The Royal Society of Edinburgh Edinburgh International Book Festival Saturday 28 August 2010 The Future of Islam for

Muslims in the West Tariq Ramadan

Report by Peter Barr

More listening, less judgement. More sensitivity, less aggression.

Billed in advance as a lightning rod for controversy, the Swiss-born academic Tariq Ramadan said everybody living in the West Muslims as well as non-Muslims should engage in open dialogue and listen to each other, exploring what we have in common rather than focusing on the problems that drive us apart... Introduced by Chairman Stuart Kelly (Literary Editor of Scotland on Sunday) as the Muslim Martin Luther, Ramadan stressed throughout the one-hour event that all of us have multiple identities but share the same future. Ramadan himself is a selfstyled reformist, comfortable in many roles, including European, universalist and Muslim. Can the Muslim community be fully Western and fully Muslim at the same time? he asked at the start. Indigenous citizens are simply earlier immigrants, he said near the end, but some have to prove they are citizens more than others. Ramadan has also been accused by his critics as a Trojan horse for radical Islam, but ultimately he seeks intellectual empathy and reconciliation. He started his talk by explaining why he wrote his recent book, What I believe an attempt to talk about the controversial topic of Islam in such a way that it would be accessible to Muslims as well as non-Muslims. Without seeking to avoid complexity, he wanted to go beyond the problems of Islam to talk about citizenship and identity, as well as the essence of Islam. He also wanted to discuss the socio-economic problems faced by us all rather than reduce all problems to religion, and go beyond blame to talk about our shared responsibilities and the need for more constructive debate. Many Westerners are ignorant or frightened of Islam, and even talk about the silent colonisation of the West by Islam. These issues can't be ignored, but Ramadan also suggested that many politicians and journalists stir up controversy for personal gain. We can't be spiritual and colonised by fear, he said, since religion is all about coming to terms with our fears. Even though Ramadan seeks dialogue and understanding, several controversial problems would not go away, however, including the infamous Danish cartoons, Islamic extremists, terrorism and attempts to ban the burqa in several countries topics raised by members of the audience. In Switzerland, said Ramadan, there have even been attempts to outlaw minarets, despite constitutional backing for freedom of conscience and freedom of worship.

Ramadan also talked about the recent proposal to build an Islamic community centre near the site of Ground Zero, saying that although most Westerners are ignorant of Islam and see it as a threat, the Muslim community should also be more sensitive to peoples feelings and be aware of other factors, not just their rights. The proposal is a bad good idea, he added, and it could be perceived as an insult to memory in certain quarters. We need wisdom as well as the law, he suggested, but even though a lot of people talk about the need for open dialogue, what they actually engage in is an interactive monologue. Later on, he also said that freedom must have limits. Just because we have the right to do something does not mean we should do it. More sensitivity, less aggression, he added. Ignorance and misrepresentation of Islam can also lead to division, and Kelly suggested that language was part of the problem, including now common words such as jihad. Ramadan explained that jihad has nothing to do with holy war but actually means road to peace and improvement. He then turned his attention to the European concept of tolerance, saying that tolerance is not enough. I want to be respected not accepted or tolerated, Ramadan said. I can tolerate you and ignore you but I cannot ignore you if I respect you. Sometimes we use the same words but not the same meaning, he added. Ramadan also said that to avoid any kind of doubletalk, he wanted to get to the essence of the religious message and stop talking about Islam as a problem but as a religion. Intellectual empathy is critical to Ramadan's approach to religion and philosophy: I may not agree with you but I am trying to understand. Now is the time to love more and open the door. In the quest for meaning, Ramadan continued, let us talk about our West and what we have in common. As part of this new narrative, we need to recognise our common history of diverse memories. Ramadan is also full of hope that a new generation of scholars and citizens is trying to understand and build bridges, recognising we are from the same society. Ramadan also highlighted some of the contradictions which get in the way of more open debate. Muslims used to be criticised for not knowing enough about European civilisation, but today they are mistrusted for knowing too much. He also suggested that the much higher profile of Muslims today in the West is ironically because they are more integrated not less. Instead of hiding in the background, they are more confident about displaying their identity and thus more visible. They want to be welcomed. Asked about the UK Government's attitudes to Islam and support for Turkey's entry into the EU, Ramadan pointed out that according to surveys, 73 per cent of all Europeans supported Israel in 1967 but that today the situation is reversed, with 67 per cent supporting Palestine. The critical question is consistency, said Ramadan. There is hypocrisy regarding Turkey's entry, he added, as if it is regarded as a Muslim state, not really European. Europe also has no single policy on Palestine. Ramadan condemned violent extremism, but said that even though some politicians, such as ex-PM Tony Blair, say there is no relationship between the UK's foreign policy and acts of terrorism, the simple fact is that the extremists do make the connection. The Iraq war was based on lies, he continued, but we should talk about it as Europeans, not according to religious or political beliefs. Asked what he thought about the new atheism in Europe, Ramadan said that these militant atheists are responding to the fact that religion is on the agenda again.

God is back, he added, but if atheists want to engage in debate, they should be more serious and less reductive and not treat people with religious beliefs as dreamers and simplistic minds. Similarly, religious people should face up to the complex challenges of modern life. Ethics must be applied in everyday life, he continued. Don't just pray for change in the world but pray while changing the world. When it comes to understanding Islam, Ramadan said it was important to listen to Muslims as well as read the primary sources, including the Quran. There are many different kinds of Muslims, he continued, the same as with Christians. Don't be a judge, he said, but an active participant in the dialogue. Read the books and listen to what people say about them more listening, less judgement. In response to an audience question about the reaction of the whole Muslim world to the blasphemous Danish cartoons, Ramadan explained that it was three months after publication before there were any significant protests, and also many voices of dissent among Muslims. There was also a difference between the reaction of media and politicians, while many of the protests should be seen in the context of the frustration felt by many Muslims in countries where they have no political freedoms and a negative perception of the West. It is easier, he added, for some governments to allow demonstrations against the West rather than against their own regimes, because it diverts people from reality. We must condemn excessive reactions, he said, but we should also understand why feelings do run so high, in face of Western dominance and arrogance. Ramadan also said he was opposed to any new laws for the protection of religious minorities (e.g. blasphemy laws), saying that we have enough already, including antiracist legislation. In France, there are proposals to take away citizenship from anyone who advocates unconstitutional practices such as female circumcision or polygamy, but Ramadan believes this is a dangerous idea that would only be counterproductive, not only changing the law but the spirit of the law by creating different levels of citizenship. On a more scriptural note, Ramadan explained that there are primary and secondary sources in Islamic law, and a lot of ignorance about the main sources. As a reformist, he believes that we must understand the context of the primary sources and how they apply to ethics today. Muslims should engage in dialogue with Christians, Jews, Buddhists and atheists, but let's look at our principles and values, not just the texts, he said. The models in the scriptures are historical, he added, but the principles are universal. Similarly, we should not avoid discussing extremists but see them in context. George W. Bush may have said that the terrorists hated Western civilisation, but it is not a battle of good versus bad. Muslims range across the spectrum of humanity, like everyone else. Political Islam is as complex as Islam itself, he added.

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