Islam Node Research Initiatives

Since 2004, the ARC Asia Pacific Futures Research Network has provided a valuable forum for inter-disciplinary research collaboration within and between its six areas of focus: Islam; Southeast Asia; China; Japan & Korea; South Asia; the Pacific; and Australia and Asia. The Islam research node provides a point of contact for Australian-based researchers on Islam and Muslim affairs in the Asia-Pacific, covering the Middle East, South and South East Asia and Australia.

A number of research initiatives and forums have already been generated, aimed at enhancing research collaboration. These initiatives are inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional. The ARC APFRN invites other applications for 2006.

For further information contact Islam Node Convenor

Dr Shahram AKBARZADEH
Senior Lecturer in Global Politics
School of Political and Social Inquiry
Monash University
Vic 3800

Email: Shahram.Akbarzadeh@arts.monash.edu.au

2005 initiatives:

Workshop on Philanthropy for Social Justice in Muslim Countries (Prof Riaz Hassan Flinders University) November 7-8, 2005

Prof. Hassan is convening a workshop to discuss the interplay between the strong tradition of philanthropy and social justice in Islamic societies. Islamic societies have a rich heritage of philanthropic institutions. The Islamic charitable institutions including zakat and awqaf have been instrumental in promoting social welfare in Muslim societies through the ages. As part of their religious duty Muslims are required to give a proportion of their income for the welfare of the socially and economically disadvantaged in society. Some recent estimates indicate that the sums of money involved run into billions of dollars. This Workshop will provide an opportunity to examine the implications of Muslim philanthropy for social justice.

The Workshop will bring together a small group of Australian and international scholars to discuss and debate the traditions of philanthropy in Islam and their practice in Muslim countries of the Asia-Pacific region. The Workshop will be held at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia. This workshop is sponsored with a grant from the ARC APFRN.

Islamic Groups: Identities, Worldviews and Issues of Security (Dr Samina Yasmeen, University of Western Australia) January 2007

Since the terrorist attacks on the United States in September 2001, analysis of Islamic groups and their role in security have essentially been limited to militant organizations. Such a restrictive approach suffers from two deficiencies: it plays down the gender dimension in the organization of Islamic groups and strategies adopted by them to perpetuate certain worldviews. It also ignores the reality of transnational Islam in today's world where militant organizations coexist with multitude of social organizations that focus on issues of development and enlightenment. Together these oversights can have serious consequences for regional and global stability. An assumption that all forms of Islamic groups are essentially militant, for instance, can alienate moderate and progressive movements that are questioning the appropriation of Islam by terrorists. At the same time, ignoring the gender dimension in militant organizations carries the risk of the role played by women in creating ideas and norms that can perpetuate militancy beyond the present generation of militants.

The proposed project aims to draw upon cross disciplinary expertise to address the deficiencies in the current understandings of Islamic groups. It will bring specialists from political science, anthropology, sociology and economics who focus on different types of Muslim organizations in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. The list of organizations would include, for example, Jemaah Islamiya, lashkar-e-Toiba, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, international sufi orders, and Tablighi Jamaat. It will also secure participation by specialists in women studies who could discuss the role played by women in transnational movements as bearers of ideas across decades.

The main aim of the project is to develop a typology of Islamic Groups operating at the regional and global level with a view to assessing their implications for security in the short and long term. To this end, it would address the following issues

• What are the origins, worldviews and policy instruments used by Islamic groups operating in the Asia Pacific region?
• What are the implications of these worldviews for their operations at national, regional and global levels? Are these implications essentially negative in nature?
• What place do women occupy in these groups? What kind of social structures are they developing in this process and what is its likely impact upon societies in which they are operating?

This project is sponsored with a grant from the ARC APFRN.

Islamic Studies Postgraduate Conference (Prof Abdullah Saeed & Prof Tim Lindsey, Melbourne University) 21-22 November 2005

The Centre for the Study of Contemporary Islam hosts a post-graduate conference to facilitate Islam-related research and education projects. This conference aims to bring together postgraduate students around Australia who are researching topics relating to Islam. Postgraduate students from around Australia are invited to present papers on a topic specifically related to their research. The conference will provide students with a supportive, collegial atmosphere and the opportunity to meet students with similar interests. Students will benefit from feedback received from their peers and selected academic experts in the field.

This Conference is sponsored with a grant from the ARC APFRN.
Web-page: http://www.csci.unimelb.edu.au/activities/pgrad-conference-2005/

An International Conference on Islam, Human Rights and Xenophobia (A/Prof Fethi Mansouri, Deakin University and Dr Shahram Akbarzadeh, Monash University)

The conference focuses on Muslim responses to increasing political, social and security challenges in a global era. In particular, the conference will explore the increasing salience of Islam in contemporary world politics and the impact of this salience on domestic politics in the Muslim world as well as Western states with major Muslim populations. The conference will also consider the policies toward Islam and Muslims adopted by Australia and major international players in particular in the context of regional and civil conflicts. In addressing these issues, the conference will bring together prominent researchers from Australia and overseas working on diverse but related issues ranging from human rights and civil society to international politics, human security and conflict resolution.

This Conference is sponsored with a grant from the ARC APFRN.
Web-page: http://www.deakin.edu.au/conferences/islam/

Reports:

Research Overview on Australian-based Studies of Islam and Muslim Societies (Dr Shahram Akbarzadeh, Monash University)

Hosted by Monash University, this report covers a range of issues related to research activity on Islam and Muslim societies. In particular, it explores Australian-based research in the field and its international impact; highlights existing and developing areas of research strength; surveys existing networks and potential for growth; examines post-graduate training; and confirms the national benefits of this field of study.

This commentary on the state of the field of Islamic studies in Australia was a starting point for the Islam Node of the ARC Asia Pacific Futures Research Network. Financed through an ARC seed-funding application, it was prepared in close consultation with a wide-range of researchers in December 2003-January 2004.

The present on-line Report serves as the starting point for a more elaborate account of the strengths and weaknesses of Australian scholarship on Islam and Muslim societies.

Web-page: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/politics/research/arcnetwork