CIAO DATE: 05/2009
Volume: 2009, Issue: 11
Spring 2009
Cybèle Cochran
A common misconception pervades in the West that women are all mistreated in Arab societies due to the application of Islamic law (shari‛a). Scanning media articles, we see references to stoning as punishment for adultery in Iran and requiring of the burka for women under the Taliban.1 In Morocco, however, women are not obligated to wear the veil and stoning is not an acceptable punishment for any crime. All of these countries have Muslim governments, and all claim to base their legal systems on shari‛a principles. What then accounts for the differences in their treatment of women under the law?
"Who is the Real Tariq Ramadan?" (PDF)
Christopher DeVito
Anyone following the debate about Islam in Europe over the last decade has undoubtedly heard of Tariq Ramadan. They have also surely heard the question: ‘who is the real Tariq Ramadan?’ His detractors have described him as ‘a wolf in sheep’s clothing.’ Those who see promise in the project he has undertaken have called him a Muslim Martin Luther. Popular accounts, portray him as either the head of a fifth column intent on transforming Europe into Eurabia, or someone whose effort to establish an authentically European Islam offers the promise of heading off impending cultural strife. In these respects he has become a symbol for people’s hopes and fears. He is a bogeyman for those who see Europe’s Muslims as a threat to the continent’s enlightenment and Christian heritage.
Benedetta Berti
This article examines the Israeli citizenship discourse, emphasizing the influence of Israel’s historical experience, societal composition and constitutive values. The first section provides the theoretical foundation of the essay, describing the Israeli citizenship model, stressing its complex nature, and explaining how three alternative models of citizenship—liberal, republican, and ethno‐nationalist—co‐exist and interact in the Israeli polity.
"Interview with Robert Baer, Author of The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower" (PDF)
Michael Mylrea
The ongoing showdown with Iran is one of the greatest US foreign policy challenges of this century. Iran’s ambition to become the region’s superpower has been bolstered by its large oil and gas supply, Shiites gaining control in Iraq, Hezbollah—an Iranian proxy army—fighting Israel to a standstill, and, its defiant move to become a nuclear power. Bold messages from Iran, such as that it will retaliate against the West and its allies if they try to impede its rise to power, are challenging to interpret.
"Interview with Mr. Gabe Kadell, Refugee Relocation Specialist: 'New Faces in a Different Land'" (PDF)
Michael Mylrea
War refugees have many faces and stories that the media tends to miss. While the news focuses on images of conflict and violence, it glosses over the fate of refugees who are forced to flee and start their lives over in completely foreign lands. Fearing the threat of violence, millions of Iraqis were forced or chose to flee from their homes to Jordan and Syria.
"Notions of Islam and the West in the US-Libyan Relationship: An Historical Perspective" (PDF)
Farah Bushashia
“Oh my God, they found me, I don’t know how, but they found me,” frantically sputters Dr. Emmett “Doc” Brown, the eccentric inventor of the time machine car in Robert Zemeckis’ highly successful 1985 film Back to the Future, “[It’s] the Libyans!”