parallele entre son evolution et celle societies in southern Morocco, the Haratin tain family. Only through his deeds can a per- able asset in acquiring goods and favours. Yet des outres races des Bani. Typescript. population occupies the lowest level of the son earn respect, but then again, a human for lesser Shurafa, it is not always easy to ob- Paris: CHEAM no. 2431, pp. 1 and 8. social ladder. Haratin are people of humble does not know the hidden life of his fellow tain acceptance of their descent as valid cur- descent who have specialized in agriculture men: Who knows about the secret behaviour rency in these bargains. To avoid the inconve- Remco Ensel is author of Saints and Servants and handicrafts. One form of everyday resis- of a Sharif? Only God is able to judge human nience of one being unaware that he should in Southern Morocco (Leiden: E. J. Brill). tance that some Haratin pursued against their beings.’ address the other as a descendant of the E-mail: [email protected] 2 4 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

East Africa JAN A BB INK Ethiopian Islam

A perennial issue in the comparative study of Islam is how, as a faith and a way of life, it deals with diversi- ty: religious, ethnic, or socio-cultural. This issue is all the more relevant in a world where globalizing dis- and the Challenge courses redefine traditional identities, including those of religious systems, both in their local (indige- nous Asian and African) and universalist forms (Christianity, Islam). In many areas, complex and, in a way, exemplary patterns of mutual interaction and of Diversity tolerance have developed between religious-com- munal groups. In Africa, such regions are found in language among any group, and there were sis of religions usually held to be absolutist ple say that their village had been visited by Mali, Cameroon, Tanzania, Nigeria, and also Ethio- no Arab traditions related to marriage, in- and – in the case of Islam – ‘officially’ not tol- persons asking them to ‘reduce their con- pia. The history and current situation of Islam in Ethi- heritance, and other related customs, im- erating conversion to another faith. tacts and cooperation with the Christians’ opia, especially the northern part of the country, pro- ported into Ethiopia. Shari’a law was always The situation of co-existence and inter- and ‘reinforce the Muslim character’ of their vide an interesting case study. very partially applied and combined with mingling is not unique in itself; in other are- village. The villagers however did not see the customary law of a region or of a domi- as both in Africa and Europe, members of the problem and refused the message. nant ethnic group. the two faiths worked out understandings Hence, in the face of Islamic revivalism The situation of Islam in Ethiopia is remarka- Thirdly, Islam in Ethiopia always lived in and shared in each others’ lives during festi- based on strict scriptural interpretations, ble for a number of reasons. First, there is its the shadow of an old and powerful Christian vals and religious occasions, though observ- the challenge of pluralism presents itself long history in the country (see Trimingham kingdom (except in the violent period just ing certain minimal rules in the process, e.g. anew in Ethiopia (There is no such move- 1952; Hussein 1994). It is well-known that mentioned). Christianity was the core not eating meat from animals slaughtered ment amongst Christians, who do not dis- since the beginning of the new faith, before world-view of the political elite and a defin- by people of the other faith. courage contacts with the Muslims). A moot the Prophet Muhammad had even estab- ing element of the country’s historical na- point is whether Islamic revivalism – and lished himself in Mecca, a number of his fol- tionhood, and up to the demise of the mon- Christians and Muslims: perhaps a Christian response which may lowers were received in Ethiopia as religious archy in 1974, Muslims were excluded from tolerance and exchange eventually emerge – will articulate ‘bounda- asylum-seekers at the court of Aksum (615 this. They hence held a secondary place in It was often said by Ethiopian and other ries’ where there were none before, or upset CE). On the authority of the Prophet, Ethio- the political and civic domains; there was a observers that Muslims (and Christians) in the balance and tolerance between com- pia was not to be targeted for jihad. In the politically relevant ‘boundary’ between the Northern Ethiopia only have a ‘superficial munal groups. From various recent exam- subsequent period, Islam expanded in the two communities of faith. adherence to their faith’ and that they are ples in Africa and the Balkans, we know that country largely through peaceful means, While effective in the collective sense, in not ‘true believers’ or are ‘opportunists’. gruesome violence can be evoked in such a and since the late 18t h century especially the realities of daily life this boundary was, This may sometimes be the case, but in this situation. These questions are also raised in through Sufi orders (Qadiriyya). This ancient however, not immutable. It did not prohibit the people concerned are no different from Ethiopia. The answers given by most of the history plays a role in the self-definition of social interaction in areas where Christians, the countless others who do not shift their local population in Wällo is that they have Ethiopian Muslims. One historical episode is Muslims and others – though following religion: can these always be said to be ‘true worked out practical solutions to religious an exception to this pattern: the violent their own dietary and ritual rules – lived side believers’? Neither does this reproach do and cultural diversity, and that an emphasis confrontation between the Christian empire by side and intermingled. The boundary justice to the feelings of the people con- on a strictly scriptural interpretation of the and the Islamic sultanates of Ifat and Adal in could also be crossed by individuals chang- cerned and to their own way of dealing with faith at the expense of folk religion would the 16t h century (c. 1520-1550), where, ing allegiance and changing their identity. religious values. It only holds when one ap- serve no purpose if the historical patterns of mainly as a result of Turkish assistance (e.g., plies an exclusivist interpretation of ‘religi- tolerance and accommodation would be re- fire-arms) and strong leadership, and zeal of Ambiguous identities? osity’ and of Islam. The non-literate ‘folk Is- versed. Their example shows that there are the self-declared imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim It is this domain of boundary (crossing), in lam’ in Northern Ethiopia with its veneration more ways than one of being a good believ- of Harar, the Christian state and its religious a social and religious sense, which offers an of saints and shrines, its festivals or its spe- er. ♦ culture were almost annihilated in an un- interesting entry to the study of Islamic lore cific prayer sessions perhaps goes against precedented jihad. and practice in Ethiopia. Muslims and Chris- the grain of strict Islamic ulema doctrine, es- Secondly, there is the complex relation- tians live together in many places and know pecially when seen in its ritual aspects. But it ship between ethnicity and Islam. Ethiopia each other intimately; they are masters of has been an identity based on other pre- knew virtually no Arab immigration, and adaptation and improvisation in a precari- cepts of Islam, deemed more important by Ethiopian Muslims belonged to the indige- ous natural and political environment the local people. Little research has been Muslim traders nous peoples, retaining much of their spe- where knowledge of, and personal relations done on how these practices of (re)conver- at the market cific ethno-cultural characteristics, so that with, power-holders are crucial, but at the sion and co-existence are being worked out in Vemisé, these often overshadowed ‘Islamic identity’ same time volatile and subject to unpredict- in daily practice and what the socio-political N o r t h e r n (This phenomenon is familiar from other able changes. Especially in parts of Northern implications are. What is clear from a few in- E t h i o p i a countries as well). Arabic was not a spoken Ethiopia where the numerical balance be- teresting pioneer MA theses by Ethiopian tween Christians and Muslims was virtually social science students at Addis Ababa Uni- equal and where the social conditions (pov- versity, who have looked into these matters erty, land scarcity, lack of access to ‘political (e.g. Assefa 1992, Kalklachew 1997), is that resources’) were the same for both groups, local Ethiopian society shows an active reli- religious identity was made a strategic fac- gious commitment on the part of its people, tor in the social careers of persons, related based on a principled tolerance and mutual to marriage, trade, migration to a city or an understanding. When a Muslim man’s area predominantly inhabited by members daughter marries a Christian, she is not os- adhering to the other religion, or ethnic or tracized or condemned by him, and when a political affiliation. People thus tended to Christian person’s brother converts to Islam choose what communal identity in what in order to facilitate his marriage to a Mus- References phase of their lives was best for them. In lim girl, contacts are not broken off. Mixed – Assefa Balcha, (1992), ‘Traditional Medicine in Northern Ethiopia (e.g. Wällo) this has led to Christian-Muslim participation in certain pil- Wällo: its Nature and History’. Addis Ababa: long-standing patterns of conversion and grimages and their joint veneration of saints Department of History, AAU (MA thesis). re-conversion between the two faiths and is not frowned upon. These practices make – Hussein Ahmed, (1994), ‘Islam and Islamic explains the existence of extended families up the unique pattern of life in Northern discourse in Ethiopia (1973-1993)’, in New Trends that are half-Muslim and half-Christian. Ethiopia, and as such form somewhat of a i n Ethiopian Studies, ed. by Harold G. Marcus, vol.1, Most importantly, people showed a tolerant model for inter-communal relations in a plu- pp. 775- 801. Lawrenceville, N.J.: Red Sea Press. and forgiving attitude in accommodating ral society. – Kalklachew Ali, (1997), ‘Religion, Rituals and the variable identities and religious practi- In recent years, especially after the 1991 Mutual Tolerance in Wällo: the Case of Kabe, ces that others resort to and were not quick change of government in Ethiopia, such Southwest Wällo’. Addis Ababa: Department of to judge others. This pattern is maintained patterns of tolerance in Wällo and else- Sociology and Social Anthropology, AAU until today. where have come under stress. Revivalist ( M A thesis). This phenomenon of what could be called movements (e.g., of Wahhabite persuasion) – Trimingham, J. Spencer, (1952), Islam in Ethiopia. religious oscillation has not been studied are emerging and are targeting traditional London-New York-Toronto: Geoffrey Cumberlege systematically but is nonetheless of great folk Islamic practices in Northern Ethiopia. – Oxford University Press. interest. It shows not only the varied forms As the anthropologist Kelklachew (1997: 99) that Islamic religious culture can take in an ironically noted, the representatives of this African context, but also leads us to inquire movement (especially active in the towns) Dr J. Abbink is an anthropologist and a senior into the nature of (Islamic and Christian) re- ‘… criticize everything that the Muslims of researcher at the African Studies Centre at Leiden ligiosity and into conditions of co-existence the area perceive as Islamic practice’. During University, The Netherlands. and non-exclusivist identification on the ba- fieldwork in the area I also heard some peo- E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 25

West Africa ED VAN HOVEN Medina Gounass:

Medina Gounass is an isolated religious community situated in a remote area of Senegal. Until the 1980s, the leader of this branch of the Tijan t a r i q a r e f u s e d all contact with the state authorities. The imperatives the End of a Religious of s h a r i ’ a were rigorously applied in nearly all as- pects of social and religious life. But after the death of the founder of the community, things changed dramatically. Disputes between the heirs of the foun- der’s legacy, struggles over agricultural resources, I s o l a t e and fierce competition between supporters of politi- cal parties, made the intervention of the worldly au- no Amadou Seydou Ba, the community’s 1977, party-politics entered the community. reinforce its autonomy v i s - à - v i s the Senegal- thorities inevitable. Today, the community of Medi- founder who died in 1980, recorded on The Peul section voted massively for the op- ese state. The financial resources pouring na Gounass is, like so many Sufi orders in Senegal, t a p e . position’s Parti Démocratique Sénégalais into the community from abroad clearly by- courted by the state elite. (PDS), while the t h i e r n o, by then seriously ill pass the state, in contrast to the income The foundation of the com- and hardly capable of leading his followers, generated by cash-crop cultivation which m u n i t y supported the ruling Parti Socialiste (PS). Al- had to be sold directly to the state-con- Thierno Amadou Seydou Ba founded ready in 1975, he had banned commercial trolled companies. Medina Gounass in 1935. He was a Hal Pular cotton cultivation, which was the main The benefits of success, measured by the originally from the Fouta Tooro, a region lo- source of income for the Peul population. impressive housing facilities some of the mi- cated in the middle valley of the Senegal The leader told his followers that cotton cul- grants constructed in Medina Gounass, are River. After several years of travel and study, tivation would lead to a serious reduction in entirely attributed to the t h i e r n o. Considera- mainly in the southern Casamance region, women’s fertility.2 But other more worldly ble sums of money are given to him in grat- he finally settled in Medina Gounass with a motives played a role as well. itude and in order to ensure further financial handful of disciples. He preached the Tijan Like most Sufi orders in Senegal, the com- success. In the eyes of the followers, their w i r d, a litany of prayers brought to Senegal munity leaders controlled peanut cultiva- material success is only intelligible in terms from Morocco in the 19t h century by the Hal tion, which was an important source of in- of the t h i e r n o ’ s saintliness and his ability to Pular militant El Hadji Tall. come. Cotton cultivation, however, by- teach the ‘right path’. At the outset, Medina Gounass was not passed local agencies of control. Contracts more than a simple residential centre for fol- were signed with individual farmers, per- Medina Gounass has always been a major lowers, connected to the private home of sonally responsible for fulfilling the condi- centre of learning, attracting many students the t h i e r n o. But it began to develop rapidly tions rigorously specified by the state- from neighbouring communities and when large crowds of followers, mostly flee- owned cotton company SODEFITEX. Farm- abroad. Most children only attend the ing the harsh manifestations of colonialism ers were now paid in cash, instead of the Qur’an schools in the community, generally or the dictatorial regimes in some parts of bon d’achat, used in the case of peanut culti- run by the disciples of the t h i e r n o. They the subregion (e.g. Sekou Toure’s Guinee- vation, which could easily be gathered by learn to memorize portions of the Qur’an Conakry), settled in the community. While the community’s leader. The effect on the and the basic ritual obligations. In this part the circle of disciples expanded, the t h i e r n o community’s cohesion was devastating: of the country, the traditional learning cen- demonstrated an extraordinary b a r a k a. And fights broke out and several casualties were tres are not challenged by state institutions. this to the extent that he was able to trans- reported. The Peul left Medina Gounass on a The a r r o n d i s s e m e n t of Medina Gounass tra- form a small group of adepts into a self-con- massive scale to settle in nearby villages. For ditionally has an extremely low degree of scious religious community, with an elabo- the first time in the history of the communi- modern education (4.23% in 1998). This rated structure and a firm religious base in ty, police forces intervened in their internal points not only to the difficulties of imple- the s h a r i ’ a. a f f a i r s .3 menting educational policies but also to the Under the guidance of the t h i e r n o, Medina These events, of course, changed the posi- importance people attach to Muslim educa- Gounass soon became a religious isolate. tion of the community v i s - à - v i s the national t i o n . Contacts with the French colonial state and state. Today many state officials court Medi- Faced with a situation in which crowds of then, after 1960, the independent state of na Gounass. During the latest d a k a a c e l e- unemployed (but often well-educated) Senegal, were limited to the paying of taxes bration, regional as well as national state youth dwell the streets of nearby Tamba- and the commercialization of cash crops. In representatives made their way to Medina counda, parents feel that Qur’anic educa- Ahmed Tijan Be, Located some 85 km south of the regional one of the few published articles on this re- Gounass. President Abdou Diouf sent a del- tion is much more effective for transmitting current caliph of capital Tambacounda in eastern Senegal, ligious community, the t h i e r n o stressed his egation to ‘greet and encourage’ the t h i e r n o Islamic knowledge and moral values to their Medina Gounass Medina Gounass is one of the largest com- fight against innovations (b i d ’ a) and took a and to wish him and the attendants success children. In this regard, the education pro- munities of the Haute Casamance region. firm line on the implementation of s h a r i ’ a.1 and ‘a perfect spiritual communion’. Might vided by a Muslim community that acts as a Its inhabitants, mainly of Hal Pular (Toucou- Unlike other rural communities, where the these and other events that have marked c o n t r e - s o c i é t é,4 is very much compatible leur) and Peul origin, live in the many quar- state introduced its officials and the agricul- the recent history of Medina Gounass, pre- with the social and economic circumstances ters of the community. A modern road sys- tural cooperatives, Medina Gounass became lude the end of the isolationist posture of of contemporary Senegalese society. ♦ tem, constructed at the beginning of the a new ‘Pakistan’, land of the pure, from this Sufi order? 1980s, just after the ascension of the first which all b i d a were excluded. caliph, is centred around the huge mosque. Thierno Amadou Seydou Ba’s stress on as- Beyond the State Its impressive can hardly be missed ceticism and isolation was to some extent a It is true that with these developments, a upon entering the village by one of the response to the luxury and corruption that degree of ambiguity entered this religious dusty bush roads. went with the implementation of the bu- community. Notwithstanding the many in- Ahmed Tijan Ba, usually referred to as t h i- reaucratic state, but was also a perhaps un- ternal problems, which continued during e r n o, is the current caliph of the communi- intended response to other Senegalese Sufi the 1990s, Medina Gounass has not lost all ty. He is the spiritual guide of the numerous orders, and the well-known m a r a b o u t - h o m- of its original appeal. It is still a large com- followers living in Medina Gounass as well me d’affaires in particular, who lived in luxu- munity – approximately 14,000 inhabitants N o t e s as abroad. His leadership extends to nearly ry and closely cooperated with the worldly – guided by Ahmed Tijan Ba. So far, no offi- 1 . Y. Wane (1974), ‘Ceerno Muhamadu Sayid Baa. all domains of everyday life in the commu- powers. Even during its annual d a k a a, the cial state structures have been created in Le soufisme intégral de Madiina Gunaas (Sénégal)’, nity. He is both the politico-religious leader nine-day spiritual retreat in the nearby for- the village. Religious and secular matters Cahiers d’Études Africaines, 56, XIV-4, pp.671-698. and judge. People choose to live in the est, none of the state authorities were invit- are still dealt with by the t h i e r n o, who is ad- 2 . E. van Hoven (1996), ‘Local tradition or Islamic community because they feel that his ed. Some fervent militants even engaged in mired and venerated by his many adepts. precept? The notion of zakat in Wuli (Eastern ‘closeness to God’ (w a l a y a) is beneficial. violent protest against the icons of modern- Though agriculture forms the most impor- S e n e g a l ) ’, Cahiers d’Études Africaines, Others, living elsewhere in Senegal or ity; the t h i e r n o’s adepts were accused of tant source of income for the t h i e r n o ’ s f o l- 144, XXXVI-4, pp.703-722. abroad, pay visits from time to time to Med- having set fire to the Simenti tourist hotel in lowers, commercial activities are expanding 3 . M. Magassouba (1985), L’Islam au Sénégal: ina Gounass. Nowadays, the adepts have the Niokolokoba national park. quite rapidly. Successful businessmen have Demain les Mollahs? La ‘question’ musulmane et photographs, sold in the local shops, gone abroad, securing a steady flow of in- l e s partis politiques au Sénégal de 1946 à nos jours. through which they experience the venera- Outside interference come to the community and thus to its lead- Paris: Karthala. tion of the t h i e r n o. After the death of the community’s ers. International relations have always 4 . C. Coulon (1988), Les Musulmans et le Pouvoir While walking the streets of Medina founder, internal quarrels began to under- been vital for the community; but today, en Afrique noire: Réligion et contre-culture. Gounass, one notices immediately the ab- mine the unity of this ‘mini-republic’. The they seem to have become even more im- Paris: Karthala. sence of women. It is stated that women appointment of Ahmed Tijan Ba, the foun- portant. Many followers migrated to Europe should stay at home and rarely go out. If der’s son, as caliph was heatedly debated. and America while important sums of mon- Dr Ed van Hoven is a post-doctoral researcher at they do, they should be veiled – even with- The Peul section of the community claimed ey found their way back to Medina Gounass. the School of Asian, African, and Amerindian Studies, in the confines of the compound. Women the leadership saying that they were the This trend, which seems to be accelerating University of Leiden, the Netherlands. often gather to listen to the words of Thier- first to have settled in Medina Gounass. In in the last years, enabled the community to E-mail: [email protected] 2 6 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Eastern Europe VLADIMIR CHUKOV Political Behaviour

