Beyond 'terrorism' and 'state hegemony': Assessing the islamist mainstream in Egypt and Malaysia

Third World Quarterly

Volumn 26, Issue 2, 2005, Pages 307-327

  Stark, Jan ^a  

^a SCHOOL OF PHYSICS   (Malaysia)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

CULTURAL INFLUENCE; HEGEMONY; ISLAMISM; POLITICAL CHANGE; STATE ROLE; TERRORISM;

AFRICA; ASIA; EGYPT; EURASIA; MALAYSIA; NORTH AFRICA; SOUTHEAST ASIA;

EID: 27844535384     PISSN: 01436597     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/0143659042000339137     Document Type: Review

References (56)

1. Samuel P Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997.
2. Rohan Gunaratna, Inside al-Qaida: Global Network of Terror, London: Hurst, 2002;
3. Zachary Abuza, Militant Islam in Southeast Asia: Crucible of Terror, Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 2003.
4. Numerous other authors have followed a similar line of argument. See, for example, Yonah Alexander, Usama bin Laden's al-Qaida: Profile of a Terrorist Network, Ardsley, NY: Transnational Publishers, 2001;
5. Peter L Bergen, Holy War Inc: Inside the Secret World of Osama bin Laden, New York: Free Press, 2001;
6. Udo K Ulfkotte, Das geheime Netzwerk der Islamisten, Munich: Goldmann, 2001.
7. The ongoing debate between American Middle Eastern scholars on whether Islamic fundamentalism should be perceived as evil per se or whether a more differentiated approach should be adopted reflects also the political considerations of the US-led 'war on terror' and the Israeli - American/Arab divide. This debate is summarised in R Bernstein, 'Experts on Islam pointing fingers at one another', New York Times, 3 November 2001.
8. For the Middle Eastern setting, see, for example, George Lenczowski, The Political Awakening in the Middle East, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1970.
9. The Islamic resurgence is also explained as a reaction towards an overpowering state by Najib Ghadbian, Democratization and the Islamist Challenge in the Arab World, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1997, pp 63-68;
10. Judith Nagata, The Reflowering of Malaysian Islam: Modern Religious Radicals and Their Roots, Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1984;
11. among many others, Hussin Mutalib, Islam and Ethnicity in Malay Politics, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990.
12. On the role of political Islam in the nationalist movement of British Malaya in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the emergence of the Islamic 'reformers' (kaum muda) influenced by Middle Eastern thinkers, such as Muhammad Abduh, and their clash with the traditional classes of Malay royalty (kaum tua), see William Roff, The Origins of Malay Nationalism, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1970.
13. The term 'post-Islamism' is defined by Gilles Kepel as an attempt by Islamist movements to reinvent themselves as democratic movements by propagating formerly condemned 'Western values' like freedom of expression and women's rights that are often re-interpreted as being originally Islamic values. Kepel, 'Islamism reconsidered', Harvard International Review, 22 (2), 2001, p 24.
14. Numerous authors have dealt with this phenomenon, for example Chandra Muzaffar, Islamic Resurgence in Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur: Heinemann, 1987;
15. Zainah Anwar, Kebangkitan Islam di Malaysia: Dakwah di Kalangan Pelajar, Kuala Lumpur: Pelanduk Publications, 1987;
16. Mutalib, Islam and Ethnicity in Malay Politics.
17. For a more detailed discussion of ABIM'S beginnings, see Jan Stark, Kebangkitan Islam: islamische Entwicklungsprozesse in Malaysia, Hamburg: Abera, 1999, pp 36-45.
18. The authoritarian trends of the Mahathir administration and the use of Islam in its political discourses have been described by DK Mauzy & RS Milner, 'The Mahathir administration: discipline through Islam', in Pacific Affairs, 56 (4), 1983, pp 617-648.
19. The sufist manifestations of the Islamic resurgence in Malaysia are discussed by Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid, 'Inter-movement tension among resurgent Muslims in Malaysia: response to the state clampdown on Darul Arqam in 1994, Asian Studies Review, 27 (3), 2003, pp 361-387.
20. In Al Arqam's own interpretation, Khorasan stretched far beyond Uzbekistan, also including Afghanistan, parts of Iran and Pakistan and extending to Yunnan, China. Darul Arqam, Timur dan Khurasan dalam Jadual Allah, Kuala Lumpur: Penerbitan Hikmah. 1992.
21. 's support of the government's Pusat Islam in banning Al Arqam was criticised by Ashari Muhammad, who blamed ABIM'S president, Dr Muhammad Nur Manutty, for showing unjustified antagonism towards Al Arqam. Ashari Muhammad & Abuya Sheik Imam, Assalamualaikum Dato' Seri PM: Surat-surat Kepada Perdana Menteri Malaysia (Jawapan Kepada Tuduhan-Tuduhan), Kuala Lumpur: Penerbitan Abuya, 1993.
22. Najib Ghadbian, Democratization and the Islamist Challenge in the Arab World, p 66.
23. In a reinterpretation of Ibn Taymiya, Islamists have called for a Jihad against secular governments and a totally Islamic order to replace them, as stated by the Egyptian Muhammad 'Abd al-Salam Faraj, 'Al-Farida al-gha'iba' (The missing precept), Al-Ahrar, 14 December 1981, pp 1, 3, 5.
