1. religion and spirituality
2. islam

March , 2015
Number 137
Contents
Modern Muslim Subjectivities Project
In the framework of the ”Modern Muslim Subjectivities Project” (MMSP), two researchers of
the Centre have visited universities in South and South-East Asia. The different subprojects of
the MMSP are funded by the Danish Council for Independent Research – Humanities and
VELUX Foundation. For more information about the Modern Muslim Subjectivities Project,
see this link.
1
Dietrich Jung in Singapore and Malaysia
From January 25th to
February 28th 2015, Prof.
Dietrich Jung, the Head
of
the
Centre
of
Contemporary Middle
East Studies was in
South East Asia. Prof.
Jung had invitations
from the Middle East
Institute (MEI) at the
National University of
Singapore, the Division
of Sociology at the
School of Humanities
and Social Sciences,
Nanyang Technological
University in Singapore, and the Political Science Department of the International
Islamic University Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. At the Middle East Institute he gave a
lecture on Islam and Modernity: A Critique of “Muslim Exceptionalism” in the Middle East.
In taking its starting-point in the events of the “Arab spring” this lecture discussed the
role of Islam in the modern Middle East. It presented a counter-narrative to the antimodern image of Islam and suggested to understand the social tensions in Muslim
societies as an inseparable part of a larger process of the emergence of global
modernity.
At Nanyang Technological University, Prof. Jung discussed with faculty and students
of sociology the theoretical framework of the Modern Muslim Subjectivities Project on
the basis of his lecture with the title Modern Muslim Subjectivities: Global Modernity,
Islamic Traditions and the Good Life. In criticizing the alleged exclusivity of Western
modernity, the lecture focused on both conceptual approaches to global modernity in
social theory and social processes in modern Muslim societies.
Modern Muslim
Subjectivities Project
3
Movie Club
Publications & Lectures
4
DJUCO
5
Danish Resource Center on
the Modern Middle East:
Articles and Activities
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In February Prof. Jung held a brief guest professorship at the political science
department of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) in Kuala Lumpur
(see the above picture). There he taught seminars on theories of modernity for
graduate students in political science. In addition he gave two lectures on the
discipline of Islamic studies in Europe and on subjects relevant to the Modern Muslim
Page 2
Newsletter no. 137
Subjectivities Project. IIUM is a a university that combines all branches of the modern sciences with Islamic sciences. As an
Islamic university IIUM has the vision “to become a leading international center of educational excellence which seeks to
restore the dynamic and progressive role of the Muslim Ummah in all branches of knowledge and intellectual discourse.”
Field work in India – Gry Hvass Pedersen at the Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi
Broadening the traditional scope of the Centre on the MENA region, Gry Hvass Pedersen currently conducts fieldwork for
her PhD project at the Jamia Millia Islamia, the national Islamic university, in New Delhi. The fieldwork is part of the
Modern Muslim Subjectivities Project,
dealing with Islamic universities. This
part of the project explores the role of
religion with regard to a particular
sample of very different Islamic
universities, posing the question about
the meaning of “Islamic” with respect to
curriculum, teaching, organization, and
enrolment at these universities.
Jamia Millia Islamia was established in
1921 in opposition to the Aligarh Muslim
University’s support of British rule. The
people behind the new educational
project comprised Gandhi, the nationalist
movement, Alumni students of the
Aligarh
Muslim
University,
and
supporters of the Khilafat movement.
Jamia thus holds a proud history, as well
as legitimization, by taking part in the
nationalist movement, which led India to
independence in 1947. During the first
years of its existence the new university remained in the city of Aligarh. However, unable to challenge and replace the old
Aligarh University it was moved to Delhi, where it is located today. In 1988 it achieved the status of a central university
under the Indian state.
Just after entering the gates of the university, the campus trees have absorbed the noise from the hectic Jamia Road and you
find yourself walking in an area resembling a green and tranquil park. Groups of students, boys and girls often mixed, are
sitting in small groups on the grass working, talking, or having a “chai break”. The atmosphere is relaxed and friendly.
Students are dressed casually in jeans, shirts, and many girls with a colorful scarf around the neck. A few female students
wear a hijab, while some of the boys carry a white skullcap and a long, traditional Islamic coat. At the moment, Jamia has
around 20.000 students of which 50 percent are Muslims. This composition is guaranteed by Jamia’s status of a minority
university, which it achieved in 2011. Besides its nine faculties, the university has a number of research centres and is
considered one of the top ten universities of India. Thus, in a country where Muslims are a minority and often suffer of a lack
of education and economic well-being, Jamia holds an important position for the Muslim community, providing higher
education and the possibility of advancement for its Muslim students. Gry Hvass Pedersen will stay at Jamia until May 2
presenting and discussing her project, as well as collecting further information and data on university life.