Since the fall of the communist regime in in 1989, all Muslims in the country have come to experi- ence a changed situation in which democratic conse- quences are evident: possession of individual rights of the B u l g a r i a n and freedoms, intensification of contacts with the Muslim world, and free political expression. Because the political heritage of the dismantled communist system is quite original in Bulgaria, in with a number of other Balkan countries, a specific Muslim Community confessional model can be witnessed. ational leadership is entirely based on ‘eth- state. His radicalism, based purely on secu- the eve of October 1999 the MRF conserved nic and religious quota’. In the Central lar Pan-Turkism, excludes Bulgarian Mus- its overwhelming superiority in 30 munici- The changes in the last decade for Muslims Council (the operational party level) the lims. The federalist state structure (Bulgari- palities representing the Muslim communi- in Bulgaria are all the more significant when Turk domination is quite conspicuous with an and Turkish autonomy districts) pro- ty and exerts influence in 65 municipalities, seen against the background of the situa- about 80-85%; the Pomaks (Bulgarian Mus- posed by Kenan had to be considered as un- out of 260 in total. tion prior: the regime of the last communist lims) are represented by 10-15% and ordi- dermining internal peace. The extremist The most successful political manoeuvre president T. Jivkov carried out (like that of narily possesses one vice presidential seat. ethnic and religious tendencies had been of MRF leadership, and of Ahmed Dogan Miloshevic in ) a kind of ethnic Bulgarian Christians are involved in the eliminated since they grew up at the bosom personally, is the ideological juggling with cleansing by challenging the local Muslims leadership usually with ‘external quota’ and of Bulgarian political thought. liberal ideas and slogans. He initiated the through changing their Turkic-Arab names realize their political presence through par- Mehmet Hodja, another former party dep- Liberal Democratic Union with the former into Slavic ones. Also the emigration proc- ticipation in the electoral process. They are uty, initiated the second schismatic move- president J. Jelev, vice president of Liberal ess was indicative of the situation: in the deprived of efficacious party competence. ment derived from MRF. His Party for Demo- International. It seems that the contradic- summer of 1989, 500,000 Bulgarian Muslims The MRF usually places between 14 and 24 cratic Changes (PDC) has to be considered tion between the officially adopted individ- left the country to settle in Turkey. Yet de- deputies in Parliament (which numbers 240 as a personal revolt against the authoritari- ualist ideas and the traditional adjustment spite the considerable reduction of the in total), while the Christian quota is around an methods of Dogan. However, PDC ac- of the Bulgarian Muslims to egalitarism and community, the Muslim population in Bul- 2 to 4 seats. quired a regional profile, strictly limited to social equality does not disturb MRF garia is still quite large. According to the of- Concealed emphasis on ethnic (coupled the district of Kardjali, the biggest South- founders. First, the liberal veil breaks up and ficial census in 1992, there were 1,110,295 with religious) corporativism is actually the east Bulgarian town with considerable Mus- ‘dissolves’ MRF into a Bulgarian political Muslims registered (800,052 of which de- immanent ideological approach to achiev- lim (predominantly Turk) presence. In the multitude. Secondly, it places the party clared themselves Turks, 313,396 Gypsies, ing the position of a main political group- legislative elections in 1994, the PDC mobi- among the family of European liberal par- 4,515 Tartars and other Muslim minorities). ing. It is in this way that the MRF’s ideologic- lized 24,000 votes that represented approx- ties. Thirdly, it moves the MRF away from Due to the deterioration of the economic al basis intertwined secular ethnical com- imately 0,1% of the total votes or 4% of the the Socialist Party, which remains its true conditions, Bulgarian Muslims (especially mitment (adherence to Pan-Turkism, not in Turk voters. This electoral failure announced electoral competitor. the Turks) massively migrated to Turkey. its radical expression) with unconscious, in- its political death. This process is still going on up to the pre- stinctively acquired Islamism (also as a cog- The next two attempts for dissipating MRF The others sent day and because of the illegal forms of nitive – reflexive behavioural system). Com- political and electoral capabilities are relat- The community of Pomaks is estimated ed with the aspirations of the biggest local between 170,000-200,000. Its political be- political parties – the Bulgarian Socialist Par- haviour is different from that of the Turks. It ty (former Communist) and the Union of appears that its social and economic margi- Democratic Forces (UDF). The former cata- nality, due largely to its rural and especially pulted Nedim Gendjev, former m u f t i , by aid- mountain-dwelling membership (approxi- ing him to establish the Democratic Party of mately 100%), influences and encourages a Justice (DPJ). As a former cleric, his political kind of ‘regionalization’ of political prefer- formation seemed to utilize religious rather ences. Usually its members adopt negative than ethnic slogans, emphasizing contact attitudes towards the dominant regional with the Arab world. Paradoxically, this was political tendencies. If they live alongside mixed with socialist egalitarian elements, Turks (as in the district of Kardjali) Bulgarian which shaped its utopian character and ulti- Muslims generally support the BSP (except mately resulted in failure. The DPJ also re- in 1997 when their support was for the mained a regionally represented party. UDF). On the contrary, in the southwest Gendjev organized bases predominantly in (Bulgarian Macedonia) the Pomaks ordinari- northeastern Bulgaria, around the city of ly vote for the MRF, thus denying the UDF B u l g a r i a n Shoumen, ignoring the southeast and the and BSP dominance. G y p s i e s southwest, also populated by a Muslim Bulgarian Muslim Gypsies are electoral before the community. The DPJ logically shared the objects whose comportment is categorically election day destiny of the preceding schismatic parties. unpredictable. Their extremely high level of It earned 24,000 and 27,000 in the 1994 and unemployment, lack of education, and migration, the exact size of the Bulgarian bined, the above mentioned Pan-Turkism 1997 legislative elections, respectively, and dominant rural status motivate political Muslim community is still unknown. and Islamism became the ideological tools also has been marginalized. passivity and disorientation. All attempts at After the installation of a competitive po- that MRF elaborated as operational criteria The last schismatic attempts have been establishing a serious political ethnic forma- litical system, the Bulgarian Muslim commu- for attracting new supporters. going on up to the present political disloca- tion corresponding to that of the Turkish nity seems to be an attractive electoral area Meanwhile in the short history of post- tions in the country. The UDF, as governing MRF have failed. However, in 1998 ‘Euro- for the newly established Bulgarian parties. communist Bulgarian legislative elections, party since 1997, makes great efforts to iso- roma’ was founded, pretending to defend However, the community has made it clear Turk support is categorical and can be ex- late the MRF leaders from their basic sup- the Gypsies interests. Its electoral capabili- that it possesses its own electoral potation pressed by the following: in 1990 there were porters by involving them in different levels ties seem doubtful in as far as its activities for transforming itself from an object to a 540,000 votes for the MRF, approximately of its political power. , UDF lead- reached only electoral agreements with subject in Bulgarian political life. 95% of the Turk voters; in 1991 – 380 thou- er and current Prime Minister personally of- MRF and the Bulgarian Euroleft party. sand, approximately 80% of the Turk voters; fered a few deputy chairs to the former MRF Analysing the political behaviour of the The Turks – leading Muslim in 1994 – 340 thousand, approximately 90% activists, in opposition to Ahmed Dogan. Bulgarian Muslim community is quite diffi- g r o u p of the Turk voters; and in 1997 – 250 thou- Mid-1997 saw the establishment of the cult. It risks running into inexactitudes due In June 1990, the Movement of Rights and sand, approximately 90% of the Turk voters. most important duplicate formation. It to the empirical nature of the data. Consid- Freedoms (MRF) in Varna arose, officially de- The attempts made to marginalize the MRF adopted the name of National Movement of ering the characteristic Balkan circumstan- nying that it recruited its activist corpus on – forbidding it by an act of the Constitution- Rights and Freedoms (NMRF), a very oppor- ces, Bulgarian politicians have to do their an ethnic and religious principle. Political al Court in 1991, provoking schismatic disor- tune electoral tactic, bearing in mind the best to promote the possibility of coexist- reality proves, however, that the party has der within the leadership – all remained un- potential confusion with the MRF. Guner - ence between Muslim and Christian com- become representative of the largest ethnic s u c c e s s f u l . hir, former MRF vice president and deputy, munities in the country so as to avoid situa- group among the Muslims: 90% of its mem- headed the newly founded party. With UDF tions such as that in neighbouring Yugo- bership is comprised of Bulgarian Turks. Schismatic movements assistance, he quickly constructed a wide slavia. ♦ Two general issues guaranteed the suc- Attempts to remove the ethnic and reli- network almost covering the entire country. cess of this political formation. The charis- gious appearance of the party characterize However, according to the latest estima- matic leadership of Ahmed Dogan, former MRF’s official fluctuations and its coalition tions, the anti-MRF effects once more activist against the ‘Revival Process’ and the policy. Adem Kenan, former MRF deputy, proved mediocre because of the appeals of Vladimir Chukov is associate professor at the faculty special elitism within the party shaped by provoked the first schismatic movement. He UDF leaders to their MRF opponents to ap- of administrative and political sciences of Varna Free him. MRF elitism is strictly conservative, tak- founded the Turkish Democratic Party, prove their coalition policy during the ap- University, and is director of the Bulgarian Center ing into consideration that the party’s oper- which remains unacknowledged by the proaching municipal elections. Indeed, on for Middle Eastern Studies. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 27

Eastern Europe BOGDAN SZAJKOWSKI An Old Muslim

The Muslim community in Poland is one of smallest religious-ethnic groups in the country. The main Mus- lim group comprises the Tatars, or more precisely Poles of Tatar origin. They have been a part of Polish Community of history and its cultural and religious tradition since the 14t h century. The case of the Polish Muslims pro- vides a useful model of how Muslim communities can relate to the wider national communities to which they belong, for instance in Europe, and how, in doing Poland: the Tatars so, they retain their own culture and identity, and contribute positively to these wider communities. and experienced warriors, they served ders of Poland. Some Tatars from these for- culture and the arts. Loyal to the memory of mostly in special Tatar units with either the mer Polish territories were resettled in pre- our fathers, their deeds of love for this land royal forces or the local magnates’ own pri- sent western and northwestern Poland. This we restore the Union of Polish Tatars.’4 vate armies. Tatar nobleman legally enjoyed of course meant that a vital part of their reli- Most Polish Muslims today live within six the same privileges as the Polish nobility. In gious and cultural heritage, including congregations (parishes). The oldest include return for their services to the crown they mosques, cemeteries, and schools, was left Bohoniki, Kruszyniany, and Warsaw. New acquired large estates and land titles. Those behind. congregations were formed in Gdansk- of more humble origin established them- Oliwa, Szczecin and Bialystok, the latter be- selves in villages and small cities, becoming Rebuilding the community ing the largest (Local sources maintain that known as excellent horse breeders, horse It was only in 1969 that steps were taken it has 3000 members). Many of the Muslims, traders, gardeners, horticulturists and arti- towards rebuilding the organizational struc- especially among the younger generation, sans. ture of the Muslims in Poland. That year, the have migrated from the countryside to In 1569, the parliament (s e j m) of nobility Polish government permitted the holding of towns. They, however, maintain their tradi- gave formal permission for the construction the first post-war Congress of Polish Mus- tion and links with their original communi- of mosques and Tatar schools. The number lims, which created the Muslim Religious ties, returning to their villages at times of Is- of Tatars in 1591 was estimated at between Union of Poland. By 1971, the Office for Reli- lamic festivals. The Polish Muslims have sev- 60,000-70,000, and mosques counted 400.2 gious Denominations created a new legal eral separate organizations. The oldest is A 1631 census listed more than 100,000 Ta- basis for religious work among the Muslims. the Muslim Religious Union of Poland, with tars in Poland. Since then, the mosques in the two oldest its headquarters in Bialystok. Most of the The Tatars enjoyed religious tolerance Tatar areas, Bohoniki and Kruszyniany, have other organizations belong to the Shiite tra- and maintained contacts with Islamic cen- been restored with grants from the Arab dition of Islam and its membership consists tres abroad. Many Tatar customs became Gulf states. In September of 1984, the foun- of recent migrants from the Muslim world, part of Polish tradition, especially among dational stone was laid for the construction expatriates and converts. the Polish nobility; their traditional long of a new mosque in Gdansk-Oliwa. The com- The survival and rejuvenation of the Mus- robe (k o n t u s z), fur cap (k o l p a k) and curved plex also has a library and facilities for the lim community in a predominantly Roman sword (k a r a b e l a) were imitations of the garb teaching of Arabic, in addition to its normal Catholic country, ruled for over forty years worn by the Crimean Tatars. religious functions. The mosque is located by a polity whose ideology was avowedly The Tatars lost their language most likely in the close proximity of a Roman Catholic atheistic, is remarkable. The Polish Muslims sometime in the 17t h century, and began us- church. The sound of the imam’s call to consider their position as very special within ing the local Polish or Byelorussian vernacu- prayer often mixes with the ringing of the wider context of Muslim minorities in lar. Although most had lived in their ethnic church bells, calling the faithful for the cele- East Central Europe. They contend that by enclaves, they became Polonized through bration of the mass. combining certain elements of Eastern and inter-marriage and the slow adoption of val- Also during the 1980s, the Polish Muslims Western culture they can contribute to the ues of the Polish majority. This process was began to establish closer contacts with the moral revival of Europe and Islam. They undoubtedly accelerated by the rising reli- Islamic world. In 1984 the Chief Mufti of Leb- hope to become the mediator between Po- gious intolerance towards the end of the anon, Hasan Khaled, visited Poland for the land and the Islamic countries. According to Mosque There are substantial discrepancies in data 1 7t h century and the prohibition on the con- first time. His visit was followed by a delega- them, history shows that Polish relations in Bohniki concerning practising Muslim believers in struction of mosques. In 1795, when the Pol- tion from the Organisation of Islamic States, with Turkey and other Muslim nations have Poland, but it is possible to gain reasonably ish state ceased to exist, the Tatars joined headed by the IOS Deputy Secretary Gener- always been good. Some of the Tatars em- convincing insight into the numbers in- the Poles in the fight for the country’s inde- al Sheikh Mohammed Naser Al-Abudi. The phasized that Poland ‘is the greatest Euro- volved from attendance of religious cere- pendence. The Tatar fighters swore their al- delegation visited all the Muslim communi- pean country not to be blemished by colo- monies and membership in relevant reli- legiance to Poland on the Koran in the their ties in Poland and apparently was most im- nialism’, a country that has ‘the glorious tra- gious, cultural and social organizations. On presence of their imams. They played an im- pressed by the mosque in Bohoniki (see dition of religious tolerance’. ♦ the basis of this, one should conclude that portant role in Napoleon Bonaparte’s Rus- photo). As a result of the visit, the first group the most accurate figure of practising Polish sian campaign in 1812 and the two national of Polish Muslims was able to take part in Muslims is probably around 5,000 – most of uprisings (1830 and 1863) against the Rus- the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Some whom belong to the Sunni tradition. The sians, for which they were to be bitterly per- scholarships for Islamic studies in Saudi Ara- overwhelming majority of Polish Muslims secuted by the Tsarist regime. bia were also made available. In August are Tatars1 although the group also includes When, in 1918, Poland regained its inde- 1988 the Secretary General of the OIS, Dr a number of recent Polish converts to Islam. pendence and statehood, only a small num- Abdulah Omar Nasif, visited Poland. Polish ber of Tatar enclaves in the northeastern Muslims have treated attempts by foreign Soldiers and artisans provinces remained within the Polish bor- Muslims to court them with polite reserve. The Tatars arrived in the Lithuanian part ders. The total population of Tatars in these There has always been a healthy theological N o t e s of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania in areas was little over 5,000. In 1925 the first relationship with the nearest Muslim Acade- 1 . The name today applies to several related, the 14t h century. In the subsequent centu- nation-wide congress of Muslims took place my in Sarajevo, but visits by Middle Eastern but spatially disparate peoples. Modern Tatars ries, many Tatars from the Volga area and, in in Vilnius, with Jakub Szynkiewicz being leaders have had only symbolic rather than cannot be regarded as direct descendants of the particular, Crimea followed earlier arrivals. elected the Chief Mufti of Poland. Also in cultural significance.3 Tatar Mongols of Manchuria who overran much Cemetery Some came as prisoners of war, but most 1925, the Socio-Cultural Association of Ta- In 1992 the Union of Polish Tatars was re- of Eurasia in the 13t h century. They are distant in Bohniki were recruited as mercenaries. Renowned tars was formed with its headquarters in established. Its programmatic declaration scions of the Turkic-speaking Volga-Kama Bulgars, Warsaw. The Association published R o c z n i k speaks of the long tradition of the Tatar to whom they owe their Islamic heritage. Tatarski (Tatar Annals) and a periodical Z y c i e communities in Poland. It also offers inter- 2 . Leszek Podhorodecki, (1971), T a t a r z y (The Tatars). Tatarskie (Tatar Life). By 1936, 19 Muslim esting insight into the ideology of the Polish Warsaw, Ksiazka i Wiedza, p. 365. congregations and 17 mosques were under Tatars and their links with Poland. Accord- 3 . Simon Miles, (1993), ‘Diminishing Tatars’. the religious supervision of the Chief Mufti. ing to the document, the Union is re-consti- T h e Guardian 2. 29 October, pp. 20-21. Each community was built around a parish tuted as a ‘commemoration and continua- 4 . Status Zwiazku Tatarow Polskich Rzeczypospolitej council with its imam and had, as a rule, its tion of the history of our Tatar and Muslim P o l s k i e j . (The Statutes of the Union of Polish Tatars own mosque and an appropriate religious ancestors who settled in the Republic six in the Polish Republic), quoted after Katarzyna cemetery. centuries ago. She gave them land and no- Warminska. ‘Ethnic Identity and Ethnic Equality During the Second World War, most of the bility and assured them freedom of profes- in the Ideology of the Polish Tatars’. Tatar intelligentsia was exterminated by the sion and all civil rights … she became our (unpublished paper). pp. 189-190. Nazis in retaliation for the gallant fight of motherland. Forever loyal to her, the Polish the Tatar detachment against the invading Tatars dedicated their services to the aug- Bogdan Szajkowski is professor of Pan-European German armies in September 1939. After mentation of her splendour not only in mili- Politics and director of the Centre for European the war, only two Tatar villages (Bohoniki tary craft but in all spheres of national life, Studies, University of Exeter, UK. and Kruszyniany) remained within the bor- including science, diplomatic service, agri- E-mail: [email protected] 2 8 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Western Europe PHILIP LEWIS Muslims in Britain:

In August 1999, on the day that eight British Muslims from Birmingham were convicted in Yemen for alleg- edly planning a terrorist campaign, the BBC’s pres- tigious news programme – ‘Newsnight’ – debated the Entering issues raised. The presenter spoke to four people in the studio: a defence lawyer, a relative of one of the accused, a journalist and the secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB). the Mainstream?

