The ICES publication Sri Lankan Muslims: Ethnic Identity within Cultural Diversity by Professor M.A. Nuhman, University of Peradeniya, was launched at the ICES auditorium on June 6, 2007. On the occasion of the launch, three guest speakers presented diverse takes on the publication.
The distinguished scholar Dr. Lorna Devaraj drew on her extensive knowledge of the Kandyan kingdom to relate the historical relationship between the Muslim community and the kingdom. Dr. Devaraj also dwelled on the varieties of Sri Lankan Muslims, in particular, upon the Coast Moors.
Dr. Sumanasiri Liyanage, University of Peradeniya, took a completely different approach to addressing the issues brought out by the publication. He focused on Muslim identity formation in the late 20th century, taking an approach that drew on Qadri Ismail’s category of “Muslim social formation” and largely rejecting of ‘ethnicity’ as a social marker, a suspicion that is shared by Professor Nuhman himself. Dr. Liyanage, in particular, explores what Nuhman describes as the ‘third phase of the development of Muslim identity in Sri Lanka’, where ethnic identity has gradually been ‘unmoored’ in favour of an overwhelming ‘Muslim identity’. The complete text of Dr. Liyanage’s presentation is available here.
Dr. Fara Haniffa, University of Colombo, addressed two chapters of Professor Nuhman’s text, namely “Ethnic Identity and Muslim Women: Gender Equality or Subordination?” and “Religious Awareness and the Process of Islamization”. The speaker drew on her own expertise to dwell at length on issues of gender in Muslim society, before tackling the question of the Islamization of Muslim society. Dr. Haniffa concluded with an overview of Islamic da’wah movements, which can be described as conservative exemplars of religious purity with a varied involvement in socio-political affairs.
Sunil Bastian chaired the launch. It was well attended by a cross-section of society including members of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, leading academic experts on Muslim affairs, and civil society figures.
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