مقدمة بحث قدمته في فانكوفر بكندا
The International Centre for Contemporary Middle
Eastern Studies and The University of Victoria
The 9th. International Conference on
The Muslim World and the West: Emerging Avenues for
Convergence
28-30
March 2008
Evaluation of Academic Conferences in the West about
Islam
By
Mazin
S. Motabagani Ph.D
Associate
Professor Orientalistics
Department
of Islamic Studies
Introduction
One of
the main activities of European and American universities has been to hold
conferences and symposia on the issues pertaining to Muslims and the Muslim
world in different fields: political, social, cultural …etc. Attendees are
usually specialists in these fields from the Muslim/ Arab World or the West. Attendees
include some representation from European or U. S governments.
These
conferences and symposia are originally meant to build bridges and strengthen
cultural ties between the West and Islam. They also seek to tackle some of the
problems or misunderstanding between the two Worlds.
Some
conferences and symposia do live up to the expectations and can be considered
real success in the great results the true learning experience the offer for
both parties. There are numerous examples of such excellent conferences which I
personally attended where the organizers were open minded to all views and gave
a good chance for balanced representation of different views and convictions. I
believe that some of the blame should go to the Arab and Muslim researchers who
do not venture to attend international conferences or even local ones at
Western universities. They either do not possess the needed proficiency in the
European languages or lack the methodology of the ability to present a paper in
a conference.
However
there are conferences that lack the real academic standards. Some
conferences are not well advertised, and therefore the attendees are of one
type or another. I
monitored conferences held by the B.B.C. in cooperation with Royal Institute
for International Affairs and found that most of the Arabs represented in these
conferences are the pro western or western educated. They would usually be an
echo of the views of their western counterparts. A Moroccan Scholar commented
on some conferences commented on some conferences that claim to be bridge
builders while in fact the invitations are extended to a certain types of Arab
and Muslim Scholars who are know to be critical of Islam and Islamic faith and
ready to relinquish their own faith for some trivial gains.
This
paper will attempt to present an evaluation of a number of conferences
according to the high standards of the European and the American standards of
equal opportunity and representation.
I will
tackle these issues in three sections:
- The
topics and themes of the conferences
-
Critical analysis of examples of Conferences held in the West.
- Basis
for a true dialogue and guidelines for future conferences.
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