Daily Times

The leaders of Pakistan’s Islamist parties have alleged that secular forces have been trying to replace the country’s Islamic identity. They warned that these ‘elements’ wouldn’t succeed in their efforts because of Pakistan’s religious parties. However, these assertions are quite questionable. The ‘Islam is in danger’ bogeyman being peddled by Islamist parties is as old as Pakistan itself. There is no evidence of a sinister plot to derail Pakistan’s pursuit of Islamism. For once, Islamists should try offering credible solutions to this country’s numerous economic, social, and political problems instead of harping on about foreign conspiracies and agendas.

In reality, nothing is stopping Pakistan from going back in time to mirror an Arab tribal-state when everything was perfect and the corrupt values of personal freedom and inclusive democracy would be done away with. Presently, the West’s selfish concerns centre on the control of the country’s nuclear weapons in the event of a takeover by radical Islamists. Western states are wary of accusations of political interference, cultural imperialism, and insensitivity to Muslim feelings. But Western thinkers have pointed to the incompatibility between Islam and democracy; the supremacy of God’s will above all leaves democracy, elections and human rights irrelevant. They also suggest that authoritarianism and autocracy come naturally to the Muslim world.

It has long been clear that Islamic fundamentalism is on the rise in much – if not most — of the Muslim world. It is hard to find a Muslim country where religion is considered a private matter and plays no role in the development of political institutions and the implementation of political decisions. A Pew Research Centre poll suggests that a majority of young people in Muslim states want Islam to have an influence on national politics and for laws to strictly follow the teachings of the Quran. Mixing religion and politics is deemed a good feature. There are few proponents of secular democracy. Many Muslims seek refuge in the fantasy of a return to the golden age of Islam. They blame their weakness and poverty on external forces masking the deeper malaise in the Islamic world.

Religious values serve as the basis for morality. But religious absolutism and literalism has resulted in discrimination among citizens and has become a hindrance to the peaceful co-existence of different communities. Regrettably, the nexus of religion and politics has contributed to the strengthening of exclusive religious identities, violent sectarianism, and persistent communalism in the Middle East and South Asia. The misuse of religion to achieve political goals is a formidable challenge in developing states. Democratic institutions are also undermined when the ruling elite succumbs to extremist demands. This abdication allows extremists to chip away at the state’s authority as the supreme coercive power.

Regrettably, the nexus of religion and politics has contributed to the strengthening of exclusivist religious identities, sectarian strife, and persistent communalism in both the Middle East and South Asia

Undoubtedly, religious extremism benefits from political, social and economic crises. The state’s inability to deal with religious, ethnic, and social tensions causes disorder and chaos. Moreover, states struggle to improve living standards and guarantee human rights. These failures create popular discontent that often finds expression in religious terms. States have to find alternate solutions to discredit or at least make religious extremism less appealing. In spite of this, many states are unwilling or unable to make this effort.

Europe passed through a period of extraordinary bloodshed and fanaticism during the Christian Reformation before accepting the post-Enlightenment ideas of a political structure that included the separation of church and state. The Europeans saw the absurdity of having a parallel ecclesiastical power sharing the stage with the supreme civil power. Americans learned from the European experience reflected in this quote from 4th President James Madison:”The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries.

Western secularism played an important role in integrating diverse populations into a common political framework and in the emancipation of women. European success has strengthened the argument that modernity is by definition secular and progressive. It proved that democratic states need to guarantee freedom from as well as freedom of religion. Hence, Western states do not meddle with their citizen’s religious faiths. They don’t favour any religious faith over another. They impartially respect the pluralism of all religious faiths present in society. While Western democracies failed to prevent the rise of fascism and totalitarianism, they ultimately prevailed to secure freedom.

Every state and culture has the right to create its own institutions of governance. But Muslim states won’t become less Islamic if they allow young people to debate the merits of liberal democracy and secularism. This proposed dialogue is not a demand to remove religion from the public sphere or diminish its continued centrality in human existence. The Muslim world may eventually see value in secular democracy and tolerance of pluralism and diversity as the way forward towards embracing modernism. It may grow to see the value in dispensing with despotism and accepting constitutionalism to create liberal and democratic states at the expense of absolute and theocratic states. Perhaps conformism, dogmatism, and superstition could be replaced by social cohesion, inclusiveness, and tolerance. This long and painful progression seems the only way forward to pull Muslims out of powerlessness and stagnation. It will be a difficult task as religious rituals and practice are regarded as sacrosanct and questioning them deemed sacrilegious.

The writer can be reached at shgcci@gmail.com

Published in Daily Times, May 5^th 2018.