A Muslim Centrist Platform for Democracy in the Arab World
2004 Report (Continued)
The Prince called for the establishment of a "Regional Code of Conduct" that would extend from Cairo to Calcutta and would lay the foundations for a peace unlike the so-called Cold Peace between Egypt, Jordan, and Israel--rather, a real "people's peace." The bottom line, he said, is to move from compilation to conversation via a Regional Citizens' Assembly that would provide opportunities for civil networking and the growth of an inclusive, rational Islamic movement that would be consistent with the principles of the Islamic faith.
Prince Hassan then underlined that Islam is not a monolith, nor is it the only religion that grapples with issues of adapting religious tradition to the demands of modernity. Catholicism, for instance, faces many of the same debates. The church and state are separate spheres that intersect in some contexts. In other words, while Prince Hassan does advocate Caesaro-Papism, he also supports the reinstatement of traditional Islamic institutions like the shura into governance--if not government. The Muslim people, he said, must become politically involved from the bottom up. And not all of the sources of authority in Islam are religious ones, per se. The shura is a way of sharing authority among multiple groups and individuals, and preventing any "monopoly of truth." We find ourselves today, the Prince said, at a "watershed moment" in this move toward greater representation.
On the issue of Islam and elections, Prince Hassan mentioned the upcoming Dialogues conference in Amman which will be co-hosted by his organization, Majlis el Hassan. He noted that Muslim countries are not the only ones dealing with corruption in public life. Practitioners from across the Muslim world will discuss these topics at the workshop in March.
Prince Hassan concluded his speech by defending religious non-coercion in this global age. He asked the audience to take a closer look at the countries of the Muslim world. Iran, which may seem like a theocracy, has many reformist ministers and a President who is ready to compromise. Turkey, which has chosen democracy, has not been able to prevent human rights violations. Any value system must be judged, the Prince insisted, on how it handles diversity. Support for political Islam does not inherently reject the democratic process.
The Prince's speech was followed by a question and answer session. The first question was posed by Bob Kerrey, who asked--given the threat of terrorism and the importance of this issue to the American public, especially in the context of the upcoming presidential election--how Prince Hassan would suggest that the Arab world address the problem of radical Islamists. Or, in other words, "how do we help moderate Muslims"? Prince Hassan answered that in order to "pull the rug out" from under the feet of extremism, the region needs to place an emphasis on human security and improved quality of life. In addition, the U.S. should take the initiative in creating an international non-denominational peace corps as well as an international media peace corps--a consortium of satellite stations that could report world events with "subtlety."
A member of the audience then asked the Prince to react to "the fact that we continue defining ourselves by a single identity." He responded in support of the notion of hybrid and multiple identities and said that one way of reinforcing this idea would be the foundation of a "coalition of the sane" which would reinforce pluralism everywhere wile combating the illegal drug trade and the black market.
Bob Kerrey reacted by saying that the terrorists of 9/11 did not seem insane; rather, they were expressing a rational desire and plan to kill "infidels." Prince Hassan argued that there is nothing rational about also killing 300 Muslims, who were among the victims. The terrorists were motivated not by reason but by propaganda, he said. The use of words like "crusade" and the phrase "Axis of Evil" only make it more difficult for us to find middle ground.
Another member of the audience expressed surprise that the events of the Cold War, the very background for today's problems, were not brought into the discourse. Kerry replied that indeed the mistakes made in the past are frequently discussed but can also be misused as justification for the U.S. not to get involved in the world's problems. Prince Hassan then said that yes, Saddam Hussein was a creature of the United States, but that the U.S. could never pull out of Iraq at this point for security and economic reasons.
The next speaker asked the Prince to consider whether religious reformation is needed in Islam. Prince Hassan retorted that one cannot generalize across all Muslim communities. As he explained in his speech, the need for evolution and reformation of moral authority is an issue in many faiths. But yes, he said, Muslim scholarship must be liberated and a merit-based society must be built. Dissenters need to regain their freedom under post-9/11 scrutiny.
Back to the top.Recent Event ...
Iran and the Middle East: How to Shape a Security Regime Acceptable to All Regional Actors
Panel discussion at New York University on Wednesday, March. 26, 2008 6:30—8:30 pm
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