Relations Between Islamic Fundamentalism and Muslim Democracy - Essay Example

The Relations between Islamic Fundamentalism and Muslim Democracy A new political move is rocking the Muslim world and changingthe political atmosphere where Islamic fundamentalism has played a big role in the past. This impetus, which has a similarity with the Christian democratic parties of Europe, and which evolved some years back is being referred to in many quarters as Muslim Democracy. The rise of Muslim democracy has been witnessed on a large scale in the last twenty years or so and even though those in the frontline to implement it do not agree full-scale with the tag it has been given they agree that there is need to carry out Reform in Islam so as to bring about democratic reform in the countries concerned. Since the beginning of 1990s, there have arisen Muslim oriented parties, but which are not fundamental or Islamist in their ideals, and which have successfully vied and won political seats in countries such as Bangladesh, Turkey, Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan. Unlike fundamentalists who advocate for the introduction of Sharia or Islamic law, the proponents of Muslim Democracy are seen to be more realistic in their view since they are found to be accommodative of religious and secular ideals in their approach to politics (Kepel, 2003). They are seen to disagree with the notion that a Muslim country must be governed by Sharia law, but are seen to lean towards the creation of electoral processes that are viable and accommodative of different shades of opinion so as to serve interests that are both Islamic and secular, thereby respecting the thus created democratic space whether they win in the elections or lose. They are not seen to have the motive of integrating Islam into politics but are only seen to exploit its potential through the teaching of Islamic values to help them win elections. All the same, democratization processes which are all inclusive seem to be more appealing than the path of religious and ideological change and Islamic democracy hence they are seen to be on the upper hand in shaping the political destinies of many countries in the Islamic world. Fundamentalists on the other hand do not view Democracy as an issue to be taken seriously or legitimately but only as a means to ascend to political power so as to acquire the platform through which to build an Islamic state (Roy 2006). The observers of the changes being experienced in the Muslim world have associated these changes with influence due to interaction locally and globally and the advent of internet technology. The success of Muslim democracy does not seem to have resulted from any theological or ideological process, but for being seen to address issues from a practical perspective that gives assurance to the electorate that its needs are all well taken care of. The two concepts of fundamentalism and Muslim democracy in their various ways have resulted in regime change in their respective countries, including change that was facilitated by fundamentalists in Iran and Morocco, the changes that have been occasioned by the Muslim Democracy proponents in the areas affected by the Arab spring namely Egypt, Tunisia and Libya (Kepel, 2003). The concepts are both at the forefront in struggling for political power in ruling governments even as each espouses its ideals to convince the masses, though Muslim democracy seems to be on the upper hand. There are various factors that have contributed to the rise of Islamic fundamentalism’s openness to democracy. After gauging the preference of masses, the trend has been that Islamist or secular parties are not currently as popular as those with Muslim values and moderate Islamic policies. This latter principle along which Muslim democratic parties are molded, is attracting a large section of voters since they are also more compatible with world politics. Putting a lot of rhetoric and theory aside, Muslim democracy party ideals have similarities with the Christian Democratic Party’s trend of Europe in the past and thus have had appeal as compared to the hardline stance of Islamic fundamentalism. Muslim democracy does not solely advocate the ideas of Islamic rules though it has supported some of the Islamist rules for example in the matters of religion, morals and removal of restrictions from schools. This latter trend has been even seen as a tactic to be more influential, rather than one driven by ideology or religious convictions in the quest to win more votes in electoral processes (Wright, 2006). The fact that it has liberal ideals whose scope of influence is wide makes it more appealing than Islamic fundamentalism and thus Muslim fundamentalists have been seen to practice democracy, but only to use this moderation to ascend to power but not as a legitimate ideal. Competition in political parties so as to best accommodate people’s needs as represented has resulted in modernizing the democratic Muslim parties and is putting them on a par with the aspirations of modern society. The trend of Muslim democrats to go out to the streets to seek votes based on practical policies rather than engaging in Islamic teachings has made them popular and made their embracement by modern society easy (Roy 2006). There has been the realization that changing the attitude of Muslims politically and socially is easier through practical political awareness but not through theory and religious teaching that dictate a particular line of thought. Many Muslims have also realized that, with the current trend, political change will occur before religious change due to the current global trends whereby radical religious inclinations can result in seclusion. The advance of knowledge has led to disapproval of narrow concepts like that upon which is founded the Islamic ideology, which espouses the creation of an Islamic state where all sovereignty has been vested in God. This concept is authoritative and prohibitive and leaves no room for women and minorities rights, civil liberties pluralism and democratic space and is appealing to many, considering that this form of oppression is common in many Muslim countries. The information about what is happening in other secular and even religious states in the economical, political and social arenas through the internet has created unprecedented awareness which greatly changed the political inclinations of many people. It has even been argued by some that because of the threat by democrats, Islamists could even hold a one time election to install a government whereby the ideals put forward could be pretentiously democratic, but where theocracy would later be installed. It has been argued that Muslim democracy should be carefully implemented through well thought-out ideological and religious reforms, so as to remove the threat of Islamist interference (Roy 2006). It has been assumed that because democracy in the Muslim world is a concept that is gaining ground, an intelligent and moderate Islamic perspective is necessary to enhance the concept. This is because even though Muslim democracy has grown, it has not been driven forward by intellectuals but ordinary politicians, who have had to struggle with the intricacies between Islamic values, voting arrangements, Islamic voter bases and other such issues. The fact is, too, that societies have embraced the private sector concept; it has become possible to move away from being state dependent and to become integrated on the principles of the world economy in a globalized world. This has made Muslim democracy gain advantage over other systems due to its liberal and accommodative stand, where it combines religious values of the populace with policies that are accommodative of their economic needs and thus becoming strong in its appeal. In a country like Turkey for example, the success of a party like the AKP Democratic Muslim party is not because of religious adherence but more so because of the liberalized economic policies of the party (Wright, 2006). The existence of Muslim democracy in Indonesia and Malaysia has seen vibrant private sectors which have greatly impacted on the economies of these countries. The great involvement of these countries in global trade that has been facilitated by the Muslim Democratic parties in their politics has seen them rise economically higher their counterparts in Islamic party led countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan. The other aspect worth mentioning is the political competition for votes, which has opened the door for political competition. This calls for parties to organize themselves in the best way possible due to stiff competition, which calls more for the embracing of democratic principles. Fundamentalists could be threatened if they maintain their hardline stance, hence the seeming openness to democracy to maintain competitiveness in their ranks. With parties striving to maintain competitiveness, they are pressurized to develop structures that measure up to standards in the open political field (Wright, 2006). Despite the existence of military rule or the reign of one party government, there has existed multi party politics which have called for properly structured parties which best address voter’s concerns. Regular competition has necessitated the need for religious related parties to accommodate moderation in the quest to be victorious. Competition for the Muslim vote is intense and moderation has seen some Islamic parties join with those that espouse Islamic principles in coalitions and this has started to result in moderation across the political divide. References Hefner, R. 2000. Civil Islam. New Jersey: Princeton University Press. Kepel, G.2003. Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam. Harvard: Harvard University Press. Mandaville, P. 2007. Global Political Islam. New York: Routeledge. Nasr, V. 2010. The Rise of Islamic Capitalism: Why the New Muslim Middle Class is Key to Defeating Extremism. New York: Free Press. Roy, O. 2006. Globalized Islam. New York: Columbia University Press. Wright, L. 2006. The Looming Towe. Pennsylvania: Knopf. Read More