reaching out to the west beyond the stereotypes
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Reaching out to the West beyond the stereotypes

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Reaching out to the West beyond the stereotypes

Sultan urges the Arab world to vigorously promote its timeless, sterling values
Paris - Arab today

Arabs and Muslims have a fundamental responsibility to build strong cultural, business and economic bridges with the world to move past the stereotypical imagery due to the actions of radicalised minorities “that don’t share our values nor religion,” His Highness Dr. Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Member of Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, has said.

“The primary issue in projecting an image to others lies in the fact that whenever a tragedy occurs, we tend to isolate ourselves and run away from the problem,” Dr Shaikh Sultan said in an interview with the UAE media at the Sharjah Book Authority’s pavilion at the 37th Paris Book Fair.

Another reason, Dr Shaikh Sultan noted, is that there is lesser Arab participation nowadays in important international cultural events and he affirmed his readiness to provide full-support for their participation in upcoming events, “where their presence will act a significant added value for the entire Arab world.”

“Some want us [the Arabs] to disappear and vanish from the global scene, and more people are betting on that. We must henceforth build friendships, come closer through cooperation and partnerships. We must not follow a path of separation, segregation and isolation,” Dr Shaikh Sultan added.

Sharing his vision about how to communicate and interact with ‘the other’, especially with the West, the Ruler of Sharjah said: “Learning from others is an important detail for us, because we see ourselves as part of this much larger world, which holds a variety of scientific and technical knowledge. Our contribution is derived from our position as [having been] once the owners and founders of sciences and knowledge. Therefore, in order for us to communicate and reach out to others for knowledge, we must first acknowledge our significant culture, our unique identity and that we were once a major contributor to the Golden Age, back when Europe was going through the Dark Ages.

Dr. Shaikh Sultan, however, underlined the need to adhere to certain factors when building relationships with other cultures. “The Arab world needs to be sure of its cultural and religious identity — celebrate its uniqueness, and proudly pass it on to the future generations. A firm realisation and understanding of one’s roots will help our people connect better with the cultures of the world, upholding and respecting each other’s differences and cohabiting peacefully in a world so rich and diverse,” he said.

He added: “I draw red lines for myself that I never cross, such as my religion and religious adherence. There are some customs and traditions of other peoples which we receive — their heritage and interaction with their culture — [which] are not consistent with our traditions and our religion. This is why we could focus on science and knowledge when dealing with others whose customs and traditions are not compatible with our religion. This means religion has its own red lines, and even customs and traditions also have their red lines. As we do not want to go around in mazes that may damage our communities, we hope that all peoples are committed to these values when dealing with each other.”

Dr Shaikh Sultan, nevertheless, pointed at several areas of cooperation with the West, highlighting specifically the aspects of culture, knowledge and heritage. He cited the ‘World Heritage in Sharjah’ project as an example, and said, “Each month, Sharjah hosts a country to showcase its heritage. On the other hand, Sharjah participates in international events held in many other countries. It also hosts art, music and theatre-related events.”

He spoke of Sharjah’s open-minded view of knowledge-based exchanges. “Sharjah is open to knowledge-based cultural cooperation, as we believe that is the way forward for a peaceful, sustainable future for the world. Science is science, and will benefit all involved parties equally.”

He emphasised the importance of scientific and cultural collaborations with the West and said that such integrated efforts would herald the dawn of an era of inclusion and diversity, which will allow a free exchange of intellectual, economic and artistic resources — strengthening the collective heritage of the world based on mutual trust and cooperation.

The Ruler of Sharjah, who earlier met with French Presdient Francois Hollande on the sidelines of the Paris Book Fair, expressed his happiness over the emirate’s selection as the Guest of Honour for the Paris Book Fair 2018. He stressed that Sharjah will collaborate closely with the fair’s organising committee to ensure the largest possible Arab participation — Arabian Gulf countries in particular, and specifically, the UAE

source : gulfnews

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

reaching out to the west beyond the stereotypes reaching out to the west beyond the stereotypes

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

reaching out to the west beyond the stereotypes reaching out to the west beyond the stereotypes

 



GMT 01:34 2017 Sunday ,19 February

Dashti loses last hope to run in Kuwait’s elections

GMT 03:38 2017 Saturday ,18 November

England and Australia set for clash of the titans

GMT 08:21 2017 Monday ,06 March

Iran indicts nuclear negotiator, holds

GMT 09:14 2017 Sunday ,12 November

Crown Prince congratulates Moroccan King

GMT 12:33 2017 Monday ,07 August

European stocks buoyed by bright US jobs data

GMT 10:03 2017 Wednesday ,22 February

Actress Nadeen Najim confident of "Haiba" success

GMT 19:54 2017 Friday ,11 August

Credit Suisse bars trades on some Venezuelan bonds

GMT 20:14 2016 Tuesday ,18 October

Iran Air Force begins large-scale drills

GMT 05:29 2017 Thursday ,13 April

Greece completes sale of 14 airports

GMT 11:24 2017 Thursday ,06 April

Dora is absent from Ramadan Dramas

GMT 22:36 2017 Thursday ,16 February

Competes Sweden and Germans by S90

GMT 01:35 2017 Wednesday ,09 August

Russia Foreign Minister to Visit Japan in Fall

GMT 14:19 2017 Thursday ,19 January

Hana Shiha started working in two new TV series

GMT 05:24 2016 Thursday ,23 June

Emirates Academy is a leading centre

GMT 16:01 2016 Thursday ,09 June

China’s imports fall slows in May

GMT 14:22 2017 Wednesday ,01 March

IOF demolish East Jerusalem home, displace 30 people

GMT 14:32 2013 Monday ,16 December

Window treatment ideas

GMT 07:07 2017 Wednesday ,20 December

New series of Narcos moves to Mexico

GMT 22:41 2017 Friday ,15 December

BOC celebrates National Day

GMT 06:04 2017 Tuesday ,24 January

KSA shines in Gulf, Kuwait bull run slows

GMT 21:20 2017 Monday ,03 April

EU condemns St.Petersburg explosions

GMT 00:45 2017 Tuesday ,05 September

Lebanese newspapers' headlines for 4/9/2017
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday