Special Report: Middle Eastern Affairs

▪ 1994

Introduction

       Islamic Fundamentalism

      BY JOHN L. ESPOSITO

      From the Iranian revolution of 1978-79 to the bombing of the New York World Trade Center in 1993, Islamic fundamentalism has become an issue of international attention and concern. It is a broad-based but diverse religious movement that has swept across much of the Muslim world, from North Africa to Southeast Asia, during the past two decades. Contemporary Islamic fundamentalism has manifested itself in personal and political life, from greater emphasis on religious observances such as prayer, fasting, Islamic dress, and family values to the reassertion of Islam in politics.

      The term Islamic fundamentalism, while commonly used, is regarded by many as misleading. The term fundamentalism is laden with Christian presuppositions and Western stereotypes, and it implies a monolithic threat. More useful terms are Islamic revivalism and Islamic activism, which are less value-laden and have roots within a tradition of political reform and social activism.

Historical Perspective.

      Muslim belief and history have provided the sources for the worldview of Islamic activists. A Muslim's duty is obedience and submission (islam) to the will of God. However, the submission incumbent upon the Muslim is not mere passivity or acceptance of a set of dogmas or rituals; rather, it is submission to the divine command, to strive (jihad) to actively realize God's will in history. Thus, the Qur`an declares that Muslims are God's vicegerents, or representatives, on Earth; that God has given creation to humankind as a divine trust; and that realization of God's will leads to eternal reward or punishment.

      The Muslim's obligation to realize God's will is communal as well as individual. The Islamic community/state serves as the dynamic vehicle for realization of the divine mandate in society, as an example to other peoples of the world. Islamic activists believe that religion is integral to every aspect of life: prayer, fasting, politics, law, and society. This belief is reflected not only in Islam's doctrine of tawhid (oneness of God, or monotheism) but also in the development of the Islamic state and Islamic law.

      In the first Islamic state at Medina in the 7th century, Muhammad served as both prophet and political leader of the Islamic community/state. Islamic law, the Shar'iah, was rooted in divine revelation, the Qur`an, and Sunna (example, or model behaviour, of the Prophet). Law provides the blueprint for Muslim society, a comprehensive mode of life that includes laws regulating prayer and almsgiving as well as family, criminal, commercial, and international transactions.

      Belief in the divinely ordained nature and mission of the community was validated and reinforced by Muslim success and power. Within 100 years of Muhammad's death, the original Islamic community, through expansion and conquest, became an empire more extensive than any other the world had known. In time the Islamic world extended from Arabia west to North Africa and Spain and east to Indonesia. Success and power were regarded as both signs of divine guidance and the rewards for the community's fidelity.

Origins of Contemporary Revivalism.

      Current Islamic revivalism builds on a considerable legacy of reform. During the 18th and 19th centuries, religio-political movements occurred across the Islamic world in response to political fragmentation and economic, social, and moral decline. A common theme was the need to purify Islam through the suppression of foreign (un-Islamic) practices and to return to the fundamentals of Islam—the Qur`an and model of Muhammad and the early Muslim community. In the first half of the 20th century, there emerged the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and the Jamaat-i-Islami (Islamic Society) in South Asia, both of which became prototypes of today's Islamic movements. Their legacy includes the belief that Islam affects public policy as much as private worship and the objective of establishing effective organizations to implement an Islamic system of government and law.

      During the 1970s contemporary Islamic revivalism emerged. The personal aspect was reflected in increased emphasis upon religious observances (mosque attendance, Ramadan fast, outlawing of alcohol and gambling), the proliferation of religious literature, and the birth of new associations or movements that sought to "Islamize" the population.

      At the same time, Islam dramatically reemerged in public life. Throughout the Muslim world Islamic symbols, slogans, ideology, and actors became prominent fixtures in politics. Religion was used both by incumbent governments and by opposition movements to reinforce their legitimacy and mobilize popular support. Libyan leader Col. Muammar al-Qaddafi's Green Book of Islamic socialism and use of Islam internationally; Gen. Zia ul-Haq's 1977 coup d'état in Pakistan and his call for the establishment of an Islamic system of government; Ayatollah Khomeini's Iranian revolution of 1978-79; the seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca by militants in 1979; Pres. Anwar as-Sadat's appeal to Islam in Egyptian politics, his legitimation of the 1973 war with Israel as a jihad, and his assassination in 1981 by religious extremists; the Afghan resistance (by mujahideen, or holy warriors) to the Soviet invasion and occupation throughout the 1980s—all were instances of Islam reasserting itself.

