Prof. Francesca Corrao, you have treated with the Hon. Luciano Violante the edition of the book Islam is not terrorism published by the Mill: is there a correlation between Islam and terrorism?
We have tragically before our eyes the criminal actions of extremist fringes justified by a deviated reading of Islam. Unfortunately, the media does not help to distinguish between the correct and mild faith that the majority of Muslims profess, the speculation of politicians, and the wicked use made by the manipulators of Islam that bloody the Middle East and North Africa.
From the current information one has the impression that the relationship between Islam and terrorism is direct, and it is worth saying that in the Koran we talk more about peace than about war, more about rights than about prohibitions; there is no worse deaf than those who do not want to hear.
The Koran is composed of 114 Sure (chapters) that begin with the invocation "God is merciful and merciful"; as the great Tunisian historian Muhammad Talbi recalled, the good Muslim must have as a model the compassion and mercy of God. This should be continued with a thousand other examples; even if stereotypes are hard to die, it is essential to continue to give correct information so as not to end up in the vortex of a new anti-Semitism; even the Arabs are Semites.
Too little time has passed since the martyrdom of so many Jews accused of crimes ever committed, in order to justify a shameful genocide. We must not fall into the same trap of incorrect information, because it damages our judgment and leads us to suspect the vast majority of Muslims, unfairly damaging their dignity.
From the current information one has the impression that the relationship between Islam and terrorism is direct, and it is worth saying that in the Koran we talk more about peace than about war, more about rights than about prohibitions; there is no worse deaf than those who do not want to hear.
The Koran is composed of 114 Sure (chapters) that begin with the invocation "God is merciful and merciful"; as the great Tunisian historian Muhammad Talbi recalled, the good Muslim must have as a model the compassion and mercy of God. This should be continued with a thousand other examples; even if stereotypes are hard to die, it is essential to continue to give correct information so as not to end up in the vortex of a new anti-Semitism; even the Arabs are Semites.
Too little time has passed since the martyrdom of so many Jews accused of crimes ever committed, in order to justify a shameful genocide. We must not fall into the same trap of incorrect information, because it damages our judgment and leads us to suspect the vast majority of Muslims, unfairly damaging their dignity.
What is Islam today?
Explaining what faith is in over one and a half billion citizens living in very different cultural contexts is complicated. The principles that the Muslim must observe are few and clear, and are called the five pillars of Islam: the profession of faith in monotheism, prayer (five times a day), almsgiving (as a percentage of earnings), fasting for the month of Ramadan (from dawn to sunset for a month a year), and the pilgrimage to Mecca (at least once in your life, if you have the money available).To understand Islam today we need to know how it developed over time and in the different regions in which it has spread. Islam has always absorbed customs and habits of different places, where it has taken root; for example in Pakistan the Koran is read in Arabic, but for its in-depth study Urdu is used as in everyday life; as far as the political order is concerned, the country is a democratic republic, in which elections are held regularly, even though many foreign fighters have infiltrated the country due to the war in Afghanistan and have altered their living conditions. Consider, for example, Malala Yousafzai, the Nobel Peace Prize 2014, victim of an attack by the Taliban who wanted to prevent her and other kids from going to school. The situation in Morocco is different, where the 2011 constitutional reform granted the Amazigh language (spoken by the Berbers) dignity equal to the Arabic which is the national language. In Iran they speak Persian (an Indo-European language written with Arabic characters) and in Turkey one speaks Turkish (an agglutinative Ural-Altaic language, written with Latin characters) and the two peoples are ethnically and culturally very different. To learn more, I would recommend reading my bookIslam, religion and politics published by the LUISS University Press.
What are the trends in political thought, and how many and which religious currents exist in the Islamic faith countries facing the Mediterranean?
Also the political tendencies are numerous, and following the European colonial presence the institutions have been defined following the model of the western ones. The Islamic cultural renaissance in the nineteenth century was inspired by the readings of the French Enlightenment, and even the reform of the school and of educational systems followed our models. In Egypt already at the beginning of the 20th century there were liberal political, nationalist and socialist parties; later Nasser abolished the multi-party system that was resumed with many limits by Sadat. In Tunisia there are many political groups and also in Lebanon as well as in Morocco and Jordan. In other countries there is a political control that limits freedom of expression. The religious currents are very different and range from the most conservative, such as the Salafis and Wahabites, to the different currents within the movement of the Muslim brothers; these range from a respectful attitude for democratic institutions - such as the Ghannushi party in Tunisia - to the more totalitarian ones such as Erdogan's party in Turkey. Even among the Shiites there are different realities ranging from the Islamic constitutional republic of Iran, which has a very theocratic conception of democracy, to the Lebanese party ofHezbollah participating in parliamentary life. Then there are other religious groups, including the Alawites, a minority in power in Syria.
Is dialogue between Christians, Jews and Muslims possible?
Islam is widespread in many countries, and from the beginning the Charter of Medina, promulgated by the Prophet, has guaranteed the worship and respect of the private law of Jews and Christians who lived in territories with an Islamic majority. Islam is not against pluralism; for example in the constitution of Indonesia, the country with the largest number of Islamic citizens, religious pluralism is guaranteed. It should be remembered that for over a thousand centuries, Christians and Jews lived within the caliphate, first in Damascus and then in Baghdad and later on the Ottoman sultans. Let us not forget that after the expulsion from Spain, at the time of the reconquista, the Jews took refuge in North Africa, particularly in Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt, but also in Istanbul, where they were well received and integrated.