The four guests on the programme were race relations in Britain had routinely ig- tative engagement with mainstream educa- there is a confident and informed Islamic Muslims. Three were confident, articulate nored ‘religion’ as an important component tional institutions. In 1998 the first group of identity emerging among some British Mus- young men with regional British accents. in the identity and self-understanding of mi- such imams joined a BA course for primary lims, there is also a reactive and strident ‘Is- The MCB official located the problem in nority communities. The commission indi- teachers in Birmingham. If such a venture lamic’ identity emerging among many terms of disproportionately high levels of cated that for many in the minority commu- proves successful this could have a major young Muslims in inner city areas, where unemployment and educational under- nities to demean and vilify ‘Islam’ was as ex- impact on the ethos and curriculum of the most continue to live. The research of Dr Yu- achievement among sections of the com- clusionary as racism and sapped their confi- m a d a r i s themselves bridging the chasm nas Samad suggests that this had more to munity; but was careful to leave open the dence to engage confidently with wider so- that now exists between school and do with identity politics than with Islam. question of their guilt. The relative of one of c i e t y . mosque. Clearly, an understanding of develop- the accused (a PhD student) insisted on the The present government has responded Three other developments are worthy of ments within Britain’s Muslim communities innocence of the men and rehearsed a fa- positively to many of its recommendations. mention. The Islamic Foundation in Leices- requires us to be alert to the specificities of miliar litany of government inactivity be- While Muslims have long been involved in ter has an Inter-Faith Unit which produces the national and local situations, the ethos cause of prejudice and ‘Islamophobia’. The local politics with a handful appointed as the informative Encounters, Journal of Inter- within the proliferation of transnational defence lawyer refused to present this as a Lord Mayors, it was only in 1997 that the Cultural Perspectives. One of its staff has groups, whether rejectionist, isolationist or Muslim issue at all, but rather simply fo- first Muslim Member of Parliament (Labour) spent two years in Rome with the Dominic- engaged, as well as the extent to which geo- cused on the fact that young Britons had was elected from the South Asian communi- ans studying Catholic theology before stud- political rivalries – national, ideological and been tortured to extract false confessions ties who comprise 75 % of Britain’s 1.4 mil- ying Protestant theology at a British univer- sectarian – impact on the British scene. thereby rendering the whole legal proce- lion Muslims. The government also appoint- sity, where he is now working on a PhD in What is clear from the British experience is dure null and void. ed three Muslim peers to the House of which he is developing a Qur’anic herme- that Muslims are beginning a serious dia- The journalist argued that whatever the Lords; the ten year struggle to enjoy the neutics in dialogue with Christian herme- logue with Christians and Jews. rights and wrongs of this particular case, it same right to state-funded schools as Chris- neutic developments. Here, then, a Muslim Zygmunt Bauman has coined the useful pointed to a continuing failure of the reli- tians and Jews was won in 1998; the govern- institute is laying the foundations for an Is- term ‘glocalization’ which reminds us that gious leadership to connect with the world ment agreed to include a religious affiliation lamically serious encounter with religious globalization can often reinforce local and of young British Muslims. This meant that a question in the 2001 census when it was p l u r a l i s m . particular, as well as transnational identities. not inconsiderable number were attracted clear that Christian and Jewish organiza- Islamic studies are beginning to multiply Across Britain in Muslim communities origi- to the ranting of maverick militants such as tions supported this Muslim demand. The in British universities with Muslims begin- nally from Pakistan, local elections are in- Abu Hamza al-Masri, the self-styled Egyp- Home Office has latterly funded a research ning to contribute to all branches of Islamic creasingly contested by rival Kashmiri b r a- tian sheikh, whose son and godson were project to determine the extent of religious scholarship. As I write this I have in front of daris (clans). One conclusion is clear: those among the accused Britons. Some vulnera- discrimination in Britain. While some of me an introductory work on the Qur’an writ- involved in researching and debating these ble youngsters could find themselves en- these measures are more symbolic than ten for British Muslims and non-Muslims, issues will increasingly include British Mus- trapped by the glamorized jihad rhetoric of substantive, they cumulatively suggest that another scholarly work on the origins of Is- lims themselves. ♦ such radical groups. British Muslims do not have to render invisi- lamic law, some splendid translations of ‘Newsnight’ indicates how far Muslim ble their Muslim identity if they are to par- works by al-Ghazzali, an innovative article communities have come in the decade since ticipate in public life. Finally, the Prime Min- ‘Women’s Human Rights in Islam: towards a The Satanic Verses affair. Then, the commu- ister’s active advocacy of military interven- theoretical framework’ and an insightful nities felt marginalized from British civic and tion to support the Kosovars has begun to study of the radical movement Hizb al-Tah- public life with few articulate spokesmen challenge the widely held Muslim view that rir. While all of these scholars are working in capable of translating anger into argument. British foreign policy is necessarily anti-Mus- Britain, their origins are from across the The BBC now had little difficulty in finding a lim. Muslim world, whether Egypt, Palestine, range of able British Muslim professionals to Pakistan, or Britain. debate the issues themselves. Further, with The search for religious Because Britain is home to Muslims from the birth of the MCB in November 1997, the g u i d a n c e all over the world, something of the intellec- Muslim communities have the best approxi- A cursory reading of Muslim publications tual excitement generated by this diversity mation yet to a representative body. in Britain indicates that the adequacy of the and debate can be overheard in the English- training of imams remains a continuing speaking Muslim press which has also Seeking the common good source of anxiety and debate. Many contin- emerged in the last ten years, notably Q - The MCB chose, for its inaugural conven- ue to be invited from South Asia and most N e w s. Further, since English is now the sec- tion and accompanying glossy literature, lack the linguistic and cultural skills to con- ond language of the u m m a , innovative de- the slogan Seeking the Common Good, which nect with young British Muslims. However, velopments in Islamic thought developed in deliberately echoed an influential docu- one South Asian tradition – the Deobandis – Britain could have an impact on debates ment published a year earlier by the Catho- now has a network of over a dozen m a d a r i s across the Muslim world. lic Bishops of England and Wales – The Com- in Britain. mon Good and the Catholic Church’s Social Recently a group of imams from within Managing multiple identities T e a c h i n g – intended to influence the nation- this tradition produced a series of pam- So far, the focus of this report has been – al debate in the run up to Britain’s 1997 phlets for Muslims in Bradford. These pam- self-consciously – Islamic groups in Britain. General Election. The MCB has also learned phlets offer an unvarnished, yet selective However, the mass of Muslim youth in the from the influential Jewish Board of Depu- picture of Muslim street culture: drug tak- larger urban conurbations, whether East ties, the respected representative body for ing, ‘lavish wedding parties’ whereby ‘the London, Birmingham or Bradford, have min- Jewish affairs in Britain, the need to enlist sunnah of the prophet-[is] replaced with ri- imal involvement with such groups. Mus- the support of as wide a range as possible of diculous Hindu and other k a f i r t r a d i t i o n s ’ ; lims usually guess that no more than 10 % Muslim organizations and individual profes- neglect and abuse of wives; indifference to are involved, whether in local cities or on sionals and academics. In its style, ethos, Islamic education of children; an increase in university campuses. and willingness to relate to government and divorce; and a penchant for playing loud A recent publication ‘Community flash- public bodies, the MCB has deliberately dis- music from ‘obscene films’, even when pass- points and young British Muslims’ (1999), tanced itself from the controversial and pro- ing mosques. What is significant is that the edited by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, rehearsed vocative self-styled Muslim Parliament, imams realize that to challenge such behav- the findings of three seminars organized by child of the late Kalim Siddiqui. iour they have got to communicate in Eng- the prestigious Institute for Public Policy Re- lish and that it is not enough to simply re- search (IPPR). The seminars’ findings make Reshaping public discourse hearse Islamic prohibitions, but that reasons for sober reading: sections of ‘Asian’ youth, It was clear from the television discussion have to be given (e.g., the pamphlet criticiz- excluded from wider society and by internal that the term ‘Islamophobia’ has now en- ing gambling cites material produced by community patriarchies, often dissipated tered public discourse. The term was popu- the organization Gamblers Anonymous). their energies in inter-group hatreds and larized by an influential report – I s l a m o p h o- Further, because the products of such m a- prejudices. Black fighting Asian, Sikh youth Philip Lewis is an inter-faith adviser to the Anglican bia, a Challenge to Us All – published in 1997 d a r i s are too numerous to provide jobs in lo- fighting Muslims or radical Hindu groups, Bishop of Bradford and lecturer in Religious Studies, by the Runnymede Trust. Until this inquiry, cal mosques, there is the beginning of a ten- one Muslim sect fighting another. While Leeds University, UK. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Regional Issues 29

Western Europe MARJO BUITELAAR Narratives on Young men and women of Moroccan descent in the Netherlands live in a world of many different social groups. Brought up by their parents to be ‘good’ Mo- roccans and Muslims, many have – well into their teens – lived with the expectation that their family P a r t n e r - C h o i c e would some day return to Morocco. From their peers in school and at work, they have learned about Dutch into a relationship. After a while the couple social identifications. I focus more particu- whatever she and her boyfriend agreed up- culture, which has also become part of them. Togeth- decides to ask permission from Nezha’s larly on the representations in their life sto- on doing or not doing before marriage was er with Moroccan and other Muslim friends, they family to marry. Since her boyfriend does ries of ethnic, religious and gender identifi- nobody else’s business. seek ways to live in Dutch society with their particu- not have any relatives in the Netherlands, cations. In analysing the relations between lar cultural heritage. In the past, these ‘second-gen- he decides to contact Nezha’s family per- the narrations produced in the interviews, I Constraints on using different eration migrants’ have often been described as living s o n a l l y : hope to gain more insight into the question cultural resources ‘between two cultures’. Analysis of the life stories of of how these representations of historical Of course, drawing upon ‘multicultural highly educated women of Moroccan descent, howe- ‘If somebody wants to ask your hand, his events, social relationships and individual capital’ to create new strategies of living is ver, demonstrates that these women are able to crea- whole family should ask. But that was action come together to construct social not without constraints. Time and again, the tively construct and combine their multiple social impossible in his case. So he acted alone identifications, and how such identifications life stories contain evidence of the fact that identifications, although their drawing upon multi- and bought flowers, like a Dutchman are transmitted, maintained and trans- the interviewees have internalized norms cultural capital to create new strategies of living is would. And because the first candidate f o r m e d . transmitted to them by their parents to such not without constraints. had never called again, my family an extent that they entertain ambivalent thought: “Well, fine. Just go”.’ Construction of multiple feelings concerning their associations with i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s men and their experiences of sexuality and Nezha is a 35 year-old woman of Moroccan The fact that her husband came to ask her Here, I restrict myself to the question of falling in love. Such narrations illustrate that descent living in the Netherlands. For the ‘like a Dutchman would’, is not the only ex- what the narratives on partner-choice can one is neither completely free in choosing last ten years, she has been happily married ample of how he and Nezha improvise on tell us about the ways in which the 14 wom- one’s identifications, nor in improvising up- to a man of her own choice. Had it been up family traditions. Nezha relates with pride en with whom the interviews have so far on the meanings attached to a particular to her parents, however, she would have how she organized her wedding in such a been completed construct, maintain, and group identity. Although Nezha, for exam- married a candidate proposed by them. This way that she could comply with the wishes combine their various social identifications. ple, emphasizes that she has a clear con- is Nezha’s story: of both her family and herself: In the above quotations, we get the impres- science, it hurts her to know that the false sion of Nezha as a woman who, in arranging rumours about her premarital behaviour ‘When your parents say yes [to a mar- ‘I organized everything myself. That is her own marriage, is creatively drawing up- have damaged the reputation of her family riage candidate, mb], that’s final. You try so odd, it’s really not done, a Moroccan on different cultural resources. She challen- and herself. She also dreads the day her two to sail around it, but you can’t say no. So woman who takes care of all that her- ges the views of her family, but makes sure daughters will begin to take an interest in I made inquiries about the police- self. But I phoned the registry myself. not to loose touch with them. This kind of boys and acknowledges that she is not sure school. I was invited for an interview I refused to marry according to the Mo- negotiating can be recognized in the stories that she will allow them the same freedom and had to pass some exam. That went roccan law, because I had heard all sorts of all interviewees. Their biographical narra- of movement that she claimed for herself. fine, so I was accepted. What I figured of stories about how impossible it is to tions contain numerous episodes in which The individual’s freedom to construct was that if the candidate would keep get a divorce and so on. But to make it they improvise upon and shift the meanings multiple identifications is also constrained turning up and I would be about to look nice I went to the mosque. So that of Moroccan core-values like virginity and by the fact that the emphasis on certain ele- marry, then I’d be off to Leusden [name it looked Islamic, you know, with an obedience to one’s parents. They do so in ments from a cultural repertoire implies the of the city where the police-school is lo- imam to read a sura from the Quran for such ways that their identification with cer- neglect of others. Not all the women inter- cated, mb]. So I phoned him: “Listen, I’ve you. Well, the wedding was very nice.’ tain values that are treasured within the Mo- viewed are as happily married as Nezha. In got a boyfriend, you should stop seeing roccan community can be combined with, fact, only four are presently married. The me”. Haven’t heard of him since! I was so for example, the value of autonomy, which others are either still single or divorced. The Scene from a relieved! But my family felt that their ho- Representation of social is highly valued within the community of price that these Moroccan pioneers with p l a y at the nour had been damaged. You know: identity in life stories Dutch peers with whom they also identify. Dutch university degrees and attractive jobs Theater Cosmic, first he drops in all the time, and then Nezha is one of the women who were pre- Their stories demonstrate once more the in- appear to have to pay for the degree of au- A m s t e r d a m , he’s disappeared all of a sudden. It pared to tell me their life stories for my re- adequacy of the ‘between-two-cultures’ tonomy that in Moroccan circles is, as yet, t h e theme of makes them wonder: ”What is wrong search project on young women of Moroc- model of second-generation migrant identi- unusual for women, is that they have an which concerned with her?” That‘s the first thing that can descent who have university degrees ty, which suggests too static a conception of even harder time than their Dutch counter- freedom of comes to their mind, you know: “She’s and/or hold positions in which such qualifi- cultures as fixed, homogeneous units with parts in finding a suitable partner who ap- p a r t n e r - c h o i c e lost her virginity”.’ cations are required. I am specifically inter- clear-cut boundaries, and neglects the open preciates the merits of a wife with a career. and mother- ested in the representations of various di- and contestable nature of cultural notions Due to the open and dynamic character of d a u g h t e r Once ‘the candidate’ has given up, Nezha mensions of social identity by these women. and practices. It also implies a view of these cultural notions and practices, it is, howe- c o n f r o n t a t i o n . no longer needs the police-school as an es- The research focuses on the question of young people as passive victims of their cir- ver, not unlikely that what these women are The actrices are cape from marriage and decides not to go how these ‘second-generation migrant’ cumstances rather than as actors with a struggling with will prove to be a transition- all of Moroccan there after all. In the meantime, she has met women construct a more or less coherent multiple cultural competence. al problem that will decline as more highly d e s c e n t . another Muslim man with whom she enters self-identity out of their shifting, multiple Instead, the life stories abound with illus- educated women of Moroccan descent en- trations of the fact that identification does ter the Dutch labour market. ♦ not imply an ‘all-or-nothing’ attitude to- wards the groups to which one belongs. People always know more culture than they use, and different group members lay stress on different things. Nezha, for example, identifies with Islam as a source of guidance in her life, but does not agree with the inter- pretations of Islamic precepts in the Moroc- can code of personal law. Also, sharing sym- bols does not necessarily entail sharing in- terpretations. The views of the interviewees on the symbolic complex of virginity is a case in point. Although very few women question the value of the symbol of virginity as such, their participation in Dutch peer groups – as well as their holiday experiences in present-day Morocco – have led them to stretch the corresponding rules of what is considered chaste behaviour. Furthermore, they no longer see virginity as a concern of the whole community, but perceive it as a personal responsibility and claim the right of individual privacy over such matters. Un- like her parents, Nezha, for instance, did not think it inappropriate to have a boyfriend as Dr Marjo Buitelaar is a lecturer in anthropology long as she safeguarded her virginity. Also, of the Middle East at the faculty of theology and she was furious about her family’s interfer- religious studies, State University of Groningen, ence with her love life and maintained that the Netherlands. E-mail: [email protected] 3 0 Regional Issues I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

Western Europe VALÉRIE AMIRAUX Is Islam Soluble

Similar to the overall situation in Western Europe, the Muslim youth of Turkish background in Germa- n y1 are quite different to the generation of their par- ents. Far from homogeneity, being a Muslim is nowa- into Germany? days made up of differentiation, cultural complexity, and mobility at an individual level even if communal features remain relevant. The following aims at brief- ly reviewing these trends while underlining the op- portunities provided by the German context. Sunni Muslims

The first element to keep in mind concern- ing Turkish Islam in Germany is its transna- tional dimension. Being located ‘in be- of Turkish Origin tween’ at least two national contexts, name- ly home- and host-countries, Islamic groups tren (VIKZ, Union of Cultural Islamic Centres) This is a real difference compared to other and codes. The headscarf, for example, is in- – mainly organized into associations – and in the field of education, the opening of countries where the claim for institutionali- creasingly becoming a non-cohesive argu- individuals develop original and particular mosques or the ‘importation’ of imams from zation appears to be a late indicator of ‘visi- ment between mother and daughter – an social practices and discourses which deal Turkey to Germany. Several means have bility’. argument of technical interpretations with multiple national settings. This rele- been organized between Turkey and Ger- The third set of opportunities derives from against traditional ones. The daughter vance of transnationalism is directly linked many to avoid a DITIB monopoly on these the fact that given that the majority of Mus- teaches her mother how to wear it. to the specific national background of Turk- affairs. In the 1990s, for example, the VIKZ lims living in Germany are not German citi- The main demands remain, however, the ish Muslims. The transplantation of political opened a centre for the education of h o c a s zens, the issue of Islam is not compelling for same: easier access to German nationality, religious trends from Turkish to German ter- in Cologne, giving them the possibility to national politicians as an electoral argu- the right to double-citizenship, and acquir- ritory from the 1960s onwards mainly recruit persons with experience in living in ment. The lack of incentive is exacerbated ing for Islam a status equal to that of other helped to increase the potential of these Germany and German-language capacity to by the collectively shared illusion of Germa- religions. groups because Germany offered opportu- teach in their mosques. Significantly, those ny as not being a country of immigration. So the public and communal dimension of nities – stability, freedom, autonomy and in- rivalries and competition between the main The lexical stigmatization of foreigners is Islam in Germany still asks for recognition dependence – which Turkey, a Republic actors are not submitted to direct interven- another part of a political intention to keep and visibility in the urban milieu. But a that, having interpreted l a i c i t é as state con- tion and repression of the Turkish state. foreigners’ issues (among them Islam) out of strong differentiation is growing between trol of religion, did not and still does not Indeed, one of the first opportunities for the domestic public sphere. But at the same ‘belonging’ and ‘believing’. While the dis- provide. The transnationalization of the so- Islamic Turkish associations in Germany time, being kept outside of domestic issues tance from the ‘legitimate authorities’ is cial space produced by Islamic-Turkish ac- arose from the distance from the Turkish and even ignored by politicians and aca- growing, the religious practices are a matter tors in Germany grows also on the basis of a state, in spite of its maintained sovereignty demics gave the opportunity to Islamic as- of personal and individual choice and pri- ‘long distance nationalism’ referring to the in Germany, especially through taxation and sociations to organize their own social sites vate conscience. This process is similar to extension of the ‘traditional’ audience conscription. Escaping from Turkey without dealing with a double-sided ‘changing face that of transnationalism: multiplication of among migrants through the media, main- really leaving it, Turkish Islam in Germany of religion’3: on the one hand is a need for the identity references, mobility, invisibility, taining the presence of some political per- cannot be dissociated from this permanent new types of communal activities, and on and avoiding state control and authority. sonalities and debates in the daily life of and complex interaction of the two national the other, the transformation of tie binding This idea of multiple identities and complex- Turks living in Germany.2 The situation of settings referring to different sets of oppor- the individual to his community of belong- ity induces the idea of culture playing as a Turkish migrants in Germany composes tunities. i n g s . reference on both individual and collective then a permanent interplay of social posi- levels, providing codes, symbols, repertoires tions neither systematically, nor clearly at- The opportunities A secular change? and symbolic places in which people occa- tached to stable forms of social capital in The first elementary opportunities used This ‘changing face’ appears to be a cen- sionally live. It also provides an ideological both countries. by transplanted Turkish networks are legal – tral issue for the Islamic Turkish associations apparatus, practices and a symbolic reper- Muslims of Turkish origin in Germany can open to all non-German citizens who are al- as well as for their audience. The urban toire by which the individual/collective con- also benefit from their particular location in lowed to organize eingetragene Vereine ( e . V ) landmarks they provide, and the identity sciousness as part of a believer’s life is built, a country of which they are not systemati- associations. Thus, the Islamic associative references and discourses they mobilize, educated and controlled. In a kind of ‘secu- cally citizens. Associations can be viewed as network, which initially developed in Ger- have been adapted to the change of clien- lar’ perspective, the identification as Muslim providing alternative modes of action to many, corresponded to the juridical restora- tele – passing from parents to children or is no more the exclusive producer of referen- that which is provided by the exclusive ref- tion of religious tendencies that exist in Tur- grandchildren. Islam remains firstly defined ces and meanings. It rather figures one of erence to the welfare state as a form of in- key yet had found in Germany the possibili- as an origin and a praxis (respect of the five the possible options, but certainly not the corporation that is deeply embedded in ter- ty to act freely. This appears to be the first pillars), but being born Muslim is not a guar- dissolution of religious affiliation. ♦ ritorial and national definitions of member- step of the installation of Islamic associative antee of orthopraxy. For instance, the rela- ship. This emergence of a transnational networks in Germany. tionship to religious belonging and praxis is space in which Islamic mobilization has A second stable set of opportunities is not directly inherited from the family but is been organized lies at the cross-roads be- provided by the rules concerning the posi- transformed and reinvented by younger tween the legal management of religion tion of religion in the public sphere. The generations, while the associative network and the externalization of Islam as a ‘for- German tradition separates religion and maintains the collective reference such as eigners’ cultural issue’. It is a pure product of state without considering religion as a non- the moral code and educational needs. The the complex articulation of rights, rules, and legitimate actor in the public sphere, such multiplication of the contacts and modes of institutions, independent of the usual focus as is the case within the constitutional inter- participation in the host society gives new on debates about political participation and pretation of l a ï c i t é in France or Turkey. One opportunities to young generations of Mus- jus sanguinis. elementary resource the associations can lims who no longer need to stay exclusively The German political management of Is- thus mobilize stems from the status of cor- in an assigned group or community. The lam is mainly diplomatic. In relation to the poration of public law (Körperschaft des öf- b r i c o l a g e of reference appears to be the key political agenda, Islam is treated as a For- fentlichen Rechts), given to religious com- concept underpinning these new forms of eign Affairs issue, and more recently as a ‘se- munities (Religionsgemeinschaft) which dealing with religious belonging: people curity linked’ problematic. From its symbolic rule and administer their business in an au- produce their own ways of being a Muslim. to material aspects, many indicators justify tonomous way: raising taxes (K i r c h e n s t e u e r) , At an individual level, this change gives N o t e s the assessment of Islam as not being a so- deciding the composition of religious in- relevance to the category of ‘personhood’ 1 . According to statistics there are approximately cial-cultural policy matter. As the very sym- struction, opening religious places, and be- which mixes choice, faith and duty, without 2.8 million Muslims living in Germany, bol of the Kemalist definition of l a ï c i t é, the ing represented in public institutions such feeling under ‘social’ pressure in European 79% are from Turkish origin/nationality. management of several aspects of religious as hospitals, the army, prisons, and the me- societies. Different socialization dynamics 2 . Benedict Anderson, (1991), Imagined Communities. life by the Diyanet Isleri Türk-Islam Birligi dia. Islamic Turkish associations could gain meet and interact, the associative, familial (2nd ed), London, Verso. (DITIB, Office of Religious Affairs) introduces immediate benefits from this recognition in or religious aspect being one part of it. It al- 3 . James A. Beckford, Thomas Luckmann (ed.), (1989), the Turkish state as one of the actors of the terms of authority, legitimacy and inde- so represents an ethic for life which medi- The Changing Face of Religion. Sage Islamic scene reconstructed in Germany. At pendence in their functioning. It could be ates familial relations, respect for the h a l a l (Studies in International Sociology, vol. 37). the same time, the German authorities’ des- argued that the dynamism of the associa- milieu, while also opening new spaces and ignation of the DITIB as the ‘most favoured tive network among Muslims in Germany is guaranteeing the freedom of others. In this Valérie Amiraux is a research fellow and coordinator lord’ among the plausible partners stimu- a result of institutionalization in the quest sense, ‘personhood’ represents a re-inter- of the Mediterranean Programme, lates competition between associations for recognition. De facto, the claim for offi- pretation of tradition based on experience. European University Institute, Florence, Italy. such as the Islamische Gesellschaft Milli Gö- cial recognition began in 1997 with an offi- It is about becoming a Muslim, not about E-mail: [email protected] rüs (IGMG, Islamic Society National Vision) cial demand made by the Turkish VIKZ – a ‘re-Islamization’. It is rather an ‘Islamization’ For information on the Mediterranean Programme: or the Verband der Islamischen Kulturzen- demand rapidly followed by other requests. based on real knowledge of heritage, ethics h t t p : / / w w w . i u e . i t / R S C / R e s e a r c h R S C - 3 a 1 . h t m I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Research 31

