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Abbas Mehregan, Ph.D. in Sociology of Religion from the University of Cologne (Germany) and licentiate in Islamic Sciences is a faculty member of the University of Tehran. He has carried out several studies in the field of sociology of Islam as well as the sociology of Islamic countries. Download His Presentation Here This paper are not to be cited without author’s permissions Visit us at islamandlibertynetwork.org to explore more on the muslim case for freedom.

Ankita Sanyal, PhD scholar at the Centre for West Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Her research is on “Balancing Traditional and Modern Roles of Women in Islamic Republic of Iran: Role of Education System.” She did her post graduation in Politics and International Relations from School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru’s Universit, New Delhi, India. She have attended national and international conferences and currrently have two publications. Read Her Paper Here This paper are not to be cited without author’s permissions Visit us at islamandlibertynetwork.org to explore more on the muslim case for freedom.

Eugene Yapp, based in Malaysia, is currently the Director of Religious Freedom & Liberty Partnership. He also serves as board member of Kairos Dialogue Network, a faith based non-profit organisation dedicated to the advancement of Christian-Muslim relations in Malaysia.    Visit us at islamandlibertynetwork.org to explore more on the muslim case for freedom.

Waqas Ahmad is Assistant Professor at Faculty of Management Sciences, International Islamic University Islamabad, Pakistan. He consider himself as social scientist and interest in age old elusive question of why some nations are rich and others are poor. The complexity of the question require insights not only from economics but also from psychology, sociology, politics and history. In his paper, the idea of religious freedom and its implications for economic growth will be identified and documented. The government restrictions and social hostilities involving religion has been increasing in the last few years across the globe. In the end, the lesson can be learned from country case studies, where by changing government regulations and social norms, they are able to reap the benefits of religious freedom. Read His Paper Here. Download His Presentation Here. This paper are not to be cited without author’s permissions

Saeed Ahmed Rid is an Assistant Professor at the National Institute of Pakistan Studies, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan. He did his PhD in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford, UK and his postdoctoral research at the University of Oxford, UK. In this paper, he tried to explain how a regime type affects religious freedom in same country. Does personality of the ruler and his political vision matter as well? What type of complexities are created by the changing international environment? What kind of new forums and avenues are available to the religious minorities in democratic dispensation that cannot be provided by the dictatorial regimes? Download His Presentation Here. This presentation is not to be cited without author’s permissions

Jani Kinnunen is a researcher at Åbo Akademi, Finland. His research interests include data science related to economics and political science. His application work has focused on freedoms in economic and political systems, mergers and acquisitions, and real options. His paper studies how the combination of political regime and religious freedoms are related to human development indices. The tested hypothesis states: the higher the quartile level of religion-democracy combination, the higher the levels of economic and political freedoms, as well as, the human development. Download His Presentation Here This presentation is not to be cited without author’s permissions

Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Aziz or Faisal Aziz as he is more commonly known, is President of Muslim Youth Movement Malaysia (ABIM) and Deputy Chairperson of  the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih). He is a lawyer by profession and previously served as the Head of Litigation Department focusing on public interest litigation and criminal defenses. He is a columnist for Malaysiakini portal and is active on twitter with the username @faisalazizfa.   His presentation highlights the need from the authorities to consider applying the doctrine of proportionality in order to ensure the preservation of the elements of justice, reasonableness and equality when imposing punishments. Further, the paper outlines the need for the National Harmony Bill as an amicable solution.   Read His Paper Here. This paper is not to be cited without author's permissions   Visit us at islamandlibertynetwork.org to explore more on the muslim case for freedom.

