Papers of Dialogue - 1 - 2013 - English

1

January - March 2013

SICILY

A BRIDGE BETWEEN EUROPE AND THE ARAB WORLD

UAE A model of international cooperation

BUSINESS The role of the middle class in Jordan, Lebanon, Libya

MUSIC Nour Eddine Fatty, ambassador of peace

1

January - March 2013

SICILY

A BRIDGE BETWEEN EUROPE AND THE ARAB WORLD

UAE A model of international cooperation

BUSINESS The role of the middle class in Jordan, Lebanon, Libya

MUSIC Nour Eddine Fatty, ambassador of peace

TABLE OF CONTENTS 03 Editorial Roberto Iadicicco

Business On the cover: Ancient Theater of Taormina

www.papersofdialogue.com

04 Libya’s renaissance Interview with Libyan entrepreneur Husni Husni Bey Daniel Atzori 10 The middle class: Jordan’s gold Zubi Al Zubi

Papers of Dialogue: no 1 January-March 2013

Editor in chief: Roberto Iadicicco

Editorial team coordinator: Daniel Atzori

Marketing & Communication: Laura Brunetti (Coordinator), Patrizia Arizza

Photography: www.123rf.com (19, 22, 24, 33) www.arabianeye.com (pages 10, 16, 20 ) www.shutterstock.com (pages cover, 26,28) www.corbis.com (page 04)

Editing and production:

13 Businesswomen crossing boundaries Nicole Hamouche

04

16 Islam’s new economy in the global age Lorenzo Declich

Geopolitics 20 Emirates: a model of political, economic and cultural cooperation Abdallah Jabali 24 Sicily, the soul of the Mediterranean Interview with Rosario Crocetta, Governor of Sicily Carmelo Rapisarda 28 Palermo, a bridge between Europe and the Mediterranean Leoluca Orlando, Mayor of Palermo

AGI – Via Ostiense, 72 – 00154 Rome – Italy papersofdialogue@agi.it

Consultancy: Global Services Incorporation Badaro Trade Center Building – Beirut – Lebanon a.tucci@worldenvironment.tv

24

Printing:

28

Raidy | www.raidy.com

Translated by: Roma Congressi

Publisher AGI SPA: Chairman: Gianni Di Giovanni CEO: Daniela Viglione General Director: Alessandro Pica AGI – Via Ostiense, 72 – 00154 Rome – Italy www.agi.it www.agi.it/english-home www.agiarab.com

Cultures 30 The artist as a voyager Interview with the singer Nour Eddine Fatty Jalal Sabir

30

34 A call for dialogue: the legacy of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Abdallah Jabali 38 From Bari to Beirut, with love Aurelia Ardito

O

Editorial

ROBERTO IADICICCO Editor in chief

ur magazine is now a year old. In our first editorial we described our adventure as the beginning of a common journey aimed at promoting dialogue among the peoples of the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa.

This time our journey will take us to different places and we will explore new topics. We start with the United Arab Emirates, looking at how it is becoming even more of a key player in the international arena by investing and building partnerships with countries in cultural and scientific fields, as well as in the energy and technology sectors. This path to development has been inspired by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the founder of the state, whose legacy is also examined in our magazine.

The Middle East and North Africa are experiencing a period of profound transformation, as revealed by the emergence of a new class of entrepreneurs, which is an important indicator of social and economic change. In our section dedicated to business, we publish an interview with the Libyan businessman Husni Husni Bey, who explains the opportunities and challenges of his country’s economy, as well as the history of its private sector.

In another article, Professor Zubi Al Zubi, chairman of the Business School of the University of Jordan, argues that a thriving entrepreneurial middle class is one of the most precious resources of his country. In addition, all over the region, as Lebanese journalist Nicole Hamouche argues, we are witnessing the rise of a new generation of women entrepreneurs, who are business minded and socially conscious.Then Lorenzo Declich, who taught at Napoli’s Università Orientale, puts in historical perspective the emergence of a cross-fertilisation between Islamic civilisation and globalisation in the economic field.

In our geopolitics section, we interview Rosario Crocetta, the Governor of Sicily, who looks at the role of his region as a bridge between the shores of the Mediterranean. Leoluca Orlando, the mayor of Palermo, Sicily’s capital, puts forward his city as a hub of the future.

In our section dedicated to cultures, we publish an interview with Nour Eddine Fatty, a singer and songwriter who was born in the Rif mountains of Morocco and achieved notoriety in Rome. His professional and artistic experiences open up new possibilities of cultural understanding. Finally we travel across the Mediterranean between two cities, Bari and Beirut.

Our journey will lead us once more to travel around our cultures and countries, so that we can build together a future of peace and friendship based on mutual understanding among our peoples.

Papers of Dialogue | 03

Business

Interview with the Libyan entrepreneur Husni Husni Bey

Libya’s renaissance Daniel Atzori

Following dictatorship and war, Libya relies on its extraordinary assets to build a future of peace and prosperity.

Trade relations with other countries are of great importance and it is essential to invest in schools and education and develop a legal framework to guarantee the independence of the private sector. The country’s biggest resource is its human capital.

Business

“T

his has always been a nation of merchants and businessmen,” said Libyan businessman Husni Husni Bey, chairman of HB Group, which was founded in 1952 by the late Ibrahim Husni Husni Bey. The HB Group started as a logistics company and expanded to, among others, become the country’s leading importer and distributor for major brands in the fast-moving consumer goods sector. HB is expanding and diversifying, setting itself as one of the most impressive and dynamic companies in the Mediterranean. In this interview, Mr Husni Husni Bey paints a picture of the problems faced by Libya’s private sector, in the light of the country’s history and the challenges that lie ahead as it begins to emerge from dictatorship and war.

A Nation of Merchants and Businessmen “Mosaics depicting a trader’s logo were even found in Leptis Magna, a Phoenician and Greek-Roman city”, Mr Husni Husni Bey said. Libyan business has an extensive history, which enables it to look toward the future. Indeed, he believes: “Libya has a very peculiar set of characteristics: a vast country with a population of only six million, with most of our revenue coming from the soil. We have many problems, but none of them is insurmountable. Our problems alarm us because we don’t have enough experience in dealing with them. Furthermore, our country boasts a 100 percent literacy rate; our human capital can be enhanced in very little time”.

That very rate is what makes Libya’s population so special, he argues.

Tripoli, Libya

Business

over 2011, and brought it back to the prewar level of 2010.

Relations with Italy are pivotal, he said: “At the moment, the biggest gaps that need to be dealt with are those in the infrastructure sector, one in which Italy excels. It could provide a fundamental contribution when it comes to building roads, highways and airports”. This would help Libya’s private sector to expand. Mr Husni Husni Bey believes “there is huge potential for trade between Libya and Italy’s private sectors: the sky is the limit”. Italy is Libya’s “leading partner, owing to history, trade and geography; at the end of the day, Sicily is just a 45-minute ride away”.

It is essential that the Libyan government creates an environment which allows the development of the legal, security and infrastructure sectors, he said. Despite the revolution, Libyans “have yet to shed their skin; that’s why it’s difficult to see any change in the short term”. He argues that the problem is that ethical and human relationships need to change. “We can write in a newspaper, speak on television, we can speak freely; so what we have is freedom of speech, but we’re missing the education to go with it”. Now the factors affecting the private sector are rooted in the country’s recent history, he believes.

Husni Husni Bey

06 | Papers of Dialogue

The businessman strongly believes that investment in schools and education is crucial for the reborn Libya, along with the development of a legal framework to guarantee the independence of the private sector. Private businesses account for 10 percent of GDP, but in a free, competitive environment there would be a great deal of potential for privately led economic development and growth apart from oil, he said. In 2012, there was limited government investment, but the private sector contributed most of the 127 percent rise in GDP in 2012

Libya’s Private Sector from the 1950s to the Present Colonel Gaddafi’s regime tried to destroy the country’s ethical fabric, Mr Husni Husni Bey believes. “Libya’s private sector went through several phases. In the ‘50s, Libya was the second poorest country in the world. There were no social classes to speak of: everyone was poor. Starting in ’74, after the oil boom, the government’s coffers began to fill with the proceeds of oil revenue”. Colonel Gaddafi, who had been in power since 1969, considered the oil his own. “In March of 1978, Gaddafi overhauled the country’s social and economic structures, creating revolutionary committees which had the right

Business

to drive managers and technocrats out of government buildings and lead public enterprises, replacing the technocrats with pseudo-revolutionaries who, overnight, found themselves in charge of 65-90 percent of the economy. That was the beginning of the second five-year plan”. Inexperienced people were suddenly left in charge of major companies and institutions, ranging from refineries and petrochemical complexes to hospitals, he said. “In September ’78, six months after the social revolution in the public sector, he did the same thing and instigated an economic revolution in the private sector.

He condoned the misappropriation of private properties, following the principles of ‘revolutionary law’. That year, Gaddafi rased the private sector to the ground, even corner shops, barbers and small retailers became civil servants”. That phase lasted from 1978 to 1986, and led to profound changes to Libya’s ethical, cultural and social fabric.