A p p r o a c h e s LOUIS BRENNER The Study of Islam in

The academic study of Islam and of Muslim societies in sub-Saharan Africa has developed during the past thirty years more as part of African studies than of Is- lamic studies. Islamic studies in Africa has therefore S u b - S a h a r a n not been so deeply influenced by the orientalist her- itage of Western scholarship that prevailed among those who studied Islam in the central Muslim re- gions. On the other hand, the global resurgence of Is- lam that has taken place during the same period, in A f r i c a all its social, political, religious and indeed academic forms, has had a profound influence on African Is- duce very different kinds of publications, in Mali seems essential to the development days also reflects a greater empathy with Is- lamic studies. Hodgkin noted that many Western trained of the educational sector in a country where lam and Muslim societies than it did thirty Islamist scholars seemed to know relatively almost 80 % of the population remains illit- years ago. And the real challenge that faces little about Islam, whereas the Islamically- erate. Nor can the m a d r a s as be exempted us scholars today is to nurture these seeds In the 1960s, some scholars were confident- trained scholars tended to write uncritically from such criticism, even in the name of ‘Is- of sensitivity and empathy, without which ly predicting that the political role of reli- in highly normative terms. lam’, since they account for an important no fruitful development of our field can en- gion, and specifically of Islam, would shrink Indeed, it is this uncritical and idealized proportion of schooling provision in the sue despite the money that has been flow- under the growing dominance of secularist presentation of Islam that causes concern country. Thus, by offering a ‘modernized’ ing into all the new institutes. ♦ political ideologies. Quite the contrary, amongst most non-Muslim, Western trained and ‘relevant’ form of Muslim schooling, the however, has occurred. Throughout Africa, scholars who tend to dismiss this kind of m a d r a s a constituencies necessarily draw ‘Is- the religious is inextricably entwined with writing as non-academic and to ignore it, or lam’ into a national debate about education the political, often to the extent that it is vir- perhaps to try to turn it into an object of re- that is informed by predominantly secularist tually impossible to disentangle the two search. However, it is my view that this kind p r i n c i p l e s . strands, even for analytical purposes. Inter- of writing is reflective of a much more com- Even if one would not agree with Eliza- national politics have reflected a similar plex and significant process which is taking beth Hodgkin that this process contributes trend. Political developments in the Middle place in the development of Islamic studies: to a secularization of Islam, the Malian ex- East since the 1960s, the economics of the the emergence of a Muslim African voice in ample certainly illustrates the extent to oil boom in the 1970s, and the widespread academia. One of the most significant re- which the contemporary study of Islam and political ramifications of the Muslim Revolu- sults of this change is that non-Muslim of Muslim societies is a highly politicized do- tion in Iran in 1979, have all contributed to scholars no longer enjoy a monopoly in the main. In the same way that the m a d r a s as giving ‘Islam’ a salience in the conscious- field and must learn to engage with this cannot exempt themselves from criticism as ness of non-Muslim Westerners that is prob- new voice. The process can be painful for us a part of the educational sector, scholars ably unparalleled since the days of the cru- non-Muslims, less, I think, because of the who engage in research on the m a d r a s as sades! analytical or critical issues involved than be- cannot expect that their findings will be ex- What Samuel B. Huntington describes as a cause of the fact that the ‘object’ of our re- empt from critical response from those who ‘clash of civilizations’ certainly resonates of search is no longer silent. have invested their lives in m a d r a s a s c h o o l- a contemporary replay of medieval Chris- The emergence of a Muslim voice in Afri- ing. tian-Muslim confrontation. These develop- can Islamic studies is largely a postcolonial Another example that illustrates the kinds ments have profoundly affected the aca- phenomenon, but then, so is African Islamic of tensions that affect the study of Islam in demic study of Islam and of Muslim socie- studies itself. Certainly, my own work has al- Africa can be found in research into the j i- ties in numerous ways, not least in the ways been subject to criticism from an ‘Is- h a d of cUthman dan Fodio and of the Mus- amount of money that is being attracted to lamic’ perspective, from my earliest publica- lim state that he established at the begin- support such research and most notably in tions based on my PhD research in northern ning of the 19t h century in what is now the recent appearance of numerous new Nigeria in the mid-1960s,2 to more recent northern Nigeria. In 1967, Murray Last pub- centres of Islamic studies in academic estab- research in Mali. The publication of a small lished The Sokoto Caliphate, a revised ver- lishments in Europe and the United States. A collective book on Muslim schooling, co-ed- sion of his PhD dissertation.5 This book is a pertinent example of this process is the re- ited with a Muslim Malian colleague, was history of the j i h a d and the administration cent establishment of the ISIM, which pub- greeted with considerable anger by one or of the Caliphate based on meticulous study lishes this Newsletter. Nonetheless, the ex- two Malians.3 The anger was focused pre- of the vast Arabic documentation then plosion in Islamic studies in African coun- cisely on the fact that certain contributors available. It was the first major study of the tries with sizeable Muslim populations has to the book took a critical view of various is- subject which used such sources, and in been much more spectacular than in Europe sues that in turn resulted in an accusation many ways has remained the most authori- or America. that the book was ‘against Islam’. The per- tative, perhaps primarily because most Ni- son who made this accusation, the director gerian scholars are reticent to touch the Islamism and Islamic of one of Mali’s more prestigious m a d r a s a subject due to the profound symbolic role r e s e a r c h in Africa schools, had cooperated with me in my re- the Caliphate continues to play in Nigerian Elizabeth Hodgkin’s article published in search on the history of the m a d r a s a Muslim politics. Indeed, the only extensive 1990, entitled ‘Islamism and Islamic Re- schools. However, he clearly expected a treatment of the j i h a d by a Nigerian is Ibrah- search in Africa’,1 remains the most inclusive non-critical, normative account of Muslim eem Sulaiman’s A Revolution in History,6 and systematic treatment of these trends in schooling in Mali and was perhaps particu- which was viewed by some critics more as a print, despite its somewhat limited geo- larly upset by the fact that the one patently programmatic text for the future than a seri- graphical scope, focusing primarily on Su- critical essay in the book was authored by ous historical treatment of the past. dan, Nigeria and Senegal. The article traces the only contributor who had actually at- both institutional profiles as well as the ide- tended a m a d r a s a school. Apparently, this Creative tensions? ological tensions in Islamic studies in Africa. process of change can be painful for every- These two examples, which could be mul- N o t e s As the title of her article suggests, Hodgkin’s one concerned. tiplied many times over, raise numerous 1 . Hodgkin, Elizabeth (1990), Islam et Sociétés concern was primarily to explore Islamist complex questions for the scholarly com- au Sud du Sahara, pp. 73-130. trends in Africa and their impact on research The ‘secularizing of Islam’? munity. Is critical scholarship a ‘secular’ phe- 2 . Nigerian reviews of the book based on my PhD and on the university environment. Her ana- This incident illustrates one of the most nomenon that is inherently incompatible dissertation were particularly critical of my lytical point of departure was to distinguish intriguing contradictions that Hodgkin with Muslim religious sensibilities? Or is it representations of Islam: Brenner, Louis (1973), Muslim ‘modernists’ (whom she defined as notes at the end of her article, where she possible that such scholarship can better as- The Shehus of Kukawa: a History of the al-Kanemi those who wish to modernize Islam) from observes that for all its advocacy of a deeper sist committed Muslims in understanding Dynasty of Borno. Oxford: The Clarendon Press. the Islamists who seek to ‘Islamize’ modern- religious life, Islamism ‘may be said to be their past and present and to build their fu- 3 . Sanankoua, Bintou et Brenner, Louis, eds. (1991), ity, and in particular in the university con- secularising Islam’.4 This is because, in her ture? Can the tensions that span these two L’enseignement islamique au Mali. : Editions text, to Islamize contemporary knowledge. view, those who wish to Islamize modern extreme positions act as a creative impetus J a m a n a . The thrust of her article was to highlight the life must at the same time come to terms for scholarship? One prospect for such a de- 4 . Hodgkin, (1990), p. 105. many contradictions that this situation has with it; such a process of change is interac- velopment is the increasing number of Afri- 5 . Last, Murray, (1967), The Sokoto Caliphate. produced, primarily amongst Islamists tive and necessarily works in both direc- can Muslim scholars active in the field of London: Longmans. themselves. For example, she argued that tions. Criticism of the m a d r a s a schools by its Muslim studies whose work is of the highest 6 . Sulaiman, Ibraheem (1986), A Revolution in History. Islamist scholars fell into two categories on own products is something that arose in this academic standard. These include Muslim London: Mansell Publishing. the basis of academic background: those case from the actual experience of ques- scholars – Islamist as well as ‘secularist’ – who had received Western-style disciplinary tioning the relationship of m a d r a s a s c h o o l- whose competence in their disciplines is Dr Louis Brenner is Professor of the History training and those who had received Arabist ing to the social, economic and political combined with a palpable sensitivity to of Religion in Africa, School of Oriental and African and Islamic studies training. In addition to constraints of contemporary urban life in things Islamic. At the same time, much of Studies, University of London, UK. the fact that these two groups tend to pro- Mali. Open critical assessment of schooling the scholarship of us non-Muslims nowa- E-mail: [email protected] 3 2 Research I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

State of the art VLADIMIR BOBROVNIKOV Islamic Studies in

Research on pre-modern and modern Islam conduct- ed in post-Soviet Russia, has been, and still is, very poorly known to scholars from abroad – both in the West and in the Muslim world. Despite the fall of the Post-Soviet Russia: ‘iron curtain’ after the collapse of the Soviet Union, there is still an informational barrier separating post- Soviet and non-Soviet researchers. Many questions arise concerning what has happened in Islamic stud- ies after the cease of religious persecution during the in Search of ‘perestroika’ years: What was the impact of the so- called ‘Islamic revival’ on research on Islam? Which academic schools training specialists in Islamic stud- ies have survived since the pre-Soviet and Soviet times? To what extent do post-Soviet scholars know N e w A p p r o a c h e s and share modern Western approaches and concepts in Islamic studies? Kazan and Tashkent editions of the Arabic his publications (Islamkundliche Untersu- It is difficult to know how Islamic studies will text of the Qur’an and its Russian translation c h u n g e n, 1996, 1998, Bd. 200, 216), resulting develop in post-Soviet Russia in the future. prepared in the 1920s by the prominent So- from comparative research of more than But it is clear that a new era has begun, Islamic studies have benefited from the fall viet scholar I.Yu. Krachkovsky (1883–1951) 200 private collections of Arabic manu- which is characterized by the expansion of of the Soviet rule, which saw the return of Is- as well as another one published in 1878 by scripts revealed in highland by a the existing work and the development of lam to the public sphere. Islam was recog- the Orthodox missionary G.S. Sablukov joint expedition of the DRC and the Oriental new interdisciplinary programmes. New re- nized by Yeltsin’s government as the sec- (1804–1880) were reproduced by the mil- Department of the Dagestani State Univer- search bodies such as the Centre for Arabic ond main religion in Russia. The state does lions. They were best sellers and regularly sity (OD DSU) from 1996–1999. studies (CAS), headed by Prof. V.V. Naumkin, not suppress research on Islam. Re-estab- appeared even in such periodicals as P h y s i c- In the 1990s, many social and political sci- and the Centre for Civilizational and Region- lished mosque collections and even the se- al Culture and Sport. In 1995 in St. Peters- entists, in whose research Islam is not cen- al Studies (CCRS), under the direction of Dr cret archives of the CPSU and KGB were burg the first Russian translation of the tral, turned to the study of modern Muslim I.V. Sledzevski, were founded within the opened for scholars from Russia and abroad. Qur’an by General D.N. Boguslavsky, com- societies and communities in the post-Sovi- Academy of Sciences in Moscow. While the On the other hand, the already negative pleted in 1871, was prepared for printing by et regions. Their work, however, is not al- CCRS concentrates on political studies in view of Islam in the Russian public opinion Dr E.A. Rezvan (IOS). In the same year, Prof. ways accurate from the methodological modern post-Soviet areas, the CAS has further deteriorated from 1994–1999. Esca- M.G. Osmanov (DRC) published in Moscow a point of view. Many of them share corrupt- three main purposes: publication and trans- lating violence prevents researchers from new Russian translation based on the Mus- ed positivist and orientalist concepts and re- lation of Arabic manuscripts, research on carrying out archival research and fieldwork lim tradition. From 1989-1991 the Qur’an search methods which need to be criticized. pre-modern Islam and Sufism, and studies in some regions of the Caucasus and Central was translated into Azeri (by I. Agaev) and Post-Soviet Islam is often interpreted as a in urgent political issues in the other post- Asia. Large collections of Muslim manu- Kazakh (by Zh.M. Istaev), and later into oth- ‘revival’ of unchanged ‘local traditions’, able Soviet Muslim areas. The CAS cooperates in scripts in and Abkhazia were er Turkic and Caucasian languages. Dr Rez- to resist any Soviet innovation. The most its research missions with colleagues in St. burnt due to shelling during civil wars. Fur- van is currently preparing a database of eminent advocates of this concept include: Petersburg and Moscow. Its recent works, thermore, the state funding of universities Qur’anic manuscripts kept in St. Petersburg. Prof. Alexander Bennigsen (deceased), spe- such as a case study by Dr D. Makarov on the and academic institutes was considerably In the field of history there was a blossom- cialist in Soviet studies; his daughter Dr M. introduction of court in a Dagestani r e d u c e d . ing of Islamic studies at the turn of the Bennigsen-Broxup; and Prof. S.P. Polyakov Wahhabi community (see: ISIM Newsletter, The all-Union network of research insti- 1980s and 1990s. This mostly dealt with the (DH MSU), the author of in the 1/1998), contribute significantly to a deeper tutes affiliated to the Academy of Sciences earlier periods of Islam, for instance, Prof. Modern Central Asian Society, published in understanding of the various forms of post- was dissolved as soon as the USSR broke O.G. Bolshakov’s (IOS) History of the Khalifat Russian in 1989 and soon published in Eng- Soviet Islam. ♦ down. But centres of Islamic studies estab- in 6 volumes (three of which were published lish in the USA. Some authors ignore prima- lished under the Soviet or pre-Soviet rule in Moscow between 1989–1995). These ry sources including numerous field and ar- have survived in St. Petersburg, Moscow, works were informed by an enormous range chival data, while basing themselves on in- This article is an adopted version of a paper given at Kazan, Makhachkala and Ufa. They still con- of scholarship. His work is the best Russian correct official materials. Both of these the Summer Academy of the Working Group centrate on traditional scholarship of Islam study available on the early Muslim state in faults can be found even in accurate writ- Modernity and Islam. (See page 4). including Arabic and Iranian philology, Arabia and the subsequent Arabic con- ings of contemporary political scientists studies of the Qur’an, h a d i t h and other Mus- quests. Russian Muslims bought up almost such as Islam in the , by Prof. lim texts. They, however, also include re- all available copies of the first volume with R.G. Landa (IOS, 1995) and the Muslim World search on Sufism, history and social anthro- Muhammad’s biography, thus making it a of the CIS Countries by Dr A.V. Malashenko pology of Muslim societies and communi- rarity. Mention should also be made of the (the Moscow branch of Carnegie Endow- ties. Outside Russia, similar centres exist in History of Dagestan, edited in Makhachkala ment, 1996). Tashkent, other capitals of the former Soviet in 1996, in which Prof. A.R. Shixsaidov (DRC) Much more fruitful seem to be the ap- Central Asia and Baku as well. The best Is- re-thought the Islamization that lasted in proaches of Russian historians and anthro- lamicists still graduate from the Oriental De- the from the 7t h to the late pologists exploring the fate of Muslim socie- partment of the St. Petersburg State Univer- 1 5t h century. ties and communities under Russian and So- sity (OD SPSU). The most qualified anthro- viet reforms. For instance, Dr S.N. Abashin pologists are trained at the Department of The study of ’Russian’ Islam (IEA) studies forms of popular Islam in Soviet History of the Moscow State University (DH In the last years, Russian scholars have be- and modern Central Asia by proposing to MSU) and the Institute of Ethnology and An- gun to turn their attention to ‘Russian’ Is- look not so much at Muslim traditions sur- thropology (IEA). Recently, departments of lam, as it emerged from close ties and the viving under the state, but at those consti- sociology have been established in the MSU intense relationship between Russia and the tuted through state reforms. Dr A.A.Yarlyka- and the SPSU and at the universities of Ka- Muslim peoples of the Volga River region, pov from the school of the late Prof. V.N. Bas- zan and Ufa. They train specialists in mod- Siberia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Is- ilov (IEA) argued in his doctoral dissertation ern political and social developments of the lamic studies become more interdisciplinary on ‘Islam among the Steppe Nogays in the post-Soviet Muslim regions. The main re- in their approaches. In addition to written 2 0t h century’, defended in June 1999, that search centres are the St. Petersburg and sources, Islamicists examine current insti- the Soviet reforms caused the formation of Moscow branches of the IOS, the IOS of Uz- tutes and practices of post-Soviet Muslims. opposed ethno-religious groups including bekistan in Tashkent and the Dagestani Re- Within this context, the world of modern so-called ‘Wahhabis’. Works on ‘Russian Is- search Centre (DRC) in Makhachkala. All of holy men and Sufi sheikhs has been studied lam’ presented by the above-mentioned them house large collections of Muslim by Dr B.M. Babadzhanov and Dr A.K. Mumi- scholars were integrated with the Islamicists’ manuscripts and rare printed material in Ar- nov from Tashkent (IOS). On the basis of his studies in the lexicon Islam on the Territory of abic, Iranian and Turkic languages. archival research and fieldwork, Dr Babadz- the Former , initiated by Prof. Post-Soviet Islamic studies are in the proc- hanov prepared a series of writings on the Prozorov from St. Petersburg in 1998. This is Islam on the territory of the former Russian empire, ess of flux and change. Russian Islamicists developments of the Naqshbandiya and a fascinating project that is to bring together lexicon. The 1s t issue edited in Russian attempt to rethink the scholarly legacy of other Sufi orders in Central Asia in the 18t h- different specialists in Islamic studies in an by Prof. S.M. Prozorov. Moscow, V o s t o c h n a y a the Soviet and pre-Soviet periods, without 2 0t h centuries. Some of these works have attempt to understand Islamic civilization in L i t e r a t u r a, 1998. dogmatically rejecting their contributions in been published in German and French Russia and its relationship to the Muslim traditional disciplines. Their work on collect- scholarly periodicals (Islamkundliche Unter- world. The lexicon follows research princi- ing and translating Arabic manuscripts, in- s u c h u n g e n, 1996, 1998, Bd. 1, 2; Cahiers d’A- ples of the encyclopaedic lexicon, I s l a m, Dr Vladimir Bobrovnikov is a senior research fellow terrupted in the late Soviet period, is being sie Centrale, 1998, 5–6). An excellent insight published in Moscow in 1991. It will include at the Institute for Oriental Studies, Moscow, re-established. Growing interest of the gen- into the world of the m e d r e s e and Muslim three or more issues, two of which have just and a teacher of Arabic and anthropology at the eral public in the religion resulted in an ex- libraries in medieval and contemporary Da- been published and the following fascicle Russian State University of Humanities in Moscow. plosion of publications related to Islam. The gestan was presented by Prof. Shixsaidov in will be compiled in 2000. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Institutes 33

