DOHA, 30 November 2004 — An international conference in the Qatari capital attended by hundreds of religious and academic figures heard warnings yesterday against threats to traditional family values in the new millennium. Qatar’s first lady, Sheikha Mussa bint Nasser Al-Misnad, in an opening address to some 350 delegates cautioned against “violations which try to redefine the concept of family in a manner contrary to religious precepts”.
Promoters of such trends argued their case “in the name of modernity”, said the wife of the emir, Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifa Al-Thani. Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, also taking part in the conference, told reporters that “if we accept the liberal definition of the family, it will influence our family structure” in the Muslim world. The impact of globalization on the family, problems linked to education, the promotion of dialogue and relations between generations were the main focus of the meet.