Zainal Abidin Bagir is the executive director of the Center of Religious and Cross Cultural Studies at Gadjah Mada University in Indonesia. Bagir specializes in philosophy of religion, religion and science, and religion and ecology. His presentation speaks on blasphemy law in Indonesia, comparing it globally, seeing how has it been used, current revitalization of the law and paths for revision. Download his presentation here

Robert W. Hefner is professor of anthropology and former director of the Institute on Culture, Religion, and World Affairs (CURA) at Boston University. He is former president of the Association for Asian Studies. Hefner has directed 19 research projects and organized 18 international conferences, and authored or edited 19 books. Visit our website at islamandlibertynetwork.org

Mohd. Izharul Haque Mikrani is a prominent media personality and a fighter for Democracy, Human Rights, Pluralism, Freedom of Religion or Belief despite challenges and threats. Currently, Mr. Mikrani is the president of the Intellectual Muslims Association of Nepal (IMAN). This organization works to promote interfaith dialogue among people of different faiths. He is also the Chief Editor of Sajha Awaz (an online news portal of Nepal). Izhar Mikrani is a founder member and current chair of SAFFoRB (South Asian Forum for Freedom of Religion or Belief), Nepal Chapter. He is also an active member of the EU working group on HRDs. His presentation speaks about IMAN (Intellectual Muslims Association of Nepal), a non-profitable organization working for minorities’ rights in Nepal upholding the principles of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) and its efforts.

A. K. M. Iftekharul Islam is assistant professor of Department of Islamic History & Culture at University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He has a masters in Islamic History & Culture and have various of his articles referred to in journals. His paper is an attempt to examine the present condition of religious minorities in Bangladesh; impact of religious tension of India and Myanmar on it and policy options for the government; and the civil society to ensure religious co-existence of all sorts of people. Read His Paper Here. Download His Presentation Here. This paper are not to be cited without author’s permissions

Mujeeb Hussain Gattoo is an Assistant Professor at the Higher Education Department, Govt of Jammu and Kashmir.Their paper tackles the Ahmediyya question through analyzing the issues raised above and probing into the (im)possibility of religious co-existence in Contemporary Islamic thought.It is also an attempt to compare the views of Muslim scholars (across different spectrums of thought) towards the Ahmediyya’s

Amel Azzouz is a member of Ennahdha Party Shura Council and a former member of the Tunisian Constituent Assembly. She is a teacher of English literature in the Tunisian University, and she received her political science master’s degree from the Faculty of Juridical, Political and Social Sciences of Tunis. In her paper, she sheds light on the constitution of post-revolution Tunisia, the most progressive constitution in today’s Muslim world. She explains how this success was achieved not only thanks to the joint efforts of legislators and politicians but also to a serious social dialogue. Read her paper here This paper are not to be cited without author’s permissions  

Azeemah Saleem, Doctoral Candidate in Center for West Asian Studies, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She is working on “Syrian Refugees in Germany: An Understanding through the Prism of Global Justice” as her PhD Thesis. Her area of interest includes understanding Global Justice in the context of Refugees, Rawls theory of Justice, Kantian Cosmopolitanism, Humanitarian crisis, global refugee issues, women development studies, social and societal fragmentation in North Africa, conflict analysis in West Asia along with identity politics and critically analysing human rights issue. Her paper aimed to understand religious freedom in the constitution of Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. It will scrutinise how the constitution derived from secular and Islamic values reflected the functioning of society. Is Secular constitution is moving towards an inclusive society and Islamic constitution is moving away from being a tolerant society. It also aimed to understand whether the ‘Secular’ constitution makes a nation more inclusive as compared to the ‘Islamic’ constitution. The consequences of the respective constitution in society. Lastly, it will redefine the idea of secularism compatible with the freedom of religion in both the nation of Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. Read Her Paper Here or at islamandlibertynetwork.org This paper are not to be cited without author’s permissions

Fida Ur Rahman is serving as a Lecturer in the Department of Social Sciences at University College of Zhob, BUITEMS, Balochistan, Pakistan. He holds M.Phil. in Islamic Studies. He is also alumni of Islam and Liberty Network, Malaysia and Acton University USA. His area of specialization includes Islam, State and Politics, Anthropology and Sociology of Islam, and Modern Trends in Islam. At the 7th International Islam and Liberty Conference, "Islamic Case for Religious Freedom", he presented his paper, which is an attempt to critically analyze the text and context of the Classical, Islamist and Post-Islamist approaches regarding apostasy and religious freedom by revisiting and reexamining all the narratives in the light of the primary sources of Islam, universal moral values and charters of UNO regarding human rights.

