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Abstract :

Dialogue to eliminate the animosity between the Islamic and western civilizations requires a thorough understanding of the causes which spread hatred against the western countries. This paper argues that dialogue among these civilizations should be conducted at two levels. At governmental level, dialogue are conducted in form of negotiations whereas, at the public level, successful dialogues require identification of seeds of hatred embedded in the Muslim societies. Western countries need to take practical steps to recover their tarnished image in the Islamic world whereas the Muslim countries have to bring radical changes in the economic and political infrastructures of their countries. Data on Muslim countries have been collected and analyzed. It was found that, at this stage, Islamic countries are lagging behind almost in every field including education and technology. They are too vulnerable and weak when compared to the western military might and, therefore, are in no position to conduct dialogue with their western counterparts.

Keywords : Dialogue, Islamic civilization, Western countries, Gouvernment, Public.

Extended Abstract :

The ongoing animosity between the Western and the Islamic civilizations is not new. Its seeds have been embedded in the Islamic culture where the perception of the western civilization is enshrouded with terms like 'aggression' and 'exploitation'. The research in this work investigates why the West has been perceived that way and will the dialogue among these two civilizations be an appropriate way to minimize the widening gap between the two civilizations. The work in this paper initiates the discussion on dialogue and recognizes it as an appropriate tool to achieve a new paradigm of global relations. Civilizations and their characteristics have been discussed. The discussion further identifies that in contrast to the debate on civilizational pluralism, dialogue among civilizations is a relatively new phenomenon. It has been argued that no external agency is required to conduct dialogue among civilizations. Dialogues are silently triggered by the moment two civilizations interact with each other. In the present context of dialogue among civilizations, dialogue at two different levels has been suggested.

At the governmental level, dialogues take the form of negotiations where the participants ensure that the outcome will not jeopardize their national interests. The success of negotiations largely depends on a single parameter, that is, the relative economic, political and military status of the participants. In extreme cases, where the relative status of the participants is widely different, negotiations are simply transformed into dictation where the most powerful country will completely dominate the negotiation process. Economic and political data on various Islamic countries have been collected and it has been shown that, at this stage, Muslim countries are lagging far behind both in education and technology. Their economic and political infrastructures do not allow them to conduct dialogue with the western countries, particularly, the United States. Even while negotiating issues, the Islamic world is not in a position to withstand the pressure of western countries. They are too vulnerable and weak when compared to the western military might.

In contrast to the governmental level, the dialogue at the public level can be conducted in its true form. But at the public level, successful dialogues require the identification of causes of hatred embedded in the Muslim societies. The work presented in this paper clearly identifies the seeds of hatred and emphasizes that both the Islamic world and the western countries have to take radical steps to modify their policies towards each other. Particularly the Islamic countries have to improve their economic and political infrastructures to meet the challenges of the modern world. A simple methodology to conduct dialogues both at the governmental and public levels has been suggested.