Gaddafi banned private property and condoned theft, he said. “There is a difference between Eastern Europe’s Communist model and Gaddafi’s: his did not consist of expropriating private property and giving it to the state, but in the acceptance of crimes such as theft and other kinds of abuses”.

That phase was followed by a second surge in oil production. Mr Husni Husni Bey believes that there was a direct correlation between oil revenue and the Colonel’s “carrot and stick politics”. He said: “The lower the price of oil, the tougher the repression; the higher the price, the worse the co-opting”.

However in 1986 Libya’s armed forces were defeated in Chad, which thwarted Gaddafi’s plans for expansion in Africa, and meant he had lost any chance to lead the Arab World.

This instilled “a great sense of vulnerability and paranoia in him”. He went on: “From that moment onwards, particularly between ’86 and ’87, he started opening the country up to the private sector once again. What it actually amounted to was a timid approach,

with many limitations”. There was a proliferation of small and very small businesses, a micro-economy of sorts, yet “while there were plenty of products, there was no consumption”. Therefore, “a great number of families refashioned themselves as business hubs”. Unfortunately, “following a three-year expansion phase, they were left with unsold stock”. The regime started encouraging trade, which had almost been treated as a crime until then.

The aftermath of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing marked the beginning of a new phase for the country. The United Nations embargo, between 1992 and 2003, allowed trade with private businesses, but not with Libyan government bodies. This allowed the private sector to develop. Gaddafi was forced to accept the conditions imposed by the international community, which led to former civil servants, who came from a corrupt system, running private businesses.

The ‘mafia’ which controlled state-run companies began to compete with businesses in the private sector, and then there was a wave of repression between 1996 and 2003. After 2003, pressure from the international community, along with the desire to end the embargo, sparked a new phase with greater freedom as a result of new conditions laid down by the EU and the United States. The international community agreed to revoke the sanctions, provided Libyan and foreign private businesses were allowed to operate. A new forward-looking project was launched in 2003, and ran parallel to another surge in the oil boom, which led to an increase in resources and growing reserves of about 15-20 billion dollars a year. By 2010 total reserves had risen to more than 180 billion dollars. At the same time, Gaddafi’s family pushed for a more prominent role. His children are now adults, and have created the so-called social development funds. These went on to lose a substantial part of their value during the 2008 global financial crisis.

Private businesses carved themselves a

‘‘

At the moment, there are no big Libyan companies, because all the major companies were run by the state. Those economic clusters which do exist are extremely fragmented, as a result of the market’s limited size.

’’

Papers of Dialogue | 07

Business

greater presence within the economy during the country’s timid liberalization drive, but the fear of instability persisted until the revolution of February 17, 2011, broadened the country’s horizons.

Rebuilding Libya This complex situation, Mr Husni Husni Bey said, is part of the reason behind the fact that “at the moment, there are no big Libyan companies, because all the major companies were run by the state. Those economic clusters which do exist are extremely fragmented, as a result of the market’s limited size”. He believes, however, there is a solution: “The state

Daniel Atzori is the Editorial Team Coordinator of Papers of Dialogue.

08 | Papers of Dialogue

should withdraw from business-related loss making activities and make room for the private sector to play its role: to create jobs for the 600,000 unemployed, who make up 30 percent of the working age population.

Businesses cannot compete with the state when state losses are paid for with taxpayers’ money. We need to be given the right to work, the government needs to create a healthy environment for businesses. If we don’t work, we won’t get anywhere, we will be like vegetables waiting for the government to feed us fertilisers and water us with cash for as long as it lasts. And not for long. Our greatest resource and that of mankind is the fruit of people’s sweat, brains, hearts and muscles.

Libya is one big opportunity: our greatest competitor is the civil servant wanting to be the principal the contractor the paymaster, which seeks to compete with us. Therefore, the free market is the only solution”.

Business

The middle class: Jordan’s gold Zubi Al Zubi

A healthy middle class is usually considered to be a requirement for entrepreneurship, and Jordan is no exception.

Political and economic changes in the past few decades have seen major upheavals in Jordan, leading to the emerging of a new middle class, full of entrepreneurial spirit. he definition of middle class is by no means straightforward, yet in the current political landscape, where a country’s social system can be engineered by economic policy, understanding of the middle class is crucial. The case of Jordan’s middle class can perhaps be best understood by use of a very simplistic definition – that the middle class comprises those who are neither very rich (the upper class) nor very poor (the working class). This

T

definition is in agreement with other, more rigorous classifications such as the access to tertiary education or an annual expenditure relative to the poverty line.

By this definition, Jordan – in its early decades of statehood – enjoyed a period of time in which the majority of the population could be considered middle class. Unlike other countries of the era, this was not from communist policy, but resulted from a number of factors such

Business as the relatively small population (which did not reach one million until 1965), the high rates of education, the heavy subsidies on food, the ease with which all Jordanians could travel to neighbouring countries to work, and the much lower individual expectations for a comfortable life – consumerism was certainly not widespread at this stage. This meant that Jordanians were more or less on the same page, and it was rare to see signs of either extreme riches or extreme poverty travelling around Amman, or even Jordan on a larger scale.

This status quo was knocked off-balance by a number of events during the past three decades. The peace deal with Israel, although important to Jordan’s role in the region, resulted in many Arab and Islamic countries reconsidering their handouts to Jordan – Iran, Iraq and Syria were amongst this group. Another event was the return of half a million expatriates from the Gulf region,

due to Jordan’s political stance in the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. The refugees and the returned expatriates drew a controversial social portrait. Whereas the refugees suffered loss of property and experienced poverty, the expatriates were wealthy, as most had benefited from the oil boom of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and they brought their wealth and lifestyle home with them.

Political upheavals elsewhere in the region brought in yet more refugees who placed a burden on the economy and contributed to a large bulk of the developing working class.

As a result, the government needed to seek ways to expand their revenues, and in 2001, allowed foreign direct investment (FDI). The injection of foreign wealth, particularly from the Gulf region, made some Jordanians very wealthy, particularly through the sale of real estate, and added to the developing upper class. Therefore, large divisions in wealth and lifestyle emerged in Jordan, driving

Kempinski Hotel Dead Sea, Jordan

Business

Young Entrepreneurs Association, Jordan

wedges between those who could benefit from the economic changes (through their specialised skills and higher education), and those who could not, and who consequently struggled in the face of a rising cost of living.

Amidst this upheaval, a new middle class has emerged. The middle class in Jordan is no longer the majority, but is characterised by a distinct group of people with certain skills and qualifications – the doctors, consultants, bureaucrats, professionals, technicians and experts. Lacking the family money or landholdings of the upper classes, this group is faced with a need to continually work to maintain a place on the social ladder, or even to move up it. And it is this need that is driving the thriving entrepreneurial spirit amongst the middle class in Jordan.

This re-emergence of the middle class did not occur unassisted. So important is the middle class to a nation’s economy and social structure that the government took a number of active steps to support this burgeoning group, such as the establishment of the Young Entrepreneurs Association (YEA) in 1998, and the establishment of Queen Rania Centre for Entrepreneurship in 2004. And this has been supported directly by the King and the consecutive governments, which have been credited for the purposeful creation of a middle class during the previous decade.

The lack of sufficient job opportunities within Jordan has seen emigration of many of the

Zubi M.F. Al Zubi is the Chairman of the Business Management Department at the University of Jordan.

He has been elected to the Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy in Britain.

12 | Papers of Dialogue

Queen Rania at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East Dead Sea, Jordan

middle class, especially to the Gulf region.

The Department of Statistics and the Economic and Social Council estimated in 2008 that well over half a million Jordanians worked abroad, of whom over 40 percent belonged to the middle class. In addition, almost 40 percent of middle class incomes within Jordan comprised so-called “unproductive” financial sources such as property rentals and pensions. In contrast, a thriving economy requires workers to remain in the country and to engage in economic growth.

As a relatively small, resource-poor economy, Jordan must rely on less conventional sources of revenue. In addition to real estate, the Jordanian economy is largely supported by tourism and lifestyle projects. But much has, and can, be gained from the development of novel solutions; through the adaptation of Western goods and services for an oriental market, by utilising Jordan’s unique geographic location in the centre of the Middle East, and its relative political stability. It is here that entrepreneurs have found their true calling in Jordan, in diverse industries from textiles manufacture to IT to hospitality. If Jordan is to survive the ongoing political and economic upheavals of this decade, it is essential that the entrepreneurial middle class is given opportunities to thrive within the country to ensure that Jordan’s entrepreneurial spirit remains its gold.

Business

Businesswomen crossing boundaries Nicole Hamouche

A new breed of entrepreneurs is appearing in the Middle East and North Africa: they are determined, business minded and visionary women, who are also profoundly socially conscious. They are keen to preserve natural and cultural heritage, as well as empowering local communities.

t is currently trendy in the MENA region to champion women’s causes. After the fall of dictators, the rise of freedom has been notable through women’s voices. Not necessarily via the political channel, but more silently, and surely, through the economy. It is not just to be politically correct that institutions such as the IFC (International Finance Corporation) and banks are increasingly gearing their attention to women. Rather, as they have noted, the real impact of their contribution is on growth and recovery. Aude de Thuin, founder of the Women’s Forum and of Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards, has published a book whose title says it all: “Femme si vous osiez, le monde se porterait mieux”, i.e. “Women, Should You Dare, the World Would Be Better”. From Lebanon to Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, and other places along the Gulf, women are breaking old patterns.

