Theoretical perspectives on the Islam-democracy discourse (original) (raw)
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Islam and Democracy: Conflicts and Congruence
Religions 8 (104): 1-19 , 2017
Is authoritarianism intrinsic to Islam? Is Islam incompatible with democracy? These questions are frequently debated in the context of the study of the relationship between the Western and Islamic civilization. The debate has gained momentum since the last decade of the twentieth century, especially after the collapse of the former Soviet Union and the subsequent transition of socialist states in Eastern Europe and other authoritarian states in Asia and Latin America to democracy. The publication of The Clash of Civilizations by American scholar Samuel Huntington, in which he presented a controversial argument about a cultural divide and clash between the Islamic world and the West, pushed the debate even further. Apart from Muslim intellectuals, Western academics have spent a significant amount of time on these questions, with a multitude of articles and volumes examining the compatibility of Islam and democracy. In this paper, we will examine Islam's relationship with democracy from normative and philosophical viewpoints, examining how the established values and principles of Islam as reflected in the Qur'anic and prophetic traditions correspond to Western democratic norms and practices. In order to obtain a profound understanding of this subject, we have delved into, through content analysis, the thoughts of several early modernist Islamic scholars who have had tremendous impact on contemporary Islamic revivalist movements throughout the world, and interviewed a number of contemporary Islamic thinkers in Bangladesh.
Democracy in Modern Islamic Thought
Despite the hostility they exhibit towards each other, almost all Arab secularist and radical Islamists agree that democracy and Islam are irreconcilable, and that belief in one inevitably precludes belief in the other. In this paper I will focus on the beliefs of the Islamist Rashid Ghannouchi regarding this issue. First I will examine his notion of how democracy can be achieved in an Islamic state. I shall then explore issues of conflict that have arisen between traditional and modern Islamist thinking relating to the compatibility of democracy and Islam. Finally I will focus on two variables that are claimed to be major obstacles to liberal democracy in Muslim states: secularism and modernisation.
This chapter examines the debate on the relationship between Islam and democracy. It begins by tracing the historical roots of the debate. It then considers the so-called establishment view of the debate, which comes from Western scholars whose writings reach a large audience by virtue of their dissemination by mainstream and influential newspapers, intellectual journals, and publishing houses. This chapter then shifts to examine the reasons behind the emergence of secularism in the West but not in Muslim societies, the origins of political secularism in the Anglo-American tradition, and the modern Muslim experience with secularism.
Ahmad, Irfan. 2011. “Democracy and Islam”. Philosophy and Social Criticism. 37(4): 459 –470.
The dominant debate on Islam and democracy continues to operate in the realm of normativity. This article engages with key literature showing limits of such a line of inquiry. Through the case study of India’s Islamist organization, Jamaat-e-Islami, I aim at shifting the debate from textual normativity to demotic praxis. I demonstrate how Islam and democracy work in practice, and in so doing offer a fresh perspective to enhance our understandings of both Islam and democracy. A key proposition of this article is that rather than discussing the cliché if Islam is compatible with democracy, or Islam should be democratized, we study the ‘hows’ of de-democratization in Muslim societies. Keywords: anthropology, de-democratization, India, Islam, John Keane, Abul Ala Maududi, Middle East
Democracy in Islam: views of several modern Muslim scholars
The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, 2010
From the early twentieth century onward, many Muslim thinkers have explored the prospects for establishing an "Islamic democracy" by defining, discussing, and debating the relationship and compatibility (and similarity) between "Islamic political concepts" and the "notions and positive features of democracy." They interpret the Islamization of democracy on the basis of a modern reinterpretation of several key Islamic political concepts -mainly khilOEfah and sh´rOE -to provide an effective foundation for understanding the (contemporary) relationship between Islam and democracy. The majority of scholars in the Muslim world continue to throw light on the "modern reflection on democracy," thereby pushing this century-long search ever forward.
Democracy and Islam: An Odyssey in Braving the Twenty-First Century
2006
I. INTRODUCTION During the last few decades, the Muslim world has witnessed various traumatic events. The Iranian Revolution and the hostage situation, the suicide bombings in Palestine and in Africa, and the tragedy of 9/11 are only a few examples of episodes that led many to regard Islam and democracy as incompatible. It is alleged that Islam is a monolithic faith opposed to pluralism, that it has a poor human rights record, and that Muslims seek "heaven by creating hell on earth."1 Nevertheless, there is abundant evidence that democracy and the Islamic faith are compatible. This Article contends that the traditions, scripture, and teachings of the founder of Islam are compatible with the principles and practices of democracy and that the chief encumbrance to the development of democracy in Muslim states has not been and is not Islam itself. Part II compares the historical obstacles to the development of democracy in Europe with counterpart obstacles to democracy's d...
Islam and Democracy: Are they Compatible or Irreconcilable? Part 1: Background and Issues
Challenging Religious Issues , 2018
Recently, the question concerning the compatibility between Islam and democracy and whether Islam can be reconciled at all with modern liberal secular democracy has attracted a considerable amount of discussion in both Muslim majority societies and the West, where Muslims are now an established religious minority. It is not often that one hears a similar debate about Christianity or Judaism, Islam’s sister faith traditions, or indeed about other world religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism. What, then, makes the case of Islam so salient? This article, in two parts, aims to explore the topic by first discussing the wider context and rationale behind contrasting Islam, a monotheistic faith tradition, with democracy, a Western secular form of political governance. It must be noted that the inquiry and analysis of such a controversial issue can easily draw in elements of reductionism and anachronism, with the danger of employing concepts and experiences intrinsic to a distinctive cultural practice and which evolved out of a specific historical period to explain and understand another distinctive phenomenon embedded in a different historical and cultural context. To avoid such a methodological shortcoming, this article will briefly explore Islam’s central narrative, the nature of religious/spiritual authority and political theology in Islam and discuss how the relationship between faith and political power has been framed in diverse historical expressions of Islam.
Islam and Democracy - Political thought towards post-democracy
Over the last few decades much has been written about the compatibility and conflict between Islam and democracy. For Muslims democracy poses a formidable challenge, mainly because traditional views have not recognized the separation of religion and state. Many Muslim academics seek to prove that Islam enshrines democratic values. Muslims intellectuals are debating political systems in search of alternatives to monarchical, military and dictatorial regimes that lack popular legitimacy. In Muslim countries, organised religion is a powerful political force. Muslims are further concerned about interference by Western countries who back dictators for their own ends. Thus, Muslim citizens are unable to decide their own future and to oppose autocratic rulers increases the capacity for violence. Muslims are also yearning for democracy so that they can determine their own religiosity and political future in their private and public lives. Many Muslims and especially the youth are asserting their political presence in public and believe that their rights are being openly violated and their voices silenced by the existing religious and political authority. This study introduces points of reference that Islamic thinkers and movements use to justify the adoption of democracy into the main body of Islamic thought.
Islam and Democracy: Is Modernization a Barrier?
Religion Compass, 2007
The relationship between Islam and democracy is a hotly debated topic. Usually the disagreements are expressed in a standard form. In this form, the debaters' definitions of "Islam" and "democracy" determine the conclusions arrived at. It is possible, depending upon the definitions used, to "prove" both positions: Islam and democracy are compatible and that they are not. To escape from the predefined conclusions, it is necessary to recognize that "Islam" and "democracy" are concepts with many definitions. In the twenty-first century, important interpretations of Islam open the way for political visions in which Islam and democracy are mutually supportive.