"Islamic Charity Organizations Are a Powerful Force for Integration"

In recent years, Islamic charity organizations have increasingly been accused of channelling funds for terrorist activities. However, if used properly, Islamic charity traditions like zakat and awqaf are also a potential socio-economic development factor, says Jonathan Benthall, in this interview with Martina Sabra

In recent years, Islamic charity organizations have increasingly been accused of channelling funds for terrorist activities. However, if used properly, Islamic charity traditions like zakat and awqaf are also a potential socio-economic development factor, says Jonathan Benthall, in this interview with Martina Sabra

Jonathan Benthall (photo: private copyright)
Looking into the subject of Islamic philanthropy: Jonathan Benthall

​​Mr. Benthall, after September 11, the assets of many Islamic NGOs in the US were frozen because of their alleged connection with terrorist activities in the Middle East, in particular with the Palestinian Islamic resistance movement Hamas. As a researcher, how do you judge the impact of these measures?

Jonathan Benthall: There are enormous problems because of the criminalization of a lot of Islamic charities by the United States, particularly in the Palestinian Territories. According to the Israeli and the US governments they are facades for Hamas. I have been involved with a study sponsored by the Swiss government, to look very closely at these Zakat Committees – there are 90 of them in the West Bank alone – and their recent history.

The paper has just been published by the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. It argues on the basis of field evidence that these Zakat Committees deserve to be regarded as independent charities; they are not facades for Hamas. But the American view is that if you are giving money to these charities, it is as if you were giving money to a terrorist group, therefore you can be sent to prison. It is based on bad information.

Would you say that the West overreacted after September 11?

Benthall: I think there was an overreaction against Islamic charities, a sort of neo-McCarthyism in the United States. Everybody knows about the legal scandal of Guantánamo, and of extraordinary renditions in the Bush era, but I think the attack on Islamic institutions it is not so widely known. Nevertheless, it is a serious problem in the United States.

Is it possible to quantify the damage?

Benthall: This is a bit of a problem. Let me put it the following way: We have seen in Britain that diaspora charities like Islamic Relief have done extremely well. They have grown and they have become important actors. You wouldn't see the same in the United States, with a population four or five times larger and with a large Muslim population. There is a strong tradition of charity in the US. But at the moment there are no American Muslim charities of any size. "Islamic Relief" is still allowed to operate, but they are a subsidiary of the British. And this is because of this overreaction.

​​Islamic Relief operates legally in Germany too; it has offices in Berlin and Cologne. The organization is acting not only on behalf of Muslims, but also on behalf of non-Muslims – the recent catastrophe in Haiti is just one example. Still, there are some voices in Germany that argue that the organization is close to the Muslim Brotherhood and that Islamic Relief's director, Hani Al-Banna, is from the same family as the Brotherhood's founder, Hassan Al-Banna.

Benthall: Hani Al-Banna has the same name as the founder of the Muslim brotherhood, but as far as I know, they are not related. The Muslim Brotherhood is a rather shadowy organization, meanwhile Islamic Relief's record in Britain has been absolutely impeccable. They have been encouraged by the National Charity Commission; they have been completely open and transparent in all their dealings. In the US, there is a grading system for the transparency of charities, and Islamic Relief got the full score, for very good performance. Their motto is "Working with the poorest".

They don't do proselytization, they are not allowed to build mosques. They don't even repair mosques, while other agencies, like the Catholic Fund for Overseas Development (CAFOD) will occasionally repair a mosque that has been damaged, because they say that this is an important cultural asset for the Muslim population. Whereas Islamic Relief says: no, we have to stay completely clear of religion. If there is a conspiracy by the Muslim Brotherhood, it must be incredibly subtle.

Mosque in Saudi Arabia (photo: AP)
Saudi Arabia's tradition of secrecy and discretion: "How can you defend yourself against the charge of financing terrorism if you are completely secret," Benthall asks

​​There are some big Islamic organizations, mainly sponsored by Saudi-Arabia, which use charity to promote totalitarian propaganda and undertake missionary activities. What could, what should Muslims do to help generate more confidence in Islamic charities?

Benthall: There is indeed a problem. In Saudi-Arabia, there is a strong tradition of secrecy and discretion, which overhangs everything. But how can you defend yourself against the charge of financing terrorism if you are completely secret, you don't publish accounts, and you don't tell what you are doing? I think the Saudis will eventually get the message that they need to be more transparent. In 2002, it was announced that they were creating a new Saudi High Commission of Overseas Aid, and to this day, the committee has not been formed.

What should, what could western politicians do to create more synergies with Islamic humanitarian organizations? Should the policies be reviewed?

Benthall: Yes, I think so. Apart from the good that many Islamic charities do for their beneficiaries, I think that they are a powerful force for integration, even in Europe itself. I think that the perceived Judeo-Christian monopoly on charity has been challenged by this Islamic dimension. A few years ago, this whole system of Islamic aid was in a sort of parallel world, which was not mentioned in the analysis of aid flows or taken very seriously. These things have now changed quite a lot.

Nevertheless, non-Muslim and Muslim charities often pursue very different ethical agendas. Do you think that these differences should be put aside?

Benthall: No. There are important discrepancies concerning human rights, especially the rights of women and children. These are issues that need to be looked at. Personally, I think that the question of gender is going to be a flash-point between Islamic agencies and the rest, because on the whole, the Islamic charities tend to be more conservative on gender issues. But on the other hand, they can be very effective in conservative countries and societies. Another issue is religious freedom, but perhaps to a lesser extent.

Interview by Martina Sabra

© Qantara.de 2010

Jonathan Benthall, former director of the Royal Anthropological Institute in London and an expert in the field of Islamic charities, has co-authored the book The Charitable Crescent – Politics of Aid in the Muslim World (2009). He is currently an honorary research fellow in the Department of Anthropology, University College London, and former chair of the International NGO Training and Research Centre, Oxford.

Edited by Aingeal Flanagan, Lewis Gropp/Qantara.de

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