Newsletter no. 137
Page 3
Movie Club
I’d like to start up with what I hope will become the Center’s Movie Club. The idea is to watch movies related to
the Middle East on our fancy screen in the meeting room. This shall happen in the early evenings of the month’s
last Monday (starting at 17.00). After an informal chat, there will be a short introduction to the movie that then
will be screened. Sandwiches and beverages will be served.
Since Easter will be close then, the opening on March 30 will show “The life of Brian” by Monty Python. The
short (I promise!) but—of course—critical introduction will focus on contested issues related to post-imperialism
and Biblical Orientalism.
In order to be able to provide you with sufficient food and drinks, please sign up no later than March 25 at
mbeck@sdu.dk.
Other meetings in 2015 are: April 27, May 18 (since last Monday in May is a holiday), August 31, September 28,
October 26, and November 30.
Looking forward to seeing you then, Martin Beck
Publications & Lectures
Publications
Martin Beck and Simone Hüser (2015), “Jordan and the ‘Arab Spring’: No Challenge, No Change?,” Middle East
Critique 24:1, pp. 83-97.
Martin Beck (2014), “The Arab Spring as a Challenge to Political Science,” The International Politics of the Arab
Spring, edited by Robert Mason, New York: Palgrave, pp. 9-36.
Martin Beck (2014), “The Concept of Regional Power as Applied to the Middle East,” Regional Powers in the
Middle East. New Constellations after the Arab Revolts, edited by Henner Fürtig, New York: Palgrave, pp. 1-20.
Peter Seeberg guest edited a special issue of Middle East Critique and wrote:
Seeberg, Peter (2015) Guest Editor’s Introduction. An Arab World in Transition – Democratic Changes and
Theoretical Discussions in a post-“Arab Spring” Scenario, Middle East Critique, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp. 1-7.
Seeberg, Peter (2015) Regime Adaptability and Political Reconfigurations following the “Arab Spring”. New
Challenges for EU Foreign Policies towards the Mediterranean, Middle East Critique, Vol. 24, No. 1, pp. 41-53.
Lectures/Conferences
Peter Seeberg gave a guest lecture at European Studies, University of Aarhus, 24 February: “The Arab uprisings,
recombinant authoritarianism and the Syrian tragedy”
Newsletter no. 137
Page 4
News from DJUCO
Mediterranean Perspectives 2014
On the 18th of January 2014, the 12 Jordanian master students had their final exams for the Mediterranean Perspective
course. It was their first time writing a synopsis and presenting it orally as an exam format. All 12 students passed the
course and according to associate professor Peter Seeberg, they all did a good job.
Innovation Camp 2015
In cooperation with LOYAC Jordan DJUCO Partnership held our 2nd Innovation Camp in January 2015 with the aim
of strengthening the participants’ innovative skills and therefore diminish the gap between the Jordanian education
system and labor market. Twenty-six university students and newly graduates from different backgrounds and
majors gathered for three days to work on two business challenges provided by Biolab, a biomedical company in
Jordan. The winning group is now implementing their idea in cooperation with Biolab and the Children’s Museum in
Jordan focusing on making children aware of avoiding different health problems in the their future life.
To watch a short film about the camp, click here and to see pictures from the camp click here
International Conference
In cooperation with University of Jordan’s Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II School of International Studies, DJUCO
Partnership arranges the conference “Analysing Security Complexes in a Changing Middle East: The Role of NonArab State Actors and Non-State Actors”. It is a two-day conference which will take place in Amman on the 19th and
20th of April 2015. Scholars, mainly from the Middle East and Europe, will present their perspectives and afterwards
debate in panels. Participation in the conference is free of charge.
Joint publication
Middle East Critique has published a Special Issue based on papers from the joint conference “An Arab World in
Transition - Theoretical Perspectives”, which was arranged by Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah II School of
International Studies, and Center for Contemporary Middle east Studies – and hosted by the University of Jordan the
in April 2013. The Special Issue is guest-edited by Peter Seeberg and can be found here.
Students in Dialogue Meetings
DJUCO Partnership is continuing the series of students in dialogue meetings, which started last fall to enhance the
academic environment on Jordanian universities. Jordanian students will this semester make sketches that debate
methods of teaching and how to tackle issues related to this. DJUCO Partnership will facilitate this through two
meetings: one on March 19th, where students will debate how to make a good sketch, and one on March 31st, where
the same students will act out their sketches at an open event. Both meetings will take place at Hashemite University.