They dare question the “princessmania” – the word invented by Aude de Thuin – that is typical to this part of the world and instead look to create their own destinies. They are a new breed of entrepreneurs: determined, business minded, and visionary, like their male counterparts, but also more socially conscious, keen on preserving certain human values and giving back to the community.

Sarah Beydoun, the founder of the famous Sarah’s Bag brand, had started working with women in prison in Lebanon while writing her thesis in sociology on prostitutes. She trained

I

the women to crochet and to design a canvas, etc. With their work, Sarah made a few bags that sold very well and the women in prison found dignity as well as a second breath of life in developing skills that enabled them to make a living. Sarah’s Bag began in 2000, and now generates more than a million dollars in turnover and is a recognized fashionista brand that sells in Europe, the Middle East and Japan. It employs a hundred ladies, grouped in clusters, who work out of their villages. Most ex-prisoners continue to work for Sarah when they are freed, with another fifty participating from prison. The head of each cluster is usually a former prisoner and is Sarah’s contact; it is

Tawlet restaurant Beirut, Lebanon

Papers of Dialogue | 13

Business

Sarah Beydoun

Sarah’s bag showroom

this leader whom she recruits and who manages the other women. Though Sarah’s Bag is a business for profit, Sarah’s drive remains primarily social, in order to make a difference in these women’s lives to whom she has committed her soul. She has convinced the British Council to give English lessons to them, and has gotten a lawyer to provide pro-bono assistance to defend those who have been in prison for years, awaiting judgment as if they wait for Godot…

Sarah’s motto is “be a woman for a cause, not for applause”. The same could also apply to the low profile Christine Codsi, the co-founder of Tawlet Souk el Tayyeb, a farmers’ kitchen/restaurant in Beirut. The restaurant has been acclaimed in the international press, including The New York Times, Condé Nast, Vogue, The Guardian, not only for its cuisine, but also for its unique business model. Every day, different women come from various regions of Lebanon to prepare a healthy traditional buffet with products that are locally sourced and often organic. The idea is to empower these women and to support local farmers and producers as well. The concept came from Christine and Kamal Mouzawak – her partner in this venture – from brainstorming sessions they had in Batroun, a fishermen’s town 60 kilometers away from Beirut, where she had moved to on a sabbatical after a long career at a management consulting firm. It is by mere coincidence that Christine came across Kamal Mouzawak, the man behind the first

14 | Papers of Dialogue

Women working crochet

farmer’s market in the country, Souk el Tayeb, which supports hundreds of farmers and producers who come from all over the place (the North, the South, the coastal area, the mountains, etc.), and Tawlet somehow became a prolongation of the Souk el Tayeb experience. As a matter of fact, dining at Tawlet has turned out to be not only a culinary experience, but a social one as well. “Suddenly, Lebanon’s divisions along religious-ethnicregional lines are transformed into a diverse range of unique dishes” wrote a foreign journalist, as the kitchen celebrates food and traditions that unite communities and the culture of sustainable agriculture.

Almost a hundred farmers and producers contribute to the organization, 50 percent of which are women, and another 500 to 800 people benefit indirectly. Some of the women have been able to launch parallel small catering activities in their own villages, creating economic opportunities in their communities.

The concept has gained momentum in several other countries: Tawlet was approached by investors interested in replicating the model in Egypt – prior to the revolution – and in the Gulf.

In its third year of existence, the organization has opened a second environmentally friendly restaurant in the mythical Bekaa valley, where a B&B accommodation is also under way.

There are also a few expansion projects, all underpinned by the same objective to support small-scale farmers and protect Lebanon’s natural and cultural heritage.

Business

The precursor to this generation of free spirited women in the region, keen on preserving cultural heritage and on empowering craftsmen and young talents, is Egyptian jeweler, Azza Fahmy. In the early eighties, she set up her own workshop with just two workers only to have it become one of the most widely renowned names in the jewelry world, with 19 outlets across the Middle East and Europe.

Fahmy has a strong philosophy of giving back.

She is working with the government to found a jewelry training school to teach middle and high school graduates jewelry design and jewelry making.

Youth is a preoccupation for many in this new generation of entrepreneurial women, such as Jordanian Randa Ayoubi. She is a Harvard graduate who created Rubicon Group back in 1994, which has now become a major digital content production company. Today, the Amman-based firm employs 500 people, boasts revenues in excess of $40m and is partnering with some of the biggest names in Hollywood to co-create feature length films and cartoon series such as Postman Pat and Pink Panther. Rubicon offices and studios have sprung up in Dubai, Manila and California, and giants including Sony, MGM and Turner Broadcasting are lining up for strategic partnerships. Ayoubi thinks big: “I want Rubicon to be mentioned in books when they talk about the Arab renaissance”, she says.

It is also The Little Engineer – a unique afterschool educational platform focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics – that is contributing to this renaissance, by gathering youth in the region and preparing them for the challenges of the future. Several Gulf countries are already asking the company for franchises. The Little Engineer was founded by Rana Shmaitelly, recognized as one of MENA’s most promising entrepreneurs by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and selected by the Cartier Women Initiative. A mother of three and instructor at the Faculty of Engineering at AUB (American University of Beirut), she is even considering conquering Europe and the US now.

Even if these full fledged women – housewives, professionals, socially committed

individuals – have crossed the Rubicon, they still need better access to funding so that the phenomena can spread. And it is a necessity as these ventures open substantial employment opportunities (even against a certain mindset) in a region where demography and the economy – and a steadily rising cost of living – don’t leave room anymore for women but to work. Initiatives are burgeoning in this way even in conservative Saudi Arabia: the Jeddah-based business group Abdul Latif Jameel has partnered with the Grameen Bank – founded by microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus – to create The Grameen-Jameel Pan-Arab Microfinance Limited, whose purpose is to support lowincome and rural women. There is also a lobbying center, the Al Sayedah Khadijah Bint Khouwailid Center, named after the prophet’s first wife, who was an international trader herself. It pushes for reforms in the Kingdom in support of female entrepreneurship, for as Randa Ayubi says: “Whenever a woman or girl gains control of her destiny, the local standard of living goes up and the values of human rights spread”.

Aude De Thuin, founder of Women's Forum for the Economy and Society

‘‘

Whenever a woman or girl gains control of her destiny, the local standard of living goes up and the values of human rights spread.

’’

Nicole Hamouche contributes to several publications of the Lebanese L'Orient-Le Jour press group, among them L’Orient Littéraire, a monthly literary supplement of L'Orient-Le Jour.

Papers of Dialogue | 15

Business

Islam’s new economy in the global age Lorenzo Declich

Once the area covered by the Islamic legal framework represented the world’s largest and most prosperous economic system. Now new phenomena, such as Islamic banking and halal goods, have developed and are rooted in the modern world. They were produced under the influence of a different system, that of globalisation.

oward the end of the 19th century, Cairo’s soil revealed the greatest medieval document collection ever discovered in the Arab and Islamic world.

Archaeologists unearthed tens of thousands of documents at the Cairo Genizah, the storeroom of the synagogue in Fustat. Most date back to between 1025 and 1266, and detail the activities of Cairo’s Jewish community.

One of the most interesting aspects of the material is the details of the economic and trade environment and the framework in which Cairo’s Jewish community operated.

Its analysis can be used to cover the entire Islamic world at the time, because Cairo’s Jewish community lay at the centre of a trade network which stretched from the Mediterranean to India. In addition the

T

16 | Papers of Dialogue

Genizah documents, along with others, show that the Jewish Cairo network was only one among dozens which linked trade communities with different languages and different faiths.

At the time Islam or, to be more specific, Dar al-Islam, the area which the Islamic legal framework covered, was the world’s largest and most prosperous economic system. It extended east from Morocco to Indonesia and all the way to sub-Saharan Africa, as far east as the Swahili Coast and the Indian Ocean. Its success was a result of the trade system’s unitary nature, based on Islamic commercial law. The Jewish and Christian communities were also considered Muslim legal subjects and complied with a unified contracting regime valid within and beyond Dar al-Islam.

Khan Al Khalili Cairo, Egypt

That world is but a memory. Now, the term “Islamic economics” refers to a framework which has little or nothing to do with its precapitalist and pre-colonial past. The main difference between the former system and today’s is that the precursor to globalization was an inclusive system, which incorporated non-Muslim entities. It was the product of economic hegemony, not its cause. Now Islamic finance and the halal goods market, which is a budding phenomenon, appear to be the driving forces behind a new ecosystem which is carving itself an independent or semiindependent space of relative importance in the global market, which is anything but Islamic.

