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Liberal Islam being marginalised, warns Pakistani academic

By Khalid Hassan

WASHINGTON: A leading Pakistani academic has warned that Islamic radicalism is on the rise and liberal, modern and secular sections of society are being marginalised in Pakistan.

In a presentation at the US Institute of Peace, Dr Mohammad Waseem of Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, criticised Western countries and their media for adopting a “text-based” approach to Islam, instead of making an effort to understand Islamic societies and their ethos. In many cases, tradition and cultural norms were mistaken for religion which only contributed to the further distortion of Islam’s meaning and message.

Dr Waseem’ presentation was made as part of a larger study carried out by the Fulbright New Century Scholars programme which brought together 30 outstanding research scholars and professionals from around the world to address issues of global significance.

The Pakistani scholar emphasised that in most Islamic countries, the vast majority of people had been disenfranchised. Civil society structures were weak or non-existent and needed to be built and strengthened. Globalisation was resulting in the disruption of the social and political order.

Unrepresentative governments in Islamic countries had used religion to claim legitimacy and perpetuate themselves. In Pakistan, for instance, the most blatant use of Islamic ideology had been made by unelected governments. During the rule of such governments, experience showed, the use of Islam as a slogan was ten times higher than under civilian rule. Such governments were unwilling to surrender power to the people and their genuine representatives and instead used Islam as a weapon to resist popular sentiment which favoured a democratic dispensation. Unfortunately, the established Islamic clergy or those who arrogated to themselves the right to represent Islam often entered into arrangements with undemocratic forces. In Pakistan, the phenomenon was sometimes called the “khaki-mullah nexus.”

Dr Waseem said the unresolved conflicts in the Islamic world needed to be resolved. These conflicts were essentially political, but eventually they acquired a religious character. He cited Kosovo, Palestine, Chechnya, Afghanistan and Kashmir as examples. He also subjected Huntington’s theory of “clash of civilisations” to sharp criticism and urged the West not to let it become a “self-fulfilling prophecy” through the emerging dichotomy between Islam and itself.

The Islamic countries grouped under OIC, he pointed out, were a “mini world in a larger world.” He said the West needed to formulate policies not on Islam but on resolving conflicts that affected Muslim countries and their peoples. He warned that occupation of Muslim lands would breed even greater radicalisation of Islamists and the further marginalisation of liberal forces.

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