Tour de Jordan 2015
On the 17th of April, 22 master students enrolled at Danish universities will arrive in Amman. Here nine days of
academic and cultural experiences awaits. As part of this trip, the master students will take part in the two-day
International Conference, mentioned above, followed by “DJUCO Academic Student Conference”, where the Danish
master students will work along with Jordanian master students on the topics from the 2-day international
conference. The participants will present their work and get feedback from one of the scholars who presented at the
International Conference.
For more information on DJUCO Partnership please contact Project Manager Bo Vestergaard Thiesen
thiesen@sdu.dk / 65502175 or Project Director Peter Seeberg seeberg@sdu.dk / 65502176. For more information please
visit our homepage and our facebook. Or follow DJUCO on twitter.
Newsletter no. 137
Page 5
Danish Resource Center on the Modern Middle East:
Articles and Activities
If problems occur when opening the links to the respective articles, please visit the Resource Center on our
homepage. Below is a mixture of English and Danish articles/links.
1. december 2014
"Højere kriminalitetsrate
hos muslimske grupper" Mehmet Ümit Necef udtaler sig til altinget.dk
Nye tal fra Danmarks
Statistik viser enorme
forskelle på, hvordan
ikke-vestlige indvandrere klarer sig i Danmark.
Mens flere asiatiske
grupper er meget mindre kriminelle end danskere, ligger samtlige
etniske grupper fra
muslimske lande i den
øverste halvdel.
1. december 2014
"Sprængfarlige forskelle på
etnisk kriminalitet" Mehmet Ümit Necef udtaler sig til altinget.dk
Kun ved at inddrage
kulturelle normer kan
man forklare, hvorfor
kriminalitet er langt mere udbredt i nogle etniske grupper end andre.
Men kulturens rolle er
politisk dynamit, for
hidtil er kriminalitet og
dårlig integration blevet
reduceret til et spørgsmål om sociale problemer.
19 january 2015
Refugees in Jordan and the
Regional Turmoil - Peter
Seeberg
Taking its point of departure in the first UNHCR
2015-update on the refugee situation in Jordan
the article discusses the
recent development in
Jordan, where regional
turmoil for years has resulted in involuntary
mass influx of refugees.
22 january 2015
Quo vadis Palestine - Martin Beck
Recent events related to
Palestine have brought
the Palestinian issue,
which had received fairly
low attention during the
heyday of the Arab
Spring, back to the center
stage of Middle East-ern
politics.
22. januar 2015
24syv Morgen - Kirstine
Sinclair
22Kirstine Sinclair diskuterede også radikaliseringsprocesser i forbindelse med januar måneds
terroranslag i Frankrig i
Radi24Syv (20. januar
2015 [17:35]).
22. januar 2015
"Derfor syntes elskelige
mennesker pludselig at vold
og terror er okay" - Kirstine Sinclair
Kirstine Sinclair diskuterede radikaliseringsprocesser i forbindelse med
januar måneds terroranslag i Frankrig med Politikens Anders Legarth
Schmidt (Politiken Direkte, 17 Jan 2015)
2 february 2015
Cap au Sud Course South
for Morocco s Economy Steffen Wippel
International and national media are currently
showing increased attention to Morocco’s economic presence in subSaharan Africa. After a
brief survey of the
country’s trade relations
and economic agreements across the Sahara,
the paper focuses on Moroccan investment and
firm cooperation, illustrated by strategic sectors such as finance, telecommunication and air
transport.
4. februar 2015
DR2 Dagen - Peter Seeberg
Peter Seeberg kommenterede situationen i
Jordan, hvor hængningen
af to fængslede som gengældelse af IS’ likvidering
af jordansk soldat har givet anledning til omfattende diskussioner, kritik og
sympatitilkendegivelser.
6. februar 2015
Jordan samler sig i kamp
mod Islamisk Stat - Kristeligt Dagblad - Peter Seeberg
Peter Seeberg udtaler sig
til Kristeligt Dagblad om
den faldende opbakning
til Islamisk Stat i Jordan.
6. februar 2015
TV2 Nuheder , DR Nyheder og DR TV-Avisen Kirstine Sinclair
Kirstine Sinclair udtaler
sig til DR og TV2 om forslag om at sætte antiradikalisering på skoleskemaet fra 4. klassitrin. (DR TV
-Avisen: "Verden idag")
25. February 2015
Tangier Morocco in Transnational Flows and Networks - Steffen Wippel
The port of Moroccan city
Tangier is experiencing
impressive growth in container throughput in the
last couple of years. Connecting several parts of
the world, this expanding
port relies on the corresponding infrastructure.
University of Southern Denmark—Campusvej 55— 5230 Odense M — DENMARK. — Phone 6550 2183 — Fax 6550 2161
E-mail: middle-east@hist.sdu.dk — Website: www.sdu.dk/middle-east..