Salonaz Sami sounds out Radwan A Masmoudi, head of the Centre for the Study of Islam and Democracy, on the Danish cartoons furore that hit the Arab and Muslim worlds Radwan A Masmoudi, head of the Centre for the Study of Islam and Democracy, stresses that the main objectives of CSID are to contribute to the promotion of democracy, good governance, freedom, and human rights in the Arab and Muslim worlds. "As American Muslims we have been monitoring the situation in the Muslim world, and especially the Arab world (which represents about 20 per cent of the Muslim world) with great frustration and concern," he explained. "Despite enormous wealth, human capital and natural resources, Arab and Muslim countries rank at the bottom of the development scale. Poverty and corruption are rising, and unemployment is very high (between 20 and 40 per cent depending on the country)." Furthermore, elaborated Masmoudi, a majority of the 300 million Arabs are under the age of 21, so these statistics are bound to get much worse in the next five to 10 years. "Millions of young Arabs and Muslims are growing with a sense of loss and despair, with no hope for a better future. They are not allowed to criticise their governments, and if they do want to become active or involved, they find that all avenues for peaceful activism are shut down." This is an environment that can only encourage violence and extremism, he warned. And unless we can turn things around, will lead necessarily to further worsening of the situation. "This is a serious threat not only to the Arab and Muslim worlds, but also to the entire planet as Muslims represent 1.4 billion people on earth and are the majority in over 65 countries." In an exclusive interview with Al-Ahram Weekly, Masmoudi addressed various aspects of the issues raised in wake of the Danish cartoon crisis. What are the limitations, in your opinion, on the concept of freedom of expression and should countries include laws prohibiting religious offences of any sort? In general, people should be free to do whatever they want as long as they don't transgress on the freedoms and rights of others. Freedom of expression is an important principle in a democracy, but there are also other important principles such as freedom of religion, religious harmony, and respecting other people's beliefs. Freedom of religion does not mean that you can go around insulting other people based on their religion, race, ethnicity, or color. Indeed, there should be laws prohibiting hate speech, racial or religious discrimination, and racism. Nobody would want to live in a country or community where every religious or ethnic group is insulting the other. In my opinion, democracy is the only solution to this disastrous situation as it will put people in charge of their own destiny, and give them the means and the tools to improve their conditions and live a dignified life, the way our creator has intended for us all to live. Could there be any journalistic justification for publishing such cartoons? In my opinion, no. These cartoons mock and insult the prophet of Islam. The only reason to publish these cartoons is either if you want to insult all Muslims or if you want to provoke an even wider gap between the West and the Muslim world. Do you think that the Muslim nations took the right response? Or as Muslims, what should we do in reaction to such offences to Islam? I think Muslims have the right to express their anger and frustration with these insults, but they must do so peacefully. Violence is not appropriate, and makes the situation worse. We must ask ourselves, as Muslims, how would the prophet have reacted? The prophet was insulted by stupid and ignorant people all the time when he was alive, as indeed were all the prophets, but he never reacted angrily or with violence. He always tried to use those occasions to educate people about who he is and about his true message. We cannot let our enemies define us. We have to define ourselves, and what we believe in. Do you think that the economic boycott is an appropriate step to be taken against these offences? Absolutely. It is a form of peaceful protest and a way to express one's anger or disgust with a particular company or country. If you insult me and my religion, the least I can do is stop buying your products. On the other hand, these boycotts cannot be orchestrated by governments, especially those that have signed free trade agreements. They must be organised by popular demand and non- governmental organisations. What steps do you think the Muslim nation ought to take in defining the real essence of Islam? Muslims and Muslim nations must spend a lot of money, effort, and resources to educate non- Muslim Europeans and Americans about Islam and about Prophet Mohamed, peace be upon him. There is a lot of ignorance in the West about Islam and Muslims, and we really need to do a lot more to explain our religion, our culture, and our civilisation to the majority of the people in the West. If we don't succeed in doing this, people in the West will continue to be afraid of Islam and Muslims, and the conflict between civilisations will turn into an outright war between the West and the Muslim world. This war will last at least 100 years, will not be pretty, and there will be no winners. All of humanity will lose from this war and it will be very destructive. Education is the key to building mutual understanding on both sides of the divide. What were the efforts carried out by your centre in response to these offences? Since 1999, we have been doing our best to educate Americans about Islam. The biggest misconceptions people in America have about Islam is that it is incompatible with democracy, human rights (especially of women and minorities), and basic freedoms. We have organised hundreds of lectures, seminars, workshops, and conferences in Washington DC, the United States, and indeed throughout the Muslim world, to educate people (Muslims and non-Muslims alike) about democracy's compatibility with Islam, and about the true and beautiful nature of our religion, and that the extremists do not speak for Islam or Muslims. Following these offensive cartoons, we have had several meetings with high-level officials in the US administration to explain our views on this and to urge them to denounce these cartoons, and defend the principles of religious freedom, diversity, and mutual respect, which indeed they have done. We have also had a large number of interviews with the media on the same subject. Do you think such offenses were driven by a misconception of the Islamic faith or an indifference to religions in general? I believe that many people in Europe have little respect for religions in general, and have no understanding of the importance of religion not only in the Muslim world, but to the majority of humanity outside of Europe. In addition to that, there is a lot of ignorance and misinformation about Islam, and there are many racist individuals and organisations who are trying to blame all of Islam and Muslims for the actions of a radical and extremist fringe. Do you think that Muslims are still persecuted in the US? If so is it getting worse or is it getting better? There is very little persecution of Muslims going on in the US right now. Yes, there are a few isolated cases here and there, but in general, the US of America remains the freest country on earth, where people of all religions can practice their faith and live their lives in freedom, respect, tolerance, and brotherhood. There is no other place on earth where I would rather live today, and that includes, unfortunately, most of the so-called Muslim countries where freedoms are severely limited. According to Islam, what should be the action taken regarding the cartoonist? And do you think that the death threats issued by some Islamist fundamentalists against him justifiable? Of course not. The people who committed this crime against our prophet do not deserve the death threat, they deserve to be educated. I am glad to say that most of the demonstrations in the Arab and Muslim world have been very peaceful. Those who have resorted to violence or called for violence are extremists who do not understand the nature of the world in which we live. In the 21st century, and in this increasingly small global village, ideas are much more powerful than bullets, and education and the media are much more effective than violence, which tends to be counterproductive, most of the time. There is a growing feeling in continental Europe that Britain and America should have taken a principled stand on grounds of free speech, but have failed. What do you think about that? I think this is because British and American citizens have far greater respect for religion in general, and also because American and British Muslims are much more engaged in their societies and better organised than Muslims in other countries of Europe.