D M G ANGELIKA NEUWIRTH The Orient Institute

The Orient Institute, with its centre in Beirut and a branch in Istanbul, is the only German research insti- tution in the field of Near Eastern and Islamic Stud- ies situated in the Middle East. Its aim is to under- in Beirut and Istanbul take, initiate and support research in all fields of Ori- ental studies, particularly those focusing on its host opened and part of the German scientific – ’Vie commune – mémoire partagée – Le – BTS 61: Barbara Finster, Christa Fragner, countries, Lebanon and Turkey. Its objectives have staff returned to Lebanon, the Istanbul Liban laboratoire de la Méditerranée’ Herta Hafenrichter (eds), Rezeption in der always been broad, ranging from linguistic studies branch proved vital enough to subsist. It ( o n collective memory; in cooperation islamischen Kunst. 1999. 332pp. on Arab regional dialects via historico-philologic re- subsequently gained standing in its acade- w i t h CERMOC, Beirut); Forthcoming publications include, search on Muslim theology and Classical Arabic, Per- mic environment through long-term re- – ‘Le nationalisme turc face á l’Europe’ amongst others: sian and Ottoman/Turkish literatures up to develop- search projects initiated together with Euro- ( o n culturalist movements and the – BTS 64: Angelika Neuwirth, Sebastian ments in contemporary thought and intellectual pean and Turkish partners as well as inter- problem of Turkey’s integration into Guenther, Birgit Embalo, Maher Jarrar movements. In recent years the study of the dynam- national symposia on various topics. In view Europe; in cooperation with IFEA, (eds), Myths, Historical Archetypes and ics conditioning contemporary Near Eastern socie- of these structural achievements and in I s t a n b u l ) ; Symbolic Figures in Classical and Modern ties, particularly the rebuilding process in Lebanon view of the dimensions of its library – highly – ‘Cultural Self-assertion of the Palestinians: Arabic Literature. and the challenge of Turkey’s integration into Eu- estimated by local and foreign researchers Survey of Modern Palestinian Poetry’; – BTS 74: Carsten Walbiner, Bernhard rope, have occupied a central position within the In- specialized in Ottoman and Turkish Studies – (In preparation): ‘Zokak al-Blat – a Beiruti Heyberger, Albrecht Fuess (eds), L e s stitute’s research projects. – the German Government in 1998 decided quarter – its urban structure and its Européens vus par les Libanais à l’époche to establish the Istanbul centre as a perma- h i s t o r y ’ ; o t t o m a n e . nent branch of the Orient Institute. – ‘The Beginning of Book Printing in the – BTS 76: Thomas Scheffler (ed), R e l i g i o n The initial task of the Institute at the time of The Beirut branch of the Institute is situat- Arab Near East’ (in cooperation with Between Violence and Reconciliation. its foundation was to promote basic re- ed in a mid-19t h-century mansion erected by various Lebanese libraries, archives and – BTS 77: Angelika Neuwirth, Andreas search in the fields of Arabic, Turkish, and a prominent Beiruti family on a vast garden Monasteries); and Pflitsch (eds), Crisis and Memory in Islamic Semitic language studies, Islamic studies, plot in Zokak al-Blat, which was then one of – (In preparation): ‘Levant as a paradigm. S o c i e t i e s. and the study of the Christian Orient. Since the emerging suburban quarters of Beirut. T h e co-existence of cultures in the – BTS 79: Patrick Franke, Begegnungen mit then Oriental scholarly work on the region Today this quarter has become a traditional Eastern Mediterranean’ (in cooperation Khidr. Quellenstudien zum Imaginären im has shifted in focus and expanded signifi- S h ici residential area right next to the newly with various German and Lebanese I s l a m. cantly in contents and method. Besides tra- rebuilt city centre of the Lebanese capital. In u n i v e r s i t i e s ) . – BTS 82 Türkische Welten 6: Günther ditional philological and historical work, Istanbul, the Institute occupies four stories in Seufert, Jacques Waardenburg (eds), which is continued, the Institute today also an apartment building in Cihangir, not far P u b l i c a t i o n s Turkish Islam and Europe. ♦ hosts scientific activities ranging from social from Taksim square and overlooking the The two main publication series of the anthropology, political and social sciences B o s p h o r u s . Orient Institute are the Bibliotheca Islamica to methodologies of modern literary criti- a n d Beiruter Texte und Studien. The B i b l i o- cism. Current Status and Library theca Islamica (BI) was established as early The Orient Institute pursues diverse re- The Institute has always aimed at present- as 1926 by Helmut Ritter in Istanbul to facil- search projects supervised by the director ing the achievements of German and inter- itate the printing of Arabic text editions and by fellows of the Institute. In addition, it national scholarship to Arab colleagues and prepared by German scholars. The series in- provides visiting researchers and students academic institutions and thus to enhance cludes important texts such as al-A s hca r i ’ s with scientific, documentary, administrative the relations between German and European Maqalat al-islamiyin and encyclopaedias and accommodation services. Research re- scholars and their Arab counterparts. Today like al-Safadi’s al-Wafi bi-l-wafayat. Today sults are regularly presented in public lec- this task has been widened to encompass editions are prepared by both European tures given in English, French or Arabic as similar work in Turkey. and Arab editors. Beiruter Texte und Studien well as in the framework of conferences and Apart from the director and the library (BTS) was established in the early 60s im- symposia which are organized by the Insti- staff, four research fellows are working at the mediately after the foundation of the Ori- tute in order to enhance the scientific com- Institute in Beirut and three others in Istan- ent Institute in Beirut meant to provide a munication between Lebanese and Turkish bul. A number of cooperators, whose work is forum for studies in linguistics, history, Is- colleagues and their counterparts abroad. financed by the European Community and lamic theology and Arabic literature au- They are also presented summarily in the In- various scientific foundations, have joined thored mainly by the members and fellows stitute’s yearbooks, the Beiruter Blaetter a n d them so as to make interdisciplinary work of the Institute. Together both series come the Istanbuler Almanach. and long-term research projects possible. up to more than 100 published volumes in The Institute grants three annual scholar- four languages. By now, three sub-series History and Locations ships for PhD students to continue their stud- have been established: Türkische Welten, The Institute, established in 1961 in Beirut ies at the Institute and benefit from its infra- Iranische Welten in Istanbul and C h r i s t l i c h - by the Deutsche Morgenländische Gesell- structure. The Institute also offers internships orientalische Welten in Beirut. schaft (DMG), was to serve as a regional for young graduate students (e.g. in library The Institute produces an annual periodi- base for Oriental studies. Its founding direc- work, publication projects and research). cal, the Beiruter Blätter, presenting short aca- tor, Prof. Dr Hans R. Roemer, in choosing The most important asset of the Institute is demic and journalistic articles in German To order publications: Beirut as the location, was led by the convic- its library, which contains approximately and English on social and intellectual devel- For the Beiruter Texte und Studien series: tion that ‘the experiences which have been 120,000 volumes in Beirut and 25,000 in Is- opments in Beirut and Lebanon and giving Franz Steiner Verlag, Postfach 101061, made in previously founded institutions, tanbul. Since the foundation of the Institute an overview of the Institute’s annual activi- D-70009 Stuttgart, Germany and the flourishing of Oriental Studies at in 1961, the most important books and peri- ties. An analogous yearbook is published f r a n z . s t e i n e r . v e r l a g @ t - o n l i n e . d e German universities in the past years, have odicals published in Beirut and in other cen- under the title Istanbuler Almanach by the Is- For the Bibliotheca Islamica and the Beiruter Blätter made it imperative to establish a permanent tres of the Arab world (as well as later in tanbul branch of the Institute. A number of and Istanbuler Almanach: “embassy” in one of the cultural capitals of Turkey) have been accessioned. Although lectures given at the Orient Institute appear Das Arabische Buch, the Orient.’ His choice proved to be wisely the Institute does not have a manuscript col- as booklets in the Zokak el-Blat(t) series of Horstweg 2, D-14059 Berlin, Germany taken; the Institute was to flourish during lection, it has had the opportunity to buy a occasional papers published in Beirut and w w w . d a s - a r a b i s c h e - b u c h . d e the following fifteen years, until the number of private libraries and collections so P e r a - B l ä t t e r, published in Istanbul. Recent Lebanese Civil War made work in the city that the library stock may include a great book publications of the Orient Institute in- For more information on the Orient Institute of the more and more difficult and eventually im- number of volumes published well before clude, amongst others: DMG and for the series of occasional papers Z o k a k possible. the 60s. The Arabic and Turkish collections – BTS 75 Türkische Welten 5: Tobias e l - B l a t ( t ) and P e r a - B l ä t t e r please contact our The Institute continued to function even are complemented by literature in European Heinzelmann, Die Balkankrise in der Institutes: during the Civil War until in 1987 its German languages on the fundamental topics of ori- osmanischen Karikatur. 1999, 290pp. Rue Hussein Beyhum, Zokak el-Blat, POB 2988, Beirut staff was forced to leave the town due to the entalist research. – BTS 72: Stephan Guth, Priska Furrer, Tel: +961 1 372940 and -376598 beginning hostage crisis. Leaving a number Both libraries in Beirut and Istanbul are J. Christoph Bürgel (eds), C o n s c i o u s Fax: +961 1 376599 of faithful Lebanese staff members behind open to the public and attract a great num- Voices. Concepts of Writing in the Middle E-mail: [email protected] in Beirut, the German researchers moved to ber of local readers. The Institute is currently E a s t. 1999. XXI, 332pp. ( o r ) Istanbul. Here they established themselves computerizing its collection and planning to – BTS 69: Thomas Scheffler, Hélène Sader, Susam Sokak 16-18 D, TR 80060 Cihangir-Istanbul in an apartment in the quarter of Cihangir, make the catalogue accessible on the Inter- Angelika Neuwirth (eds), Baalbek: Image Tel: +90 212 2936067 and -2521983 which was initially meant to be no more n e t . and Monument, 1898-1998. 1998. XIV, Fax: +90 212 2496359 than a temporary refuge. However, since 3 4 8 p p . E-mail: [email protected] the war continued the provisional refuge in P r o j e c t s – BTS 67 Türkische Welten 3: Günther the course of time consolidated itself, devel- Projects carried out at the Institute and/or Seufert, Politischer Islam in der Türkei. Prof. Dr Angelika Neuwirth was director of the Orient oping into an active branch for Turkish, Ot- pursued by members of the Institute in co- Islamismus als symbolische Repräsentation Institut der DMG in Beirut and Istanbul, and was toman and Central Asian studies. When in operation with partner institutions are as einer sich modernisierenden muslimischen recently succeeded in her office by Prof. Dr. Manfred 1994, finally, the Beirut centre was re- f o l l o w s : G e s e l l s c h a f t. 1997. 600pp. Kropp. E-mail: [email protected] 3 4 Institutes I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

C E R M O C ELIZABETH PICARD Social Sciences

The Centre d’Etudes et de Recherches sur le Moyen- Orient Contemporain (CERMOC) is among the young- est of several French research centres devoted to the Middle East and the Arab world, from Teheran to R e s e a r c h Rabat. It is based in Beirut with a research unit in Amman. First founded in 1977, CERMOC was closed in 1985 following the kidnapping of its researcher Michel Seurat in Beirut and was reopened after the Lebanese war in 1990. on the Arab Mashrek

CERMOC is dedicated to conducting social – Maghreb-Machrek #162 (Paris), edited by beyond the use of equipment and lodging A regional dimension sciences research (from urban studies to an- Bernard Botiveau, which contains a dozen (3 rooms in Amman, 5 in Beirut) academics Most of the current research at CERMOC is thropology, including sociology, political articles by Palestinian and European schol- rightfully consider CERMOC as a support devoted to local or domestic questions and science, geography, economy and even ars who studied at Bir Zeit and is entirely and a mediator on behalf of the local scien- conducted by highly specialized scholars. contemporary history) on five Mashrek dedicated to Palestine; tific community. It is a place where scholars However, scientific concerns as well as social countries: Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine – The book written by Bernard Botiveau him- from various universities and disciplines and political realities require a broader view. and Syria. self, L’Etat palestinien, Paris: Sciences Po; converge for seminars and conferences as The understanding of societies, lands and and well as library research, as affiliation to the powers must be sought at the regional level Production of a thorough – The Cahier du CERMOC #22, by Jean- CERMOC is considered a pledge of scientific according to a pervasive cultural and historic- k n o w l e d g e François Legrain: Les Palestines du quotidien, requirement and freedom. al heritage: Lebanon is not a self-contained, With a rather light set up – a team of about which deals with the Palestinian legislative Two formulas have been privileged by detached land, but rather the ‘laboratory’ of a dozen permanent researchers, a library of elections of 1996. CERMOC in order to institutionalize and pro- the Mediterranean Near East. Jordan stands 20,000 volumes and an editor working with a mote cooperation between French and Eu- as the witness of regional changes and Pales- local printing house – CERMOC has published With the participation of CERMOC researchers ropean researchers and local researchers: tine is at the heart of regional recompositions. since its reopening in 1990 some thirty books, in workshops and conferences abroad and cooperation agreements, on the one hand, Thus, in view of CERMOC’s limited means, the while its researchers and associate research- the output of documentary notes (about 10 in and bilateral or multilateral research pro- Centre works constantly under tension be- ers have published four to five times more ar- the past three years) and expertise reports, jects, on the other. tween local specific and regional thematic re- ticles. The Centre thus consistently contrib- the Centre has become a legitimate member search. utes to the scientific knowledge of the Middle of the local scientific community. Through Cooperation agreements To keep the coherence of the team, the re- East, particularly of the three countries where public conferences, it is known to a broader This policy came into being with the sig- search programme ‘UNRWA, une histoire its researchers are based – Lebanon, Jordan public – as evidenced by various briefs in the nature of a cooperation convention with dans l’Histoire’ has been confined to Jordan and Palestine. local press as well as by the results of the poll the University of Provence (France). It in- and Palestine, which means that a compara- In Lebanon, in spite of the Arabization and carried out in Beirut in 1998. cludes the hosting of Aix-en-Provence stu- tive work on Syria and Lebanon as well as a re- Anglicization processes, CERMOC has suc- dents at CERMOC and of Arab students in gional synthesis remain to be done. In the ceeded in being present on the editorial Training for research Aix, the organization of the 1998 joint doc- programme ‘Municipalités et pouvoirs lo- stage. In 1999 only, four new books presented CERMOC carries out specific functions in re- torate school and of a conference on ‘Les caux’, the CERMOC elected to start research four types of research developed by the Cen- lation with other French teaching and re- représentations de la Méditerranée’ in Beir- on the case of Lebanon. A comparative di- tre: search institutions devoted to the Middle East ut, and other future projects. mension is introduced by a case study on Pal- such as the Groupe de Recherches et d’Etudes A general convention with the University estinian municipalities. Nevertheless, this – The proceedings of the Euro-Arab confer- sur le Moyen-Orient Contemporain (GREM- of Bir Zeit, acting on behalf of the Law Insti- programme is conceived on the regional ence held at CERMOC in June 1997 under MO) in Lyon, the Institut de Recherches et d’E- tute, was signed in October 1998. As part of scale, research in Syria and in Jordan both be- the direction of Jean Hannoyer: Guerres tudes sur le Monde Arabe et Musulman in Aix- this convention, a senior researcher be- ing possible and desirable in order to produce civiles. Economies de la violence, dimensions en-Provence, and URBAMA in Tours. longing to the Centre National de la Re- a documented study on local politics in the de la civilité, Karthala – CERMOC; Social science training in the field of Middle cherche Scientifique (CNRS, France) heads a four countries of the Arab Eastern Mediterra- – A thorough study of urbanist questions in East studies requires a long-term stay in the research seminar in French and Arabic and nean. The multilateral research project ‘Nou- post-war Beirut by a CERMOC researcher, region and the learning of Arabic – add to this supervises several French speaking PhD veaux médias et marché de l’image dans l’Ori- Elie El-Achkar: Réglementation et formes ur- the difficulties related to the international sit- students in Bir Zeit. There will be exchange ent arabe’ has been conceived with the par- baines. Le cas de Beyrouth; uation and the nature of several political sys- students from and at both institutions. A ticipation of international partners, and has – The translation of a German geography tems in the region. first round of negotiation with the Presi- been devised in a regional perspective from classic written by Helmut Ruppert under CERMOC’s role is to offer an opportunity to dent of Aleppo University showed willing- the very start, for the project is to attempt to the title, Beyrouth, une ville d’Orient marquée make this intellectual investment in a produc- ness to cooperate with CERMOC in the near grasp the material and immaterial flows par l’Occident; and tive manner, thanks to contacts with local re- f u t u r e . which permeate the region and link it to the – The results of collective research conducted search, research seminars and the supervision rest of the world. ♦ by CERMOC in 1997-1998 within the frame- of senior researchers. CERMOC provides a few Bilateral and multilateral work of a French-German programme fi- research allocations, and supports applica- research projects nanced by the : Reconstruc- tions which fall within its collective pro- Being a French academic institution tion et Réconciliation au Liban. Négociations, grammes. In 1998, many scholarships were based in the Middle East, CERMOC plays a lieux publics et renouement du lien social. granted: 5 Lavoisier, 1 from the city of Lyon, 1 central part in several cooperation projects Michel Seurat scholarship, 1 from the Flor- between scientists from both sides of the In Jordan, before the opening of CERMOC’s ence European Institute and 4 scholarships Mediterranean. Various formulas are adopt- research unit, French publication on this from the French Ministry of National Educa- ed to meet administrative and legal require- country within the social sciences was hardly tion. Also, in Beirut, Amman and Bir Zeit, doz- ments. developed. The book Amman, ville et société ens of European and Arab students receive directed by Jean Hannoyer and Seteney each year accommodation and academic – CERMOC may cooperate with a local re- Shami (1996) came as a momentous event. support from the Centre. search unit. That is the case with the Cen- In 1999, three new books have been pub- In October 1998, CERMOC organized, to- tre de Recherches en Sciences Sociales at lished (or are forthcoming): gether with the Maison Méditerranéenne des the Lebanese University, in the framework Sciences de l’Homme in Aix-en-Provence, a of CERMOC’s project on ‘Municipalités et – Issue 5-6 of the journal Jordanies, dedicated doctorate school in Beirut for 18 PhD stu- pouvoirs locaux au Liban’; or it may coop- to the Jordanian election of 1997; dents from Europe and the Arab world. The erate with the Institute for Palestine Stud- – The proceedings of a conference held at the Centre is planning another session in cooper- ies in the framework of its research project Institut du Monde Arabe (Paris) in June ation with the Lebanese University. ‘L’UNRWA, une histoire dans l’Histoire’. 1997, edited by Tareq Tell, State and Politics When investigating the ensuing careers of – CERMOC has developed a joint research in Jordan, 1946-1996; and CERMOC researchers, one finds a majority project with the GREMMO in Lyon, the In- – A book directed by Riccardo Bocco, Le Roy- holding responsibilities in the Middle East or stitut des Sciences Sociales at the Leba- aume hachémite de Jordanie: identités so- in institutions related to the region: research, nese University, and Cairo University on ciales, politiques de développement et con- diplomacy, and civil service. ‘Nouveaux médias et le marché de l’image struction étatique, 1946-1996, based on sem- dans l’Orient arabe’. Current information about CERMOC facilities, inars held at the CERMOC. Cooperation amongst French, – CERMOC is coordinator of a project pre- collective and individual research programmes, European, and Arab pared with professors from the University and publications can be found at: In Palestine, the editorial production of CER- r e s e a r c h e r s of Balamand and the Lebanese University w w w . l b . r e f e r . o r g / c e r m o c MOC’s team hosted by the Law Institute of Bir CERMOC is not just a stimulating institu- on ‘Usages et méthodes de l’Histoire orale Zeit University confirms the new role of the tion for students; the list of scholars who au Liban’ with a final conference planned Elizabeth Picard is director of CERMOC. Centre: have been hosted by the Centre shows that in fall 2000. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Institutes 35