What are the economic and social effects of the failure of the Arab springs?
The failure of the Arab revolutions of 2011 was dramatic for the life of the Middle Eastern populations because despite the different governments have sometimes sought new ways to revive the economy, they have struggled to access the international markets and the funds of the World Bank.
Furthermore, the crisis in the Middle East has also hampered internal immigration. In Egypt as in Libya, for example, many Egyptians worked, but now it is difficult to work and live in a situation no longer under control and in territories often in the hands of armed gangs, sometimes governed by merchants of men and weapons. Emigrating to Europe is very risky and on other continents it is more expensive and very difficult. The Egyptian President al-Sisi, for example, to give work to the Egyptians doubled the Suez Canal but did not solve the problem of unemployment in a structural way. The crisis of terrorism is known to have struck the countries on the southern shore first and most of us. Both Egypt and Tunisia thanks to archaeological sites and beaches gave work to thousands of young people.
Furthermore, the crisis in the Middle East has also hampered internal immigration. In Egypt as in Libya, for example, many Egyptians worked, but now it is difficult to work and live in a situation no longer under control and in territories often in the hands of armed gangs, sometimes governed by merchants of men and weapons. Emigrating to Europe is very risky and on other continents it is more expensive and very difficult. The Egyptian President al-Sisi, for example, to give work to the Egyptians doubled the Suez Canal but did not solve the problem of unemployment in a structural way. The crisis of terrorism is known to have struck the countries on the southern shore first and most of us. Both Egypt and Tunisia thanks to archaeological sites and beaches gave work to thousands of young people.
What is the female condition in today's Islam and how will it evolve, in your opinion?
After liberation from colonial rule, the various Arab countries have launched Western-style constitutions, but have instead remained tied to the Islamic tradition with regard to private law, and in particular the rules that inform women's rights, marriage, divorce and the legacy. Important exceptions should be emphasized, namely Turkey which, having abolished the caliphate, banned the veil and gave the vote to women immediately after the end of World War I, imposing secularism on the country. Even the Tunisia of Burghiba gave the vote to women, to whom it granted divorce and equal rights to work and imposed monogamy; he also supported the many women's associations that helped develop the economy and education in rural areas. However, there are several Arab countries where the behavioral rules for women are discriminatory. Moreover, in recent decades a very radical conception of Islam is spreading that does not facilitate the spread of women's rights.
To understand the condition of women in the Islamic world it is appropriate to read Renata Pepicelli's book on Islamic Feminism published by Carocci.
Already in the first decades of the twentieth century women attended university, and therefore many professionals were trained. In the big cities the women of the bourgeoisie have studied in westernized schools, but also in American universities in Beirut as well as in Cairo; these women speak foreign languages and know our culture. Certainly they represent in the best cases 20% of the workforce.
In the countryside the situation is very different and the industry has developed too little to absorb female labor. Furthermore there is the problem of the constraints imposed by the shari'a; where the civil code does not provide it, the woman must have permission from her father or husband to be able to work. The father, or whoever takes his place, signs the marriage contract. For a woman it is not easy to divorce, if the father at the time of the stipulation of the marriage contract did not provide for the daughter the right to request a divorce. Sociological studies, such as the Lebanese Fahmiyya Sharafeddin, show that the subjugation of women is a problem linked to patriarchal culture rather than religion,
Already in the first decades of the twentieth century women attended university, and therefore many professionals were trained. In the big cities the women of the bourgeoisie have studied in westernized schools, but also in American universities in Beirut as well as in Cairo; these women speak foreign languages and know our culture. Certainly they represent in the best cases 20% of the workforce.
In the countryside the situation is very different and the industry has developed too little to absorb female labor. Furthermore there is the problem of the constraints imposed by the shari'a; where the civil code does not provide it, the woman must have permission from her father or husband to be able to work. The father, or whoever takes his place, signs the marriage contract. For a woman it is not easy to divorce, if the father at the time of the stipulation of the marriage contract did not provide for the daughter the right to request a divorce. Sociological studies, such as the Lebanese Fahmiyya Sharafeddin, show that the subjugation of women is a problem linked to patriarchal culture rather than religion,
What future for relations between Islam and the West?
Relationships need the commitment of both parties to be developed, and mutual knowledge is needed to promote dialogue. If we continue to talk about Islam only in terms of terrorism we will find it difficult to find interlocutors. At the same time, if our distrust does not fill the communication gap in the West it will be increasingly difficult to stem the drift of marginalized young people who are easy prey to "bad teachers". Terrorist propaganda offers young people paradise in exchange for the sacrifice of life, and is based on the malevolent and repeated proposition of images that show the tragic results caused by the wars waged by the West in the Middle East. It must be remembered that the situation is much more complex, because many Muslims live in the West and feel part of our society. A climate of knowledge and trust must be established in both parties; only with the constant effort of people of good will will it be possible to create dialogue and mutual respect. This is why I made the book "Islam is not terrorism" with Luciano Violante; I invited 7 Italian intellectuals from the Arab world and five Arab intellectuals, a Turk and an Italian-Somali to expose various aspects of Islamic culture: from politics to economics, from the right to philosophy and from the history of women to mysticism. In total 14 articles to get good scientific information in a simple language for anyone who wants to approach the Islamic culture and debunk so many ignoble prejudices. Today, supporting dialogue is the best way to defend and safeguard human rights.
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