For a Middle Way

By Adil Morrison, "An Oasis of Sanity" - Globalia Magazine - Berlin, Germany
Tuesday, May 19, 2009

The month of May saw a significant event take place in the city of Norwich, in the East of England.

The importance of the event is difficult to overemphasise, particularly when looked at from the perspective of the growing presence and visibility of Islam in Europe what this means for relations with European society at large.

Every year, Norwich plays host to the Norfolk & Norwich Festival, an annual event aimed at celebrating creativity, innovation, beauty and diversity with jazz, classical music, comedy and dance.

Only this year, there was a slight difference. The Open Trade Network, a Norwich-based organisation, which aims to promote an alternative model of trade to that of liberal “free” trade, by actively supporting local and independent producers and businesses, and the EMU-member Islamic community were given the task of organising a two-day market in the city centre.

The event was organised on the principle of a free market: stallholders were not charged a fee for space.

A crucial aspect of the market ethos is that it aims to improve perhaps strained relations between the Muslim community and the local authorities. This has been demonstrated with great success in several countries across Europe – including Germany, Spain, Portugal and the UK – to name but a few. In most cases, well-known local politicians and dignitaries have been present.

The marketplace does not just benefit Muslims. This a key point, and one that cannot be stressed enough; it is a vital element in the overall fabric of a society – this is something that has been appreciated by both Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

Another key element is that this type of event helps to dispel myths and stereotypes with regards to the Muslim community. The typical European’ view of Islam and Muslims is quickly brought into question and then completely shattered – this is something that needs to be done. The market idea is just one way of doing this.

Elements within the mainstream media have a very dangerous tendency to think in extremes – there is no room for a middle way. You have on the one hand, westernised, secular Muslims and on the other hand, extremists. What public events, such as this one help to do is to demonstrate that this is simply not the case, and that there does exist an Islam that is true to itself, but at the same time does not conform to terrorist conventions.

A wide array of traders attended making for a truly memorable occasion - the stalls ranged from food and drink, to books and beauty products - even a masseuse and a traditional coffee maker were plying their wares. In total, there were around twenty traders on both days, including both Muslims and non-Muslims. What gave the market its particular significance was that all traders accepted both the gold dinar and silver dirham.

The timing of the event could not have been better when we consider the economic situation the world is currently being confronted with: people are crying out for an alternative to what has been exposed as both an unjust and untenable system. That alternative was on display in practice, in Norwich - furthermore, the gold and silver currency was not just a novelty, but rather it was traded and exchanged.

The proprietor of the coffee stall personally accepted around € 40 [$ 54] worth of silver in exchange for coffee over both days. Over the weekend there was around € 100 [$ 136] worth of silver coins exchanged, which were then used in the marketplace. Additionally many people brought their own stockpiles of gold and silver coins from home. Although not a huge amount, it was nevertheless a significant step for Muslims and for European society as an entity.

As one visitor remarked: “We all know gold and silver is correct, so why aren’t we using it?” What made this market particularly interesting is that it was coupled with an open day at a local mosque, a minute’s walk from the marketplace. The mosque played host to an event - “Oasis of Sanity” featuring an exhibition entitled “The New Bedouins” - the basic components comprised of: a multi-media exhibition aimed at illustrating the history of the community and their contributions to civic life in the city.

As well as the “New Bedouins” exhibition, there were a carefully calibrated combination of talks, seminars or workshops including “Real Sufism”, “Open Trade”, “Caribbean Roots” and “English Beginnings” given by distinguished Norwich-based scholars, including Hajj Abdul Haqq Bewley.

The aims of the Open Trade Network, among others, are to extend the Open Trade initiative in market creation to other cities in Europe, as well as linking up with compatible and sympathetic market initiatives to create a database of manufacturers, producers, craftspeople and traders well disposed towards the themes of Open Trade to begin to link up such traders in journeys to open markets.

Another of the aims of the community, in conjunction with the Open Trade Network, is to repeat the success of this month’s market on a more regular basis. The next market being in June- may we wish them success in their endeavours.

[Visit the Norwich and Norfolk Festival 2009 website]

[Picture: Jonathan Holloway, Artistic Director and Chief Executive. Photo: BBC UK. Read the BBC Interview with Jonathan Holloway (2006)]