When considering Islamic finance and the halal market, Islamic economics of the past

should not be confused with this new concept. It emerged following well-defined contemporary phenomena including, for example, Indonesia and Malaysia’s economies and the Gulf rentiers. These are currently among the few sources of “real” capital flows.

The two pillars of modern-day Islamic economics, Islamic banks and the halal goods chain, were almost unknown before the 1980s and only became significant in the mid-1990s. What we now call globalisation led to the current situation.

The Islamist brand of market economics had two main parts: trade protectionism in countries where the impact of the global market is evident as their economies expand, and a market niche in those parts of the world, particularly the West, whose

‘‘

The nub of the issue, as far as Islamic finance and the halal market go, lies in the transfer of religious authority from the public sphere to the private sector.

’’

Papers of Dialogue | 17

Business

MacDonald’s halal

Muslim communities are moving toward integration, and are gaining public visibility as well as economic, social and cultural clout, despite still being firmly in the minority. On this point it is sufficient to mention the American Muslim Consumer Conference, whose fourth edition was held at the end of last year.

That is the market segment which Islamic marketing and branding efforts target through new and old stakeholders, new local producers and multinationals alike, with major advertising agencies such as Ogilvy & Mather leading the process. A similar dynamic can be found in Europe.

This is in addition to new consumers in the Gulf states and the Islam-oriented bourgeoisie throughout the Muslim world which, from an economic standpoint, represent one of the most dynamic elements of these countries.

Lorenzo Declich obtained a Ph.D. with a doctoral dissertation called “Islam: storia e filologia” (“Islam: History and Philology”) and taught a course on the History of Islam in the Indian Ocean at the Università Orientale of Naples.

18 | Papers of Dialogue

The scope of this “novelty” is evident if we analyse the factor reversal which occurred in the development of this contemporary economic construct. In the past, the ban on usury or on interest on loans, led to the absence of Islamic banking institutions, which was followed by an invasion by Western financing institutions, to which Muslim businesses turned. Now Islamic banking has become a reliable and credible option, – desirable even – in several contexts, for those businesses and anyone wishing to rise to their level. The impact of the introduction of the concept of a halal market was even more overwhelming. As far as Islamic finance goes, its theoretical development went hand in hand with the emergence of specific financial products, such as the so-called Islamic bond, the sukuk, which are essentially compatible with existing facilities. For instance, several non-Muslim banks have opened Islamic counters. However, the halal market represents a new creation which is more inclined toward exclusiveness. It comes with a specific production chain, monitored by specialised professionals who certify it complies with Islamic principles, and with a research sector of its own, which has major repercussions at the production level.

We’re talking about all those projects, especially public or private-sector initiatives in Muslim countries in southern Asia, whose aim is no longer to guarantee that a product is halal, but to produce new products to replace the non-Islamic ones. From alcohol-free lipstick to pork-free vaccines, a whole world of Islamically-correct goods is emerging, existing side by side with nonhalal goods. This phenomenon would have been unthinkable a few decades ago.

The nub of the issue, as far as Islamic finance and the halal market go, lies in the transfer of religious authority from the public sphere to the private sector. And more specifically, from traditional religious authorities, such as Muslim universities, “ulama” or legal scholars, to ad hoc bodies run by private financial stakeholder, government-endorsed internal control units.

It bears the hallmarks of not only globalization, but also economic liberalism.

Geopolitics

Emirates: a model of political, economic and cultural cooperation Abdallah Jabali

20 | Papers of Dialogue

Geopolitics

T

Yas Marina, Abu Dhabi

he United Arab Emirates has emerged during the past five years as a major international player in political and economic affairs. This is mainly due to the open minded policy that led to the establishment of partnerships with many countries in the six continents of the world in various domains. Such cooperation extends to various domains: political, economic, cultural, scientific, environmental, in addition to energy and technology.

The UAE has acquired such a respected position in the international community that it was chosen to host the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Abu Dhabi has thus become the first Arab capital to host an international organisation. It has also become a leading global hub for experience sharing and launching renewable energy joint projects in collaboration with several countries. It is noteworthy that the UAE has established an annual international award of 2.2 million U.S. dollars to encourage and honour individuals and bodies that make scientific achievements in innovation, development and the implementation of renewable and sustainable energy.

The year 2013 brought significant development in the UAE’s stride to pursue strategic cooperation with other states and regional and international groups, a process that has already led to the European Union assigning a diplomatic mission to Abu Dhabi.

Catherine Ashton, the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said she was very pleased to announce the opening of the EU mission to the UAE. The decision highlighted the importance of geostrategic interests and reflected the political and economic ties with the UAE and the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council as a whole, she added.

UAE Foreign Minister, H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, has welcomed the decision by the European Union to assign a diplomatic mission to the UAE. He noted that it would contribute to strengthening the EU relations with the UAE and of the GCC countries. He described move as an important step towards the promotion of the standing relations between the two sides and highlighted the United Arab Emirates’ role and strong ties with the major regional and international groups.

Another significant development was the inauguration of the first Embassy of the Grand Papers of Dialogue | 21

Geopolitics

Dubai Marina

Duchy of Luxembourg in Abu Dhabi. It is the Duchy’s first diplomatic mission to the Gulf region and the Arab World. In his address at the opening ceremony of the Embassy and the Trade and Investment Office, attended by H.R.H. Crown Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg, H.H. Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan stressed the desire of his nation to promote political and economic relations with the Duchy. He reiterated both countries’ determination to promote relations in various areas. The UAE will become Luxembourg’s gateway to the Gulf region, the Arab World and the Middle East, while Luxembourg will become UAE’s gateway to Europe, he noted.

The opening ceremony was an occasion to take first steps towards the promotion of cooperation and the establishment of strategic partnerships in investment, economy, trade, culture and tourism. An agreement to operate air services between UAE and Luxembourg was signed on the same day.

The UAE welcomes the world Within the framework of its foreign policy of openness towards the world, the UAE has increased its diplomatic exchanges during the years 2012 and 2013. Visits and communications were exchanged at the highest levels to promote cooperation and

22 | Papers of Dialogue

understanding with all states. The aim was to establish mutually fruitful partnerships in politics, economy, culture, investment, scientific research and technology.

Many Heads of State and government as well as key officials have visited the UAE, namely the King of Bahrain, the Sultan of Oman, the Emir of Qatar, the King of Morocco, the King of Jordan, the Queen of the Netherlands, the President of France, the President of Argentina, the President of Kosovo, the President of Yemen, the Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, the President of South Korea, the President of Kazakhstan, the President of Finland, the President of Guinea, the Prime Minister of Italy, the Vice-President of the Philippines, the Prime Minister of Montenegro, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Deputy Prime Minister of Poland.

Other officials who visited UAE included the foreign ministers of Kuwait, Canada and Iran, Tony Blair, the special Peace Envoy to the Middle East for the Quartet, the foreign ministers of Ukraine, South Korea, Azerbaijan, Albania, the Adviser and Envoy of the King of Morocco, the Spanish Minister of Defence, the Minister for Economy and Foreign Trade of Luxembourg, the Minister for Tourism and Economy of Indonesia, the

Geopolitics U.S. deputy Minister of Energy, the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Minister for Environment and Water Resources of Singapore and the Armenian deputy Minister for Energy and Natural Resources among others.

The UAE also signed cooperation agreements and memoranda of understanding, and strengthened cooperation by setting up joint coordination committees with many countries of the six continents of the globe. These efforts led to the conclusion of agreements with 107 states on avoiding double taxation and protecting and promoting investment. The UAE has also signed 145 memoranda of understanding on the regulation of air transport, allowing the UAE national carriers to operate flights to many parts of the world.

The United Arab Emirates currently boosts diplomatic relations with 183 states. It has 68 embassies and three permanent missions abroad. The UAE hosts 99 embassies and 75 consulates, in addition to15 offices of regional and international organisations, compared to only three embassies from Britain, Pakistan and the U.S. when the Union came into being in 1971.

Cultural partnership with the world The UAE has set a clear cut goal to promote dialogue among civilisations and protect and enhance the national cultural heritage with the aim of enabling the country to become a focal point for culture, sciences and heritage in the region and a bridge for coexistence with other civilisations and cultures. In this context, cultural and scientific strategic partnerships with many countries were established with the objective of interact with other civilisations and heritages of the world. Several prestigious universities of international acclaim have established branches in the UAE. .

Cultural projects with global dimensions and content were launched, including the Cultural District of Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, a number of international museums, and Dubai Creek Cultural project in Dubai.

The government of Abu Dhabi and the French government on March 27, 2007, signed a 30year cultural agreement to establish the Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum, an international museum in the Cultural District of Saadiyat Island, just 500 metres from Abu Dhabi’s beaches. The cultural district is the main highlight of the area and is now being transformed into an international touristic destination which will cover 27 square

kilometres. The Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum will host complete collections of rare art works loaned by the Cultural Centre Georges Pompidou, the Louvre in Paris and other French museums including the Quai Branly, Musée d’Orsay, Versailles, Guimet, Rodin and the French National Museums Association.

