AVOIDING THE MISTAKES OF THE WEST:

Does 'Islamic Democracy' Exist?: For 1,300 years Muslims have been engaged in a search for a form of government that is right for them. There are parliaments and sometimes even political opposition groups in many Muslim countries, but as a general rule political decisions are based on agreements reached between tribal groups and families. (Daniel Steinvorth and Bernhard Zand, 9/11/08, Der Spiegel))

The United States, which has been singing the praises of democracy in the Middle East since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, is not making it easy for champions of the political form here and in neighboring regions. "Since the fall of Iraq the very word 'democracy' has had a radioactive taste to it," says Saudi Arabian human rights activist Ibrahim Mukaitib. He says that educated Saudis come to him and ask him why parliamentary democracy is supposedly better than other systems when the democratic governments of the United States and the United Kingdom made the colossal mistake of occupying Iraq?

Needless to say, the war against terrorism and the widespread perception in the West that Islam and terrorism are one and the same thing don't help to promote the reputation of democracy in the Islamic world. As little as the middle class in Turkey, the elites in the Gulf states or the students in Iran have in common with al-Qaida jihadists, a religious tradition based on 1,400 years of Islam is a unifying force that reaches above and beyond their differences.

They also share a sense of bitterness over the fact that talk of the "democratization of the Middle East" has ceased as a result of the fact that the wrong side has been winning elections. This was the case early in 2006 when Hamas won in the Palestinian territories and, shortly before that, when the Muslim Brotherhood was able to quadruple the number of seats it has in the Egyptian parliament. We were reminded that democracy sometimes brings people to power who are not democrats, a dilemma not unknown in European history as well. The euphoria triggered in the West by the Cedar Revolution in Lebanon and the strong voter turnout in the first postwar election held in Iraq in 2005 was rapidly deflated.

This led to renewed support for autocratic rule of the kind practiced by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and Jordan's King Abdullah II. Democracy, these rulers say, is a good thing, to be sure. But democracy also brings chaos with it and chaos must be prevented. This is the lesson that has been learned from Iraq and for them the bottom line is that stability must be given priority over democracy.

How is it that not one of the 22 Arab countries is really democratic and that it takes longer to find genuine democrats in Turkey, Pakistan, and Bangladesh than it does elsewhere? Are the usual suspects to blame -- a weak middle class, a lousy education system, a lack of tradition with regard to debating political differences? Or are Islam and democracy fundamentally incompatible?

Muslims Want Democracy with Religious Values

Surprising results were produced by a Gallup poll in which interviews were conducted with more than 50,000 Muslims in 35 countries over a period of six years. It is not democracy in and of itself that is the problem. This is the form of government that 93 percent of all Iranians and 94 percent of all Egyptians wish for themselves. Where there are major differences is with regard to the type of democracy that is considered acceptable.

According to John Esposito, co-author of "Who Speaks for Islam?," a study based on the Gallup poll, what the majority of Muslims want is democracy with religious values. They don't want to lose their traditional culture. Like the majority of Pakistanis, for instance, they would like to have both more democracy and more Islam. Can it be said then that what Muslims want is not Western democracy but rather a kind of "Islamic democracy"?

Muslims have been addressing the question as to the right form of government and legitimate leadership for more than 1,300 years now. The problems began with the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. During his lifetime this messenger of God on earth revealed a wide-ranging system of beliefs to his followers, conquered territories, united tribes, and forged alliances. The one important thing Muhammad neglected to do, though, was to appoint a successor.

The passing of the prophet, whose name means "praiseworthy," left an enormous gap and the Muslim community found itself without a leader. Who in the community would have sufficient authority to be a spiritual guide to the faithful and at the same time the ruler of an empire that in the 7th century had already expanded well beyond the confines of the Arabian Peninsula?

No Need for Democracy

For one group of believers, the Shiites, Muhammad's cousin, Ali, was the sole legitimate heir. Later "Shi'at Ali," the followers of Ali, split away from the Muslim majority. Another group, the Kharijites, believed that any pious and able believer could lead the Muslims. A third group, the Sunni majority, took the view that the leader of the community, the caliph, should be from the prophet's tribe but elected by a "shura," a council of respected men.

Thus it was that an autocratic form of government emerged that had the appearance of democratic legitimacy. The caliph was to be subject to Islamic law ("sharia") in exactly the same way as all other believers. Muslims would quote pertinent verses from the Koran that raised the negotiation of compromise to the level of a religious duty: "… and take counsel with them, and when you have decided, then place your trust in God" (Sura 3, verse 159). It was said that if the caliph were to misuse his office then the shura could depose him, although this never occurred.

Egon Flaig, professor of ancient history at the University of Rostock, in northern Germany, writes that Sunni Islam offered "the most successful form of theocracy in recorded history." As long as the representative of God on earth defended the true faith and Islamic scholars had the last word there was no need for councils, assemblies, elections, or constitutions. In the 19th century Alexis de Tocqueville wrote that "Muhammadanism has merged religious and political power so completely with one another that nearly all activities in civil and political life can be regulated by religious law."

Towards the end of the 18th century the Muslim community began to notice that there was something wrong in the Caliphate. After centuries of Islamic glory Napoleon's triumphant campaign in Egypt provided devastating proof of Western technological superiority.

It's awfully hard to argue with the wisdom of the crowd that wants Islamic democracy, particularly in light of how poorly secular democracy fared in now dying Europe.

Posted by Orrin Judd at September 11, 2008 7:44 PM