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Eugenio Chahuan is professor of history and director of the Center of Arabic Studies at the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities, the University of Chile.
The September 11 attacks set into motion a profound and sensitive debate as the world realized that even the greatest power in the world can be vulnerable. The impact was felt far and wide, and Islam became the focus of attention in the media, in seminars, in forums, and in thousands of publications worldwide. Against the expectation of the many, religion does not seem to be on the wane; if at all, it is seeing a resurgence, coupled with an enormous capacity to mobilize and produce changes in various part of the world. There are the cases of Iran, the Philippines, Afghanistan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, the Balkans, Chechnya, and the U.S.A. -- with Bush's born-again Christianity.
Today, most political leaders are adopting an apocalyptic discourse. They talk of the struggle against evil; they speak in the name of God and try to impose their own laws and their perception of the good. The German philosopher and sociologist, Jurgen Habermas, pointed out in a conference that the September 11 attacks have led, in various ways, to the explosion of the tension between secular and religious societies. And the anticipation by some social analysts that the 21st century would start under the sign of a clash of religions, cultures, and civilizations seems to be materializing.
The Need for an Antithesis
The long-standing negative mental construct the West has of Islam and the Arabs has been intensified by the determining role played by the media these days, especially when they are in the service of colonial interests, military and economic expansionist ideologies, or a vehicle for the promotion of Western values, which necessarily calls for the demonization of the Other. This situation has been heightened in the wake of the collapse of the East-West system. It was a decisive turning point in the process of self-legitimization of the West which predicated its own identity upon an antithesis -- Us/We as opposed to the Other/Them. The Gulf war (1990) that was orchestrated with a great deal of propaganda has since been used to breach the gap that was left by the unraveling of...