The museum will showcase these works of art by rotation in the Abu Dhabi Louvre display halls and at the same time the Emirate plans to set up its own collections of art. Regular temporary exhibitions will be annually launched in the Abu Dhabi Louvre, making using of global exchange programmes between the leading global exhibitors. The agreement will also pave the way to tap into the expertise of the French museums and to set up permanent art collections over the next decade. There will also be educational initiatives and specialised conferences on art and training courses to raise local awareness of the world’s fine arts.

A special wing in the Paris Louvre Museum will carry the name of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, May God bless his soul, to honour the memory of this great leader. This wing will be opened in the Pavillon de Flore and will exhibit a large collection of the most prestigious international art works.

Abu Dhabi will contribute to the restoration of the opera theatre in the renowned Fontainebleau Palace, designed by Hector Lefuel between 1853 and 1856. This beautiful building contains art works from the 18th and 19th centuries. The theatre will carry the name of the Head of State, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The Palace of Fontainebleau is one of the most prestigious French royal châteaux. It was built in 1137 and was used by many generations of royal dynasties including Louis XVI. In 1804 it became the residence of Napoleon I, and in 1927 the palace was turned into a national museum. A multi-use art centre will also be opened in Paris, which will be called the Abu Dhabi Centre. It will be the biggest centre of its kind in the world and will be dedicated to the restoration of art collections and training of specialised staff, in addition to the training of national staff who will be working at the Cultural District of Saadiyat Island.

‘‘

Cultural projects with global dimensions and content were launched, including the Cultural District of Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, a number of international museums, and Dubai Creek Cultural project in Dubai.

’’

Abdallah Jabali is a journalist at WAM (Emirates News Agency).

Papers of Dialogue | 23

Geopolitics

Interview with Rosario Crocetta, Governor of Sicily

Sicily, the soul of the Mediterranean Carmelo Rapisarda

Geographically and culturally, Sicily is at the heart of the Mediterranean. It aims to become a platform for development at the religious, artistic, historical and political level, and to create a centre for analysis and project development.

“H

istorically, Sicily belongs to the Mediterranean. It’s the soul of the Mediterranean”. With this lyrical reference, Sicily’s regional governor, Rosario Crocetta, puts a metaphysical spin on the island’s geographic location, and highlights its age-old role as a platform for the merging of cultures and dialogue. “Palermo and Byzantium were the capitals of the Mediterranean in the Middle Ages, and there were thousands of mosques, churches and synagogues in Sicily”, he says. “Greek, Latin and Arabic were spoken, as well as Sicilian, which later helped mould the Italian language. Thanks to the Arab rule of Sicily, which was essentially built on local leaders’ power, the emirs had a prescient glimpse of the local governments which would blossom across Italy centuries later”.

The governor’s description paints picture of a crucible of integration, a melting pot of an island which functioned as a multiethnic, multireligious and multicultural meeting place. Mr Crocetta argues that Sicilians have incorporated that openness into their very character; “indeed, in Sicilian dialect the word straniero (foreigner) does not exist. Instead, the word forestiero is used”, implying that the person in question is from somewhere else but

Geopolitics is not necessarily a stranger. The past is alive and well, and has laid the groundwork for the future. The regional president sees Sicily, “laying claim to its role as a bridge region. The only bridge that concerns Sicily is the one with the Mediterranean”.

Mr Crocetta believes: “The real issue is whether it’s possible to develop a Mediterranean identity in the absence of a European identity... Europe has become an old, aged continent, which seems almost lifeless. There is no growth, no development, and it’s going through a phase which could almost be defined as economic anarchy, which is forcing it to adopt a Eurocentric attitude... while that may have been an asset in the past, it’s now become a limitation to the point where the neighbourhood policy has yielded almost nothing, as a result of old cultural biases”. One example is the debate surrounding Europe’s Christian roots, “which do exist, but are not its only roots. Europe has pagan roots which stem from the Greek and Roman civilisations; it has Muslim roots in Albania and Bosnia, and Jewish roots in Spain... Yet in the last few years it has closed itself off, and the Mediterranean’s diverse roots have fostered more separation than unity”.

Mr Crocetta believes there is a need for a

Taormina, Sicily, Italy

Geopolitics

Palazzo dei Normanni, Palermo, Italy

change in mindset: “Rather than get lost in controversy, such as the one which swept across France over the issue of face veils, discussions which merely mask a fear of contamination, Europe should open up a dialogue with Islam, because not only Europe’s future, but also world peace, hang in the balance. Nuns wear a veil, too, and there isn’t a single portrait of the Virgin Mary in which her head is shorn of the sanctity of a veil”.

“So far, even within the Barcelona Process which is languishing, Europe has sought out a relationship with the world of Islam which would see Muslims, at the social level, adapting to Western customs and, economically, losing out.

Instead, Europe could be a profound cultural lab, if maîtres à penser still existed and politicians were still inspirational. Unfortunately, however, the established system is one which puts politics at the mercy of market technicalities, or, worse yet, market distortions.

Therefore Europe swings from functional structuralism in the north to chaos in the south”.

Sicily’s governor argues that these two extremes function as blinkers, preventing Europe from realising that “Africa is the closest continent and that it has great growth potential, what with its fertile agricultural sector, its oilfields and its eagerness to participate.

Meanwhile, on the other hand, migratory flows cannot be stopped, but they should be converted into an asset”. Mr Crocetta cites Turkey as a typical example of European hesitance: “While Europe discusses its membership, Turkey’s GDP has grown eight percent and Ankara has taken on a leadership role in the Middle East and in the Arab Spring countries. So a country that could have been our partner has become our rival”.

We need, therefore, “sound Euro-African and Euro-Mediterranean policies”. In this context, the governor believes “Sicily plays a key part and should leverage its identity through a new role. Firstly, it should become the cultural focal point for the Mediterranean’s social and political complexity, and it ought to do so by promoting policies of its own, in light of its independence, which the central government often fails to comprehend and which it sometimes obstructs”. During his time as a Member of the European Parliament, Mr Crocetta dedicated himself to dialogue with countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean, and wove a network of relationships which he continues to foster in his role as regional governor. On a trip to Tunis in December, he persuaded the Tunisian government to release a Sicilian fishing boat and its crew who had been seized

Geopolitics Cultures

in Sfax. He managed to do this without paying any fines. He said that the “Foreign Ministry wondered how that could be done and was somewhat surprised at my personal initiative, which didn’t go through diplomatic channels.

But I didn’t go to Tunis as part of a diplomatic mission. I went there privately, to meet some friends. And that’s the approach that works in the Arab world; that’s something we will have to discuss with the new government. We need to adopt a two-pronged approach, aiming for Sicily to be viewed by both the government and the European Union as the region’s bridge to dialogue, so we can broaden our horizons to include the pivotal and far-reaching potential which Africa encloses. That will contribute to Sicily’s development, but it’s also something Europe needs, because otherwise it will miss the proverbial train”.

Mr Crocetta is seeking a radical paradigm shift, failing which, “bilateral agreements will essentially remain a hangover from colonial times”. A case in point, says the governor, is the agreement between the EU and Morocco, based on which “Europe can export all types of industrial goods and import all types of agricultural goods. That translates into southern Europe’s agriculture sector paying the price for Germany’s or the Netherlands’ productivity growth, while Morocco’s problems remain unsolved”. Cultural exchange, he claims, would be a better starting point: “By September, I intend to have organised a Mediterranean intercultural conference; all the Mediterranean Basin countries will be invited, in a bid to begin to build permanent Mediterranean institutions located in Sicily. I envisage a great Mediterranean university, a multilingual centre where students could attend classes taught in English, French and Arabic, a place for intercultural knowledge”. As part of his governmental initiatives, the governor also hopes to work for “specific agreements with Tunisia, Algeria, Libya and Egypt, in the cultural exchange sphere but also the economic one, for example in the fisheries, transport and tourism sectors, aiming to harness all the potential these countries and Sicily hold. I would like for there to be a weekly, widely distributed publication on information pertinent to the Mediterranean, something along the lines of Jeune Afrique. And we need to hold on to RAI’s Mediterraneo program at all costs; there will be negotiations involving the company and the government, because the show should be enhanced, not canceled”.

Rosario Crocetta, Governor of Sicily

Essentially, he concludes, “Sicily must become a platform for intercultural development at the religious, artistic, historical and political level, and create a centre for analysis and project development to that end”. There is also a need for headquarters which “could be located in Taormina, but also in Bagheria or Mazara del Vallo, or even Sciacca. One thing is for sure, and that is that neighbourhood policies cannot be limited to a handful of projects thought up by people who often fail to grasp the context, while the EU waxes lyrical about human rights and solidarity, only to show its true colours when faced with thousands of Tunisian refugees fleeing the revolution’s violence and other repercussions. For example, in Lampedusa refugees were living in undignified conditions, and in Menton they were rejected at the border.

As a region, we cannot get involved in issues beyond our scope, but we can favour dialogue.

And Sicily reserves the right to intervene”.

Carmelo Rapisarda is the head of AGI’s Palermo (Sicily) desk.

