Conceptualizing Cultural and Social Dialogue in the Euro-Mediterranean Area: A European Perspective by Michelle Pace & Tobias Schumacher

Author:Michelle Pace & Tobias Schumacher [Pace, Michelle & Schumacher, Tobias]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Political Science, Comparative Politics
ISBN: 9780415371292
Google: 8SoTHAAACAAJ
Goodreads: 18956008
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2007-01-15T07:37:51+00:00

Conclusion

The Dialogue between Cultures was envisioned as an alternative and non-confrontational response to the US-led war on terror following September 11. Faced with a looming war in Iraq and mounting scenarios of an imminent clash of civilizations, it was decided to enhance the third basket by creating a Foundation for Dialogue between Cultures.

However, being framed within a context of security has from the outset compromised those Habermasian ideal conditions on which the Dialogue is based. As this analysis has shown, the securitization of the Dialogue paradoxically both served to provide a compelling reason for engaging in dialogical interaction and at the same time seriously restricted the very conditions of possibilities for an authentic dialogue. Securitization moved the Dialogue into a specific realm where intercultural dialogue was articulated no longer as a goal in itself but instead as a means – or even a weapon – to a higher end, that end being security.

Scholars who are arguing for the urgent need and relevance of a Habermasianinspired dialogue often neglect this problematic side of securitization. By making references to September 11 and imminent clashes of civilizations – be they real or imagined – they place the need for intercultural dialogue firmly within a logic of security. Legitimizing intercultural dialogue in this way, however, is a double-edged sword. As this study has shown, securitization serves to mobilize people; it draws political attention, and it brings urgency to a certain matter. But it also brings closure, extreme politicization and governmental control.

Some of these problematic implications have already become visible with respect to the Dialogue between Cultures. As indicated, the Dialogue has already become extremely politicized and an object of tight governmental control. In particular, Euro-Mediterranean governments have confined the Dialogue in terms of prioritized themes and selected civil society groups. This not only has inhibited civil society groups from formulating their own goals and priorities but it has also compromised the Dialogue’s original preconditions of openness and inclusiveness.

These restraints may ultimately risk jeopardizing the original visions of the initiative and reducing its impact. Without an inclusive approach to dialogue, where controversial, divergent and diverse voices can be heard, the prospects for promoting new perceptions and breaking down stereotypes seem bleak. The Dialogue risks being confined to intellectual exchanges and conferences rallying cosmopolitan elites who are reinforcing their (similar) worldviews and values, leaving little impact on the general population. Such an outcome would of course run counter to the very ideals and objectives of the Dialogue. It is therefore crucial that efforts be made to influence the start of the Dialogue towards a more open and inclusive direction, both in terms of actors and themes.

Arguably, this will be a very difficult task. Given the fact that the third basket has increasingly emerged as a substitute for the first, the securitization of the Dialogue will be hard to escape. For the foreseeable future it is therefore more likely that the Dialogue will continue to be an object of difficult and highly politicized bargaining between the Euro-Mediterranean governments, thus restraining the influence of civil society groups in the process.

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