Democracy and Islam in Indonesia
Alfred Stepan and Mirjam Künkler
Abstract
In this volume, political scientists, religious scholars, legal theorists, and anthropologists examine the theory and practice of Indonesia's democratic transition and consider whether it can serve as a model for other Muslim countries. It looks at the events of 1998, when Indonesia's military government collapsed, igniting fears that economic, religious and political conflicts would complicate any democratic transition. It shows that, despite these concerns, in every year since 2006, the world's most populous Muslim country has received high marks from international democracy-ranking organiza ... More
In this volume, political scientists, religious scholars, legal theorists, and anthropologists examine the theory and practice of Indonesia's democratic transition and consider whether it can serve as a model for other Muslim countries. It looks at the events of 1998, when Indonesia's military government collapsed, igniting fears that economic, religious and political conflicts would complicate any democratic transition. It shows that, despite these concerns, in every year since 2006, the world's most populous Muslim country has received high marks from international democracy-ranking organizations. The book compares the Indonesian example with similar scenarios in Chile, Spain, India and Tunisia, as well as with the failed transitions of Yugoslavia, Egypt and Iran. The chapters explore the relationship between religion and politics and the ways in which Muslims became supportive of democracy even before change occurred. They also describe how innovative policies prevented dissident military groups, violent religious activists and secessionists from disrupting Indonesia's democratic evolution. The book concludes with a discussion of Indonesia's emerging “legal pluralism” and asks which of its forms are rights-eroding and which are rights-protecting.
Keywords:
Indonesia,
democratic transition,
Muslim countries,
legal pluralism,
Chile,
Spain,
India
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2013 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780231161916 |
| Published to Columbia Scholarship Online: November 2015 |
DOI:10.7312/columbia/9780231161916.001.0001 |
