Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06DOHA670
2006-05-03 07:39:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Doha
Cable title:  

FOURTH INTERFAITH DIALOGUE: AN "ACADEMIC" EXERCISE

Tags:  PGOV KISL IS QA 
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VZCZCXRO1908
RR RUEHDE
DE RUEHDO #0670/01 1230739
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 030739Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY DOHA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4818
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DOHA 000670 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ARPI STHORNE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KISL IS QA
SUBJECT: FOURTH INTERFAITH DIALOGUE: AN "ACADEMIC" EXERCISE

REF: 2005 DOHA 1226

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DOHA 000670

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ARPI STHORNE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KISL IS QA
SUBJECT: FOURTH INTERFAITH DIALOGUE: AN "ACADEMIC" EXERCISE

REF: 2005 DOHA 1226


1. Summary. On April 25-27, Qatar held its Fourth Interfaith
Dialogue Conference. Representatives from the main
monotheistic religions--Christianity, Islam, and
Judaism--attended. This year's event witnessed notable
differences from the previous three conferences. The
conference was organized by the College of Shari'a and
Islamic Studies at Qatar University; the Minister of State
for Foreign Affairs delivered the opening statement; and the
number of Jewish and Christian participants was significantly
higher than in previous years, while local Qatari
participation was minimal. However, these differences failed
to produce any meaningful or inspiring outcome but rather
contributed to a lackluster conference. End Summary.


2. In the weeks leading to the Fourth Conference there was
little if any mention of the upcoming event. Unlike last
year's event which witnessed controversy over the invitation
and subsequent boycott by Israeli Jews and notable cleric Dr.
Yousef al-Qaradawi (reftel),this year's event had no such
flare-up. There was no public debate about the conference,
either prior to, during or after.

Total Control Or Close To It
--------------


3. Queries to the MFA in the days prior to the conference
revealed that the College of Shari'a and Islamic Studies at
Qatar University had the lead on the conference rather than
the MFA, the usual organizer of international conclaves in
Doha. When asked the reason for the shift, officials asserted
that having the College in charge of this event was deemed
more appropriate. Dr. Aisha Al-Mannai, the dean of the
College of Shari'a and Islamic Studies and the coordinator of
the conference, said of her role that she had been given full
control of the conference and a free hand in inviting Muslim
and Christian participants in coordination with the MFA.
However, the MFA was responsible for inviting the Jewish
participants.

More Talk, Less Debate
--------------


4. This year, the Amir did not deliver the opening remarks
and was conspicuously absent from the conference. Instead,
the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Bin Abdulla
Al-Mahmoud, officiated at the opening ceremony. In his
opening remarks, Al-Mahmoud welcomed the participants and

expressed his hopes that the conference would be a vehicle
for promoting mutual understanding and cooperation among the
faiths. Al-Mahmoud also reproached those who insulted
religious figures, stating that such offenses were
unacceptable, unjustifiable and discriminatory, and called on
participants to explore the best means of implementing
recommendations from last year's conference.


5. The conference covered the role of religion in civil
rights, education, enhancing moral values, environment,
freedom of expression, gender equality, globalization,
peacemaking, pluralism, and scientific developments. At times
the presentations remained on a purely scholarly level. One
notable exception was the presentation by Jacob Bender, an
American Jew who is currently making a documentary that
explores a "dialogue of civilizations" and interfaith
relations through the achievements of a Muslim, Jew and
Christian during the Middle Ages. His talk sparked great
interest among participants in his film as an educational
tool for promoting religious toleration and interaith
understanding.

Higher Numbers and New Faces
--------------


6. Participation in this year's conference rose significantly
in comparison to last year. There was a total of 131
participants this year as opposed to 82 last year. Although
Muslims figured largely, 37 Christians and 14 Jews
participated. According to Al-Mannai, speaking and
moderating roles were equally divided among the
representatives of the three faiths. This year also witnessed
the participation of Iranians for the first time. Both Sheikh
Mohamed Ali Al-Taskheri, general secretary of the World Forum
for Proximity of Islamic School of Thoughts, and Siboh Sarkis
Sian, a bishop of the Armenian Orthodox Church, participated
and spoke about the role of religion in globalization and
civil rights.

Qataris Still Adjusting to Jewish Participation
-------------- ---


DOHA 00000670 002 OF 002



7. Relatively speaking, the participation of Jews in the
conference remained a sensitive issue this year. Jews from
the U.S., Europe and Israel participated in the conference.
According to Al-Mannai, the relative large number of Jewish
participants raised protest among some Qatari invitees and
led to their refusal to participate in the conference. Except
for a few faculty members from the College of Shari'a and
Islamic Studies who were attended, Qataris were largely and
visibly absent from the conference. Notably absent also was
cleric Dr. Yousef al-Qaradawi, who was not invited because of
his position on Jewish participation in the previous year's
conference. In his Friday sermon the day after the conference
concluded, al-Qaradawi made no mention of the conference.
Al-Mannai emphasized that individuals declined to participate
not because they are against the Jewish faith, but because of
Israeli policies--a sentiment also reiterated by a MFA
official. According to the official, local Qatari
participation in the Dialogue had decreased due in large part
to reservations about the participation of Israeli rabbis.
The official stressed that the reservation was not religious
in nature, but rather political-i.e., an outward display of
support for the Palestinians.


8. Local concerns about Jewish participation however, did not
seem to trickle down to other participants at the conference.
Muslim and Jewish participants could be readily seen
interacting closely together and engaging in deep
conversation throughout the conference. Perhaps in this one
aspect, the conference appeared successful--facilitating
genuine one-on-one dialogue between participants of all
faiths.

Conclusion
--------------


9. The Fourth Interfaith Dialogue Conference issued various
statements and recommendations at its conclusion. There was a
recommendation to form a follow-up committee to work on
establishing a center for religious dialogue in Qatar, a
proposal advanced by the Amir at last year's conference.
Participants also called for the expansion of the dialogue to
include non-monotheistic religions. Another proposal was
directed at the UN, calling for a resolution making it
illegal to insult religions and religious symbols. Other more
general and intangible statements focused on the importance
of education and culture and the arts in promoting religious
understanding, the re-affirmation of right of individuals to
choose their own religions, equality between the sexes, and
the family unit as the basis of human society.

Comment
--------------


10. A larger participation notwithstanding, this year's
conference did little to advance any real or substantive
dialogue between the religions. Discussion was for the most
part stale and remained on a superficial level. The fear of
offending any one religion or creating controversy appeared
to have obviated any critical discussion. Even the more
interesting and thought provoking presentations were quickly
forgotten as moderators regulated audience comments, making
any real debate impossible. Having said that, Qatar should
still be commended for doing what no one else in the region
appears willing to do: bringing representatives of the three
religions together to engage in dialogue.
UNTERMEYER