Book Forum 

# *Freedoms Delayed: Political Legacies of Islamic Law in the Middle East*

Published By Cambridge University Press • 2023 

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Date and Time 

March 12, 2024 12 - 1:30 PM EDT 

Location 

Cato Institute, 1000 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC 

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##### Featuring 

![Timur Kuran cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2024-02/Timur-Kuran-cropped.jpg?itok=KwqbfnyP) 

Timur Kuran 

Professor, Duke University

[ 

](https://twitter.com/TimurKuran) 

![John O. Voll - cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2024-02/John-O-Voll-cropped.jpg?itok=7ZnFIY-y) 

John O. Voll 

Professor Emeritus of Islamic History, Georgetown University

[![Mustafa Akyol Cropped](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/author_picture/public/2024-11/akyol-cropped-new.jpg?itok=VLgHg13I)](/people/mustafa-akyol) 

[Mustafa Akyol](/people/mustafa-akyol)

Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

[ 

](https://x.com/AkyolinEnglish) [ 

](mailto:makyol@cato.org) 

Why is the Middle East the least free region of the world? Some observers focus on external factors, such as European colonialism or US foreign policy. Others highlight political or cultural elements. In his book *Freedoms Delayed*, Timur Kuran focuses on the persistent impact of Islamic law on civil, political, and economic liberties. “Because of its institutional history,” he says, “there is no quick fix to the Middle East’s ongoing illiberalism.” But, he adds, “Islam’s rich history carries within it the seeds of liberalization on many fronts.” Professor Kuran will explain why freedoms are “delayed” in the Middle East but not unattainable. John Voll and Mustafa Akyol will evaluate Kuran’s thesis and assess the prospects of freedom in the region.

**Lunch to follow.**

![Freedoms Delayed - book cover](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/promo_block_book_cover_1x/public/2024-02/freedom-delayed-bookcover.jpg?itok=yMul-aRw) 

##### Featured Book 

### *[Freedoms Delayed: Political Legacies of Islamic Law in the Middle East](https://www.amazon.com/Freedoms-Delayed-Political-Legacies-Islamic-ebook/dp/B0C94Q5RJB?tag=catoinstitute-20)*

This book by Timur Kuran, author of the influential Long Divergence, explores the lasting political effects of the Middle East’s lengthy exposure to Islamic law. It identifies several channels through which Islamic institutions, both defunct and still active, have limited the expansion of basic freedoms under political regimes of all stripes: secular dictatorships, electoral democracies, monarchies legitimated through Islam, and theocracies.

[Purchase Book](https://www.amazon.com/Freedoms-Delayed-Political-Legacies-Islamic-ebook/dp/B0C94Q5RJB?tag=catoinstitute-20) 

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