Muslims in Lisbon: Diversity, Visibility and Intra‐ Community Dynamics
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The Local Emplacement of Muslims in Lisbon: Diversity, Visibility and Intra‐ community Dynamics Jennifer McGarrigle Centro de Estudos Geográficos, Universidade de Lisboa. 1 Author Jennifer McGarrigle Collection MIGRARE Working Papers 2014 Title The Local Emplacement of Muslims in Lisbon: Diversity, Visibility and Intra‐community Dynamics Publisher Centro de Estudos Geográficos Cover Design Ra Atelier ISBN 978‐972‐636‐243‐2 2 About the author Jennifer McGarrigle is a Research Fellow at the Centro de Estudos Geográficos, Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal. 3 Introduction In recent years, immigration to Portugal, and particularly to the capital city of Lisbon, has had a profound impact on the socio‐ethnic configuration of the metropolitan area. The incorporation of migrants into the city is evidently linked with processes of urban change (Malheiros 2012) as diversity is manifested though place‐making strategies at the local level and claims for recognition in the public sphere. Increasing religious pluralism is visible in the city as new places of worship mark the urban landscape (Fonseca and Esteves 2002). Yet, simultaneously there are complex stratums of visibility in Muslim Lisbon, in both human and built terms, as different communities have formed on the urban margins and appropriate ‘invisible’ spaces for rituals and worship. The purpose‐built Central Mosque, opened in the 1980’s, presides over a busy intersection in the centre of Lisbon as a symbolic assertion of Muslim presence in the city. The official mosque is an outcome of the endeavour for visibility that began in the 1960’s with the establishment of the Islamic Community of Lisbon (ICL) by ethnic‐ Indian Mozambican students (Machaqueiro 2011: 211). At this time, even though Islam was an important religion in the Portuguese empire, it was peripheral in geographic terms and there were only a handful of Muslims in Lisbon. Some authors have referred to the ‘Embassy Islam’ comprised mainly of diplomatic and consulate staff from Islamic countries like Egypt and Pakistan who provided economic support, physical places to pray and transnational national links for the early foundations of the Islamic Community of Lisbon (Bernardo 2010). It was only when colonial rule ended after the 25th April Revolution that Muslims began to migrate to Portugal from ex‐African colonies. Indeed, it is in the context of the transition to democracy that the evolution of State‐Muslim relations can be understood (Larson 2010). Muslims from other African and Asian countries, who arrived as labour migrants during the 1990’s, have served to increase the diversity of the Muslim community in Portugal. The incorporation of ‘new’ Muslims has led to important alterations in the internal composition of the Islamic community and in its spatial configuration in Lisbon. This working paper aims to contribute to the existing literature1 by exploring the articulation between Islam and space in the city, that is, residence and the appropriation of spaces for worship. In doing so, the discussion contributes to recent research that has shown the ways in which the local 1 The Muslim presence in Portugal has been studied and documented in a growing body of literature on community formation from a historical perspective (Vakil 2004, Tiesler 2001, 2005) ritual practices (Mapril 2005), the construction of Muslim identity representations (Mapril 2005, Machaqueiro 2011, 2012), the role of Muslim women in the community (Abranches 2004), Muslim youth (Tiesler and Cairns 2010) and institutional representation (Larson 2010) only to name a few. 4 emplacement of migrant faith groups transforms urban spaces through new cultural encounters, new spatial appropriations (Garbin 2010, Knowles 2013), the provision of welfare and social solidarity (Ley 2008, Winkler 2008, Conradson 2008) and particular forms of social and cultural capital (Levitt 2007). To this end, I draw upon both an analysis of census data and qualitative data from interviews with 21 Muslim leaders2 to explore the religious spatiality of Islam in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (henceforth LMA). In the first section, 2001 and 2011 census data on religion and nationality are analyzed to examine the evolution of the ethno‐religious geography of the metropolis. The qualitative geographies of the religious leaders also shed light on the processes underpinning patterns of settlement. The second section maps places of worship in the LMA drawing particular attention to the dichotomy of invisibility and visibility of places of worship in line with the distinct characteristics of congregations, built forms and urban marginality. In the third section, I discuss the diversity within the Islamic community in Lisbon and the ways in which this is manifest spatially in the city through