I I S A ZIM NA NJI The Institute of Ismaili Studies

The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS) aims at promot- close affiliation with the Aga Khan Develop- bridge, the School of Oriental and African Supporting all these programmes is the IIS ing scholarship and learning on Islam in the context ment Network. Studies and the University of Edinburgh, Library, which has one of the most valuable of civilizational studies in general. Utilizing all rele- The Department of Academic Research among others. In addition, the Institute of- and comprehensive collections in the West- vant modern disciplines, it encourages research into and Publications (DARP) facilitates original fers scholarships for post-graduate studies ern world of manuscripts, books and audio- Islamic history, with particular reference to its signif- research and publications of works by its in pertinent fields and organizes seminars visual materials relating to Ismaili studies in icance for the Muslim societies in contemporary faculty as well as scholars from outside the and conferences on themes of contempora- particular. This collection serves as a major times. While the IIS’ interests encompass the Muslim Institute. These fall into several different ry relevance. resource centre for scholars and students, world as a whole, it pays particular attention to categories such as occasional papers, mon- The Department of Education produces and aspires to become the most significant Shi’ism and to Ismailism due to the relative neglect ographs, editions, translations, conference teaching and learning materials on Islamic central archive of Ismaili materials in the of these fields in modern Islamic scholarship. proceedings, bibliographical works and Is- education. It is guided by a two-fold objec- w o r l d . ♦ maili studies. tive. On the one hand, it aims to make the religious, cultural and historical traditions of Founded in 1977 by His Highness Prince Recent publications include: Islam available to young Muslims. On the Karim Aga Khan, who also serves as the – Nasir al-Din Tusi’s spiritual autobiography, other, it draws upon modern principles of Chairman of its Board of Governors, the IIS Contemplation and Action (edited and education and technology to make religious has grown from an educational establish- translated by S.J. Badakhshani, 1998); learning a creative and appealing process ment to a recognized academic centre of – Farhad Daftary’s A Short History of the Is- for the young mind, commensurate with ad- learning on Shi’ism and Ismailism. mailis: Traditions of a Muslim Community vances in other branches of learning. In so The Institute’s programmes and activities (Edinburgh University Press, 1998); and doing, it faces the challenges of how to un- are informed by the full range of diversity – Aziz Esmail’s occasional paper on The Po- derstand and present Islamic culture in a within Islam and explore the relationship of etics of Religious Experience: the Islamic way that narrows and overcomes the gap religious ideas to broader dimensions of so- Context (1998). between secular and religious learning; how ciety and culture. Particular attention is giv- to relate modern principles of child-centred en to issues of modernity and ethics that The IIS Graduate Programme in Islamic and experiential learning with allegiance to arise as Muslims seek to relate their herit- Studies and Humanities involves teaching a given historical and religious tradition; age to contemporary circumstances. by an international faculty of distinguished how to reconcile the development of the in- For more information please contact: The Institute’s diverse constituencies in- scholars, including members of DARP. At- dividual with moral responsibility to society; The Institute of Ismaili Studies clude scholars and students of Islam and Is- tracting students from diverse backgrounds and how to bridge intellectual development 42-44 Grosvenor Gardens mailism, universities and educational es- and regions – from Central Asia to North with spiritual life and ethics. The depart- London SW1W 0EB, United Kingdom tablishments, as well as the Ismaili Commu- America – the programme prepares individ- ment’s materials are produced in eight dif- Tel: +44 207 881 6000 nity. Reflecting these diverse constituen- uals for important roles in academic, public ferent languages (English, French, Arabic, Fax: +44 207 881 6040 cies, the IIS collaborates with several prom- and community life. Former students have Persian, Tajiki, Urdu, Gujarati and Portu- inent institutions of learning in the West gone on to obtain Master’s and PhD degrees guese) and aim to meet a diversity of cultur- Professor Azim Nanji is director of the IIS, London, UK. and in the Muslim world. It also maintains from the Universities of Oxford and Cam- al contexts. E-mail: [email protected]

C M C U JOHN L. ESPOSITO The Center for Muslim-Christian

The Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding: His- U n d e r s t a n d i n g : tory and International Affairs (CMCU) was estab- lished in 1993 by Georgetown University and the Fondation pour l’Entente entre Chrétiens et Musul- History and International Affairs mans, Geneva, to foster the study of Muslim-Chris- tian relations and to promote dialogue between the two great religions. The Center focuses on the histor- United States. The MA also offers coverage graphs). The Center has sponsored or co- – ‘International Workshop on Asian Islam in ical, theological, political and cultural encounter of of the broader historical experiences of the sponsored more than 16 major conferences, the 21s t Century’ Islam and Christianity, the Muslim world and the Muslim and Christian communities as they 117 seminars, and 373 presentations in more Co-sponsored with College of Islamic West. Located in the Edmund A. Walsh School of For- developed and interacted in the past four- than 20 countries in Africa, Europe, the Mid- Studies, Prince of Songkla University eign Service at Georgetown University, the Center teen centuries. dle East, Asia and the United States. Alto- Bangkok, Thailand combines teaching at the undergraduate and gradu- gether, the Center’s core faculty has pub- 23–24 February 2000 ate levels, research and public affairs activities. Muslims in the American lished more than 50 books and 200 articles, – ‘Becoming American: Immigration and Public Sphere including such works as: The Oxford Encyclo- Religious Life in the United States’ CMCU is currently undertaking a major re- pedia of the Modern Islamic World (4 vols.); Co-sponsored with Hartford Seminary The establishment of the Center for Muslim- search project, funded by the Pew Charita- The Oxford History of Islam (forthcoming, Jan- Georgetown University Christian Understanding reflects the role of ble Trusts, to examine the role and contribu- uary 2000); Islam, Gender and Social Change; 11–12 May 2000 religion in the contemporary international tion of the Muslim community in American Muslims on the Americanization Path; I s l a m : system. Both Georgetown’s Catholic-Jesuit public life. This three-year project intends Continuity and Change in the Modern World; CMCU’s faculty include: John L. Esposito, Di- heritage and its location in Washington have to: publish a volume on the participation, a n d Women, the Family, and Divorce Laws in rector; John O. Voll, Deputy Director; Yvonne shaped the University’s abiding interest in contribution and role of the Muslim com- Islamic History. CMCU is co-publisher of the Y. Haddad; and Amira El-Azhary Sonbol. The the study of religion and international rela- munity in the American civic life; produce journal Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, Center has an endowed chair, the Malaysia tions. The global presence and impact of Is- two major reference books; implement a along with the Centre for the Study of Islam Chair of Islam in Southeast Asia. In addition, lam is a fact of international life. Understand- two-stage national survey of Muslim com- and Christian-Muslim Relations, Birmingham the Center has had research associates and ing this fact, relating it to other dimensions munities; and disseminate research findings University, United Kingdom. fellows from countries around the world, in- of world affairs and to the role of Christianity through workshops, regional seminars, a cluding Tajikistan, China, Bangladesh, Belar- in the world is a central concern of the Cen- national conference, newsletters and other Recent and Upcoming Events us, Lebanon, Egypt, Malaysia, United Arab ter’s programmes. media. It will also develop a comprehensive – ‘To be a European Muslim: Muslim Emirates, Saudi Arabia, India and Sudan. ♦ website as a search engine, research (sur- Identity in a non-Islamic Environment’ Certificate and MA vey) tool and resource, and organize an in- Guest Speaker: Tariq Ramadan, College of P r o g r a m m e tra-community dialogue with the nationally Geneva and University of Fribourg Courses on Islam and the history of Mus- recognized religious leadership. The princi- Georgetown University / 27 October 1999 lim-Christian relations are offered for un- ple investigators are: Zahid Bukhari and Su- – ‘The Message of Islam for Pluralist dergraduate and graduate students at the layman Nyang; and the coordinator is John S o c i e t i e s ’ For more information please visit our website: University. The undergraduate ‘Certificate L. Esposito. Guest Speaker: Farid Esack, University w w w . c m c u . n e t in Islam and Muslim-Christian Relations’ o f the Western Cape, South Africa The Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, places emphasis on the study of Islam as a Research and Public Affairs Georgetown University / 16 Nov. 1999 Georgetown University complement to the study of Western and The Center’s research and public affairs ac- – ‘Religion and Secularism’ 37 & O Streets, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20057 Christian traditions involved in core curric- tivities seek to interpret Islam and the Mus- Co-sponsored with the Imam Khomeini Tel: +1 202-687-8375 ulum requirements. The Master’s Degree in lim world for the diverse communities in Education and Research Institute, Fax: +1 202-687-8376 Liberal Studies, with a specialization in ‘Is- Washington involved in international rela- Q o m , Iran / Georgetown University E-mail: [email protected] lam and Muslim-Christian Relations’ was tions and the Muslim world. The focus of the 2–3 December 1999 created to foster a better understanding of Center’s activities, both national and inter- – ‘Islam and the West’ John L. Esposito is director of the Center for Muslim- Islam and Muslim-Christian relations. Stu- national in scope, is achieved through lec- Co-sponsored with the United Association Christian Understanding and professor of Religion dents focus on the present conditions un- tures, symposia, international conferences for Studies and Research, Inc. and International Affairs/Islamic Studies, der which Muslims and Christians interact and extensive media coverage and publica- Georgetown University Georgetown University, USA. on a global scale and in societies like the tions (books, occasional papers, and mono- 26–27 January 2000 E-mail: [email protected] 3 6 Conference Reports I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9

University of Malaya MOHD HAZIM SHAH Second International Malaysian Studies Conference

The Second International Malaysian Studies Confer- ment and social changes in a small town- Discourse in Malaysia’. She explored classic- Kikue Hamayotsu discussed the impact of ence was held at the University of Malaya from 2-4 ship – Kuala Selangor, which in a way re- al t a f s i r methodology, giving her opinion on the Islamic reformist movement on the August 1999. It was attended by local participants flects social change in Malaysia as a whole. its development in Malaysian society. She process of nation-building in Malaysia. From from Malaysia, as well as many from such countries held that i s t i f s a r contributes to the study of her point of view, the development of Islam- as the UK, Germany, Denmark, Japan, and the US. Research in Islam t a f s i r in certain contexts. Therefore, ‘Malay- ization in Malaysia was influenced by mod- The papers addressed issues relating to Malaysia, This presentation session began with sian T a f s i r ’ should emphasize both. She con- ernist leadership in UMNO as a ruling party. particularly with regard to economics, politics, edu- Maznah Mohammad’s summary of her pa- cluded that the study of the Quran in Mus- Wan Shawaluddin Hassan made a brief cation, culture, technology, and religion, especially per on ‘Democratization and Islamic Family lim society, especially Malaysia, should not summary of the Bosnian issues from the per- Islam. The following pertains to the sessions which Law Reform in Malaysia’. According to Maz- reject the Western perspective totally since spective of Malaysian government policy in made most reference to Islam. The Conference as a nah, the Islamization in Malaysia includes Is- much could be learned. his paper entitled ‘Krisis Bosnia dan Dasar whole, however, was not confined to Islam. lamic Family Law, which is debated on by Sharifah Zaleha Syed Hassan also read As- Luar Malaysia’. In his opinion, the Malaysian two parties, modernist UMNO and the con- ma Lafir Beatrix’s paper entitled ‘Behind the government involved itself in the Bosnian servative PAS. In the context of women’s is- Veil: Islam in Malaysia and Tunisia’. Crisis based on several factors, the most im- C o m m u n i t i e s sues, UMNO promotes human and gender portant being to demonstrate to the world Khoo Salma Nasution @ Khoo Su Nin, ‘Co- rights. PAS did so also but did not empha- Islam and Politics the potential of Malaysia as a newly industri- lonial Intervention & Transformation of size the gender rights as UMNO had done. In This session, chaired by Prof Osman Bakar, alized country. However, he did not deny Muslim Waqf Settlements in Urban Penang: her opinion, women’s issues will be promot- began with Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid’s pa- that the Islamic cause was a major reason Case Study of Capitan Kling Mosque & ed by both parties in the coming elections, per on ‘Political Dimension of Religious Con- for Malaysia’s involvement in the crisis. ♦ Acheen Street Mosque Waqf’, dealt with an important determinant of the design of flict in Malaysia: State Response to an Islam- waqf lands, endowments of the early mi- future Islamization. ic Movement in the 1990s’. He focused on grant Muslim communities in Penang. It was Sharifah Zaleha Syed Hassan presented a the Darul Arqam movement, which was expected that the descendents of the Mus- paper on ‘Surau and The Urban Ummat: The banned by the government in 1994. He lim leaders would continue to manage the Case of Bandar Baru Bangi’. She began by claimed that the main reason for the ban endowments. However, when British inter- listing factors that influenced the revival of was political rather than religious, suggest- vention in the administration of these lands the s u r a u in urban areas in the 1970s. Her fo- ing that Darul Arqam challenged the gov- began in the early 20t h century, contradic- cus was on the activities of some s u r a us in ernment’s brand of Islamization. tions between Islamic laws on w a q f and the Bandar Baru Bangi, notably Surau An-Nur, Farish Noor presented a paper on ‘Forma- British laws resulted in years of legal dis- which was led by Dr Harun Din, Professor of tion of Political Frontiers between the gov- putes. Islamic Law at UKM. Surau An-Nur was in- ernment and Islamic Opposition during the Abdur-Razzaq Lubis, in his paper on ‘The volved in various activities, such as Islamic 1998-1999 Political Crisis of Malaysia’. He The full original conference report was compiled Mandailing Role in Malaysian History’ dis- education, welfare, prayer and donations. gave a chronology of the current situation by Mohd Hazim Shah (Chief Editor), Rogayah cussed ethnic Mandailing, a minority group The conclusion was that a s u r a u can be in Malaysian politics, which he feels is relat- Shariman, Wan Sharina, Chai Choon Lee, Badhrol in both Malaysian and Indonesian history, transformed into an institution of learning ed to past occurrences between the gov- Ghulam Malik, Zuhdi Marsuki, and Liew Chin Tong. and examined the question of ‘who the and preaching, depending on its resources ernment and Islamic opposition. His main See: www.malaysiakini.com/pssm Mandailing are’ on a historical basis. and management. focus was on the importance of political Timo Kortteinen, in his paper on ‘Social Hi- Patricia A. Martinez, chairwoman of this idealism rather than r e a l p o l i t i k in the shap- Dr Mohd Hazim Shah is associate professor erarchies in Flux: Change of Social Organiza- session, then presented a paper on ‘The ing of Malaysian politics in the years to at the Faculty of Sciences, University of Malaya. tion in Kuala Selangor’, studied the develop- Possibilities in and Istifsar for Islamic come. E-mail: j8hazim@umcsd..edu.my

Sussex Centre for Migration Research NADJE AL-ALI New Approaches to Migration:

The literature on transnational migration has so far Transnational Communities and mainly emerged in the context of labour migration to the United States. The question arises if, and in how far, existing theories and models revolving around t h e Transformation of Home transnationalism can be applied to different historic- al, cultural and political contexts, such as migration within or to Europe, for example. The attempt to ap- The transnational communities conference – ‘Transnational communities and the about Moroccan migrant women in Italy ply, critically examine and challenge existing notions was hosted by the Sussex Centre for Migra- meaning of “home”’, which explored the and Nadje Al-Ali’s paper about Bosnian refu- about transnational migration constituted an under- tion Research, at the University of Sussex, way that the concept of home is repro- gees in the UK and the Netherlands (both lying goal in the first annual conference of the ESRC between 21-22 September. It was attended duced or transformed within the context University of Sussex, Brighton, UK). Transnational Communities Programme. A specific by about 50 participants from an interna- of emerging transnational practices; Overall, the conference provided new and focus on the relationship between ‘migrant/refugee tional audience, 16 of whom presented pa- – ‘The implications of transforming homes interesting material derived from in-depth communities’ and ‘home’ created the framework in pers. The conference was opened by Profes- for transnational communities’ examined case studies and provided a timely contribu- which to analyse the meaning and significance of sor Robin Cohen (University of Warwick), the extent to which transformations in the tion to debates on transnational migration transnational practices and fields. who located the conference theme in the country of origin, i. e. war, economic crises, by scholars working outside of North Amer- context of a century of migration studies. peace, can impact upon the formation, ica. Many papers challenged the common The keynote speaker was Professor Michael maintenance and even decline of transna- perception that transnational practices are A focus on ‘transnational communities’ has Smith (University of California, Davis), who tional communities; and counter-hegemonic in nature and also took been widely heralded as an important new provided a critical overview of the relations – ‘Transnational communities and the trans- issue with an oversimplified political eco- approach to international migration. More between globalization and transnational ur- formation of home’ explored the capaci- nomic approach. Furthermore, the role of traditional approaches have tended to con- banism, paying particular attention to the ties of migrant and refugee communities the state in shaping, creating and hindering ceive international migrants as exceptions to ways in which transnational networks and in influencing or effecting transformations transnational ties became apparent in dif- the norm. Attention has been divided broad- circuits of social interaction intersect in par- in their countries of origin. ferent case studies. ♦ ly between the process of migration – em- ticular places and in particular times. Smith phasizing the importance of geographical stressed the need to rethink the binary of lo- The role of Islam in forging and maintaining movement across international borders, and cal stasis vs. global dynamics, thereby devel- transnational networks and ties was high- the product of migration – emphasizing the oping the notion of the ‘trans-local’ as a via- lighted in several conference papers. Nina- impacts of migrants on societies in which ble alternative. Clara Tiesler (Department for Religious they settle. In contrast, the transnational The remaining papers covered a wide Studies, University of Hannover, Germany) communities approach conceives of interna- range of disciplines (anthropology, geogra- explored theological conceptions of ‘home’ tional migrants not as anomalies, but rather phy, international relations, sociology and among elite European Muslims, thereby as representative of an increasingly global- political science), as well as case studies from shedding light on the cognitive relationship ized world. It has refocused attention on the various geographical areas, i.e. Turkish and between European Muslims and the ‘Islamic utilization by international migrants of Kurdish refugees in Germany, Moroccan mi- world’. Other papers were more sociological modes of telecommunication and transport; grant women in Italy, Palestinian refugees in and anthropological in approach and gave An edited collection of many of the papers presented their pooling of resources and successful ex- Lebanon, Sudanese refugees in Cairo, Eritre- evidence to the ways in which the sense of is currently being prepared for publication. ploitation of global markets, and their associ- an refugees in Germany and the UK, and Bos- being a Muslim does not only transcend na- ation with new social forms, political challen- nian refugees in the Netherlands and the UK. tional boundaries but could also give birth Dr Nadje Al-Ali is a research fellow at the Sussex ges and cultural resources generated by link- The various papers were organized ac- to transnational affiliations. This became Centre for Migration Research, University of Sussex, ages across several geographical locations. cording to three broad themes: particularly apparent in Ruba Salih’s paper Brighton, UK. E-mail: [email protected] I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Publications 37

