Muslims and Islam in the Twenty-first Century Image and Reality

Abstract

The Muslim world remains embroiled in a whole host of religious, social,
political, economic, and cultural disputes. Without any real international
influence, despite the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference,
great wealth, and large numbers, Muslims are mere spectators in world politics;
Islam is synonymous with extremism; and Muslims are often labeled as
terrorists. Such issues, as well as questions of media bias, the validity of the
“clash of civilizations” thesis, Islamophobia, and realistic Muslim responses
led to the above conference, initiated by the Department of Psychology,
International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), Kuala Lumpur.
Held at the Putra World Trade Center and hosted by IIUM on August
4-6, 2004, this conference attempted to highlight and devise solutions to
some of these burning issues. Distinguished scholars presented 120 selected
papers, in addition to several panel discussions and keynote speeches.
About 400 delegates from over 30 countries participated, and Prime
Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi gave the inaugural speech.
After an “Introduction to the Conference” by Amber Haque, chairman
of the Organizing Committee, the morning session started with keynote
speeches from Ibrahim Abu Rabi` (“Globalization and Social Change”),
Lawrence Pintak (“The Communication Gap between America and the
World’s Muslims”), and Jamal Badawi (“Muslim–Non-Muslim Relations:
An Integrated Approach”). These papers were followed by a panel discussion
on “Internal Conflicts in Muslim Societies.” M. Nejatullah Siddiqui,
Jamal Badawi, Syed Shahabuddin, Anis Ahmad, Ismail Nawwab, Ziauddin
Sardar, and Zafar Ishaq Ansari were the participants, while Chandra
Muzaffar was the moderator. These scholars seemed to agree that while
Muslims must examine and resolve the ummah’s internal problems, they
should not ignore the problems’ external sources. This panel session was ...