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Update #68 September 22, 2008
Progress in PakistanAt the end of August, ICRD's Vice President for Preventive Diplomacy, Azhar Hussain, and I returned from a week in Pakistan where we accomplished the following:
2. Initiated the first in a series of inter-faith seminars involving senior Christian and Muslim religious figures. It was an intensive three-day encounter in which the participants built relationships, discussed their respective problems, and developed an action agenda for addressing these problems on a joint basis. 3. Conducted a first-of-its-kind joint workshop for Deobandi and Ahle-Hadith (Wahhabi) "master trainers" (i.e. those ICRD workshop graduates who have been trained to train other madrasa leaders). Because these are two of the more conservative sects that sponsor madrasas, this represents a significant milestone in promoting sectarian cooperation and synergy of effort. 4. Finally, I met with Mohammedmian Soomro, then Interim President of Pakistan, to discuss our university initiative and various challenges relating to the government's madrasa registration process. All in all, a productive time in a difficult and increasingly chaotic environment. The hotel where I stayed in Islamabad three weeks ago was blown up the day before yesterday; a sobering reminder of what's at stake. (Donate here) With best wishes,
Doug Johnston President
International Center for Religion & Diplomacy 1156 Fifteenth Street, N. W., Suite 910 Washington, D. C. 20005 202-331-9404 (phone) 202-872-9137 (fax) |
1. Concluded an agreement with University of Karachi faculty to conduct a six-week pilot university training program for madrasa teachers that will provide the basis for certifying madrasa faculty and set the stage for taking the madrasa enhancement effort to scale. As with our own ten-day workshops, this program will place a heavy emphasis on religious tolerance, human rights, and conflict resolution. Once the program has proven its worth, it will be expanded to include madrasa faculty from across the country through the involvement of additional host universities.
