The pursuit of multiculturalism is not a pipe dream but the most essential way to beat extremists and achieve mutual respect and peaceful co-existence between people, nations, religions and cultures.
That is the core message from a one-day international symposium held in Dundee at the Al-Maktoum Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies.
Margaret Curran MSP, Minister for Parliamentary Business at the Scottish Executive, opened the event, which also attracted an audience of international practitioners, academics and policy makers.
In his opening address, Professor Abd al-Fattah El-Awaisi, Principal of Al-Maktoum Institute said: ”People in the UK were shocked to learn the suicide bombers who hit London last July were not from some foreign land but had all been born and brought up in Britain. “This was a clear signal the doctrine of fundamentalism is not just concentrated in a few refugee camps situated in some foreign countries.”
Professor El-Awaisi said following the July 7 bombings the debate about the future viability of multiculturalism in Western Europe had gained in significance.
A variety of opinions had been expressed ranging from declaration on the “death” of multiculturalism on one hand to fierce affirmations of multicultural ideals on the other.
The buzzwords defining the debate were integration, assimilation, segregation and alienation and they had obscured the gentler and more liberal terms of tolerance, diversity, pluralism and respect that had defined the debate a decade before. It had to be understood multiculturalism was a process not an end product.
Professor El-Awaisi added: “I still firmly believe multiculturalism is the most essential way to beat extremists.” He outlined the work being done at the Al-Maktoum Institute since it was established in Dundee in 2001. The Institute is supported by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, who set out his own vision of multiculturalism two years ago.
An important element of the Institute’s teaching is a commitment to better understanding of multiculturalism and the issues that cultural and religious diversity provide in the 21st century.
A number of initiatives had already been undertaken including the establishment of the Al-Maktoum Awards for Multicultural Scotland, the organisation of summer schools for female students from the UAE in Dundee over the past three years on the theme of multiculturalism and leadership, the creation of a multicultural garden in a Dundee primary school, the creation of the Al-Maktoum Foundation, a charity to promote multiculturalism and a partnership with local agencies in Dundee, including the local authority, to provide advice and training on multiculturalism.
Professor El-Awaisi said: “So what is the end product of all of these activities? In two words ‘mutual respect.’ We all have our own identities and beliefs but instead of there being a clash of cultures, East v West, Muslim v Christian the Institute was established here in Scotland to promote a multicultural future that will see people acknowledging and respecting their differences but willing to share common ground and live and work together in peaceful co-existence.”
Opening the symposium, the Minister for Parliamentary Business, Margaret Curran said, “Scotland’s society is dynamic and culturally diverse and we are all stronger for the variety of cultures, nationalities and faiths that thrive here. We are rightly proud of our rich heritage and of the new faiths and traditions it continues to embrace today. There is no place for racism or religious intolerance in any civilised society, and the Executive is committed to working towards a Scotland where people of all races and all faiths can live and work together with respect. Through these links, and with the help of organisations such as the Al-Maktoum Institute, we can create a modern Scotland which will thrive and build bridges between communities at all levels.”
In all, a dozen speakers took part in the international symposium and among other topics discussed were the role of Muslim women in multiculturalism, research on Muslims in Scotland and Catholic approaches to multiculturalism. There were also contributions about the experience of multiculturalism in France, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia.
