Is Islamic Fundamentalism A Threat To Political Stability ?

The original application of the term fundamentalist means someone who believes in the basic tenants of religion (this is usually the Bible and the scriptures). In that respect all Muslims are inherently fundamentalists, they believe in the Quran and the Prophet.1 The genesis of misunderstanding comes when the West conceptualizes Islamic fundamentalism as the acts of Islamic extremists and fanatics. Muslims differ in their ideas and mode of application to the modern world. Ideology is not even universal by ethnicity or nationality within the Muslim world.2 Although, people would have you believe so, such as Mansbach:

Muslim behavior is guided by religion, and all Muslims are united by their faith regardless of national or class differences. 3

However, I will agree with Zachary Karabell�s statement: �In theory, the umma is one unit. All Muslims, regardless of sect, constitute the umma; hence, division among believers is a degenerate state of affairs.�4 In this paper I will provide information that will help in answering the question: �Is Islamic fundamentalism a threat to political stability?�

As stated earlier, Islam is based on the teachings of the Prophet and the Quran. The Quran is divided into thirty sections and one hundred and fourteen surah. There are five pillars of Islam shahada (statement of belief), salat (prayer), zakat (alms or tides), sawm (fasting), and haj (pilgrimage). �The edifice of Islamic religious belief and social practice thus rests on these five pillars.� 5

The most obvious division to most people are the two main sects, Sunni which constitutes 90% of the Muslim population and Shi�ite, which constitutes most of the rest. Within the Sunnis on the extreme are the Wahabis, which account for 10 million and are primarily in Saudi Arabia. The Wahabis are sometimes refered to as Islamic puritans; they believe in a very literal translation of the Quran. That is why they cut off thieves� hands and for more severe crimes your head, and they do it in public.6 There is also Sufism, although not as popular these days,7 they consist of both Sunnis and Shias.

The second division comes from the traditionalist-secularist struggle. There are those within the Muslim world that would like their governments to remain secular an there are those that would like a theocracy like that of Iran. Along similar lines are those who reject Western ideas of statehood and would like to see a unified umma. An example of this is the IRP (Islamic Renaissance Party) who wants a unified Central Asian Islamic state; but it is banned in all the Islamic countries except Tajikistan. �Not all fundamentalist movements seek to undermine the state. Some movements (such as the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan) seek accommodation with the state, while others (such as Algeria�s GIA) are insurgent.�8 �There is considerable strife occurring in Algeria, Egypt, and several other Muslim countries based on the traditionalist-secularist struggle.� 9

The third division comes from nationalism. It is important to note this as a primary cause of Iran-Iraq discord as they are both Shias.

Lastly, there are the ethnic and sectarian differences. Ethnically Muslims are very diverse, they are not all Arab and do not all speak Arabic; there are also Iranians, Kazakhs, Pakistanis, Persians, Africans, and Asians.

�Fundamentalists may be defined, most simply, as those Muslims who agree with the slogan: �Islam is the solution.�� according to Daniel Pipes.10

At one time or another the label �fundamentalist� has been attached to groups as diverse as Hamas in Israel/Palestine; Hizbollah in Lebanon; the Refah (Welfare) Party in Tunisia; the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Jordan, and Syria; the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) in Algeria; and the Jamaat-I-Islami in Pakistan. Yet there is no unitary Islamic fundamentalism any more than there is a unitary Christian fundamentalism.11 While there is no monolithic Islam- and no monolithic fundamentalist movement- there is an ongoing struggle in the Islamic world. On one side are largely secular governments; on the other, there are individuals and groups who believe that politics and religion are one and who reject the secular Western division between the state and religion. As the scholar Nazih Ayubi has observed, for fundamentalists, Islam is understood as din (a religion), dunya (a way of life), and dawla (a state). Fundamentalists call for a return to an earlier, supposedly more pure Islam. They want to replace secular, civil law with the sharia (Islamic law), and they view the modern state system in the Islamic world as an illegitimate and immoral division of the umma (the community of believers). Fundamentalists share this basic ideology, but different groups adopt varying strategies to realize their vision. 12