processes of local emplacement. What I argue here is that the Muslim community in Lisbon, while portraying a strong and unified representation and dialogue in the public sphere, can only be properly understood through the study of the local communities that have formed across the city in line with internal diversities. In turn, such diversities produce different affiliations, appropriations of space and unequal institutional representation. Muslims in Lisbon: numbers and distribution A number of particularities render Islam in Portugal distinct, Tiesler (2001, 2005) highlights the relatively notable presence of Ismailis,3 the constitution of the Sunni community and the role of the elite and middle class. The ingress of labour migrants over the past two decades from South Asia, namely India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and other African countries including Guinea, Senegal and Morocco, has resulted in both a significant increase in the Muslim community and in intra‐group diversity. Subsequently, while Sunni Muslims comprise the vast majority, new Islamic denominations have been introduced into Portugal, including African‐cultured Sufism and the Barelvi (Ahle Sunnat wal Jama'at), Deobandi and Tablighi Jamaat movements. Although the Muslim population has grown over the census periods, now comprising the largest non‐Christian religious minority in Portugal, it is small in comparison with 2 Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with religious leaders/community presidents of both formal and informal places of worship between January and July 2012. All interviewees are male of migrant background and aged between 30 and 60 years of age. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed with the aid of qualitative software. 3 It is estimated that there are around 8,000 Ismailis in Portugal. 5 other European countries (table 1). Indeed, according to 2011 census data, the Muslim population aged over 15 numbers slightly over 20,000 nationwide and around 14,000 in the LMA. In contrast, estimates in the literature of the total Muslim population are between 48,000 and 55,000 (Mapril and Tiesler 2013) and those of religious leaders interviewed in 2012 range from 40,000 to 60,000. Table 1 Religious affiliation, Portugal and LMA, population aged 15 and over, 1981‐ 2011 1981 1991 2001 2011 PT LMA PT LMA PT LMA PT LMA Non‐response 14.2 19.7 17.6 24.1 9.04 13.8 8.3 12.1 % of valid responses Catholic 94.5 87.4 94.6 88.1 92.9 85.6 88,30 78.4 Orthodox 0.04 0.06 0.16 0.16 0.22 0.32 0,69 1,06 Protestant 0.58 1.17 0.54 1.04 0.61 1.16 0,92 1,65 Other Christian 0.89 1.69 1.15 2.18 1.55 2.55 1,98 3,22 Jewish 0.08 0.13 0.05 0.08 0.02 0.04 0,04 0,05 Muslim 0.06 0.21 0.13 0.33 0.15 0.49 0,25 0,68 Other non‐Christian 0.06 0.14 0.14 0.31 0.18 0.41 0,35 0,69 No religion 3.78 9.19 3.27 7.86 4.33 9.48 7,46 14,20 Source: INE, 1981, 1991, 2001 and 2011 Censuses The main nationality of Muslims living in the LMA is Portuguese4 followed by nationals from Guinea Bissau. When country of birth is considered, Mozambique follows Guinea Bissau as the second most important country of origin, confirming the Muslim presence as being in large part a post‐colonial phenomenon. In addition, more recent flows from Asia and other African countries are also visible in the data, with the largest group from Pakistan followed by Bangladesh, Senegal, Morocco and a smaller number from India. 4 Many post‐colonial migrants arrived in Portugal as Portuguese nationals. 6 Table 2. Muslim population aged 15 or over, Lisbon Metropolitan Area, by Main Nationalities and Country of Birth, 2011 Country Nationality Country of Birth Portugal 5944 2033 Guinea‐Bissau 3165 5357 Pakistan 862 1087 Bangladesh 424 553 Senegal 349 430 Guinea 333 404 Mozambique 263 2474 Morocco 214 327 India 114 307 Bulgaria 85 89 Source: INE 2011 Census The territorial distribution of Muslims in the LMA, though characterized by a strong central presence, has changed over time. In 1981, in absolute terms, the highest number of Muslims resided in the City of Lisbon. Fonseca and Esteves (2002) attribute this to the fact it is the point of reception for the vast majority of migrants when they arrive in the country and also the place of residence for employees of the embassies of Islamic countries. Still, Muslims were over‐represented in other suburban councils5 (Figure 1). In 1991, the Muslim community maintained an important base in Lisbon; however, the community in Loures grew rapidly and overtook Lisbon as the municipality with the highest absolute number of Muslims6. At the same time, smaller groups consolidated in the municipalities of Seixal, Cascais, Almada, Sintra and Amadora (Figure 2). The specific phases of urban development and housing market trends coincident with the arrival of the first Muslim migrants to the city resulted in many settling on the urban periphery were housing was cheaper or the possibility of informal settlement existed.