conflict between Islam and the West.

SALT LAKE CITY – Much is written about the conflict between Islam and the West.

But the debate that will actually determine the future of Islam lies within Islam, between Muslim and Muslim. 

It is a debate that is going on in Arab lands from Morocco to Iraq and in non-Arab, but predominantly Islamic, lands from Pakistan to Iran. 

It is a debate about many things, not the least being the use of terrorism against innocent human beings. But particularly significant is the discourse about the role of women in Islamic societies. 

It is significant because the emergence of women from the subordinate role to which many of them have been relegated in Islamic societies would speed the economic and political progress of these countries in a positive direction.

In the economic field, some Arab countries have made progress, but a recent UN report prepared by Arab scholars found that over the past 20 years, growth in per capita income was the lowest in the world except in sub-Saharan Africa. 

The report concluded: "At an annual growth rate of 0.5 percent annually, if such trends continue in the future, it will take the average Arab citizen 140 years to double his or her income, while other regions are set to achieve that level in a matter of less than 10 years."