Since the Soviet disintegration, political
Islam in Central Asia and Russia remains
one of the most frequently discussed issues
not only among the CIS experts, but also
among international academic community. This
issue was brought to the wider international
attention again after the Tashkent explosions,
the explosions in several Russian cities
and after four Japanese engineers were taken
hostages in Kyrgyzstan.
According to the Russian and Central
Asian government officials the fundamentalist
Islamic groups are responsible for all these
events. However, can we claim that political
Islam represents 'anti-systematic political
forces' in the current development in Russia
and the Central Asian republics?
The international conference
'Islam
and Politics in Russia and Central
Asia'
(the early 17th - the late 20th century),
was organized by the Islamic Area Studies
Research Unit 1 with the support of
the Japan
Foundation and the Embassy of France
in Japan
at the Maison Franco-Japonaise, Tokyo.
The
conference was an attempt to explore
this
issue from a historical perspective.
The work of the conference was subdivided
into four panels:
1) Community Building in the Russian Dar
al-Harb
2) Towards a Restoration of the Dar al-Islam?
State Building in 20th Century Muslim Central
Asia
3) The Role of the Religious ('Ulama)
and
the Literati (Udaba)
4) Contemporary Issues: Islam and Political
Mobilization: From Tajikistan to the
suburbs
of Moscow.
The advantage of the discussions
during at this academic forum was that
the
papers were presented by a well-balanced
group of scholars from Central Asia,
Russia,
France, the USA, and Japan.
The first panel explored the
history
of the interaction between the Muslim
community
and the Russian state in the past three
hundreds
years. The scholars at this panel discussed
how inclusion into the Russian Empire
affected
the thoughts, identities and self-administration
of the Muslim communities and the intellectual
discourse among Muslim scholars on
their
life under the Christian Law.
There were three papers presented
at this panel. Christian NOACK (Universitet Koln),
Russian Politics and its Impact on the Formation
of a Muslim Identity in the Volga-Urals
Ramil KHAYRUTDINOV (Tatarstan Respublikase Fannar Akademijase,
Kazan),
The Tatar Municipality of Kazan (1781-1855),
and the System of National Self-Administration
in Autocratic Russia
Stephane A. DUDOIGNON (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Strasbourg),
Status, Strategy, and Discourse of a Muslim
"Clergy" under a Christian Law:
Polemics on the Collection of the Zakat in
Late Imperial Russia
The second panel focused on the early
20th century issues, such as the intellectual
background of a Central Asian Jadidist A.
Fitrat, attempt to build the Qazaq (Kazakh)
state, and Eastern Turkestan Republic of
1933-1934.
There were four papers presented
at this panel. KOMATSU Hisao (Tokyo Daigaku-IASP, Tokyo): Bukhara-yi Sharif and Istanbul: A Consideration
on the background of the Munazara
UYAMA Tomohiko (Hokkaido Daigaku, Sapporo):
Two Attempts at Building a Qazaq State: The
Revolt of 1916 and the Alash Movement
SHINMEN Yasushi (Tokyo Gaikokugo Daigaku, Tokyo), Eastern Turkistan Republic (1933-1934) in
Historical Perspective
The third panel covered the intellectual
aspects in the life of the Muslim community
in Central Asia, which included the political
activities and debates among the Muslim intellectuals,
the Uzbek literary heritage of the early
20th century and the activities of the Sufi
brotherhoods in Southern Xinjiang.
There were three papers presented
at this panel.
Naim KARIMOV (O'zbekiston Respublikasining Fanlar Akademiyasi,
Tashkent): Islam in the Uzbek Literature of the 20th
Century and Politics
Thierry ZARCONE (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique,
Paris):
The Sufi Networks in Southern Xinjiang during
the Republican Regime (1911-1949): An Overview
Parviz MULLOJONOV (Tajik Center for Citizenship Education,
Dushanbe):
The Role of the Muslim "Clergy"
in Tajikistan since the Collapse of the Soviet
Union
The fourth section examined the modern
political dynamics. The scholars at this
section discussed such issues as Islamic
creed and ideology, the role of the official
and non-official Muslim clergy in post-Soviet
Russia and Central Asia. The reporters and
discussants argued that the Muslim communities
in the CIS were not uniformed and there are
so many discussions, debates and views within
the community. The scholars have to always
be careful in generalization of the opinions
on Islamic issues in post-Soviet Central
Asia and Russia.
This panel included four papers.
Irina KOSTYUKOVA (Institut vostokovedenija, Moscow), Islam in Qyrghyzstan : Its Distinctive Roles
and Signification for the Individuals, the
Society and the State. A Surmountable Precipice?
Rafyq MOHAMMATSHIN (Tatarstan Respublikase Fannar Akademijase,
Kazan),
The Formation of the Tatar Muslim Clergy
and its Ideo-Political Position
John SCHOEBERLEIN (Harvard University, Cambridge, MA), Islam in the Ferghana Valley: Challenges
for New States
Alexei MALASHENKO (Carnegie Endowment / Institut vostokovedenija,
Moscow): Islam and Politics in Russia in the 1990's
The polemics and questions
raised
during discussions illustrated a strong
interest
among the Japanese and international
academic
community to the topics presented at
these
panels. The organizing committee announced
that it plans to publish the papers
presented
at this international conference as
a book
(edited by Stephane A. DUDOIGNON and
KOMATSU
Hisao) by Kegan Paul International.
The collection of these papers
will
be worth of reading, especially if
the final
articles will reflect the questions,
suggestions
and issues brought to the surface during
the lively academic debates.
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