It is ignorance and misinformation that causes prejudice or if you prefer�negative stereotype, that in turn are responsible for the bulk of this problem. �Ignorance and misunderstanding of Islam exists among both Muslims and non-Muslims. Non-Muslims, ignorant and misunderstanding Islam, fear it. They imagine that it threatens their most basic values. Fantasy, conjecture and stereotypes take place of fact and reality. Similarly Muslims have their own misconceptions. They too, reacting to hate and fear of non-Muslims, create a kind of defensive posture within their societies and a combative climate based on militant rhetoric which blames outside conspiracies.� 13 The media, of course, doesn�t help any, in fact they perpetuate discontent. �In this heat and misunderstanding�those dedicated to peace and tolerance�are seldom heard�because it is not in the nature of the media to allow such voices. The media prefer�those people�provoking controversy�� 14 In fact according a hadith 15 the loudest voice, is that of a donkey.

Also, if you hear good things about someone it makes it easier to like them. Comments like this are heard often: �Muslims despise our whole way of life, including the way we dress, mate, and pray. They admire little more than our military and medical technologies.�16 Along with others like this: ��to appease fundamentalists would mean forcing women to wear the veil,17 scuttling nearly every form of diversion, and overhauling the judicial system�.18 Muslims are often portrayed in negative ways and have received little credit for their contributions. The average American probably couldn�t think of anything that Muslims, in general, have contributed to society. Our (class�s) first hint that they may have something to contribute came from our text on page 41 of The Global Puzzle, �Under the Abbasid caliphs, Islamic society reached its height. Greek, Roman, Persian, and Hindu works were translated into Arabic and became part of Muslim culture. The works of ancient jurisprudence, philosophy, science, and the humanities were preserved in Muslim culture and the Arabic language. Baghdad became a center of intellectual and cultural life.� However it doesn�t actually say that they shared any of this. In our text, on page 255 Mansbach states �Baghdad became a center for trade routes between Europe and Asia and Africa and saw an unparalleled flowering of the arts, literature, science, and philosophy.� From this sentence it is easy to infer that because of its central location it prospered from the achievements of surrounding civilizations, not necessarily from its own achievements. Reading the footnote, �We owe much of our knowledge of classical Greece to Arabic preservation and translation of Greek drama, philosophy, and science, including Aristotle�s works.� helps appreciate it more, but again, it appears as though none of their contributions were original. Next we read a quote by Philip Hitti, �Arab scholars were studying Aristotle when Charlemagne and lords were learning to write their names. Scientists in Cordova, with their seventeen great libraries�enjoyed luxurious baths at a time when washing the body was considered a dangerous custom at the University of Oxford.� This helps but it still falls short of examples given in other books. In Islam Today, I found on page 6, a much more flattering statement: �It is well to recall that Islam not only caused Islamic civilization to develop but also enabled the European Renaissance to take root and grow. The time when Islam was most strongly established was also the time when art, culture, and literature flourished, whether in Spain or, later, under the Ottomans, the Safavids and the Mughals. Christian Europe was enveloped in darkness until Islam came to the Iberian peninsula. For centuries Islam fed Greek, Sanskrit and Chinese ideas into Europe. Slowly and steadily Europe began to absorb these ideas. In England, France, Germany, and Italy society began to explore literature and art with a new perspective; thus the seeds of the Renaissance were sown.�

�Today, we are witnessing a revival of Islamic fundamentalism demanding that people be ruled solely in accord with religious doctrine.� 19 �The resurgence of Islam as a political force has ramifications for world politics.� 20 �It is also important to keep in mind that unlike the ideal Christian (turning the other cheek) or Buddhist (the world as a place to be renounced), however different they may be in real life, ideal Muslims are prepared to fight for justice and for their rights. They do not believe in turning the other cheek. They are commanded to challenge what they see as injustice or what is tyrannical. It is this that makes Muslims sometimes argumentative. They cannot be passive. A good Muslim is a good citizen.� 21

