Supporting the democratic political organisation of Muslim immigrants: the perspective of Muslims in the Netherlands and Germany

Using data from three survey studies, this paper examines the support for the democratic political organisation of Muslims among Muslim immigrants in the Netherlands (Studies 1, 2, and 3) and Germany (Study 3). Using a social psychological perspective, support is examined in relation to religious group identification, Muslim linked fate, perceived discrimination, fundamentalist religious belief, and host national identification. The findings in all three studies show support for the political organisation of Muslims. Furthermore, higher religious group identification and higher linked fate were associated with stronger support. More discrimination and more fundamentalist beliefs were also associated with stronger support, and part of these associations was mediated by linked fate. National identification was not associated with support for the political organisation of Muslims.     

Muslims’ social inclusion and exclusion in France,Québec,and Canada: does national context matter?*

This article compares the social experiences of Muslim minorities in three contexts – France, Québec, and English Canada – each reflecting a different approach to immigrant integration. France’s republican model emphasises cultural assimilation and the exclusion of religion from the public sphere; Canada’s multicultural model advocates official recognition of minority cultures; Québec shares Canada’s tradition of large-scale permanent immigration but embodies a unique intercultural discourse of integration, in some ways resembling France. We compare the social experiences of Muslim and non-Muslim minorities in these three settings using the French ‘Trajectories and Origins’ survey (2009) and the Canadian ‘Ethnic Diversity Survey’ (2002) data on reports of discrimination, friendship networks, social trust, voluntarism, and national identity. We find the Muslim/non-Muslim gap in social inclusion is significant in all three settings and results from ethnic, cultural, or racial differences, more than religion. In assessing immigrants’ social inclusion, we suggest consideration be given to: (i) the reality of ‘national models’ in the community, (ii) a tendency for minorities to locate in more accepting segments of mainstream society, and (iii) the limited impact of policies based on national models.     

Culture, state and varieties of capitalism: a comparative study of life insurance markets in Hong Kong and Taiwan

This article examines the interplay between local culture, the state, and economic actors' agency in producing variation across markets. I adopt a political-cultural approach to examining why life insurance has been far more popular in Taiwan than Hong Kong, despite the presence of a cultural taboo on the topic of premature death in both societies. Based on interview data and documentary references, the findings reveal that as an independent state, the Taiwanese government heavily protected domestic insurance firms during their emergence. These domestic firms adopted a market-share approach by re-defining the concept of life insurance to accommodate the local cultural taboo. The colonial Hong Kong government, on the other hand, adopted laissez-faire policies that essentially favoured foreign insurance firms. When faced with the tension between local adaptation and the profitability of the business, these foreign firms chose the latter. Their reluctance to accommodate local cultures, however, resulted in a smaller market. I argue that state actions mediate who the dominant economic players are and that the nature of the dominant players affects the extent of localization. Specifically, the presence of competitive domestic players alongside transnational corporations is more likely to produce varieties of capitalism.     

伊盟、伊合与中国中东人文外交

伊斯兰世界联盟与伊斯兰合作组织是泛伊斯兰主义制度化的产物,伊盟主要通过朝觐平台间接对伊斯兰国家政治施与影响,伊合则通过推进议题的方式直接对伊斯兰国家政治产生影响;我国历来重视发展与这些泛伊斯兰国际组织的友好关系,并取得了宝贵历史经验与良好的成效;在明确我国与泛伊斯兰国际组织开展人文交流与合作的资源优势、基本目标及其实现途径的基础上,探索我国对中东国家开展“全方位、多层次、宽领域”人文外交的应对之策,旨在进一步提升我国对中东伊斯兰国家的人文外交能力.     

后穆巴拉克时代的埃及穆斯林兄弟会

穆巴拉克政权倒台后,穆斯林兄弟会成为埃及政坛最具实力的政治力量。它通过组党、组建政治联盟、引导过渡期政治安排等措施,巩固了其在政治格局中的优势地位。由于穆兄会在组织结构、经济实力等方面的优势,加之埃及世俗政治力量的式微,它旗下的自由与正义党有望在议会选举中胜出。迄今为止,穆兄会的政治议程尚不明朗,但政治现实将促使其趋于务实。穆兄会的经济政策与穆巴拉克政权相似,使其难以领导埃及实现经济转型。与此同时,穆兄会的崛起将促进阿拉伯国家伊斯兰党派走向联合,引发阿拉伯世界地缘政治结构的变动。当然,穆兄会上台也为埃及与以色列和美国的关系带来较大的负面影响。     

人口计生宣传教育为“先导”的重心和支点

宣传教育为先导的战略决策,是国家人口计生委党组书记、主任李斌同志2007年年底在河南召开全国农村人口文化建设工作现场会和在宁波市召开全国婚育新风进万家活动经验交流会上提出的重大战略思想。宣传教育为先导战略决策的提出,是在科学发展观指引下尊重思想政治工作、精神文明建设和人口计生工作客观规律,总结正反两方面工作经验教训的必然产物,是今后做好人口计生工作的元点工程。本文主要论述了为什么要先导,先什么、导什么,如何先导三个重大问题。     

发挥兵团文化优势，建设军垦新型生育文化

新疆生产建设兵团在五十多年的时间里,形成了具有明显兵团特色的新型军垦生育文化。本文拟从移民文化、党政军企合一的军垦文化、兵团特色的妇女文化等视角来揭示兵团新型军垦生育文化的成因．为构建社会主义新型生育文化提供一个可资借鉴的经验。     

疾病、文化抑或其他?——同性恋研究的人类学视角

客观存在的同性恋群体长期以来属于人类学研究的禁区,其承受的污名和歧视使触碰这一领域的学者规模和作品数量相对稀少,这种情况在中国人类学界尤为明显。从学科认识论来看,同性恋研究经历了"性逆转"、"性倒错"的医学范式;异性恋框架主导的文化影响模式;建构学派的历史、政治、经济视角批判;以及酷儿理论的全盘颠覆和开放式探索。     

2011年文艺学研究有关的几个问题

一个学科要想获得发展,必须处理好两个彼此相关的问题:其一是对当下社会文化重大问题的回应能力;其二是将这些问题的回应与本学科自身的关联梳理清楚。通过对2011年与文艺学研究有关的几个问题及其讨论(包括"艺术学升‘门’"、"文学经验"、"文学形式"、"视觉文化"等)的清理,可以发现文艺学研究必须要积极应对和处理与相邻学科的关系、本学科内部的研究范式以及在当代文化重要问题中推动学科的发展。     

水情结视野下的傣族文化

特殊的地理位置和气候环境铸造了傣族人民个性鲜明的水情结。文化是各个民族对特定环境的适应能力和适应成果的总和,透过傣族人民的水情结,我们将可以领略到该民族独特的生活习俗、审美追求和民族文化。