Reform vs. Islamism

More good stuff from MEMRI: this time a look at Islamic history and the rise of radical Islam, by Menahem Milson, professor emeritus of Arabic Literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. There's a look at the reformist element within Islam under the title "Moderate Islam: Courageous Beginnings", which at least provides a glimmer of hope:

[T]he Saudi Mansur al-Nuqeidan (born 1970), [...] was educated at a religious seminary in Saudi Arabia and served as the imam of a Riyadh mosque. As a member of an Islamist group, he was involved in violent activities; he stood trial for his role in the arson of a video store and was imprisoned for several years. During his years in prison, he underwent a profound ideological transformation and today is one of the most courageous critics of extremist Islam. Al-Nuqeidan accuses the Saudi educational system of cultivating the very same terrorism that the Saudi regime is fighting. He emphasizes the need for separation of religion and state as a precondition for true reform in the Arab world. In an interview with the Financial Times , he said: "We need an Ataturk."

Shaker al-Nabulsi, perhaps the most comprehensive and systematic in his reformist approach, [...] claims that 9/11 marks a watershed in the history of Islamic and Arab thought and that the emergence of new liberal Arabic thought is a response to this critical challenge. [...] Al-Nabulsi presents his "manifesto of New Arab Liberals," enumerating their guiding principles. Among their fundamental demands regarding religion are the calls to reform religious education "in light of the domination of religious terror"; to fight "all types of armed and bloody religious and political Pan-Arab terrorism"; and to "subject the prevailing sacred values, traditions, legislations, and moral values to in-depth scrutiny." He rejects hostility towards non-Muslims as "emanating from specific political and social circumstances that existed 1500 years ago." He regards the Shari'a laws as "having been legislated for their specific time and place, and not as laws that cut through history as the clerics claim." He asserts that the obstacle to free thought and scientific thought today is not the religion as given by the Prophet himself, but Islamic thought as formulated by Muslim theologians and jurists.

He opposes the tendency to worship the past, calling upon the Arabs to liberate themselves from their illusory ideal picture of the past and for a critical examination of Islamic history "in order to understand the present." The new reformists, al-Nabulsi says, should raise all the questions avoided by their late 19th- and early 20th-century predecessors.

As for the controversial question of whether external help should be sought in order to effect change, al-Nabulsi's position is clear: "there is no harm in asking for assistance from outside forces to defeat the fierce tyranny, to completely eradicate the virus of despotism, and implement Arab democracy in light of the inability of the domestic elite and the fragile political parties to defeat this dictatorship and implement such democracy." As a precedent, he cites U.S. aid to Europe in battling Nazism and Japanese military fascism in World War II.

On the issue of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, al-Nabulsi supports a peaceful solution through negotiations, advocating complete normalization with Israel, for the benefit of both sides.

As for women's rights, al-Nabulsi advocates complete equality, and calls for "the adoption of the 1957 Tunisian Personal Status Code, which is considered the ideal Arab model of the emancipation of Arab women…"

The conclusion to the piece:

[E]xtremist Islam, or Islamism, is an organized force with a comprehensive doctrine and with no shortage of funding. Its adherents are consumed by a raging hatred of Western culture, a fanatical belief in their mission, and the unshakeable conviction that they will ultimately triumph. This is a force that must be combated.

In contrast, the Arab reformists do not constitute an organized force. These are individuals, often isolated, often with divergent liberal views. Many are persecuted in their countries. They lack political and financial support. In order for reform to take root in Arab society, the West must listen to them, encourage them and support them.

In short, extremist Islam is a threat and a danger; Arab reform offers opportunity and hope.

Comments

[DavidP]

There were some programmes on TV about Saudi Arabia (a month or 2 ago, there was about 3 hours worth and I've only just got round to watching it, but it's very good).

One point it made was that the Saudi monarchy relied at various key points in its history on the umma (clerical establishment to legitimize its actions.

DavidP