24. See al-Hudaybi's writings on Islamic society and governance. Hasan al-Hudaybi, Du'at la Qudat (Callers not judges), Cairo: Tarbiya Publishing, 1977.
25. Siddiq Fadil's speech during the 17th ABIM General Assembly denotes these discourses as the new universal language of Islamism. Mengangkat Martabat Umat: Muktamar Sanawi ABIM ke-17, Kuala Lumpur: ABIM, 1988.
26. Raymond Baker, 'Individious comparisons: realism, postmodern globalism and centrist Islamic movements in Egypt', in John Esposito (ed). Political Islam, Revolution, Radicalism or Reform?, Cairo: AUC Press, 1997.
27. Members of UMNO and PAS had been accusing each other of being 'kafirs' (unbelievers). In Kelantan, PAS'S heartland, this had led to the creation of UMNO and PAS mosques and separate cemeteries; dishes cooked by one party and offered to the other were rejected as haram (forbidden). See Stark, Kebangkitan Islam, p 65.
28. The 'caring society' was mentioned for the first time in PAS'S manifesto for the 1990 general elections. Manifesto Pilihanraya 1990: 'Masyarakat Penyayang', Kuala Lumpur: PAS, 1990.
29. The need for political accountability featured prominently in the more reform-oriented youth wing of PAS, PAS Pemuda. A statement to that extent was made in late 1998. Kenyataan Ketua Dewan Pemuda PAS Pusat, 12 December 1998, Kuala Lumpur.
30. See points 3 'Kontrak Sosial Menuju Alaf Baru' and 5 'Membina Demokrasi Tulen' in Barisan Alternatif's 1999 election manifesto Manifesto Bersama, Ke Arah Malaysia Yang Adil, Kuala Lumpur: Angkatan Edaran Enterprise, 1999, pp 26-37, 40-41.
31. In 1985 the former member of the PAS party executive committee, Ustaz Abu Bakar Hamzah, had been expelled from the party and branded a 'kafir' because of his criticism of the PAS leadership which he described as the 'new Ayatollahs'.
32. Social mobility and political activism, characterised young Islamists close to the Muslim Brotherhood, as it was described by one of the anonymous authors of the journal Political Readings. 'Al-Muhafaza wa-l Taqadum fi Misr: Al-Ihya al-Islami' (Conservatism and progressivism in Egypt: the Islamic revival), Qira'at Siyasiyya, 3 (2), 1993, p 19.
33. Salah 'Abd-al Karim, Awraq Hizh al-Wasat al-Misri (Papers of the Egyptian Wasat Party), Cairo, 1998.
34. Salah 'Abd-al Karim, Awraq Hizh al-Wasat al-Misri 1998 Ibid, p 29.
35. See footnotes 2 and 4.
36. Gilles Kepel, Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam, Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press, 2002, pp 282-292.
37. The political development of the militant Islamist is analysed by Rafa't Said Ahmed, 'Al-Islamiyyun: As-Sulta wa-l Unf (The Islamists: power and violence), Middle East Affairs Journal, 2 (1), 1994, pp 79-90.
38. The ceasefire of 1997 is discussed in Kepel, Jihad, p 297.
39. The leadership had then split into two main groups: the European one under the leadership of Osama Rouchdi condemned the 1997 Luxor attacks and called for a ceasefire, while the other group under Rifai Ahmad Taha residing in Afghanistan called for a continuation of the violence.
40. In a clash between Ibrahim Libya, the leader of a sufist group, his followers and the police in Memali, Kedah, 18 people were killed in 1985.
41. After Mahathir's announcement on 29 September 2001, a brochure was published by the Ministry of Information that outlined the Islamic state concept as seen by UMNO. Because of the controversial status of non-Muslims in this concept, the brochure was later withdrawn. Wan Zahidi Wan The, Malaysia Adalah Sebuah Negara Islam (Malaysia is an Islamic State), Kuala Lumpur: Kementerian Penerangan, 2001.
42. 'US embassy under guard, PAS labels Americans "war criminals'", at http:/www.malaysiakini.com, 8 October 2001.
43. Mustafa Kamal Basri, 'Hudud bill passed', The Star, 9 July 2002, p 1.
44. Joceline Tan, 'PAS moves to spread its wings', The Star, 5 October 2003, p 26.
45. Devid Rajah, Nick Leong & K Suthakar, 'Ulama Hassan is PAS no 2', The Star, 15 September 2003, p 12.
46. Anwar Ibrahim, The Asian Renaissance, Singapore: Times Books, 1996, describes Anwar's vision of a multi-ethnic democratic civil society in which Islam features prominently.
47. 'Aiming for change', Al-Ahram Weekly, 25-31 December 2003, at http://weekly.ahram.org.
48. 'Citizenship dialogue', Al-Ahram Weekly, 18-24 September 2003.
49. Khoo Boo Teik, 'Malaysian politics in 2004: transitions and elections', Trends in Southeast Asia (Institute of Southeast Asian Studies), 4, 2004, pp 8-9.
50. The Islamic State Document, Kuala Lumpur: PAS, 2003.
51. 'Memorandum Negara Islam - Pemerintahan Islam Dalam Abad ke-21' (Memorandum on Islamic state: Islamic governance in the 21st century), unpublished PAS document.
52. Ustaz Badruzaman Yusoff, Penjelasan Dokumen Negara Islam (Clarification on the Islamic State Document), Kuala Lumpur: PAS, 2003.
53. Haji Abdul Hadi Awang, 'Ucapan Sempena Majlis Pelancaran Dokumen Negara Islam', Speech made in conjunction with the launch of the Islamic State Document, Kuala Lumpur, 2003. Both the Bahasa Malaysia and English versions have been circulated.
54. Haji Abdul Hadi Awang, 'Ucapan Sempena Majlis Pelancaran Dokumen Negara Islam', Speech made in conjunction with the launch of the Islamic State Document, 2003 Ibid.
55. 'Releases and arrests', Al-Ahram Weekly, 11-17 September 2003.
56. 'Setting for small steps', Al-Ahram Weekly, 22-28 January 2004.