Book presentation It is striking that a minor part of the items NICO J.G. KAPTEIN described in the catalogue (pp. 1-106, to wit 259 items of the collection of the Leiden University Library) was published by E.P. Malay Islamic Wieringa under the auspices of the Leiden University Library in 1998. Although a me- For the study of Islam in the Malayo-Indonesian ticulous comparison between these two world it is of the utmost importance to know what catalogues is good for philologists, a num- kind of texts have been and are in circulation. As far ber of differences and similarities are obvi- as printed Malay (and Arabic) texts are concerned, in Literature ous. On the whole, the catalogue which was the last decade great progress has been made published under the auspices of the Leiden through the publications of, among others, Virginia This brand-new catalogue by Teuku Iskan- institutions where they are kept, like the University Library is far more ambitious, Matheson and M.B. Hooker on Jawi Literature in Pat- dar describes all Malay, Minangkabau, and Royal Institute for Anthropology and Lin- which is quite understandable from the per- ani; Martin van Bruinessen on Kitab Kuning; and Ian South Sumatran manuscripts (in r e n c o n g guistics, Leiden; Royal Tropical Institute, spective of the library. The biggest differ- Proudfoot on early Malay printed books up to 1920. and Lampung scripts) in the Netherlands, Amsterdam; Royal Household Archives, ence between both catalogues is the de- In addition to knowledge of the availability and cir- and in sum comprises 2028 different items. The Hague; and eleven other institutions. scription of the collections of letters, which culation of printed texts, that of manuscripts is of It consists of 1095 pages which are divided Moreover, this volume contains the bibli- Wieringa has described in detail, while Is- equal interest. Very important in this respect is the over two separate volumes. Volume One ography (pp. 957-985). Nine different in- kandar roughly indicates them (e.g. in order recently published work by Teuku Iskandar, C a t a- (in 748 pages) lists the holdings of the Lei- dexes of, amongst others, Titles, Authors, to describe Cod. Or. 2229 – Cod. Or. 2242, logue of Malay, Minangkabau, and South Sumatran den University Library (in sum 1571 items), Copyists, Geographical Names, and Water- Wieringa takes almost 150 pp., whereas Is- Manuscripts in the Netherlands, 2 vols., Leiden 1999 while Volume Two describes almost 500 marks, conclude this voluminous work kandar limits himself to 5 pages only). Fur- (ISBN 90-71220-09-5). other items, categorized according to the ( p p . 9 8 7 - 1 0 9 5 ) . thermore, Wieringa gives more extensive descriptions of the other items, and adds more elaborate and up-to-date bibliograph- ical references. A final obvious difference is that the 1998 catalogue contains many beautiful facsimile illustrations, while Iskan- dar’s has none. On the other hand, Teuku Is- kandar has followed a more humble cata- loguing strategy: he has limited himself to the basic data of each item which are, of course, the same as in the corresponding descriptions of Wieringa. This different strategy has resulted in an easily managea- ble and orderly catalogue, despite the enor- mous amount of materials it opens up. When browsing through Iskandar’s work, one notices that the bulk of the described items in one way or another is relevant to the study of Islam: there are devotional trea- tises; f i q h works; sermons; prayers; mystical texts; s i l s i l as; narratives about the Prophets, including the Prophet Muhammad; legal contracts; theosophical treatises; religious instruction literature; Malay adaptations of Arabic originals; theological treatises; and so forth. In other words, the work makes abundantly clear what infinite variety there has been (and still is) in Malay Islamic liter- ary culture. In this respect, the catalogue of Iskandar forms an important addition to overviews of Malay literature, which usually focus more on b e l l e s - l e t t r e s and tend to pay less attention to Islamic literature. There has always been a stream within the Western tradition of Malay studies which regarded much of the Malay Islamic writings as mere- ly derivative of Middle Eastern originals, as well as linguistically inferior as compared to ‘classical’ texts. As a result of this, many Mal- ay religious writings were not considered worthy of serious study, and consequently did not figure in ‘comprehensive’ overviews of Malay literature. With the help of the cat- alogue of Teuku Iskandar, a more complete picture can be drawn up of the entire Malay literary production. All in all, this work forms a most welcome addition to the existing research tools for the study of Malay religious literary culture. Teuku Iskandar is merited with compiling a valuable source which in a practical form gives access to all Malay manuscripts in the Netherlands. ♦

N o t e * E.P. Wieringa, Catalogue of Malay and Minangkabau Manuscripts in the Library of Leiden University and other collections in the Netherlands; Volume One comprising the acquisitions of Malay manuscripts in Leiden University Library up to the year 1896, edited by Joan de Lijster-Streef and Jan Just Witkam, Leiden 1998.

Dr Nico J.G. Kaptein is coordinator of the Indonesian- Netherlands Cooperation in Islamic Studies, and secretary of the Islamic Studies Programme at Leiden University, the Netherlands. E-mail: [email protected] 3 8 Info Pages I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Art & Culture Agenda

10 July 1999 – January 2000 THE NETHERLANDS L e c t u r e s / S o c i e t i e s Museum für Völkerkunde Metropolitan Museum The Arthur M. Sackler Lansstraße 8 • Cracking Codes: The Rosetta Stone of Art Gallery and Freer Gallery and Decipherment. This exhibition n d Exhibitions N e d e r l a n d s - A r a b i s c h e Berlin – Dahlem 1000 Fifth Avenue at 82 Street of Art Tel: +49 8301 438 about the decipherment of scripts New York, New York 10028 Smithsonian Institution K r i n g celebrates the bicentenary of the De Nieuwe Kerk Tel: +1 212 535 7710 Washington D.C, 20560 S e c r e t a r i a t : discovery of the Rosetta Stone, the Gravenstraat 17 H. Zwaardecroonstraat 17 9 June 1999 – 30 January 2000 Tel: +1 202 357 2700 (voice) 1012 NL Amsterdam • Al inssan – People of the desert in ‘most valuable relic of Antiquity’. The 16 September 1999 – 357 1729 2593 XK The Hague Rosetta Stone constitutes the Tel: +31 20 638 69 09 NAK Magazine: Tunisia. Photographs by Claudia 2 January 2000 Fax: +31 20 622 66 49 O k o n e k . remains of a stela inscribed with a • The Nature of , Part 17 October 1999 – Korte Jufferstraat 42 priestly decree for Ptolemy V (196BC) E-mail: [email protected] 3512 EZ Utrecht IV: Figural Representation. The fourth 17 January 2000 Museum Schloß Rheydt in three scripts: hieroglyphic, a in a four-part series on Islamic • Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Tel: +31 30 231 95 53 cursive form of ancient Egyptian, and t h 16 December 1999 – 24 April 2000 E-mail: [email protected] Schloßstraße 508, ornament dating from the 9 to the Ur. More than 250 extraordinary • Earthly splendour, celestial art. 41238 Mönchengladbach ancient Greek. 1 8t hcenturies. Some 25 objects are objects revealing traditions of royal Treasures from Islam. Persian Tel: +49 2166 9289 00 drawn from the Metropolitan life and death – jewellery, musical • Organizes lectures and other 7 September 1999 – , Indian miniatures and activities in five regional branches: Fax: +49 2166 9289 49 Museum’s own collection to examine instruments, games, furniture, seals jewellery are shown against a 30 January 2000 the incorrect perception that figural and vessels – found in the tomb of a Amsterdam, The Hague, Groningen, • Life & Ceremony in Urban Algeria. background of ponds, fountains, Nijmegen, and Utrecht. 31 October – 31 December representation was never permitted woman who died between 2600 and flowers and an aviary, recalling • The Searose carpet, 21 yellow- This exhibition showing textiles, to appear in . 2500 BC. Paradise as it is described in the ground Konya rugs. The Caucasian clothes, jewellery and household El Hizjra items is the result of a unique Qur’an. The exhibition is organized in Alpan and the Elibelinde-Kelim are 16 September 1999 – 17 November 1999 – 7 May 2000 Centre for Art and Culture collaboration between the Museum cooperation with the State of the Arabian World shown from the Orient-Star 9 January 2000 • Imaging the Word: Selections of Hermitage St. Petersburg. Collection, one of the world famous of Art and Popular Tradition in • Egyptian art in the Age of the Calligraphy from the Islamic World Singel 300A Algiers, the National Museum of 1016 AD Amsterdam textile collections. Pyramids. The exhibition spans the presents some of the principal Dutch Centre for Ahmed Zabana in Oran and the 3r dthrough the 6t h dynasties, the first calligraphic styles that have evolved Tel: +31 20 420 05 68 . E m b r o i d e r y Ifa Galerie Stuttgart truly great era of Egyptian art. Some in the Islamic world from the 9t h t o t h Spinveld 13a 15 October 1999 – 2 January 2000 Charlottenplatz 17 200 works, from reliefs to furniture the 20 centuries as they appear in 4815 HR Breda 70173 Stuttgart 28 September 1999 – and monumental sculpture, have different media, from silk to agate • Literary Contest for everybody from 16 January 2000 Tel: +31 76 520 1001 Moroccan or Arab origin. For further Tel: +49 7 1122 25 173 been assembled from museums in and parchment to steel. The selection Tuesdays through Saturdays Fax: +497 1122 25 194 • Bukhara and Beyond: Artefacts of the US and Europe. includes a folio from a minute, 9t h- inquiries ring or write to El Hizjra. Uzbekistan and Photographs of http://www.ifa.de century Koran, a 15t h-century royal Edgar Knobloch. The photographs 1 October 1999 – F R A N C E From 19 October 1999 wine cup from Iran, and 12 February 2000 C o n t i n u i n g and artefacts of Uzbekistan • New Galleries for Ancient Near contemporary works exploring the • Oman: Textiles from the desert. • Exhibitions and contemporary art concentrate on the Islamic history of Eastern Art. Newly renovated and power of Arabic letters. E x h i b i t i o n s t h t h from the Middle East. the region from the 8 to the 19 reinstalled, with natural light now centuries. The artefacts from the Den Haag illuminating the Assyrian reliefs 21 November 1999 – 28 May 2000 Musée du Louvre museum’s permanent collection G e m e e n t e m u s e u m 75058 Paris I R A N within, these galleries house the • Antoin Sevruguin (late 1830s–1933) Stadhouderslaan 41 include a striking jade cup inscribed Museum’s outstanding collection of and the Persian Image includes 50 Tel: +33 1 40 20 50 50 with the name of Ulugh Beg. Several 2517 HV The Hague Fax: +33 1 40 20 54 42 E x h i b i t i o n s t h Ancient Near Eastern art, including images of rulers, courtiers, and Tel: +31 70 338 11 11 1 6 -century Bukhara school sculpture, metalwork, ivories, seals, commoners, and scenes of daily life E-mail: [email protected] paintings are shown. Islamic Period Museum and other objects dating from 8000 in Iran from the late 1870s to the Continuing exhibition 17 March – 29 May 2000 T e h r a n BC to AD 700 from ancient 1 9 3 0 s . • Islamic crafts. A renewed exhibition C o n t i n u i n g Mesopotamia, Iran, and their • Ottoman Calligraphy’s Collections of • Continuing exhibition of the Oriental from its own collection, in particular the Sakip Sabanci Museum. C o n t i n u i n g neighbours. 21 November 1999 – ceramics. Other objects illustrating • Continuing exhibition of e.g. Koranic collection. Its Islamic pottery is 28 February 2000 T h e exhibition presents around 70 considered the best outside the Islamic art. manuscripts, ceramics, metalwork 14 September 1999 – • Constructing Identities: Recent Works works belonging to the collection Islamic world. o f the Sapik Sabanci University in and textiles. 23 January 2000 by the Iraqi artist Jananne al-Ani T h e r m e n m u s e u m Istanbul. They are all works by the • Farouk Hosny/Adam Henein: (b.1966). The exhibition presenting Coriovallumstraat 9 K U W A I T Victoria and Albert Contemporary Egyptian Artists and Islamic life in photographs, looks at most famous calligraphers of the M u s e u m 6411 CA Heerlen t h Heirs to an Ancient Tradition. some of the themes that also inspired period between the 15 and early Cromwell Road Tel: +31 45 560 45 81 2 0t h c e n t u r i e s . E x h i b i t i o n s Sculptures by Adam Henein and Sevruguin’s work – studio London SW7 2RL paintings by Farouk Hosny – both portraiture, images of ‘exotic’ people, 3 October 1998 – Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah Tel: +44 171 938 8500 prominent artists working in and the construction of identities Institut du Monde Arabe http://www.vam.ac.uk 31 December 1999 1, Rue des Fosses St-Bernard M a h b o u l a contemporary Egypt. through appearance. Two pairs of al- • The Bathhouse. Bath culture in East K u w a i t Ani’s large-format photographs, five 75236 Paris C o n t i n u i n g and West. Interactive and sense Tel: +33 1 40 51 39 60/ 33 1 0 Tel: +965 565 3006 16 November 1999 – pairs of transparencies, and a slide provoking. • The collection includes a rich 27 February 2000 show make up the gallery’s first one- collection of Islamic metalwork. 19 October 1999 – C o n t i n u i n g • ’Only the Best’: Masterpieces of the person exhibition by a contemporary Fries Museum 27 February 2000 • Al-Sabah Collection of Islamic art. Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, artist from the Islamic world. Her Turfmarkt 11 Egee Art Gallery Lisbon. Born in Istanbul of Armenian evocative prints address a topical • Morocco, a way of life. Evoking the 9 Chelsea manor studios 8911 KS Leeuwarden R U S S I A parentage, Calouste Sarkis issue – ‘orientalism’, and in particular magic of the places, discovering the Flood Street Tel: +31 58 212 30 01 architecture of private houses, the Gulbenkian (1869-1955) became a the ‘orientalist’ representation of London SW3 5SR pioneer in the international oil w o m e n . refined mosaics, the exhibition E x h i b i t i o n s Tel: +44 171 351 68 18 10 April 1999 – 1 April 2000 resorts to the past without neglecting industry, a philanthropist, and a • Veils and shawls, about clothing and The State Hermitage Fax: +44 171 376 85 10 widely respected art collector. His C o n t i n u i n g certain aspects of the more www.egeeart.com i d e n t i t y . contemporary urban life. Music, films M u s e u m vast collection – which totalled some • Arts of the Islamic World. Some 60 and poetry try to recreate the specific St Petersburg 5,000 works – included European works – Koran pages, metalwork, Rijksmuseum of Tel: +812 110 9079 / 96 25 C o n t i n u i n g paintings ranging from the ceramics, glass, paintings, and spheres of the vie citadine in • Contemporary and antique Middle t h t h A n t i q u i t i e s M o r o c c o . Fax: +812 312 1550 Renaissance to Impressionism, calligraphy – from the 9 to 17 Rapenburg 28 w w w . h e r m i t a g e . r u Eastern Art. Egyptian sculpture, Roman medals, centuries explore Islamic artistic 2311 EW Leiden 18 October 1999 – 30 January Islamic ceramics and textiles, traditions. Themes include the forms Tel: +31 71 516 31 63 C o n t i n u i n g Sony Gallery illuminated manuscripts, 18t h- and functions of the works of art, the 2 0 0 0 25 Connaught Street Marble Arch • Matisse in Morocco. Exhibition. • Art of the Near East is represented in century French furniture and silver, role of calligraphy, the use of 19 November 1999 – the Museum by an excellent London W2 and spectacular jewelled objects by figurative decoration, and the 19 March 2000 collection covering the 7t ht o 1 9t h Tel/fax: +44 171 262 9101 Lalique. meaning of abstract designs. 19 October 1999 – www.sonigallery.com • Ritual and Splendour. A precious 16 January 2000 centuries which includes several collection, mainly of silver and • Les Ecrivains et ‘l’appel du Maroc’. exquisite masterpieces. UNITED NATIONS golden artefacts from ancient Egypt, C o n t i n u i n g Harvard University Art Source of inspiration for the • International contemporary art the Classical World and the Near imagination and the literature of the T U R K E Y Museums M a g a z i n e s East. Collected by Ms. Mihoko especially from the Indo-Pak 2 0t h century, Morocco has attracted subcontinent and the Arab World. Koyama, the founder of the MIHO numerous writers such as Pierre Loti, E x h i b i t i o n s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Museum International MUSEUM (Shiga, Japan). Henri de Montherlant, Paul Morand, Cambridge, Massachusetts The Museum of Turkish Ashmolean Museum Tel: +1 617 495 9400 UNESCO, Paris Paul Bowles, Juan Goytisolo, Elias Beaumont Street Rotterdam Museum Canetti. Manuscripts, photographs, and Islamic Art Blackwell Publishers o f E t h n o l o g y I s t a n b u l Oxford OX1 2PH UK 9 October 1999 – 2 January 2000 108 Cowley Road documents, first editions, and Tel: +44 1865 278000 Willemskade 25 • Letters in : Ottoman Calligraphy Oxford, OX4 1JF paintings testify to the continuing Fax: +44 1865 278018 3016 DM Rotterdam role Morocco can play and serve as C o n t i n u i n g from the Sakip Sabanci Collection, United Kingdom Tel: +31 10 270 71 72 • Exhibition of Ottoman and Islamic Istanbul. Calligraphy – the art of sources of inspiration for the 3 February – 2 April 2000 Fax: +31 10 270 71 82 imagination and the literature of our Art, Folk Art and Folk Life. beautiful writing – is the • Museum International, No. 203 (Vol. E-mail: mediatheek@wereld- • Golden Pages: and Prayer quintessential visual art form of the 51, No. 3, 1999), features a number of t i m e . books from the H.E. Shaikh Ghasan I. m u s e u m . r o t t e r d a m . n l S I N G A P O R E Islamic world. This exhibition features interesting articles on the various Shaker collection. G E R M A N Y approximately 70 exceptional works approaches to Islamic art adopted by • Due to renovations the Museum will E x h i b i t i o n s UNITED STATES of , dating from museums today, with a guest be closed until 26 November 2000. E x h i b i t i o n s the 15t hthrough the early 20t h editorial on ‘Exhibiting the art of the I t will re-open with a permanent Asian Civilisations E x h i b i t i o n s centuries of Ottoman Turkey. Muslim World’, by Oleg Grabar, one exhibition of Islamic art from its Vorderasiatisches Museum M u s e u m of the foremost specialists on the o w nc o l l e c t i o n . Entrée Pergamonmuseum 39 Armenian Street 9 October 1999 subject of Islamic art. Singapore 179939 Museum of Fine Arts through 2 January 2000 M u s e u m i n s e l 465 Huntington Avenue Galerie A Am Kupfergraben • A Grand Legacy: Arts of the Ottoman Oldenzaalsestraat 256 From November 1997 Boston, Massachusetts 02115 Empire. As a complement to Letters B e r l i n - M i t t e Tel: +1 617 267 9300 7523 AG Enschede Tel: +49 30 2090 5401 • Calligraphy from the Tareq Rajab in Gold, this exhibition examines the Tel/Fax: +31 53 3413788 Museum Kuwait. The Qur’an, Holy grand legacy of Ottoman painting, The Agenda is produced by Book for Muslims, was central to the 14 November – 6 February 2000 ceramics, textiles and metalwork, 7 May 1999 – 31 December 1999 • Pharaohs of the Sun: , C o n t i n u i n g • 100 years Vorderasiatisches Museum. development of the art of beautiful using works from the permanent t h e Centre of Islamic Culture • Intercultural Art. writing. In this exhibition is explored Nefertiti, Tutankhamen, captures the collection at the Art Museums. An exhibition on the history of the revolutionary epoch known as the in Rotterdam, The Nether- collection which includes world the various scripts that developed Amarna Age (1353 to 1336 BC) when lands. Please send all Galerie Fi Beiti famous works of art from the over the centuries and also C o n t i n u i n g Prinsengracht 157-hs calligraphy as a decorative motif on the Pharaoh Akhenaten assumed the • Harvard’s collection of Islamic and Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian and throne of Egypt at its peak of information with regard to 1015 DR Amsterdam North Syria-East Anatolian regions. various media, such as ceramics and later Indian art is small but magnifi- Tel: +31 20 626 44 32 m e t a l w o r k . imperial glory. One of the most cent. It comprises a broad range of activities related to culture important international Fax: +31 20 626 44 33 works, from Samanid pottery and 15 May 2001 – 30 September 2001 presentations of Egyptian art and and art in the Islamic World • Agatha Christie and the Orient UNITED KINGDOM Mamluk calligraphy to Qajar lac- • Contemporary art exhibitions by culture in recent decades. quers and Ottoman textiles. Its mas- t o : artists from the Islamic world. E x h i b i t i o n s terpieces include a group of minia- The Centre of Islamic Culture Museum of Islamic Art The Art Museum, t h M u s e u m i n s e l Princeton University tures from the extraordinary 14 - British Museum and century Great Mongol (‘Demotte’) P.O. Box 361 Berlin – Mitte P r i n c e t o n Tel: +49 30 2090 5401 Museum of Mankind Shahnama, the Safavid master Mir 3 0 0 0 AJ Rotterdam Great Russel Street New Jersey 08544-1018 Sayyid-’Ali’s Night-time in a Palace, Tel: +1 609 258 3787 / 3788 T h eN e t h e r l a n d s C o n t i n u i n g London WCIB 3DG and the miniatures of the ‘pocket- Tel: +44 171 412 71 11 size’ Divan of Anvari produced for the • The continuing exhibition is dedicated Spring 2000 Fax: +31 10 270 71 82 Fax: 44 171 3238614/8480 Mughal emperor Akbar. The depart- to the art of Islamic peoples from the • Islamic Art E-mail: mediatheek@wereld 8t hto the 19t hcenturies. The works of ment also has one of the most impor- art originate from an area stretching 8 July 1999 – 14 February 2000 tant representations of Rajasthani m u s e u m . r o t t e r d a m . n l from Spain to India. • Later Persian Paintings and Lacquer. painting in the world. I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 Info Pages 39 Academic Meetings ISIM Agenda