Papers of Dialogue | 27

Geopolitics

Palermo, a bridge between Europe and the Mediterranean Leoluca Orlando

The Sicilian capital is a mosaic of different cultures, and relies on its history of cohabitation and acceptance to re-establish a dialogue with the world, and above all with its neighbours the countries and peoples of the Mediterranean. he ancient name of the city of Palermo not only reflects its morphology, how it protrudes and merges with the sea, with Mare Nostrum. In antiquity, it was called Panormus, or Balarm, which also mirrored its nature, as it is a cross-road of peoples, cultures, experiences and faith, dreams, hopes and of full civic engagement. It is a city that is much more than the geographical centre of that great crucible of cultures and peoples represented by the Mediterranean Sea. Palermo is not a static picture, Palermo is a mosaic of different pieces in which the Arab parts, linked to their history and culture, are extremely important. All these pieces are held together by a frame. And, inside that frame, Arab history and culture has an extraordinary importance.

For centuries Palermo represented hope and the likelihood of an encounter and of a fruitful cultural cross-fertilisation but also much more. In Palermo, people spoke many languages and

T

Church of Martorana, Palermo, Italy

worshipped different divinities and saints, and you could come across men and women from all the countries of the world, always ready to leave for any corner of the globe. Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew and French were all widely spoken in the old city. The sailors had invented a language of their own: Sabir, a sort of ancient Esperanto that enabled sea-farers to communicate in any port along the Mediterranean coasts.

Even now many of the streets and alleys in Palermo’s historic centre have name plates in three languages: Italian, Arabic and Hebrew.

These bear witness to an age-old coexistence between peoples and cultures that recognised each other’s cultural wealth, enhancing their own identity by recognising the identity of others.

Those name plates are not only a symbol of hope, they are also the tangible signs of the possible cohabitation and common prosperity of men and women of different cultures, religions and customs.

It is not by chance that the centuries when Zisa Palace, Palermo, Italy

28 | Papers of Dialogue

Geopolitics Palermo was synonymous with cohabitation and acceptance correspond to its period of maximum splendour. It is not by chance that some of the city’s greatest monuments and architectural works date back to the same time. These works of art, like La Zisa (or Al Aziz) Castle or the Palatine Chapel, are the expression of different art histories, cultures and sensitivities, all mixed together.

Today Palermo is a mirror once more. A mirror of what occurs in the Mediterranean Sea, a mirror of sorrow and of hope, of the oppression and of the redemption experienced by millions of men and women who are the citizens of other countries bordering on “our Sea”.

Like many other countries across the Mediterranean, Palermo has experienced its own version of the Arab Spring, which was preceded and followed by difficult times. The city has undertaken a path that has never been easy and is always on the brink of returning to the past or projecting into the future.

Palermo’s Spring took place after years and decades of violence and abuse. On one side there was oppression and violence exercised by a few, on the other a rebellion-shy multitude.

When the oppression and violence became unbearable, Palermo and its people reacted, staging their own youth-led Spring. They demanded to be freed from the oppression of organised crime, the mafia and corruption, and pressed their claim to the right to dignity and life.

Our Spring, like all other civil Springs, was not just a Spring of the world of politics and of public administration. It was also, and mainly, of culture, participation, of a new value system based on respect for individuals, of building relations between people and international relations.

Palermo and Palermitans, like many people around the world, looked on the Mediterranean Springs as models of commitment and participation. Ways of re-discovering and reacquiring a taste for civil empowerment and engagement, the importance and the beauty of civil society’s commitment to communities.

Palermitans, all the Palermitans, whatever their place of birth, religion and mother-tongue, are rediscovering the importance of belonging to a unique community that is culturally strong and rich because it is the union of so many minorities that recognise each other. Palermo’s first new citizen born this year was the daughter of citizens of another country. Every day in the city, a citizen born abroad becomes a new Italian citizen. This is a clear sign of a city that is returning to being multicultural and multi-ethnic,

Leoluca Orlando, Mayor of Palermo

that is putting its stakes on dialogue and on cohabitation as the instruments to cause the whole of society to grow.

Today, Palermo’s Spring has started again.

Palermo has re-established a dialogue with the world, with Europe, with the Americas and Asia and, above all, with the countries and peoples of the Mediterranean, its natural interlocutors.

We have re-launched our dialogue with the Mediterranean at a time when the financial crisis casts doubts on an economic system that is disrespectful of people, of the environment and of entire populations.

Now, more than ever, dialogue and cooperation are making their forceful comebacks as the alternative and credible instruments to overcome difficulties together. Euro-Mediterranean cooperation is returning, strengthened by the need to safeguard that historical and geographical union represented by the Mediterranean, which is the bridge between cultures but also a great economic resource.

With this spirit and based on these facts, we are re-opening our dialogue with all the countries bordering the Mediterranean, “diving” again into our Mare Nostrum.

My gamble, our gamble, is to transform the past into an opportunity for the future and to convert our history and geography into an extraordinary opportunity for economic relations and development. Palermo as the bridge between the Mediterranean and Central Europe.

Leoluca Orlando is the Mayor of Palermo, Sicily.

Papers of Dialogue | 29

Cultures

Interview with the singer Nour Eddine Fatty

The artist as a voyager Jalal Sabir

From Morocco’s Rif mountains to Italy’s capital, the journey of singer and songwriter Nour Eddine Fatty is an incredible human and musical adventure.

In his latest album, Zagora Moon, the artist creates a marvelous and nuanced picture, which is also a message of hope for the peoples of the Mediterranean and beyond.

recently met Italian-Moroccan singer Nour Eddine Fatty when I went to the magnificent house where he lives in central Rome to interview him. I was invited to stay for dinner, along with a few select guests, and had the privilege to hear him, and his partner, sing several beautiful, heart-rending songs.

Our interview began with a reference to Hurria (freedom), a song from his latest album Zagora Moon. It paints a bitter and

I 30 | Papers of Dialogue

disillusioned picture of the Arab Springs. The song, says the musician, seeks to explore “the true meaning of freedom”.

In Hurria, you seem to view the Arab Spring movements through a bitter and disenchanted lens. What are your views on the changes underway in the Arab world?

Young Arabs had had enough of oppression and injustice, but they lacked the maturity that

What could music contribute at this stage?

Right now music can act as a warning signal, a reminder that the process leading to freedom is serious and complex. It took a long time in the West, too. We cannot expect the Arab world to overcome its problems overnight. Musicians give an honest interpretation of things, and at times like these they can tell the truth as perhaps only a madman can. Politicians have their own agendas, while musicians and artists are free.

A true artist cannot conceal the truth.

an out-and-out revolution demands, the understanding of true freedom. My song, Hurria, says, “I have come so far, I have climbed many mountains”. Yet, despite everything, you cannot help but notice, “my lips are still sewn shut, my mind is still closed”.

There is still much suffering and misery. In all honesty, I’m not very optimistic. The road to democratisation is very long in the Arab world... there’s a risk of turning back.

Which Arab musicians express those views?

For example, rap musicians from Algiers, Casablanca, Tunis and Cairo. Their lyrics are very interesting and extremely deep. We used to listen to Bob Dylan… we yearned for change. Back in the 1960s there were ideals and the hope for a sea change. There used to be a whole subcategory of politically involved singers, but it’s all much harder these days, because those in power often stifle and hide free speech and expression.

At this stage, for instance, the message of suburban youth has been completely neglected. There hasn’t been any real change. My song Hurria touches on that, too.

In what way does your life reflect this yearning for freedom?

I left the Rif mountains of Morocco and moved to Italy in 1992. I’m still the same boy who left his own country, in search of a better life.

That’s what millions of young Arabs and north Africans are hoping for. I managed to make a life for myself in Europe. Here in Italy, I achieved freedom and emancipation. I wanted to be a musician and I became a musician, I managed to make my dream come true.

What are the prerequisites for intercultural dialogue, in your opinion?

Lately, when I think of the word Hiwar (dialogue), I wonder: how can we stand for a Mediterranean in which, say, Muhammad doesn’t have the same rights as Pasquale?

Papers of Dialogue | 31

Cultures

who hate the West. When I was an undocumented immigrant, I, too, felt angry, music helped me overcome that. Dialogue calls for groundwork. North Africa is like one big suburb on the outskirts of the West, from an economic standpoint. I made it, but perhaps I was at risk of getting recruited by extremists, too. Italian people are amazing.

The people I meet every day in Italy help me discover a whole new, wonderful world, but in order for there to be true dialogue we need to get rid of Muslims’ hatred of the West and vice versa. We have some very important work ahead of us.

Nour Eddine Fatty

...

How can they communicate? Muhammad will grow up with an inferiority complex, with a sense of injustice… Young Arabs often feel they don’t have the same rights as their counterparts on the northern shore of the Mediterranean. They dream of travelling, but they need visas. I was an illegal immigrant when I first arrived in Italy. I know what it feels like to be stuck somewhere and not enjoy freedom of movement. People need to be taught mutual respect, starting with respect for each other’s dignity and rights. In Europe, immigrants often feel their dignity is being violated; their anger often stems from that.

