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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: E who wrote (94705)	4/18/2003 9:06:49 PM
From: Sun Tzu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

So if I am reading you correctly, you are asking three questions: (1) Which parts of Islam are local to its culture and which parts are the "real" parts of Islam. There are two ways you can deduce this. One is by studying Islam and interpreting the rules for yourself. The other is by contrasting what you see in one Muslim community with another one. Take the issue of hijab (women's dress code) for example. There is only two verses in Koran about that. One has to do with cautions against safety (i.e. you don't want to be mugged because you are dressed too richly) and the other was about not dressing in such a way to be confused with a prostitute. Together these have been interpreted into various edicts for women, some of which are revolting to me. In Saudi and under the Taliban, this dress code meant being wrapped up in borga (basically a bed sheet over the woman with holes for the eyes). In fundamentalist Iran Hijab meant having the woman's hair covered (they have laxed the rules now). But in Pakistan, which is even more religious than Iran, it simply meant having a scarf over the chest and not exposing legs. In Nigeria, it just means dressing normal. So I don't buy into the idea that Islam is overly restrictive to women through say the imposition of the dress code, even though the dress code pushed by many Muslim countries is restrictive. Like I said, either you can learn the rules or you can contrast them in different communities to see what is and is not dependent upon local culture. (2) Is an outside culture justified in changing the local customs? I left out the word "cruel" out of your question because that is a judgment call. Cultural change is inevitable. Cultures are not static things, even when their supporters try to keep them so. So in theory I will say if your intentions are honorable, then yes you can get crack at it. BUT, and this is a very big BUT, cultures like intricate ecosystems. History is strongly on the side of very gradual change and very cautious approach. I am going to provide a few examples of how such cultural "enlightenments" have led to disaster in other parts of the world even when the intentions have been noble. In New Guinea the missionaries told the natives it is a sin to run around naked. As a result many converts in villages died of pneumonia because after rain their cloths did not dry as quickly as naked bodies. In Thailand many blame the rise of prostitution on the dictated policy of monogamy. Prostitution rarely existed prior to such western ideas. I can also give you good examples of cultural change. In China, one of the missionary sisters whose name I have forgotten, was instrumental in abolishing the practice of wrapping women's feet (at least in her little sphere). Before you can ask for cultural change, you need to understand the local culture and all the delicate interconnection to what you are trying to change. It may surprise you that many Iranian women feel sorry for their western counterparts. From their perspective you have a worse life. Given a choice between drastic change to the western "freedom" and what they have, most of them would keep it as is. They do however want some changes. (3) If the Muslim members of the local culture don't make the distinction you suggest, is it sensible for outsiders to? No it is not right. Most Arab nations have a very incorrect view of Islam. They confuse race, religion, and local culture with one another. If you accept their mistaken identity and not bring to light the distinctions, then you are walking into a very big trap. The combined force of all three together is too great to overcome. But once the issues have been clarified, correct solutions may be found. Sun Tzu