Religious, Ethnic Pluralism in Greater Asia.. Seminar at RIBF

As part of its cultural program at the 30th edition of the Rabat International Book Fair, the Muslim Council of Elders organized a seminar titled "Religion and the Nations of Greater Asia." 

The session was moderated by Dr. Samir Boudinar, Director of the Al Hokama Center for Peace Research, and presented by Dr. Fouad Farahawi, Professor at the Faculty of Law, Economics, and Social Sciences at Mohammed I University (MIU) in Oujda.

At the beginning of the seminar, Dr. Samir Boudinar noted that the theme was drawn from a recently published book by the Al Hokama Center for Peace Research, titled "Religion and the Nations of Greater Asia: Managing Religious and Ethnic Pluralism in China and India." 

The book, a collaborative work by the research team behind the project Peace and the Religious and Ethnic Map of Asia, was overseen by Dr. Fouad Farahawi. It delves into the complexities of religious and ethnic diversity in Asia, with a particular focus on China and India, two of the most populous and culturally diverse nations in the region. 

The book also explores the issue of identity, especially in India, as the second most populous country in Asia.

Dr. Fouad Farahawi emphasized that the book highlights Asia as the world’s richest and most diverse region for Muslim populations, according to global demographic data. 

He pointed out that the region plays a pivotal role in shaping the future global balance of power, especially with the cultural, economic, and strategic rise of both China and India.

He further noted that global peace is closely linked to stability in Asia, as patterns of cooperation and conflict in the region often reverberate across other parts of the world, including Africa, the Arab region, Europe, and the Americas.

 He stressed that the reality and future of Muslims in Asia cannot be viewed in isolation from the historical evolution of the other nations, religions, and civilizations in the region. Given the broad ethnic and linguistic diversity of Muslims in Asia, it is only natural to find points of intersection with the ethnic compositions of other religious and philosophical traditions in the region.