That’s why you have these clusters of frustrated, angry youth in the Mediterranean

Fabrizio De André (1940-1999) was an Italian singer and songwriter, active for almost 40 years. His songs often tell of rebels and social outcasts, but can also be moving love stories.

The beauty and depth of his lyrics mean he is widely considered to be a great poet. Among his most famous songs, there are masterpieces such as ‘La canzone di Marinella’, ‘Don Raffaé’, ‘La Città Vecchia’, ‘Amore che Vieni, Amore che Vai’, ‘Via del Campo’, ‘Il Testamento’, ‘La Canzone dell’Amore Perduto’ and the album ‘La buona novella’.

...

32 | Papers of Dialogue

Where did your musical journey take you?

I come from a family of roaming musicians from the Rif, from a long Berber tradition such as the Master Musicians of Jajouka. That’s why I identify with tribal traditions the world over, with ancestral musical approaches, where music becomes a ceremony. For example, I found this notion of music reflected in Mimmo Cavallaro’s music in Calabria, but also in Puglia and Sicily. I then took my experiences as a roaming musician to Piazza Vittorio underground station in Rome. My origins are those of a street musician… I grew artistically here in Italy.

Italians felt moved by my songs… over the first two years I built up an audience, made up of people who loved me, appreciated me and came to see me play every day: old ladies, teenagers, traffic wardens, carabinieri. That’s how I got to know Italy’s people. I adapted my stories, from the depths of my heart, to the present moment.

Though I didn’t speak of the past, those people who came to watch me sing every day understood the extent of my past, and their own. Therein lay the magic, that deep connection: my past and theirs. As I played my music underneath Rome’s bridges, I learned to appreciate Christianity.

What were the defining events in your artistic career?

Two spring to mind: my Coexist album, which put me out there in the mainstream, and Advocata Nostra, from Alma Mater – Music from the Vatican. I was the first Muslim in history to compose a song featuring the Pope’s voice. My voice was added to a Gregorian chant.

Cultures Cultures

What does your latest album, Zagora Moon, represent in the context of your artistic journey?

Zagora Moon is an album that talks about my achievements as an artist and my coming of age. The songs are in Spanish, Arabic, English, French and Italian. This album was conceived in a beautiful place in Italy, Tuscany. I feel like this beautiful country’s adopted son. In terms of genre, it’s neither world music nor pop, there are many different elements. The album is based on the concept of an artist being a voyager.

Zagora Moon is a little like the history of couscous, which has travelled all over the Mediterranean. This album is full of acoustic nuances, of resonance, and its lyrics are contemporary. Artistically speaking, I came into my own here.

Which artists inspire you?

There’s one in particular: Italian singersongwriter Fabrizio De André.

Rif mountains, Morocco

What are your plans for the future?

We’re putting together an orchestra with musicians from across the Mediterranean Basin. It’s called the Uninettuno World Orchestra, and we held a concert with them last Christmas. Our work consists of a journey through the Mediterranean’s entire classical repertory. This was Professor Maria Amata Garito’s idea: she’s a dean at UTIU University (Università Telematica Internazionale Uninettuno). The likes of Driss Alaoui Mdaghri, a prestigious intellectual and Moroccan poet, will also be taking part in the project.

Papers of Dialogue | 33

Cultures

A call for dialogue: the legacy of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Abdallah Jabali

he civilised approach and crystal clear political vision of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founder of the United Arab Emirates and leader of its developmental process, has become an everlasting legacy and an established approach to the culture and conduct of the UAE foreign policy. He was the mastermind of the country’s approach of tolerance and dialogue in establishing relations with other countries and nations of the world. This conduct earned the United Arab Emirates the respect and appreciation of the international community at large.

During his rule from 1968 to 2004, the leader stayed true to the principles that he had established to foster peaceful coexistence between different religions, to advocate tolerance and consolidate love and peace among people. He also denounced all forms of fanaticism & religious extremism and violence against humanity.

The brave leader took courageous positions and outstanding initiatives during many crises that occurred in Arab and Islamic countries – including Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen, Somalia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and the Arab Maghreb States among others.

T

‘‘

Terrorism is abominable from the point of view of Islam and other divine religions, and it is an implacable enemy of all humanity.

’’

34 | Papers of Dialogue

Call for Dialogue Approach Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan dedicated

his efforts during more than three decades for the reconciliation between brothers and the settlement of Arab differences through dialogue, understanding and tolerance. He cautioned against the risk of fragmentation and deterioration facing the Arab World. He said: “Since the eruption of disputes in the Arab World until today, I have never spent one night without being worried over disputes between a person and a brother of his, or between a person and a friend of his”. He made tremendous efforts to reduce tensions, resolve disputes and unite the Arab and Islamic World while promoting the image of that world and emphasising its global role and position.

He was keen to call upon his brothers, the Arab kings or heads of state or governments, to review the Arab position in a comprehensive way. He also asked them not to adopt a losers’ approach, but rather undertake thoughtful and informed action, and to make up for the losses incurred by Arabs and defend their major common interests. He once stated: “The Arab world is large, with huge wealth and richness, thanks to God. We must, therefore, shoulder our responsibilities and reverse the losses and weaknesses of our vision to endeavour with relentless efforts, and without delay, to compensate for the losses we have incurred and pursue the right course”.

Sheikh Zayed also emphasised that the UAE would support those who reinforced the unity of

Cultures

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan

Arab ranks in order to assist them in addressing the current challenges by strenuous and effective efforts in the spirit of fraternity and promotion of tolerance and reconciliation. This was particularly true in the light of lessons drawn by Arabs from their previous losses.

As part of his efforts to promote solidarity and mutual assistance to unite the Arab and Islamic nation, Sheikh Zayed called for the rejection of division and disputes by respectful and frank communications and through logical, graceful and tolerant dialogue. “Almighty God, who created men and women, judges and forgives... therefore, we Arabs should attempt to solve our issues by the adoption of judgement and forgiveness”. He once said. “Tolerance is the key to solidarity. We have always called for speaking with one voice and enhancing the process of solidarity, cohesion and convergence between brothers”, he added.

In a speech to clerics and scholars in the Arab and Islamic World on March 22, 1993, he called for combatting the phenomenon of religious extremism, which is rejected by Islam.

He emphasised the importance of raising awareness among young people regarding the principles of true religion, which calls for grace and tolerance and condemns the killing of a Muslim by a Muslim. According to Sheikh Zayed’s teachings, “It is the duty of Islamic scholars to elucidate the essence of Islam and

its great message in respect to the spirit of Islam and its sublime teachings in compliance with the verse: ‘Invite (all) to the way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious’. This is how people can respond and stand together to fight terrorism and manslaughter in the name of Islam”.

In a meeting with Great Britain’s Crown Prince Charles on November 11, 1993, in Abu Dhabi, he said that Islam was a religion of mercy, tolerance, forgiveness, understanding and rapprochement between individuals who should treat each other in the best and most gracious manner. “Islam does not recognise violence or tyranny practised by terrorists who falsely advocate the teachings of Islam”, he said. Using this false pretext, they adopt a shameful conduct to slaughter their brothers and their relatives to achieve a hidden agenda under the pretext of religious beliefs.

At the meeting he called for a constructive dialogue between religions to achieve peace and the welfare of all humanity, while emphasising his support for Prince Charles’s attempts to launch a dialogue between scholars of different religions. He affirmed that the UAE was fully prepared to support such meetings, which will serve the interests of humanity”.

In a meeting with the envoy of Pope John Paul II on January 30, 1994 he repeated his support Papers of Dialogue | 35

Cultures

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan with Bishop Giovanni Bernardo Gremoli, Apostolic Vicar of Arabia for twenty nine years

for the idea of Muslim-Christian Dialogue. He said: “We welcomed this idea and we expressed our desire to support it as much as we can, because we believe that such a dialogue is important to clear up misunderstandings and misperceptions about religions, bring about a rapprochement in viewpoints, elucidate points of general convergence, and determine converging and diverging beliefs and teachings”.

In a meeting with newly accredited ambassadors on October 16, 1995, he said that: “Religions require serious dialogue among them. A Muslim has to understand the essence of the true Christian teachings – in the same way as a Christian has to understand the true teachings of Islam. Believers of both religions have to engage in dialogue, and not cede the arena to extremists, who exist among Christians, as well as among Muslims. This dialogue among religions is the real deterrent of fundamentalists and extremists”.

Sheikh Zayed deplored religious intolerance.

He stressed in his meeting with new ambassadors on March 29, 1988, that: “Humanity has a great value with God Almighty and hence, it has to be treated according to what God willed for it, in terms of good and welfare. Likewise, Islam honours man, as God Almighty honoured him. God considers the human spirit as ‘a sacred trust’ and that it should not be humiliated, abused, treated

Abdallah Jabali is a journalist at WAM (Emirates News Agency).

36 | Papers of Dialogue

unfairly or deprived of rights, and that, the killing of a human being would be as if killing all mankind”. He went on saying: “Islamic religion treats all people equally; no difference between a Muslim and a non-Muslim. And that when God Almighty sent his Messenger, Mohammed, Peace and God’s Blessings be upon him, He ordered him to argue with wisdom and eloquent preaching; and that ‘if the Prophet were harsh and unkind of heart, the followers would have dispersed away from him’”.

