LoyarBurok by Tamir Moustafa
As published in LoyarBurok on 16 July 2014.
Tamir Moustafa dissects
and distils his learned academic article for the edification of us hoi
polloi. The first of three (and we hope many more) articles which will
be published (almost) simultaneously by our friends at
The New Mandala and here on LoyarBurok.
“Is
Malaysia a secular or Islamic state?” Without a doubt, this is one of
the most frequently asked questions in Malaysian politics. It is also
one of the most polarizing and misleading questions in Malaysian
politics. This is because the question itself tends accept certain
premises of the government’s claim to speak for Islamic law.
In my recent article, “
Judging in God’s Name,”
I argue that Malaysia is not an Islamic state, but not for the reasons
that are usually offered by secular, liberal rights activists. Secular
activists typically look to the Federal Constitution or cite the
documents of the Reid Commission to establish the secular foundations of
the Malaysian state. While these sorts of arguments may be well
founded, I argue that their impact will be limited if the government’s
claim to implement ‘Islamic law’ is not challenged more directly.
Although
Malaysia ranks sixth out of 175 countries worldwide in the degree of
state regulation of religion, this should not be understood as the
implementation of an “Islamic” system of governance or the achievement
of an “Islamic state.” No such ideal-type exists [1].
Please click
here to read the full article.
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