29 Nov. - 5 Dec. 2001
Issue No.562
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 29 Nov. - 5 Dec. 2001 Issue No.562 |
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Message from the Arabs
To combat anti-Arab and anti-Muslim rhetoric is one aim of the Arab League's newest bureau, formed during a conference last week at the League's Cairo headquarters. Dina Ezzat and Amina El-Bendari report
Events of 11 September and the rhetoric accompanying the American-led war against terrorism have heightened anti-Arab and anti- Muslim sentiments, giving confrontational theories such as Samuel Huntington's (often discredited, always controversial) "clash of civilisations" a new lease on life. In an attempt to combat discrimination the Arab League hosted a two-day conference on "Civilizations: Dialogue Not Confrontation."
Despite the seemingly defensive attitude adopted by many in the Arab world the conference, which concluded on Tuesday, had an obvious and assertive goal; dialogue was the keyword, "not confrontation."
"Are we entering a phase of racial and/or religious discrimination against Arabs and Muslims?" wondered Amr Moussa, secretary-general of the Arab League, in his inaugural speech to the conference. Moussa argued that Arabs should avoid being portrayed or dealt with as the new enemy of the West. Indeed, as His Royal Highness Prince Al-Hassan of Jordan, chairman of the think tank Muntada Al-Fikr Al-Arabi (Arab Thought Forum) argued in his opening speech: "Islamophobia is a phenomenon that requires diligent and enlightened confrontation as well as constructive dialogue on our part... This conference of ours should send to the whole world a clear message that emphasises our condemnation of terrorism, regardless of its tools and means."
Arab intellectuals, academics and officials met at the headquarters of the Arab League to discuss a programme to secure collective Arab action to promote the ideals of cross-cultural understanding and dialogue. The conference concluded with a decision to establish a permanent board whose aim will be to establish closer ties between the Arab-Islamic and other civilisations, and improve the image of Arabs and Muslims in the international media, an image which is perceived to have been tarnished since the 11 September attacks.
Among the recommendations espoused by many participants is the establishment of an Arab satellite television channel targeting the non-Arab world. The Arab cultural board is expected to actively confront racist claims about Arab-Islamic civilisation vis-à- vis other world civilisation, in particular the West. The new board, whose mandate is expected to be endorsed by the upcoming Arab Summit due to convene in Beirut next March, will work in close coordination with the Arab League.
The situation of Arab expatriates abroad received considerable attention during the two-day conference, prompting the establishment of an Arab League Commissioner for Arabs Abroad. Through this new bureau the League hopes to engineer closer cooperation with Arab communities outside the Arab world.
The Arab League has established a fund to finance the cultural activities to be undertaken by the new board, under the overall supervision of an Arab League Commissioner for Cultural Affairs, a newly-created post whose first occupant is yet to be announced. Sheikh Zayed Al Nahayan, president of the United Arab Emirates, made the first donation -- of $1 million -- to the fund. Further donations are expected from individuals, non-governmental organisations and governments across the Arab world.
In popular and academic discourses (and indeed even within this conference) the "other" civilisation alluded to is all too often reduced to the West -- a natural consequence of contemporary political realities. Yet as Ibrahim Nafie, Al-Ahram editor in-chief and chairman of the Arab Press Syndicate argued in his speech, Arab efforts to promote increased dialogue should not be confined to the West. "We also have to seek closer rapport with Eastern and African civilisations as well."
One of the shy underlining themes of the conference was the issue of self-criticism as a first step in establishing healthy encounters. According to Lebanese Minister of Culture Ghassan Salame, Arabs are not trying to argue that they are better than others. "This is not the case; we are saying we have our problems but so do others; we should be ready to exercise self-criticism but so should you."
But Salame also had a more poignant message to press in his own opening speech: civilisations do not clash or engage in dialogue, he argued; people do.
The message of the conference, according to the final Cairo Cultural Communiqué and Programme of Action, is dialogue with all. "No one culture can respond to the demands [of development] of humanity. And no one culture can claim the uncontested right to provide the ultimate recipe for human performance in this intriguing world," the communiqué states.
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