�If misery causes radicalism, as the Left argues, then the antidote lies in economic growth and social equity. The West can help in these areas through aid, trade, and open lines of communication. But if, as the Right believes, ambitious intellectuals are the problem, then they must be battled and defeated. In both cases, liberals look to cooperation, conservatives to confrontation.� �If they are approached with respect, says the Left, Marxist-Leninists and fundamentalist Muslims will leave us alone. Don�t treat them as enemies and they won�t hurt us. The Right disagrees, holding that all revolutionaries, no matter what their particular outlook (Communist, Fascist, fundamentalist), are deeply anti-Western and invariably target the West.� 22 If this is true, then the real question is, can you be anti-Western without posing a threat to the West? I believe so, making it irrelevant as to whether or not Islam likes being immersed in sex, drugs, and violence. They have the same problem with us that many other countries do, like Russia and Japan, the McDonaldization of the world. It is the approach by conservatives that could cause a self-fulfilling prophecy of Islam versus the West. �At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries America and its cultural allies (like the countries of Europe) appear to dominate the world. They do so through the media. That is why the media are seen as hostile by the Muslim world. Anything from the West is regarded as potentially threatening; this creates neurosis and suspicion.� 23 �Further, people have already been predicting that after the collapse of communism the West�s next enemy would be Islam. Now that there are no more powerful enemies for the West to conquer since the break-up of its main adversary, the USSR, Islam alone remains in its path, preventing world supremacy. There is a growing feeling among writers and commentators that the world is heading for a final show-down, a final crusade, between Islam and the West. � 24 It doesn�t help any when the West criticizes Islam. Daniel Pipes said: �When a newly elected deputy to the Jordanian parliament last fall called fundamentalist Islam �one of the greatest dangers facing our society� and compared it to �a cancer� that �has to be surgically removed,� she spoke for many Muslims.�25 This statement is fine and it is important to note. This is something that Muslims need to address and debate within the umma; but when the kafirs criticizes it, it can only cause trouble. And of course that what Daniel Pipes in his following sentence: �Americans can in good conscience join them in criticizing fundamentalism. As an ideology, fundamentalist Islam can claim none of the sanctity that Islam the religion enjoys.�26

According to Zachery Karabell:

Islamic civilization is not destined to clash with the rest of the world, and Islamic fundamentalists in power do not necessarily represent a threat to international security. Instead, most Islamic fundamentalists have no ambition other than the most anodyne desire for security. While fundamentalism is an expansive force within the Islamic world, it neither seeks jihad with nor domination of the non-Muslim world. In this respect, Islamic fundamentalism ought to matter no more to the non-Muslim world than Qu�b�cois nationalism matters to Thailand. 27

What we need to look at then, is the scope of Islamic fundamentalism. If it is homogeneous then it does not, and could not pose a threat. I, like Zachary Karabell, believe its scope remains within the Muslim world.

Like communism, Islamic fundamentalism is an ideology. Where communism rejected capitalist rules of engagement in international affairs, Islamic fundamentalism rejects the notion that the state is an inviolable unit. But unlike communist, Islamic fundamentalism confines its aspirations to one portion of the world- the Muslim world. Thus, when fundamentalists challenge the state, it is within the Muslim world that is the target of their animus. Communism sought, and free market capitalism still seeks, world domination. Islamic fundamentalism does not and never will.28

It is not just optimistic liberal Westerners that feel this way. Leaders within the umma agree; such as�Hassan al-Turabi, the spiritual leader of Sudan�s military regime.

