Fourth IIGS International Conference on the Muslim World 18-22 December 1995/25-29 Rajab 1416 Al al-Bayt University, Amman, Jordan

Abstract

The Fourth International Conference on the Muslim World, organized
by the International Islamic Geographic Society, was hosted by Al al-Bayt
University, Amman, Jordan. This four-day conference brought together a
distinguished international gathering of geographers and social scientists
to discuss issues of concern to Muslim countries. The conference was held
in a very pleasant, cordial, and hospitable environment, and the excursion
trip at its end, which provided an opportunity to visit historical places and
archaeological sites, made it all the more enjoyable and memorable.
The conference was comprised of five regular sessions and featured
sixteen presentations before a select audience of no more than fifty individuals.
Mohammad Adnan Al-Bakhit, president of Al al-Bayt University,
gave the welcoming address. He greeted the participants wannly and
expressed the hope that this conference would promote research and motivate
young Muslim geographers to undertake scholarly pursuits. He said
that the university is committed to promoting scientific research, with an
Islamic outlook, in all fields of knowledge. Mushtaqur Rehman, IIGS secretary
and prominent Muslim geographer and anthropologist, pronounced
the conference's theme, highlighted its multidisciplinary dimensions, and
elaborated on its significance to the Muslim world, which has serious
developmental problems.
The first session, chaired by Rehman, started with Hussain A. Amery's
insightful examination of water management in the geopolitical context of
the Middle East. He emphasized the need for cooperation among the
region's Muslim states and the use of new technologies for harvesting water
and treating waste water for reuse. A. R. Hamideh focused on the issue of
population growth in Muslim countries and refuted categorically the argument
of Western anthropologists that the Islamic value system is a major
obstacle in dealing with demographic issues.
Session two was chaired by Hani D. Tabba and featured three presentations.
A. Hussain examined the nation-state in a historical perspective aRd
argued that unless Muslim countries abandon this structure, they will be
unable to establish an Islamic Common Market and will not achieve economic
development. Abdel Bagi investigated the socioeconomic problems
of rural-urban migration, largely due to desertification, in Sudan. He suggested
the formulation of policies designed to revitalize the rural economy
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and thereby reverse this migration. Salman Abu Settah examined the
Palestinian Holocaust of 1984 and deplored the media’s efforts to keep the
Jewish Holocaust alive while largely ignoring Palestinian massacres, suffering,
and humiliation which has been forgotten by the world. Rasheed Al-
Feel discussed Muslim problems in a geographical context and concluded
that they could be molved by mobilizing resources and promoting inter-
Muslim trade.
Session three was chaired by Omar Shadaifat and included two presentations.
Rue1 Hanks gave an objective assessment of Uzbekistan’s contemporary
sociopolitical environment and concluded that the present
Islamist-secular confrontation will soon end, marking a clear victory for
those committed deeply to an Islamic way of life. Ahmad Agala examined
Jordan’s political system and observed that popular participation in Jordan
is far higher than in many Muslim republics. Yaser M. Najjar evaluated
Jordan’s development planning and remarked that a capital-poor country
like Jordan cannot achieve industrialization without borrowing high-cost
capital and technology from abroad. He suggested that economic cooperation
among Muslim countries could help resolve the problem of capital
scarcity. S. Ali Khan investigated the process of development from the capitalist
and Islamic perspectives. He pointed out that material well-being is
capitalism’s only goal, whereas the Islamic approach stresses the realization
of both material and spiritual well-being. He also stated that the realization
of both goals is possible only through restructuring the existing political
and economic institutions within the context of an Islamic social order ...