In a world where almost all societies are multi-religious and multi-ethnic; we need to study how social cohesion can be achieved in different contexts. In some geographical areas; as in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent; people of different religious belonging have; through the ages; lived side by side; sometimes in harmony and sometimes in dissonance. In other geographical regions; as in Scandinavia; societies have been quite religiously homogeneous but only recently challenged by immigration. The implication in both locations is that the relationship between religious minority and majority is on the agenda. In order to discuss the situation for Non-Muslims in Muslim majority societies; a consultation was convened with both Muslim and Christian participants from Pakistan; Palestine; Lebanon; and Sweden. Some of the participants work in academic settings; others in faith-based organizations; some in jurisprudence and others with theological issues. This book presents articles that discuss issues such as freedom of religion; minority rights; secular and religious legislation; and inter-religious dialogue in Muslim majority societies.
#4226861 in Books 2004-09-26 2004-09-26Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.21 x .89 x 6.14l; 1.43 #File Name: 0714682756392 pages
Review
17 of 20 people found the following review helpful. A Western deception operationBy Luc REYNAERTIn October 1982; mysterious submarines entered Swedish waters. They were stigmatized by the military as Soviet war ships testing Swedish preparedness for a new attack on Western frontiers.The submarine hunt by the Swedish army started 2 weeks after the Social Democratic Party won a parliamentary election under Olof Palme; who not only supported Third World freedom movements like the Sandinistas in Nicaragua; but more importantly campaigned for a Nordic and Central European Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone. Therefore he initiated a Western-Soviet dialogue on security and disarmament.Olof Palme was considered to be a high security risk by the US; NATO and some industrial and military leaders in Sweden. He was shot dead one month before a trip to Moscow.Through a meticulous examination of all events Ola Tunander arrives at the conclusion that there was absolutely no USSR involvement in the affair. It was a pure Western provocation; a form of psychological warfare in order to undermine Olof Palme's credibility; to destabilize his government; to counter his policies and to undercut the popular support for his Party.The effective result was a complete change in Swedish public opinion concerning Soviet aggression. It provoked; de facto; a change in Swedish international neutrality policies.Deception operations are an alternative means to the use of force in order to dominate democratic States. By creating a false reality through covert incidents (by foreign or by the country's own military forces) public opinion can be manipulated; thereby forcing (or giving the opportunity to) elected governments to carry out the policies of international (military) authorities and not their own ones. Similar operations were launched in other NATO States (Belgium; Italy).But this book shows also another extremely important political phenomenon. Western democracies were (are) ultimately not ruled by elected (formal) governments but by parallel (informal) ones; as Caspar Weinberger asked in this case: the `political' or the `military' Sweden? This ruling informal power structure is mostly composed by military and industrial leaders.Ola Tunander wrote a thriller script which is a must read for all those who want to understand the world we live in.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Absolutely outstanding book. A must-read for students of Cold ...By Sile ShigleyAbsolutely outstanding book. A must-read for students of Cold War history; and for all who wish to understand major world events from a foundation of serious; critical inquiry instead of shallow; newsy propaganda.6 of 28 people found the following review helpful. US and UK a threat to Sweden?By Readers are LeadersI apologize to the author; this review in no way reflects in a negative way on the author' writing skill--it is only a commentary on its thesis. Which is nonsensical.The only threat to Sweden; Norway; and Finland is Russia. The military history is clear. Finland once had a port on the Arctic; and a huge nickel mine. Russia attacked Finland in 1938; which was primarily an attack to take Finish resources; the port and nickel mine; now a part of Russia.Russia today is a resource power. It needs resources (oil; metals; etc.) to sell for hard currency in the world market. Russia is also a great land power. So; for it to move across the border; once again; to say Norway; is possible. After all; Norway has huge potential in oil reserves; particularly in the Arctic region; and who knows what other potential; ports on the Atlantic; etc.The never ending immigration into Norway is setting the stage for social unrest; even civil war; which as in Yugoslavia; will invite a foreign intervention. Who is to say that Russia could not intervene; being a multi-ethnic empire itself? And; just think of the resource gain!Sorry; I do not buy the argument that the US and UK is a threat to Sweden. On the contrary; the US and UK is a vitally important defacto ally.
