Islam, Secularism and Security in Central Asia and Beyond

In partnership with the British Council’s Bridging Voices Project 2014/15

The purpose of the dialogue is to undertake a debate about the relationship between Islam and secularism with respect to security in Muslim-majority regions.

1. How do the relations between political Islam and more privatized variants of Islam get negotiated by civil society organizations which may or may not situate themselves in the categories set forth by state authority or individual responsibility?In particular, what are the challenges faced by secularised Islamic political parties in environments of contention between secular governments and Islamist groups?
2. How are these differences negotiated in everyday life?How far is political Islam identified as a threat in popular discourse and practice? And how do the security responses of the state to perceived threats impact secularised Muslims?

We will consider how these questions are being addressed in the foreign policies and security analysis of Western states, including the United States.

9:00am Arrival & Coffee

9:15am Roundtable on The Myth of Post-Soviet Muslim Radicalization in the Central Asian Republics

CHAIR: David Lewis, University of Exeter

PRESENTERS:

David Montgomery, CEDAR

John Heathershaw, University of Exeter

RESPONDENTS:

Marlene Laruelle, GWU

Noah Tucker, Registan.net/GWU

Michael Hall, Open Society Foundation

11:00am Coffee & Close