LMEI Conference: Integration of Muslim Communities in Germany and Great Britain - success or failure?

This week, MBI Al Jaber Foundation staff members Ms. Krystal Fiksdal,  Head of Projects, Ms. Suhad Jarrar-Browne, Scholarships, Conferences and Events Officer, and Ms. Fahmia Alfotih, one of our current MBI Scholars from Yemen, attended an important conference in London focused on the integration of Muslim communities in Germany and Britain.

The conference, held in SOAS, University of London, was organised by the London Middle East Institute, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in London and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung. Various sessions were panelled by world scholars, speakers, human rights specialists and lawyers, educationalists, academics, Muslim Imams as well as diplomats.  

The day opened with a welcome from Prof. Paul Webley, Director & Principal of SOAS, an address by HE George Boomgaarden, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany and an address given by the Rt Hon. Hazel Blears MP, Secretary of Sate for Communities and Local Governments.

The sessions and presentations were well attended by participants from diverse age groups, ethnicities and professions; both Muslim and non-Muslim men and women. The audience interacted well with the panels and speakers on various topics.  “The German Experience: the ‘Islam Conference’ as a model for dialogue” looked at how mosque communities foster integration, the legal perspective of Islam in Germany and the specific role of German foreign policy in such integration.  The session on “The British Experience: engaging public institutions”, which addressed topics ranging from accommodating Muslims in Britain to the application of Sharia law in the UK and the engagement with Muslim communities, included the very interesting presentation “Chaplaincy: creating opportunities for successful integration of Muslims in public life”, by Dr. Sophie Gillian-Ray, founder of the Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK, whose research project is on Muslim chaplaincy in Britain.

The intensive day was finished by the “Panel Discussion: Enduring Controversies, Lessons Learnt” and concluded with a discussion of the need for a modern interpretation of the Quran to suit our times and more integration between immigrants and their new societies as well as the need for better understanding of cultural issues and more efforts from governments on the legal levels. The elimination of stereotyping is crucial to achieve successful integration. 

For more information www.lmei.soas.ac.uk