After the 9/11 attacks on the US in 2001, his Highness, Sheikh Zayed, made a telephone call to President George W. Bush on September 17, stressing that the UAE unequivocally condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. He said: “Terrorism is abominable from the point of view of Islam and other divine religions, and it is an implacable enemy of all humanity”. He also stressed: “These criminal acts require the cooperation of the international community to combat and uproot them, wherever they may exist. We declare that the UAE is fully prepared to cooperate in combating terrorism based on its principled and firm position”. He stressed that international cooperation against terrorism should come from immutable principles and not involve double standards. “The United States of America and the international community must also work to end Israeli acts of terror in the occupied Palestinian territories, so that the peoples of the world would not feel subjected to injustice and inequity”.

Late Sheikh Zayed said in his last speech to the nation on December 1, 2003. “We stress that neither any of the monotheistic religions nor any of the international laws or any human rights charter would find an acceptable reason for terrorist acts, and that using religion to justify such acts is a wrong endeavour, since it contradicts all human and religious foundations, principles, values and teachings”.

“We strongly reject the advocacy of hatred, violence and all practices that divide peoples.

In the UAE, we will pursue our common vision of protecting our homogeneous and united society based on our values, heritage and openness to dialogue, exchange and interaction with the world at large and with all its cultures and works of creativity”, he added.

WORLDENVIRONMENT .TV

MAGAZINE

Cultures

From Bari to Beirut, with love Aurelia Ardito Bari, Italy

J

ust a few pieces were amiss to complete the Middle East puzzle – studying Arabic made me travel to Yemen, Tunisia, Palestine, Jordan and Syria. I had planned to attend a traineeship in Beirut at the Italian Embassy in 2006; yet, I had already accepted a grant to continue studying in Paris and gave it up. Then the war broke out in Lebanon and a resistance against Israel followed. My long stay in Paris reassured my family, who knew I was safe and sound in Europe.

No one in my family ever understood this

38 | Papers of Dialogue

passion of mine – at times obsessive – for the Mediterranean’s East, although they have always considerately accepted every choice I have made. We too live on the Mediterranean, along the Bari coastline in Apulia. Yet, moving away from that microcosm of olive groves and vineyards has always been taboo for my family.

My grandmother, on my mother’s side, says I remind her of her brother Giuseppe, who went off to Libya in the 30s. “Now they have also taken away my grand-daughter,” she says, clenching her hands as if to invoke divine protection. Actually, she is constantly praying, hoping that I will settle down in Apulia – the most beautiful place in the world, according to her.

May 2010, Paris – My future seemed settled with a PhD course and a small job at a publisher’s that had recently moved to Paris from Turin, when the telephone call taking me back eastward arrived.

There was still an unexplored country which had been inspiring me for years – Lebanon. My research in Syria and Jordan kept on leading me back to Lebanon – the country of cedars – the country that seemed to be awaiting.

August 2010, Beirut – My dream came true. I was eastbound again to explore Lebanon, to work in development and, even better, to work for

Cultures

Beirut, Lebanon

children. UNICEF accepted me as a voluntary worker, just before granting me a contract. I had in my head a flurry of ideas about this country, i.e. cedars, wars, Paris of the Middle East, diverse communities and religions, and a strange feeling that it was going to take me some time to get adjusted to it, differing from other neighboring countries. To greet me upon my arrival was the maddening road traffic that haunts the city’s inhabitants every single day. Soon, I was to come to the conclusion that Naples, in comparison, was a Swiss canton in terms of driver’s discipline.

February 2012, Beirut – The flurry of ideas I had in my head was soon confirmed. Not only did the landscape of olive groves and vineyards remind me of my place of origin, but it was a country where nature and its inhabitants survived conflicts and wars to make the Lebanese dream come true – made even more remarkable that everyone was a part of it, according to their background.

Lebanon has about 18 different communities with different denominations – Druze, Christians, Shiites, Sunnites, Armenians – each stating that they are monotheistic, but every one of them praying to their own god. The allure and the doom of this country have come from this merging of communities and cultures.

...

The House of Medici was the name of a Florentine family of bourgeois origins that ruled, in different forms, the city of Florence (and later Tuscany) from 1434 to 1737. Their name is associated with periods of peace and wealth during which letters and arts flourished, making Florence one of the most important European cultural and artistic centers of the time.

But how much of this gets across to the other shore of the Mediterranean? How many people know about the years that Emir Fakhr el-Din spent in exile in Florence (1613-1618), and his encounters with the Medici family while there?

How many know about his admiration for banks, the central treasury, the Italian judiciary system and the organization of the armies of the Italian city-states? How many Italians know about the interest, curiosity and real love the Lebanese have always had for Italy? How many Lebanese choose to go to the typical hamlets in Umbria to celebrate their civil marriage, which in Lebanon does not exist? And how many Lebanese learn Italian and have a great command of the language?

I would love for my family to visit this land. I would love for them to be brave and do away

...

Papers of Dialogue | 39

Cultures

...

The Lebanese philosopher and politician Charles Malek (19061987) received a PhD in Philosophy from Harvard University and later became Professor of Philosophy at the American University of Beirut. He served as President of the United Nation’s Human Rights Commission, Lebanese Foreign Minister, Lebanese Minister of Education and then President of the General Assembly of the United Nations. His role was crucial in shaping the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted in 1948.

...

1 “Hi-English – How are you? – Arabic – Everything ok? – French” 2 Exclamation of Lebanon’s first president Beshara elKhouri, after independence (1943) to reply to the population’s calls to solve the problem of hunger and poverty.

He ironically replied that Italians were responsible for all that. At the same time, Mussolini was hung in Italy (1945).

The phrase became an idiom.

with the prejudice of seeing Lebanon only as a war-stricken country. I would hope that a TV report of terror or of a historic moment are not the only memories that remain in people’s minds. Lebanon is much closer to Italy than anyone would imagine – beyond all expectations. The profound value of the family is deeply rooted in society, as are the endless Sunday luncheons, the cordial smiles, the curiosity in meeting new people, and the concept of sharing, which makes us all citizens of the same lands and sailors of the same sea with a single identity – the Mediterranean identity. A country the same size as Apulia, and just as eccentric and contradictory.

Lebanon is the country of civil wars and occupations, but also the country that triggered the Arab Spring in 2005. Yet, it is a country where even today women do not have the right of granting their nationality to their children. A country which, thanks to Charles Malek, participated in the drafting of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 and opened the doors to the Palestine exodus, yet enclosed the Palestinians in camps with almost no rights. It is the country of high rises and extended residential areas, huge shopping malls, and luxury cars, while the rural landscapes, such as the northern ones in Akkar

Aurelia Ardito worked as a researcher in the Parisbased INALCO (Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientale) as well as in the IFPO (Institut Français Proche et Moyen Orient) in Amman and Damascus in 2007-2008. She contributes to designing projects in the field of education for UNICEF Lebanon since 2010.

40 | Papers of Dialogue

and eastern ones in Beqaa, are where many children still play in the street barefoot and poverty is all around.

It is a country where tradition and modernity intertwine and blend in churches and mosques that mark the time during the day, as well as in a multitude of bars, restaurants and clubs that could compete with those of European nights. Beirut, with his 5000-year-old history, is the city where old shelled buildings stand side by side with completely reconstructed, yet totally empty, buildings downtown – like Solidere’s. It is the country of cedars, although conifers are threatened with extinction.

Lebanon is the multilingual country par excellence, “Hi, kifak, ça va?” 1. It is the place where drinking coffee becomes a ritual to welcome guests and where the collective taxis are ready to drive you anywhere. It is the country where the distribution of wealth takes place when one gives a tip for any service received; where the pizza dough is called manakish; where women’s beauty becomes an obsession and post-war surgery translates into plastic surgery, exceeding Brazilian standards.

This is a country where a bit of the Wasta, a recommendation, will open any door, where the corruption of the caste, which cancerously rules the country and where at the end of the day you hear “Kell el-haqq ‘ala at-talien!” 2…

Italians are to be blamed for everything.

What difference would it make if we were to write Apulia instead of Lebanon? Very little, dear Grandmother.

And, what is more, Lebanon is the country of great literary tradition and the greatest thinkers – Arab, Christian and Muslim.

“You have your Lebanon and its dilemma. I have my Lebanon and its beauty. You have your Lebanon with all her prejudices and struggles, and I have my Lebanon with all her dreams and securities.

Your Lebanon is a political knot, a national dilemma, a place of conflict and deception.

My Lebanon is a place of beauty and dreams of enchanting valleys and splendid mountains.

Your Lebanon is inhabited by functionaries, officers, politicians, committees, and factions.

My Lebanon is for peasants, shepherds, young boys and girls, parents and poets.

Your Lebanon is empty and fleeting, whereas...

My Lebanon will endure forever”.

Khalil Gibran, My Lebanon, 1920.