The international dimension of the Islamic movement is conditioned by the universality of the umma�and the artificial irrelevancy of Sudan�s border. 29

Another example is Professor Kemel Oke who stated �although there is a revival of Islam in Turkey today, there is no large-scale political movement towards replacing the existing political institutions with an Islamic theocracy like that in Iran�. 30

Like in economics: �If people believe prices will rise, they will act in a way that keeps them rising�To stop inflation, then, we need to convince workers, businesspeople, and consumers that prices will stop rising.�31 so to in politics if people believe Islamic fundamentalism is a threat, they will act in a way that will make it one. A good example of this was the arms race during the Cold War.

Now that we have identified this issue it is now possible to offer solutions that will prevent escalation of fear and retaliation, from both sides. �First, the media need to take a more balanced and more understanding position. They need to resist the temptation to pass judgement, to slip into old-style Orientalist prejudices. They must also avoid the trap of using loaded words like fundamentalism which cloud judgement and create prejudice. The Western media must look at Islam objectively, even with some empathy, and not respond to events in Muslim areas with constant aggression and hostility. It is also crucial that they should not impose their own intellectual frame on Islam.� 32 �Second, more Muslims need to be visible in the Western media � in films, on discussion programmes, on the radio and so on. It would allow them to protect their point of view as well as to counter their exotic and alien image.� �Third, more conferences and seminars for the general public need to be organized to explain Islam in the West�Similarly, an exercise in the opposite direct is needed to explain the West to Muslim societies.� 33 A good example of this is the Model League of Arab States (MLAS) Conferences, and to a slightly lesser degree the Model United Nations (MUN). Unfortunately, MLAS is not as prolific as MUN is. Out of twenty some conferences I have participated in, only one was a MLAS.34 �Fourth, a basic knowledge of Islam could be taught in Western schools so that children do not grow in ignorance of it; ignorance breeds fear and prejudice. Conversely, Western values, like democracy, need to be explained in Muslim schools; also that the West has more to offer them then just sex and violence, the Muslim stereotypes of the West.� 35 Along with Islam, I think all the major religions should be introduced to students, in that it is mandatory to have any real knowledge about a people. Like other controversial subjects/classes this could be a class that could require parental permisson. It is important to remember that there is nothing wrong with learning about things that contradict one another. The goal would be to identify and understand, obviously not to convert or preach. �Finally, the major problems that cause so much anger and distress among Muslims need to be addressed: those of the Bosnian and Kosovans in Europe, the Palestinians in the Middle East and the Kashmiris in South Asia, for examples. The routine beatings, torture and killing must stop.� 36

1 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.10

2 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.10

3 Richard W. Mansbach, �The Global Puzzle,� p.39

4 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.284

5 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.32

6 Gary D. Scott

7 Sufism was practiced in Russia during the times of religious intolerance.

8 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.284

9 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.275

10 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.276

11 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.282

12 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.282

13 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.231-232

14 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.232

15 saying of the Prophet (Muhammad) source of wisdom and social practice

16 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,�p.278

17 the veil is the hijab, �Although the hijab, chador, or even the pardah are not in early Islam according to some scholars, in time they became associated with Islam. These customs were assimilated from the conquered Persian and Byzantine societies and were considered to reflect the Quranic spirit.� (Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,�)

18 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.279

19 jihad means struggle, not necessarily holy war, kafirs refers to non believers

20 Richard W. Mansbach, �The Global Puzzle,� p.42

21 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.275

22 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,�p.231

23 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.216

24 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.216

25 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.218

26 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.276-277

27 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.277

28 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,� p.282

29 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,�p.283

30 John T. Rourke, �Taking Sides,�p.284

31 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,�p.102

32 Stephen L. Slavin, �Economics Third Edition,� p.216

33 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,�p.235

34 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.236

35 I co-chaired Security Affairs committee at the Old Dominion University High School MLAS conference.

36 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.236

37 Akbar S. Ahmed, �Islam Today,� p.236