Why we should be concerned over the rise of political Islam

 

There were not many surprises in the results of the much-hyped elections in six Malaysian states, given that the outcome had been expected. Most significantly, no state government changed hands, so it’s political status quo for now.

However, the voting was a clear confirmation on the rise of political Islam, and carries huge implications for our nation’s future. Are the implications good or bad? That depends on how you define “good” or “bad”.

And how do you even define “country”?

Many countries are becoming more conservative, even while also becoming more liberal: the vocal, motivated and active religious minority wields power, while the larger liberal majority who aren’t as politically active doesn’t.

That’s the case with the USA, which is becoming less religious demographically but politically more conservative given its vocal motivated minority and the nature of the US political system.

Yet the Arabian peninsula, the birthplace of Islam, is undergoing huge changes pushed by a younger set of (hereditary) rulers trying to take their countries kicking and screaming into the 21st century. They seem to be prevailing, though there could be a backlash in the future.

The younger rulers themselves are a backlash against decades of earlier conservatism and fundamentalism and other isms besides. This thing ebbs and flows: making predictions is difficult especially when it involves the future, as Mark Twain says.

Holidays and handouts

After the elections, many states (except Penang) declared a paid state holiday. Unfortunately, this is a modern-day political addiction, one which most sides of politics aren’t able to give up.

It’s part of our handout culture. We get handouts during political campaigns in the form of cash, subsidies, projects and even gifts. Giving employees paid time off is also a form of handout.

While some handouts will increase economic activity, a paid holiday will have the opposite effect.

It’s basically saying “we value you!” to the tax-funded government employees, while also saying to tax-paying employers and the rakyat who are deprived of needed public service that “we don’t care about you!”

To the people who grant such freebies, remember: causing hardship and wasting public money just to win a few political points must border on the haram, and even if it doesn’t, I’ll begrudge every single sen of my taxes and also my share of the state’s (or nation’s) wealth spent this way.

Are the fishermen, farmers, roadside hawkers, the retired and the housewives also given paid time off to go and enjoy themselves? Who’s going to pay for them? Why is it halal to take money they’ve contributed through taxes and fees meant for people to provide service, and give them away to people to not provide them this service?

I get emotional remembering my parents and others like them having to slave away because they’re not on the easy street of “kerja gomen” or “makan gaji”. The sea, the farms, the pot in the kitchen, the chettiars and the pawnshops – these don’t care about unscheduled paid holidays. If you don’t work, you don’t eat.

(See my earlier piece on unscheduled holidays.)

Will the religious parties come out and say it’s unIslamic to waste so much resources and create so many hardship to so many millions of the wealth producers, whether they be big towkays or ordinary members of the rakyat who pay rates and taxes?

They wouldn’t dare. As a Selangor resident, I’m asking “Are you happy now Selangor? Have you got this off your chest? Can we go now without such freebies to the privileged ones every time we win a football match or an election?”

Given that I drove back to Penang to vote, what happens there concerns me, too. And I’m happy to hear no state holiday has been declared there. Today, Penang rakyat will continue to get the public services they paid for. Good for them.

Having got that out of my own chest (for now), I must say the rise of political Islam is a concerning matter for a different reason to me. In my mind it’s taking us further away from an Islam that is open, inclusive, fair and just.

Islam is now more about political calculations, a convenient tool to control the Malay electorate. This is quite easy to achieve given that there is so much insecurity among Malays which makes them easily led and exploited.

How we view our faith, and hence God, is directly related to how we see the world. If we see the world as harsh, scary and vengeful, we would tend to see God in those terms, too, God becoming a reflection of our own inner selves, our strengths and especially our fears.

Those who see the world through generous, kind and sympathetic eyes will also see a God that’s generous, kind and sympathetic, the God that’s in the phrase all Muslims utter for every occasion, Bismillahirrahmannirrahim, or “In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate”.

But instead, our deep insecurity leads us into seeing the world as a dark, scary place filled with forces waiting to destroy us. As this is an irrational feeling, Malays could end up being 90% of the population and still feel besieged and threatened and scared.

We seem to see Islam and God nowadays in simplistic terms, focusing on details and rituals and enemies; about whether the word Allah can be used by non-Muslims (even if it is used by Muslims and Christians in the Middle-East, something which may even rattle some Christians); about “losing” one or two Muslims to the nons (though its OK to “win” one or two…); and about making “sacrifices” to defend Islam against so many “attacks”.

Hence it’s a huge concern for me that the more “Islamic” our political life becomes, the less faithful, devoted and progressive we are, and the more shrill, unjust and irrational we become. - FMT

 The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.