Islamic Fear of Democracy
It is often said or observed by many that Islam is not compatible with the very ideology of democracy, the organizing ideas of a constitutional and representative government. Jeanne Kirkpatrick, President Ronald Reagan’s ambassador to the United Nations, once said, “The Arab world is the only part of the world where I’ve been shaken in my conviction that if you let the people decide, they will make fundamentally rational decisions. But there, they don’t make rational decisions they make fundamentalist ones.” The Arab world, which follows the political traditions of Islam is profoundly alien of the very concept of democracy. This is essentially true because the Muslim world fears democracy; a concept which is seen by them as a western one, one which they label “gharib” or foreign.
The West or the colonial masters as observed by many, have left a deep well of antagonism in the hearts of many Muslims. To put an end to the colonial violence the Muslims were forced to take shelter in their past and erect a strong cultural boundary which would unite them in their struggle against the colonial masters. They follow the tradition of obedience and unity rather than diversity or varied humanistic ideas, the very pillars of a democratic ideal which are refuted in the quest for a common ground. Western humanism was labeled as foreign and “imported,” and all those who attempted to study it were branded as enemies or traitors to the nationalist cause.
Fateme Mernissi, in her book Islam and Democracy, states: “There is no Arabic word for democracy; we use the Greek word, dimuqratiyya. Two Arabs talking about democracy speak to each other in Greek, all the while remembering that Greek heritage has been forbidden to them on the pretext that it is foreign.” Setting up of an Islamic system is one of the main goals of Islam, therefore to embrace democracy would be to go against their very ideals. In a modern world where states are increasingly adopting the ideology of democracy, Muslims fear that their Islamic system, being headed by one caliph, shall be lost to these ideals of democracy. In the debate that rages today the traditionalists hold that one cannot be Muslim and embrace democracy at the same time, for that is foreign to Islamic culture.
Islam follows a very rich cultural tradition, one which binds its followers to its heritage. Islamic values greatly differ from the modern concept of “democracy”, a term which incorporates an impressive array of freedoms. These freedoms range from the right to eat pork or drink wine or read censored works; to the right to fall in love or embark on an affair or marry the partner you’ve had children with. The most basic cultural fault line between the West and Islam involves issues of gender equality and sexual liberation. Such issues affect the content and depth of democracy and station it as a non-viable system where Muslims are constantly in fear of losing track of their values.
Democracy strives for freedom and empowerment of the individual, something which the Muslim world has never essentially experienced. Muslim societies stress loyalty to the family and group over individual freedom and needs, they prefer to adhere to an authority in order to “answer deep psychological cravings for the security of dependency,” states the MIT political scientist Lucian Pye. This indicates a fear of one of the very founding pillars of democracy, freedom of will and self-dependency.
For some, a sense of fear is created arising from their own selfish motives or needs. Islam does not necessarily fear democracy as much as some Muslims do. They advocate that Islamic principles are opposed to democracy whereas in the essence, they are safeguarding their own interests. Also sometimes, fear of this western concept could arise as a result of naivety and many years of manipulation.
Democracy is also not in the best interest of all Muslims. All those who are economically less privileged or do not derive the benefits of modern technology are opposed to democracy and view it as an evil which has corrupted society. According to Fatema Mernissi, “the most dispossessed in our societies cling to Islam because they fear being forgotten by their own people, who have found another identity and are involved in other networks.” Along with Muslim individuals there are many governments that reject democracy as contrary to their identity. In order to protect their interests some Muslim regimes base their legitimacy on cultural grounds rather than on democratic principles.
Regimes as diverse as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Iranian regime of Imam Khomeini or his successor, the military regime of Zia-ul-Haq in Pakistan, and the Sudanese regime that terrorizes its people in the name of the shari’a. The fear of losing control and power urges them to reject the west and its democracy. Many Muslim industrialists also fear democracy, it would transform their workers into responsible citizens who demand their right. Arab industrialists are only competitive in the European market because they engage in unregulated capitalism, one which deprive its workers of its rights and gives them no form of protection.
In order to combat democracy in Islamic states, a situation of fear is created among citizens. The mental framework under which people speak is rooted in the ideals of the past, the notion that only a cultural barrier could have liberated them from their colonial past. Freedom of thought is demonized and identified with rebellion and disorder in most of the madrassas operating in Pakistan. In the Arab world all those individuals who chose to think differently or philosophize, trying to link the concept of a constitution to the shari’a, were condemned as infidels, blasphemers and allies of the colonizers. Taha Husayn was harassed during his lifetime and judged and condemned after his death for following the rationalist tradition and abiding to the American thought. He was called a kafir in Anwar al-Jundi’s book published in 1984.
For some who are unfortunate, possessing a weak educational background and a lack of resources, foresee democracy as their culprit. They blame it for all their misfortunes and misery. When organizations fail to protect them and misuse their services, reducing them to slaves. They resort to God and Islam as a means of internal peace. Islam tends to give them a framework within which to express their pain and to change it into anger and a program for vengeance. They ally themselves with religion and feel that it is the only route to freedom, at the same time, condemning democracy for snatching their rights from them.
To conclude, as one might often observe there are no functional democracies in the Middle East; claims of Pakistan and Indonesia to have adopted the democratic system are seen with suspicious eyes. They are more inclined towards a theocratic form of government, one which makes up an Islamic republic, rather than a democratic one. All forms of government which come from outside of Islam are feared by Muslims. Iraqi democracy was opposed to by Muslim countries during the 2003 war on Iraq, waged by the Americans. Western presence was less of a fear than the creation of an Iraqi democracy in their midst, one which would corrupt their masses and bring them to adopt western concepts.
In most cases Muslims fear democracy because they think it goes against the very conception of Islam, it violates the values and traditions which they have inherited from their ancestors. However, enlightened minds think otherwise, to them advancement does not mean giving up of cultural values by wandering away from Islam, instead, it symbolizes the strength of the religion and its capacity to engage a society in research and development and enable its members to enjoy equal rights and liberties as guaranteed by the very religion of Islam. It is now up to Muslims to engage themselves in reading texts and understanding the true reasons behind abhorring the Western world. They might appear not to be an alienable race after all. It is not the democracy they advocate which we should resist, but ignorance which prevails in societies.
References:
- Fatema M. “Islam and Democracy.” Perseus Publishing, 2002.
- William W. “How Islam plans to Change the World.” Kregel Publications, 2004.
- Larry D. “The Spirit of Democracy.” Times Books, 2008.
- Shanon S. “Islam and Democracy: Fear of the Modern World.” Books of Note, March 2004.