Dr. Ali Hassannia is Assistant Professor, Department of Qur’an and Hadith Studies, Shahed University of Iran. He has a PhD in Theology and Islamic Studies and has published multiple papers in Persian, Arabic and English. The paper he presented at the 7th International Islam and Liberty Conference was based on the analytical descriptive method using Quranic notions, traditional and Islamic teachings and views of thinkers. It aimed at discussing the limits of tolerance in Islam, particularly concerning freedom, and how some misconceptions could cause the tragic phenomenon of “holy ignorance”. It also criticized both Muslim and Western opinions in this regard. Finally, it showed the connection between intolerance, holy ignorance, radicalism, and lack of a sound understanding of religion. Visit our website at islamandlibertynetwork.org for his paper and presentation

Dr. Hakan Coruh holds his Bachelor of Divinity (Ilahiyat) degree from the Faculty of Divinity, Sakrya University. In 2007, he completed his Master’s degree in Qur’anic Exegesis (tafsir) at the same University. He then completed his PhD at Australia Catholic University in 2015. Hakan’s main field is Qur’anic exegesis (tafsir). At the 7th International Islam & Liberty Conference, "Islamic Case For Religious Freedom", His presentation focuses on Hanafite jurist Dabusi’s fundamental natural human rights (ismah, hurriyyah, malikiyah) as a case study. Then it analysed modern discussions in the last period of Ottoman in the early modernism and what are the implications for today. Download his presentation here.

Professor Mohammad Hashim Kamali is founding CEO of the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies, Malaysia, and a world-renowned scholar in his field of specialisation. He serves on the International Advisory Board of thirteen academic journals published in Malaysia, USA, Canada, Kuwait, India, Australia and Pakistan. At the 7th International Islam & Liberty Conference, "Islamic Case For Religious Freedom", Professor Mohammad Hashim Kamali presented his paper, “Freedom of Religion and Apostasy: Issues, Responses and Developments” which offer fresh interpretations of the scripture that seek to recapture the original callings of the qur’an and Sunnah in preference to the scholastic positions of the leading schools Islamic law of later periods. Read his paper here.  *This draft paper are not to be cited without author’s permission  

Recorded on 10th July 2019 at IDEAS' Public Forum titled "Democractic Transition: Successes and Challenges".   Dr Radwan Masmoudi. Radwan A. Masmoudi is the Founder and President of the Center of the Study of Islam & Democracy (CSID), a Tunisia-based non-profit think tank dedicated to promoting democracy in the Muslim world.

This is the fourth episode of a four-part discussion that relates to Ali Salman’s book, "Islam & Economics: A Primer on Markets, Morals and Justice". In this part, we discuss about Ali's thoughts on the current standings of Islamic economics. Ali Salman is an economist by training, and CEO of Islam and Liberty Network. He is the founder of Policy Research Institute of Market Economy (PRIME) in Pakistan. He is currently based in Malaysia, where he heads a leading think tank, Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS). How did Islamic economics emerge? What are the differences between classical and modern economic thoughts in Islamic perspective? What drive these differences? Is Islamic economics plan-based or market based? Do they matter? Danger of creating more inequality with capitalist based ideas. Economic Man and Islamic Man Thoughts on current Islamic economics What Islamic economics are doing right Islamic economics on top of conventional economics Islamic economics as a new definition Restructuring the idea of an Islamic state Size of the government by Islamic economic framework Is Islamic economics here to stay? Closing remarks