t h Labour in Pakistan BRISMES 2000 Centre for 7 European Conference ISIM Lectures ISIM Activities in 21 February 2000 Date: 26-29 December 1999 Middle Eastern and Islamic on Central Asian Studies: Venue: K a r a c h i S t u d i e s Central Asia: cooperation with other Martin van Amerongen I n f o r m a t i o n : Dr Yunas Samad, D a t e : 2 and 5 July 2000 Past, Present and Future 11 January 2000 i n s t i t u t e s ‘Muslims in Mozart’s “Die Department of Social and V e n u e : University of Cambridge Date: 25-30 September 2000 Economic Studies, University of I n f o r m a t i o n : University of Cambridge, Venue: Vienna University, Institute for Richard Bulliet Enthführung aus dem Serail”’ Bradford, West Yorkshire, Faculty of Oriental Studies, Social and Cultural Anthropology Middle East Institute, 17 January – 6 March 2000 ( i nD u t c h ) BD7 1DP, UK Sidgwick Avenue, Cambridge, I n f o r m a t i o n : Asst. Prof. Mag. Columbia University, ‘Europe’s crescent’ [email protected] CB3 9DA, UK Dr Gabriele Rasuly-Paleczek, tel +44 1274 234802, tel +01223 335103 Institute for Social and Cultural N e w York, USA Series of lectures on Islam 28 February 2000 fax +44 1274 385295 fax +01223 335103 Anthropology, University of i n Europe organized by Felix Steven Vertovec Dr Kamran Asad Ali, Department of o r i e n t a l - m e s - a d m i n @ l i s t s . c a m . a c . u k Vienna, A-1010 Vienna, Anthropology, D e a d l i n e : abstract or proposal by 31 Universitätsstr. 7/IV, Austria February 2000 Meritis and the European ‘Muslim youth in Western University of Rochester, USA January 2000 tel +43 1 427748506, Reinhard Schulze Cultural Foundation, in E u r o p e ’ [email protected] URL: h t t p : / / w w w . d u r . a c . u k / b r i s m e s / g a b r i e l e . r a s u l y @ u n i v i e . a c . a t Institut für Islamwissenschaft, cooperation with the ISIM on tel +1 716 2758614 a c t i v i t i e s . h t m l Ali Universität Bern, Switzerland the following dates at 2 0 . 3 0 : 6 March 2000 k a r a m a t @ p i l e r . k h i . s d n p k . u n d p . o r g Medical Ethics and Jørgen Nielsen tel +92 21 4557009 Respect and Tolerance Medical Law in Islam fax +92 21 45557009 between Islam and Date: 19-21 March 2001 7 March 2000 17 January 2000 ‘Islamic orientations in Europe’ Christianity in the Texts of V e n u e : University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel William Roff Hafid Bouazza History and Liturature in I n f o r m a t i o n : Dr Vardit Rispler-Chaim, The Centrality of the 2 0 0 0 Department of Arabic Language Department of Islamic and ‘Images of Muslims in 19th 5 February 2000 Qur’an in Islamic and D a t e : 15-18 May 2000 and Literature, University of Haifa, Middle Eastern Studies, and 20th-century literature’ ‘Living Islam’ Middle Eastern Culture V e n u e : Cannakale, Turkey I s r a e l University of Edinburgh, UK ( i n Dutch) An event on ‘Islam on the Date: 10-11 January 2000 I n f o r m a t i o n : Terzioglu Kampusu, tel +972 4 8249789, Information: A. Jones or R. Nettler, Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University r h l a 1 0 3 @ u v m . h a i f a . a c . i l Internet’ and ‘Islam and Music’ The Oriental Institute, Pusey Lane, tel + 00 90 286-213 02 05/ 213 01 55 19-25 March 2000 24 January 2000 organized by Felix Meritis, the Oxford, OX1 2LE, UK fax + 00 90 286-212 20 33 URL: h t t p : / / u s e r s . o x . a c . u k / ~ n e a r e a s t / z e k i c e m i l a r d a @ h o t m a i l . c o m XXVIII Deutcher R. Stephen Humphreys Peter Clark European Cultural Foundation, q u r ’ a n i n . h t m O r i e n t a l i s t e n t a g History Department, ‘From Fantasy to Faith: Islam and the ISIM. Date: 26-30 March 2001 University of California, Santa and architecture in the United Invited guest: 6t h Biennial EASA V e n u e : Bamberg, Germany Crossing Borders: Conference: Crossing I n f o r m a t i o n : Maurus Reinkowski, Barbara, USA K i n g d o m ’ Peter Mandaville Cultural, National and Categorical Boundaries: Lehrstuhl für Türkische Sprache, (University of Kent, Islamic Identities in Asia Religion as Politics / An der Universität 11, D-96045 Panel at the 2000 Association of Asian Politics as Religion Bamberg, Germany April 2000 January 2000 Canterbury, UK) Studies Annual Meeting Date: 26-29 July 2000 tel +49 951 8632196 Gudrun Krämer Martin van Bruinessen D a t e : 9-12 March 2000 V e n u e : Krakow, Poland fax +49 951 8635182 Venue: Town and Country Resort & I n f o r m a t i o n : Secretariat European d o t 2 0 0 1 @ s p l i t . u n i - b a m b e r g . d e Free University Berlin, ‘Aceh: Resistance against 21–24 June 2000 Convention Center, San Diego, Association of Social G e r m a n y Dutch and Javanese ’Vingt ans après’ California, USA Anthropologists (EASA), Urgell 259, colonialism’ (in D u t c h ) Colloquium organized by I n f o r m a t i o n : Ron Lukens-Bull, s.s.3, E-08026 Barcelona, Spain Islamic Studies in Europe University of North Florida tel/fax +34 9 33212259 S e r i e s ISIM Seminars t h e CERI, with the cooperation R l u k e n s b u l @ a o l . c o m e a s a @ t r i v i u m . g h . u b . e s The International Institute for 7 February 2000 o f ISIM, on Islamist URL: h t t p : / / w w w . u b . e s / e a s a / 6 t h . h t m Islamic Thought (IIIT) and national academic institutions will be April 2000 Parvez Manzoor movements in the last quarter First Mediterranean Social holding a series of seminars on ‘Muslim Intellectuals and ‘Islam and the notion of multi- of the 20t h c e n t u r y . and Political Research I n t e r n a t i o n a l Islamic Studies in Europe in various Modern Challenges’ cultural society in Europe’ (To take place in Paris, France) M e e t i n g I n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y European cities from February D a t e : 22-26 March 2000 Conference on Language, 2000. The seminars will focus on Seminar to be held in V e n u e : Robert Schuman Centre at Thought and Reality: the state of this discipline and Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 14 February 2000 t h e European University Institute, Science, Religion and identify serious lacunae in the Via dei Roccettini, 9, 50016 San P h i l o s o p h y present state of research within its Ger Duijzings Domenico di Fiesole, Italy D a t e : 1-4 August 2000 many fields of specialization. June 2000 ‘Islam in the Balkans: between I n f o r m a t i o n : V e n u e : Calcutta, India Tentative date for UK conference is Ann-Charlotte Svantesson I n f o r m a t i o n : Dr Chandana July 2000. For all other dates and ‘Religion and Economy in myth and reality’ (in Dutch) tel +39 055 4685785 Chakrabarti, Elon College Campus more information about this series Muslim Societies’ s v a n t e s s @ i u e . i t Box 2336, Elon College, N.C. 27244, of seminars, please contact IIIT at Seminar to be held in Jakarta, Imco Brouwer USA, [email protected] the following address: tel +39 055 4685783 or 426 U R L : h t t p : / / w w w . e l o n . e d u / c h a k r a b a p f 0 6 @ d i a l . p i p e x . c o m I n d o n e s i a . b r o u w e r @ i u e . i t A N N O U N C E M E N T XVIII Quinquennial Iran 2000: The Challenges Congress of the ahead. 18t h Annual CIRA International Association C o n f e r e n c e for the History of 24 months (part-time) by completing six D a t e : 28-29 April 2000 Religions (IAHR) New Web-Based Master subjects and a short thesis. Students with a V e n u e : Hyatt Regency Bethesda, Date: 5-12 August 2000 BA pass degree will finish the course in 18 Maryland, USA V e n u e : International Convention I n f o r m a t i o n : Kamran Dadkhah, Centre Durban, South Africa months (full-time) or 36 months (part-time) Department of Economics, I n f o r m a t i o n : Prof. Pratap Kumar, of Arts Programme by completing ten subjects and a short the- Northeastern University, Boston, Department of Science of Religion, MA 02115, USA University of Durban-Westville, sis. At this stage, 12 subjects will be offered: tel +1 617 3732297 Private Bag X54001, Durban 4000, – Analysis of Texts in Islamic Sources k d a d k h a h @ l y n x . n e u . e d u South Africa The University of Melbourne of Australia, gree in Islamic Studies or in a related disci- – Islam and Questioning of Modernity U R L : h t t p : / / w w w . d a c . n e u . e d u / c i r a [email protected] General Secretary of the IAHR an internationally recognized teaching and pline and must satisfy the University of – Methods of Qur’anic Sciences Prof. Armin Geertz, research institution, is offering a Master of Melbourne English language require- – Researching Islam and Muslim Societies III International Department of the Study of Conference on Islamic Religion, Arts in Islamic Studies by distance educa- ments. Instruction is in English. – Methodology of Hadith Legal Studies: University of Aarhus, Main Building, tion from March 2000. Delivered mainly – Islamic Banking and Finance The Madhhab DK-8000 Aarhus C., Denmark D a t e : 4-6 May 2000 [email protected] over the Internet, the course offers a com- Course Objectives – Islamic Theology: Schools and Methods I n f o r m a t i o n : Peri Bearman, Harvard U R L : h t t p : / / w w w . u d w . a c . z a / i a h r prehensive programme in Islamic Studies The Master of Arts (Islamic Studies) has as – Islamic Education: Philosophy and Law School, Pound Hall 501, that attempts to bridge the gap between its objectives that candidates completing Methods Cambridge, MA 02138, USA International Congress of p b e a r m a n @ l a w . h a r v a r d . e d u Asian and North African traditional and modern scholarship. the course should be able to: – Muslim Philosophical Traditions URL: h t t p : / / w w w . l a w . h a r v a r d . e d u / Studies (ICANAS) on The Master of Arts in Islamic Studies is – demonstrate a superior knowledge and – Methods of Islamic Law P r o g r a m s / I L S P Oriental and Asian Studies in the Era of Globalization rigorous and maintains the highest acade- understanding of current issues and – Sufism: Doctrines and Practices Date: 27 August – 1 September 2000 mic standards, whilst offering a flexible challenges in each of the selected spe- – Minor Thesis in Islamic Studies 2000 South Asian V e n u e : Montreal Convention Center, approach to learning, enabling graduates cialized areas of the course; (10 – 12,000 words) Women’s Conference 201 Viger Avenue West, Montreal, Date: 6-7 may 2000 C a n a d a in Islamic Studies or cognate disciplines, ir- – demonstrate an in-depth knowledge and V e n u e : Los Angeles, California I n f o r m a t i o n : ICANAS 2000 Secretariat, respective of their geographical locations, understanding of various conceptual Assessment & Examination I n f o r m a t i o n : Sangeeta Gupta, PhD, Bureau des Congrès, Université de Director, SAWC, PMB 260, 1198 Montreal, P.O. Box 6128, to continue their studies at the University frameworks and theoretical perspectives Assessment will depend on the units Pacific Coast Hwy, Ste. D. Seal Station Downtown, of Melbourne. presented in the course; studied, details of which are provided in Beach, CA 90740-6200,USA Montréal (Québec) H3C 3J7, s a g e e t a u c l a @ y a h o o . c o m C a n a d a The course focuses strongly on develop- – demonstrate an understanding and ap- the study package. To complete each unit, U R L : h t t p : / / w w w . i n d i a n m a l l . c o m / s a w c U R L : h t t p : / / w w w . b c o c . u m o n t r e a l . c a ing analytical skills, critical thinking and plication of the latest research findings in students generally have to undertake a re- scholarly writing. It provides the student the selected specialized area of the pro- search paper of about 2000 words as well The Third International Conference with tools, concepts and skills that build gramme; as sit a three-hour written examination at Biennial Conference on Middle Eastern Popular upon previously acquired skills and knowl- – express informed opinions about partic- a centre approved by the University. on Iranian Studies C u l t u r e Date: 25-28 May 2000 Date: 17-21 September 2000 edge. It familiarizes the student with the ular areas chosen by the student; and Venue: Hyatt Regency Hotel, V e n u e : Magdalen College, University extensive body of literature on Islam and – demonstrate an understanding of the Application Deadlines Bethesda, Maryland, USA of Oxford, UK Muslims in both Western academia and theory and practice of research needed To commence studies in Semester 1, I n f o r m a t i o n : SIS Executive Secretary, I n f o r m a t i o n : Near Eastern Studies Kambiz Eslami, c/o Princeton Programme, The Oriental Institute, classical Islamic scholarship, enabling the to evaluate research literature and carry March 2000, the closing date for applica- University Library University of Oxford, UK student to place many areas of Islamic out appropriate research activities. tions is 30 November 1999. Some late ap- tel +1 609 2581308 n e a r e a s t @ o r i n s t . o x . a c . u k fax +1 609 2580441 URL: h t t p : / / u s e r s . o x . a c . u k / ~ n e a r e a s t / Studies into their philosophical, intellectu- plications up to the end of January 2000 k e s l a m i @ p o p 3 . c i t . p r i n c e t o n . e d u m i d d l e . h t m al, social, historical and economic contexts. Course Structure may be accepted. To commence studies in Candidates for the MA (Islamic Studies) Students with a BA Honours degree will Semester 2, July 2000, the closing date for should have a BA Pass or BA Honours de- finish the course in 12 months (full-time) or applications is 30 April 2000. ♦ 4 0 I S I M NEWSLETTER 4 / 9 9 C o n t e n t s

David Damrel Martin Ramstedt R E S E A R C H V A C A N C I E S A Sufi Apocalypse Muslim-Hindu Relations in Indonesia 1 1 4 Louis Brenner The Study of Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa New ISIM I S I M Patrick Garrone B a k s y l y k: a Muslim Declination 3 1 o fS h a m a n i s m Fellowships E d i t o r i a l 1 5 Vladimir Bobrovnikov by Dick Douwes Islamic Studies in Post-Soviet Russia: The ISIM invites applications and research 2 Mujeeb Ahmad in Search of New Approaches, proposals for various fellowships through- Da’wat-i-Islami: an Aspiring Transnational 3 2 out 2000. Applications from candidates in ISIM Chair at Utrecht University: M o v e m e n t all fields of the social sciences, humanities Martin van Bruinessen 1 6 I N S T I T U T E S and religious studies will be considered. All 3 candidates should be competent in acade- Aparna Rao mic English. ISIM Cairo Meeting Self-Determination in Kashmir: Angelika Neuwirth by Khalid Masud Identity, Islam and Search for Justice The Orient Institute in Beirut and Istanbul The ISIM fellowships include: 3 1 7 3 3 – PhD Fellowships: ISIM PhD fellowships are granted for a period of up to 4 years. The applicants should hold an MA degree or Ed van Hoven Nayereh Tohidi Elizabeth Picard similar qualification in their field. Most of Transformation Processes in Africa Student Movement: Social Sciences Research on the Arab the PhD fellowships are placed within one Mashrek: (CERMOC) 4 The Horbinger of a New Era in Iran of the ISIM Research Programmes. Howev- 3 4 1 8 er, innovative individual PhD research Georges Khalil proposals are also invited. Azim Nanji Notions of Law and Order Eugene Rogan – Postdoctoral Fellowships: ISIM postdoctor- 4 Ottoman Muslim Missionaries and The Institute of Ismaili Studies al fellowships are granted for a period of t h e Transjordan Frontier 3 5 up to 2 years and are available to young GENERAL ISSUES 1 9 scholars who have received their PhD de- John L. Esposito gree less than 5 years prior to application. Sami Al-Khazendar The Center for Muslim-Christian – Visiting Fellowships: ISIM visiting fellow- Rebecca Popenoe The Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood’s Understanding: History and International ships are granted for a period of up to 3 Islam and the Body: Perceptions of the Palestinian Issue A f f a i r s months. Some of these senior research Female Fattening among Arabs in Niger 2 0 - 2 1 3 5 fellowships will be offered upon invita- 5 tion, others will be awarded in open com- petition. Timothy Furnish CONFERENCE REPORTS – Sabbatical Fellowships: the ISIM offers fa- Fadwah El Guindi Mahdism in the Sunni Arab World Today cilities to academic staff of participating Veiled Men, Private Women 2 2 and other universities to conduct re- in Arabo-Islamic Culture Mohd Hazim Shah search. In specific cases, the ISIM makes Second International Malaysian Studies 6 Remco Ensel funds available to finance the temporary C o n f e r e n c e Resurgent Voices: Profanation of replacement for teaching at the home 3 6 Cindy van den Bremen t h e Shurafa in Modern Morocco u n i v e r s i t y . A Modern Intepretation of the Headscarf 2 3 Nadje Al-Ali 7 For more information on the various fellowships and New Approaches to Migration: Jan Abbink to download an application form, see the ISIM Transnational Communities and the Mazyar Lotfalian Ethiopian Islam and the Challenge Website: http://www.isim.nl Transformation of Home Understanding Muslim Technoscientific of Diversity or write to: ISIM Fellowship Programmes, 3 6 I d e n t i t i e s 2 4 P.O. Box 11089, 2301 EB Leiden, The Netherlands 8 P U B L I C A T I O N S Ed van Hoven Bruce Lawrence Medina Gounass: the End of a Religious Neither Civil nor Info Society Offers Muslims I s o l a t e Nico Kaptein the Hope of Global Equity 2 5 New Research Tool for Malay Studies 9 3 7 Vladimir Chukov REGIONAL ISSUES Political Behaviour of the Bulgarian INF O PAGES Muslim Community 2 6 Sithi Hawwa Art and Culture Agenda Religious Conversion of Filipino Domestic Bogdan Szajkowski 3 8 Helpers in Hong Kong An Old Muslim Community in Poland: 1 0 the Tatars The International Institute for Academic Meetings 2 7 t h e Study of Islam in the Modern 3 9 Elizabeth Attané World (ISIM) promotes and Identity and Fertility: Muslims in Xianxiang Philip Lewis conducts interdisciplinary ISIM Agenda 1 1 Muslims in Britain: Entering the Mainstream research on contemporary social 3 9 2 8 and intellectual trends and Jacqueline Armijo-Hussein movements in Muslim societies Resurgence of Islamic Education in China Marjo Buitelaar and communities. The ISIM’s 1 2 Narratives on Partner-Choice: research approaches are expressly interdisciplinary and 29 comparative, covering a large Farish Noor geographic range which includes Islam vs Secularism? The New Political Valérie Amiraux North Africa and the Middle East, Terrain in Malaysia and Indonesia Is Islam Soluble into Germany? Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, 1 3 Sunni Muslims of Turkish Origin South and Southeast Asia, and 30 (Muslim communities in) the West. Broad in its scope, the ISIM brings together all areas of e x p e r t i s e .