Academic Writing for International Publication at AIFIS Workshop
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UNDERSTANDING MUSLIM-FRIENDLY TOURISM: CURRENT TRENDS AND POTENTIALS Abdul Kadir Haji Din School of Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management, Universiti Utara Malaysia
INTRODUCTION Muslim-Friendly Tourism (MFT) as a new form of tourism (Poon). Many meanings of the term depending on different interpretations. The normative vs the positive; spiritual vs commercial What the Quran and Sunnah say about the MFT approach Al-Dhariyat on giving the most generous treatment to the guests through talking and feeding; hadith on friendship, greeting, conversation and gift.
BINARIES IN THE MFT RHETORIC 1. The liberal & conservative; inclusive vs exclusive. 2. Emic vs etic 3. Believer and non-believer standpoints; 4. d\Doctrinal and secular. 5. Authority-defined and everyday-defined. 6. Thus the meaning of MFT is context-specific 7. Trend is towards standardization based on universally accepted criteria.
CURRENT TRENDS Market trends: expanding demand and supply (statistics) Trends in consumer behavior (evidence of product differentiation) Political trends: Islamophobia vs Islamophilia Community acceptance: host and guests; Muslims and non-Muslim Psychographic trends using Doxey s irridex model
PARADOXES BETWEEN THE MUSLIM IDEALS AND REALITIES Muslims are enjoined to be guest friendly hosts who are hospitable to all, yet they remain as exclusive as any other tribes. The concept al-taarouf calls for initiating greetings and engaging in small talks, yet this is not a commonplace practice in Malaysia which claims to be a top MFT destination which should be a MFT model to other ummah. Muslims are enjoined to travel widely to see the signs of the Almighty, yet most prefer to remain in their respective comfort zone. The spirit of Islam calls for kindness to others: to be mindful and attentive to travelers needs, yet this is not happening to the desirable degree.
POTENTIALS FOR THE FUTURE Potentials for bridging the social distance between Muslim and non-Muslim. Convergence of values and mutual respect through globalization and distantiation. ICT (technology) driven cross-cultural communication. The spread of MFT ambiance which facilitates edu-tourism e.g. Japan, Korea and Thailand. Futurologists perspectives on Islam: Nostradamus (1566), Smith (1919), Einstein (1955), Yeoman (2017), augurs well for mainstreaming of MFT.
STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS There has to be visionary leadership in the tourism circle that sees tourism as an effective avenue for the promotion of peace and interreligious understanding. Equal emphasis if not more should be given to strengthen the intangible aspect of Muslim hospitality based on the spirit of the warm Islamic host. This calls for embedding the Islamic hospitality value in the education system, possibly through the general education courses, both at the secondary and tertiary levels. Some funds ought to be made available to conduct action research for identifying the Islamic hospitality attributes for further development. At present this subject has not been explored. The need to develop geographic & cultural literacy of the Muslim world.
