Memo #22
Maznah Mohamad
Political rivalry between Malaysia’s two largest Muslim parties and an emerging Muslim civil society are obvious causes of the increased impact of Islam in Malaysia. But Islam in the Malaysian polity is also appearing in an unexpected form: as part of a secularizing bureaucracy.
This bureaucracy, at the national and state levels, oversees the implementation of Islamic laws (or Sharia) and it has become the linchpin of Malaysia’s state-driven Islamization. Sharia determines what is “right” or official in Islam and regulates almost all aspects of Muslim life. This places Islamic bureaucrats in a much stronger position than Islamic politicians. Bureaucrats can invoke the Sharia as a non-negotiable divine law and do not require the support of a diverse and multi-religious constituency for their political capital. Moreover, the bureaucracy enjoys a reputation for neutrality among Malaysian citizens.
To foreign observers paying close attention to the political players, the bureaucracy is all but invisible.
Ironically, it is the processes of secularization, in the form of the development of a rational and modern administrative system, that have led to Islam being controlled centrally. Islamic institutions have multiplied, the Islamic court has been elevated, and the rate of passage of Islamic laws is rising. Secularization has strengthened the top-down and rules-based version of Islam favoured by Malaysian bureaucrats.
Still, the bureaucracy is one major player amongst many contenders. The Islamization process is far from stable and there are rival factions in the battle for Islamic authority. They include religious specialist classes, politicians from a spectrum of parties, and a Muslim civil society advocating human rights. Furthermore, there are ordinary Muslims not aligned to either political parties or pressure groups. They include sects and cults who want to express Islam in ways other than the “official” prescription of the bureaucracy.
What then are the possible outcomes of this bureaucrat-centric and top-down application of religion in governance? It cannot remain stable in a country that is only 60% Muslim. Stability should be found through multicultural compromise, and a strong, legitimate political leadership able to limit the Islamic bureaucracy and create space for an inter-faith mode of governance.
About the Author:
Maznah Mohamad is a Visiting Senior Research Fellow, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore.
Links:
- Maznah Mohamad, The Ascendance of Bureaucratic Islam and the Secularization of the Sharia in Malaysia, Pacific Affairs, Volume 83, No. 3, September 2010
- Maznah Mohamad, “Islam and Malay Society: What it isn’t, Rather than What it is” (PDF), Asia Research Institute (ARI) Newsletter, July 2010, No. 23, p. 8-9
- Muslim-non-Muslim Marriage: Political and Cultural Contestations in Southeast Asia, Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2009 (Editors: Gavin Jones, Chee Heng Leng and Maznah Mohamad)
- Maznay Mohamad, Malaysia Goes Islamic, Project Syndicate, October 2009
- Julian C H Lee, Islamization and Activism in Malaysia, Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2010
Related Memos:
- Our other Memos about Malaysia and Southeast Asia