      The causes of the resurgence are varied. Widespread failures (the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, Malay-Chinese riots in 1969, Bangladesh's war of succession from Pakistan in 1971, and the Lebanese civil war in the mid-1970s) served as catalysts. As a result of such events, Muslims experienced a sense of impotence and loss of self-esteem, as well as disillusionment with the West and with governments that failed to respond to the needs of their societies. The 1973 Arab-Israeli war and Arab oil embargo and the Iranian revolution of 1978-79 produced a newfound sense of pride and power.

      The negative effects of modernization are equally important in understanding the Islamic resurgence. They include massive migration from villages and rapid urbanization of overcrowded cities; the breakdown of traditional family, religious, and social values; and the adoption of a Western lifestyle, enthusiastically pursued as a symbol of modernity but also criticized as a source of moral decline and spiritual malaise, corruption, unemployment, and maldistribution of wealth.

      For the vast majority of Muslims, the resurgence of Islam is a reassertion of cultural identity, formal religious observance, family values, and morality. The establishment of an Islamic society is seen as requiring a personal and social transformation that is a prerequisite for true Islamic government. Effective change is to come from below through a gradual social transformation brought about by implementation of Islamic law.

      On the other hand, a significant minority views the societies and governments in Muslim countries as hopelessly corrupt. They believe that un-Islamic societies and their leaders are no better than infidels and that the religious establishment has been co-opted by the government. Such critics believe that both established political and religious elites must be overthrown and a new Islamically committed leadership chosen and Islamic law imposed. These radical revolutionary groups, though relatively small in membership, have proved effective in political agitation, disruption, and assassination. They have not, however, been successful in mobilizing the masses.

Extremists and Activists.

      Much of the 1980s was dominated by fear of Iran and its threat to export revolution and by images of extremist organizations that used violence, hostage taking, and terrorism. By the late 1980s and early 1990s, however, Islamic movements were diverse rather than a monolithic threat. A minority of radical extremists, with names like Islamic Jihad, the Party of God, the Islamic Liberation Front, and the al-Jama`a al-Islamiya (Islamic Group), have continued to exist in many parts of the Muslim world. Groups like Egypt's al-Jama`a al-Islamiya battle the government and attack and kill Coptic Christians and foreign tourists, and other extremists are alleged to be behind the World Trade Center bombing. However, Islamic activism is also a social and political force operating within the system. Islamically inspired organizations run schools, clinics, hospitals, banks, and publishing houses and offer a wide array of social welfare services. A new generation of elites, modern educated but Islamically rather than secularly oriented, can be found among physicians, lawyers, engineers, teachers, and social workers seeking to implement Islamic alternatives or visions in society.

      At the same time, calls for political democratization have brought both greater liberalization and repression. Where governments have opened up their political systems, Islamic organizations have participated in elections and emerged as the leading opposition, as in Egypt, Tunisia, and Jordan. In Algeria the Islamic Salvation Front swept municipal and parliamentary elections in the early 1990s and seemed poised to come to power when the Algerian military intervened. The successes of Islamic movements in electoral politics have led governments such as those in Algeria, Tunisia, and Egypt to engage in political repression, charging that religious extremists threaten to "hijack democracy," to use the political system to come to power and then impose their will and undermine the stability of society. Iran and The Sudan are often cited to support concerns about democracy and pluralism, in particular as governments that deny the rights of minorities and women.

      Some experts counter that many governments whose political legitimacy is tenuous and supported by a heavy reliance on security forces will only tolerate "risk-free democracy" (a political liberalization that does not threaten their power and rule) and that the indiscriminate suppression of Islamists may contribute to radicalization and extremism. While some governments and experts identify Islamic fundamentalism as a major threat to the stability of their societies and to global politics, others point out that it is important to distinguish between authentic populist movements that are willing to participate within the system and rejectionists who seek to topple governments through violent revolution.

      John L. Esposito is Professor of Religion and International Affairs and Director of the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, Washington D.C. He is the author of several books on Islam, including The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality? and Islam: The Straight Path.

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