ANOTHER RAY OF LIGHT - DOHA INTERFAITH CENTER

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DOHA 000398 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR DRL/IRF JUSTIN W. KERN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM KIRF KISL QA SUBJECT: ANOTHER RAY OF LIGHT - DOHA INTERFAITH CENTER OPENS; PLANS FOR GOQ "OTHER FAITHS" COMMITTEE ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue (DICID) officially opened May 14 at the conclusion of the sixth Doha Conference for Interfaith Dialogue. Former President of Qatar University, Professor Ebrahim Saleh Al-Naimi, was appointed the DICID Chairman, and will oversee the center's goal of promoting interfaith dialogue and finding common ground for understanding among the three major monotheistic religions. The Government of Qatar also announced the creation of a permanent committee to address non-Islamic faith issues due to increased, predominantly Christian-based, religious activity in Qatar. Minister of Awqaf (endowments) and Islamic Affairs Faisal bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud meanwhile portrays the increased Christian activity in Qatar as a social issue and not one directly affecting his work. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (U) Islamic Affairs Minister Faisal Al-Mahmoud delivered the opening remarks for the conference, mentioning that the efforts of the previous, fifth conference would be realized with the official opening of the DICID May 13. The Chairman of the National Council for Culture, Arts and Heritage, Sheikh Meshaal bin Jassem bin Mohammad Al-Thani, officially presided over the dedication of the DICID at the conclusion of the conference on May 14. The concept for the center was initially conceived and launched in May 2007 during the Fifth Interfaith Conference, organized by Qatar University and operating under a grant from the Amir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani. Professor Al-Naimi said the center will neither be a theological nor a religious institute; rather, it will serve as an academic and research focal point where members of the three monotheistic faiths -- Islam, Christianity and Judaism -- can talk constructively. He added that it is not the center's aim to tackle pure theological issues or political disputes. Rather, the focus should be on the common aspects and values of the three religions and promoting common values and tolerance. ¶3. (U) During a November 2007 press conference, Al-Naimi stated that the three religions face common challenges, such as the changes affecting the family worldwide and the ethical issues related to scientific discoveries linked to the medical sphere, and the center's research would spearhead ;debate around these topics. In addition, the center will also begin work on establishing a database with the goal of dispelling misconceptions and misinformation about the three religions. -------------- DICID ORGANIZATION -------------- ¶4. (U) The center is headed by an executive committee, which follows the directives of an international board, including members of the three religions, that meets twice a year to set guidelines and review the center's activities. The center's executive committee is comprised of academicians Professor Yousuf Al Seddiqi, Vice Dean of the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies and one of the founders of the annual Interfaith Dialogue conference; Dr Hamed Marawani, professor at the College of Sharia at Qatar University; Professor Hasan Al Saeed, Dean of the College of Law at Qatar University; and Dr Khalid Al Khater, professor at the College of Business Administration at Qatar University. ¶5. (U) Members of the international board are Professor Aisha Al Mannai, Dean of the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies at Qatar University; Professor Din Mohammad Sahib, assistant dean of the college; Professor Winston Cornell, director of the King Fahd Center for Islamic Studies in the United States; Father Vittorio Ianari, theologist of the Society of Sant'Egidio, Italy; Bishop George Saliba, Syriac Orthodox Archdiocese of Mount Lebanon; Johan Taylor, United Nations representative of the International Society for Religious Freedom, Switzerland; and New York-based Rabbi Rolando Matalon. -------------- "OTHER-FAITHS" COMMITTEE FORTHCOMING -------------- ¶6. (U) During a May 8 meeting with Ameena Al-Meer, Assistant to the Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Hamad bin Jasim Al-Thani, Poloff learned the Government of Qatar intends to create a permanent intergovernmental committee to address other religious faith issues given the surge in Christian religious activity in Qatar. The committee would regulate requests for legal incorporation from religious groups seeking permission to congregate and practice, oversee sponsorship issues for religious leaders, and serve as the DOHA 00000398 002 OF 002 single source, "one-stop-shop," for all "other-faith" issues. ¶7. (U) There are plans for the committee to be established in late 2008. Religious organizations requesting official recognition will require at least 250 signatures, documentation on the organization to include a brief overview, history, local particulars and a general outline of plans in Qatar. If the organization desires to build a worship facility, then full design schematics would need to be submitted for approval. ¶8. (U) Al-Meer and local Catholic lay leader Renato Casiraghi both maintained that the Amir had been committed to allowing open Christian worship and the construction of a church for over ten years, but internal disagreements among the different denominations themselves delayed the Amir's initiative. Al-Meer further stated that the creation of the "Other-Faiths" Committee was a natural extension of the Amir,s long-standing commitment to religious tolerance and dialogue. It was also an outgrowth of establishing new church buildings on the out-skirts of Doha in an area referred to locally as "Church City." -------------- ISLAMIC AFFAIRS MINISTER COMMENTS -------------- ¶9. (U) During his opening remarks to the Interfaith Dialogue conference, Minister Al-Mahmoud said many debates on religious values among the three principal religions reflect growing concerns over contemporary issues. Thanks to technical progress, he said, people are experiencing "disorder," and the progress achieved in the fields of medicine, economy, engineering and ecology seem to have eliminated society's moral values. During a May 4 meeting with Poloff, the Minister said interfaith issues and establishment of non-Muslim religious institutions in Qatar, specifically Christian churches, should be viewed as a social issue, and are not under his purview of Islamic issues. He would continue to participate in interfaith discussions as the Amir,s advisor on Islamic Affairs, but hinted that the "church" issue is a progressive social initiative instigated by the Amir for the many foreign guest workers in Qatar. -------------- COMMENTS -------------- ¶11. (SBU) Religious freedom is another example of the progressive, top-down changes in Qatar directed by the Amir. In the past ten years Qatar, has seen unprecedented and tremendous growth in religious dialogue among Muslims, Jews and Christians. The recent March public unveiling of a Catholic church in Qatar brought Christian worship even more into the public sphere. Conspicuously absent in both dialogue and established places of worship are representatives of the eastern religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism, both of which are heavily represented in Qatar's large population of expatriate Asians. "Other-faith" translates to monotheistic faiths only. The real test of the full effectiveness of the committee will be the inclusion of all religions in dialogue, not just the three monotheistic faiths. Thus far, Qataris are not prepared to take that step, as evidenced by Ameena's having no plans to engage east Asian communities in faith dialogue. RATNEY