8. Politics in the Muslim World

Study

There exists an important tension in the modern Muslim world of politics. One the one hand is the Islamic ideal of consultation and consensus building in decision making. On the other hand is the notion that ultimate authority in society is vested in an immaculate leader whose legitimacy rests principally on his knowledge and understanding of Islam. How societies in the Muslim world are able to reconcile this tension and internal and external pressures for the partial adoption of alternative political ideas from outside the Muslim world is an important part of political conflict. Chapter 8 outlines the basic pillars of Islamic political culture, compares that political culture with Western ideas about the relationship between rulers and the ruled, and applies those insights to case studies of politics in Morocco, Iran, and Indonesia.

Morocco and Iran represent different examples of the tension between the ideal of consultation and consensus building and the exercise of political authority in politics. Morocco is an exemplary case of the maintenance of a traditional political system in the Islamic world with the integration of participatory governance. Although the traditional monarchy exercises nearly absolute power, political liberalization has introduced institutions of parliamentary government and expansion of individual political rights and freedoms. In Iran, a complex and dual system of government exists in which formal institutions of consultation such as an executive and a legislature exist, yet a parallel system of government institutions, controlled by religious clerics, exercises ultimate authority and decision-making power. Finally, Indonesia is quite different from Iran and Morocco, as Islam has not been the only force to define the political process and political institutions in society. The driving forces of Indonesian politics in the twentieth century had their origins in political Islam; a secular, nationalist struggle against Dutch colonialism; ethnic tensions in a heterogeneous society; and the influence of European communism and social revolution.

Chapter 8 concludes with an interesting observation about Indonesian politics that is instructive for the future course of politics throughout the Muslim world. The apparent disappearance of socialism as a legitimate alternative for organizing politics and society has left two competing alternatives in Indonesia. One alternative is a republic based in part on Western notions of secular governance, and the other is an Islamic state rooted in traditional principles of governance. How society in the world's largest Muslim country is able to reconcile these competing political philosophies may very well be one of the most important political developments of the twenty-first century.

Review Questions

After reading chapter 8, students should be able to answer the following questions:

  1. Describe the principles of the traditional Islamic state as outlined first by the Prophet Muhammad.


  2. Compare and contrast the principles of a traditional Islamic state and the principles of secular and representative government.


  3. Explain how Morocco has preserved a traditional Islamic political system while adapting to demands for more participatory governance.


  4. How is political authority exercised in Iran?


  5. Explain the tension between demands for a nationalist and secular government in Indonesia and demands for an Islamic state.