Islamist Conservatism and the Demise of Islam Hadhari in Malaysia

This article argues that Islam Hadhari, as a model for development officially inaugurated during the administration of Malaysia's fifth Prime Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (2003-9), encountered failure. Its lack of success was significantly due to the rise of Islamist conservatives, who delib...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Abdul-Hamid, Ahmad Fauzi (Author) ; Takiyuddin Ismail, Muhamad (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Taylor & Francis [2014]
In: Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
Year: 2014, Volume: 25, Issue: 2, Pages: 159-180
RelBib Classification:AG Religious life; material religion
BJ Islam
KBM Asia
TK Recent history
Further subjects:B Conservatism
B Islamism
B Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
B Islam Hadhari
B Malaysia
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Description
Summary:This article argues that Islam Hadhari, as a model for development officially inaugurated during the administration of Malaysia's fifth Prime Minister, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (2003-9), encountered failure. Its lack of success was significantly due to the rise of Islamist conservatives, who deliberately interpreted Islam Hadhari as a political instrument to impose Islamization from above in a manner not conducive to living in a spirit of peaceful coexistence in a multi-ethnic society. While on the one hand it promoted an Islam that cherishes the values of inclusivity, moderation and inter-religious tolerance, on the other hand Islam Hadhari unfortunately triggered defensive responses from Islamist conservatives. This ad hoc conservative alliance comprised religious leaders associated with the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), state religious functionaries, scholars affiliated to the opposition Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS: Parti Islam SeMalaysia) and Islamist non-governmental organizations. The rise of this Islamist conservatism aggravated ethno-religious relations during Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's premiership, leading to the setbacks experienced by his government in the general elections of 2008. By then, the death knell had been sounded for Islam Hadhari. It was steadily consigned to the graveyard of history by the administration of Najib Razak, who took over from Abdullah in April 2009.
ISSN:1469-9311
Contains:Enthalten in: Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/09596410.2014.880549