Every year, Morocco sends hundreds of imams to different countries in Europe during Ramadan to support the local Moroccan community. They are sent by the Foundation Hassan II, a foundation...Show moreEvery year, Morocco sends hundreds of imams to different countries in Europe during Ramadan to support the local Moroccan community. They are sent by the Foundation Hassan II, a foundation safeguarding the cultural and religious identity of the diaspora. This research focuses on this institution and examines the ways in which religion is manifested in foreign policy in relation to the diaspora in the Netherlands. This is done by analyzing a national policy called the Stratégie Nationale en faveur des Marocains du Monde by the Ministère chargé des Marocains Résidant à l’Etranger et des Affaires de la Migration. In the case of the Netherlands, religion is mainly manifested by sending religious personnel and materials. In general, Morocco emphasizes a return transnationalism within its policy by motivating contributing to the country’s development, but also return to Morocco. This return transnationalism was first visible in the terminology that Morocco used to refer to the migrants which were underlinging the economic purposes of the migration. This later evolved into a term that also emphasized cultural and religious elements. Furthermore, various institutions were found to represent the interests of the diaspora, including the Fondation, but this system is not flawless because their cooperation can be ineffective. The study also covers the invention of “Moroccan Islam” as a colonial construct and the Moroccan interpretation of Islam that consist of four pillars. These pillars are also visible in the Strategy for example by emphasizing the Maliki Madhhab or moderate nature of the Moroccan interpretation of Islam.Show less
The status of women in Iran has been extensively discussed in academic literature. This paper focused on how women in Iran are being portrayed by the media in historiography, classical literature...Show moreThe status of women in Iran has been extensively discussed in academic literature. This paper focused on how women in Iran are being portrayed by the media in historiography, classical literature and novels, newspapers, television, films and drama serials. This literature overview demonstrates that women in Iran are underrepresented and invariably displayed within the framework of ignorant housewives, caring mothers and sex slaves or entertainers (of their husband). This perception contradicts with the actual representativeness of women within the Iranian media culture with regard to what they themselves strive for: exposing and combating gender inequality. Since the 19th century women in Iran have started to develop and organize women's organizations to fight for women’s rights by participating in political demonstrations and institutions. With the advent of the internet, Iranian women could communicate online about women-related topics. The increased influence of social media apps, such as Facebook and Instagram, enabled Iranian women's activism to develop to the fullest. Masih Alinejad's contributions on Facebook and Instagram are an example of this. Her successful My Stealthy Freedom- movement has raised awareness about the position of the Iranian woman in general and specifically about the mandatory hijab rule. This paper conducted a qualitative content analysis on forty of Masih Alinejad’s Instagram-posts in May 2022 to demonstrate how she contributes to the social debate on the position of women in Iranian society. The research demonstrated that Alinejad informs her Instagram followers with personal journalistic stories and then tries to stir up the moral consciousness of her followers. Thereafter, Alinejad motives her followers to take action to improve women’s status in Iran and the rest of the world. Alinejad’s online activism has not (yet) induced governmental policy changes in Iran, however her movement has contributed to the advancement of Iranian women's rights movement in size and reach.Show less
