What future for political Islam : dilemmas and opportunities for the next decade

Fuller, Graham

Kurpershoek, M.

2004

WRR

As the topic for the second wrr lecture (The Hague, December 9th, 2004), the council decided on ‘the future of political Islam’. This topic turned out to be both timely and appropriate. Both politicians and policy makers badly need knowledge and genuine understand-ing of Islam, political Islam and the complex relationship between the two. Without an adequate understanding and knowledge, it will most likely be fear and not facts that guides policies, both the foreign and the domestic ones. Understanding Islam both as a reli-gious, cultural and political phenomenon will help to look beyond the easy images that are so widely available in the media, these weapons of mass seduction. In the long run, mutual learning and dialogue, instead of clear-cut clashes and confrontations are the attitudes that are urgently needed. These attitudes have to be informed by research. The lectures by Graham Fuller and Marcel Kurpershoek that you will find in this booklet are important contri-butions to such an understanding. The council is happy to publish them in a series of publications that the Council has and will devote to this subject.

Islam and politics

English

9080899739