Islam in Post-Soviet Kazakhstan:Experiencing Public Revival of Islam through Institutionalisation

In the years following independence,Kazakhstan witnessed a reemergence of religious phenomenon,particularly in the form of‘Islamic revival,’generating a kind of post-Soviet‘Islamic extremism’narrative.The discussions,describing Islamic revival as a‘security concern’and‘potential threat’to Kazakhstan’s secular objectives have deluged the academic,political,and policy discourse.Nevertheless,the question essential to contextualise the whole debate is whether the nature of‘Islamic revival’does follow the prescriptive conditions as anticipated by the privatisation of religion theory,reducing the stimulus of religion to an individual’s‘private matter’or whether it has become a social function,affecting people’s inspirations and aspirations both at the individual and collective level.To analyse this question methodologically,the study discusses theoretical formulations that are relevant to understanding the nature and scope of Islamic revival in the postSoviet Kazakh context.Then,the study examines the practical impact of Islamic revival and makes reference to an institutionalization of Islam through religious,economic and political institutions.The study argues,after independence,despite the secular and authoritarian nature of the government,‘Islamic revival’has become an institutionalised phenomenon and its appearance and social function in the public space has increased rather than decreased.

Clinical Evaluation and Orodental Status in a Group of Elderly Institutionalised Patients

10% of elderly patients are functionally dependents and they therefore need permanent assistance. Orodental alterations may evolve into a pathological state in elderly people, which is increasing in the recent decades. The current study analysed institutionalized patients in the district of Bari (Southern Italy), who have been so far monitored. We assessed 125 elderly institutionalized patients. The assessment has been carried out by an assessment questionnaire aiming at evaluating the patient’s psychophysical health status, objective intraoral test and prosthetic rehabilitations. About 90% of enrolled patients reported a good general health status. The main dental problems are due to the complete lack of specific prevention and treatment programs, together with handicap, presence of systemic diseases and medicines taken. The level of oral hygiene is poor and the conditions of the residual dental elements are precarious because of root caries and periodontal problems. Prostheses are usually old (on average 15) and appear scarcely retentive and unstable. We believe in the need for specific interventions aiming at the various issues emerging from the present study, so as to achieve a smaller prevalence of dental loss, periodontal disease and caries. These relatively simple interventions are now lacking because of the non-demand of treatment from patients and for economical reasons.

From Disintegration to Fragmentation:The Islamic Movement and the al-Inqadh Regime in Sudan

The Islamic Movement of Sudan established the first Islamist regime in the Sunni Islamic world by a military coup.By seising state power,the Islamic Movement tried to overhaul the political system of Sudan.However,what it brought to the politics of Sudan was far from what its leader Hasan al-Turabi envisioned.It was largely due to the failure of the Islamic Movement to institutionalise its control over state power,originating from its design to conceal the nature of the coup which prevented it from claiming the official leadership of the state.The military Islamists leading the coup continued to run the state publicly.The institutions of the Islamic Movement itself were weakened in the process,making it more difficult to lay the national politics on an institutional foundation.The division and conflicts among the Islamists could not be solved in an institutional framework,leading to the split of the Islamic Movement.The Islamists were further fragmented after the split,both within and without the regime,opening the gate for factional politics.