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Aga Khan Urges Open Islam Debate-2001-11-08

Date: 
Thursday, 2001, November 8
Location: 

East African Standard

Source: 
allafrica.com/stories
Author: 
Abdikadir Sugow

The Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, His Highness the Aga Khan, has called for freedom in the Islamic civilisation debate and proposed a model for analysing challenges facing Islam.

In a speech he delivered on Tuesday at the ceremony of the 8th Aga Khan Award for Architecture in Aleppo, Syria, the Imam said many Muslims carry with them a memory of the historical achievements of Islamic civilisations.

However, he said, persistent confusion about the existence and legitimacy of different communities within Islam has remained one source of misunderstanding.

"No one in the West sees Christianity as an undifferentiated monolith and yet this is the commonly held perception of the peoples of Islam, while the reality is quite different," he said.

He said pluralism in the practice of Islam and its expression in the cultures of Islamic civilisations have been validated by nearly 1400 years of history, including the history of its art and architecture.

Identifying linkages between technical issues and spiritual values and between historical traditions of Islam and challenges of modernity would, the Imam said, require difficult and complex discussions.

Based on the decisions of an independent Master Jury, the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, the world's largest architectural prize, worth US$ 500,000 honoured nine outstanding projects in its 2001 cycle.

They include New Life for Old Structures (various locations, Iran), Ait Iktel (Abadou, Morocco), Barefoot Architects (Tilonia, India) and Kahere Elia Poultry Farming School (Koliag, Guinea).

Others are Nubian Museum (Aswan, Egypt), SOS Children's Village (Aqaba, Jordan), Olbia Social Centre (Antalya, Turkey), Bagh-e-Ferdowsi (Tehran, Iran) and Datai Hotel (Pulau Langkawi, Malaysia).


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