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| Southeast Asia |
| Islamist Pas dons mask of moderation |
| 2005-10-11 |
| The 2004 election ousted Party Islam Se-Malaysia (Pas) from its stronghold of Terengganu state. With only Kelantan left to govern, Pas' ultra-conservative Islamist slant is now masked under populist approaches By NAZRY BAHRAWI Last month's concerts in Malaysia's northern state of Kelantan featuring popular entertainers like Asmawi Ani, or Mawi, and M Nasir did not just rock its patrons at Stadium Sultan Mohamed IV, but is also set to shake the very fabric of Malaysian politics. For years now, the Party Islam Se-Malaysia (Pas) has been championing an ultra-conservative worldview that appealed to the largely agrarian Malay masses in northern Malaysia. Last year marked a turning point. The 2004 general election which saw Barisan Nasional (BN), headed by its newly-appointed progressive leader Abdullah Badawi, wrest from Pas the control of what was thought to be its stronghold Terengganu state, was a rude awakening for the Islamist party's head, Abdul Hadi Awang, and his political cohorts. Against Pas' perceived orthodoxy, Mr Badawi's Islam Hadhari ``package'' _ which among other things urges Muslims to stay relevant in the modern economy through the relentless pursuit of knowledge in fields other than traditional Islamic sciences _ must surely seem to promise a better tomorrow for the bulk of moderate Malays eager for economic progress. With only Kelantan state left to govern, leaders and members of Party Islam Se-Malaysia embarked on an intense soul-searching campaign to re-invent Pas in a bid to stay politically viable. New voices represented by younger leaders like Nasharudin Mat Isa, Salahuddin Ayub and Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud are increasingly getting into the limelight. The appearance of the new generation was so abrupt that some political analysts have held that the recent, unusual events like concerts and football matches with artistes _ forbidden and even banned by the ``old'' Pas _ suggest the emergence of a mellower, more moderate Islamist party. Reading these developments critically, sceptics question whether there really has been such a catharsis. To the sceptics, what did change at best is that Pas' ultra-conservative Islamist slant is now masked under populist approaches. For instance, one must not discount that the concerts coincided with declarations that Kota Bharu, the main town of Kelantan on the Thai border, is an Islamic city. To counter criticism, the party's vice president and Kelantan executive councillor, Husam Musa, was quoted by the popular Malaysiakini website as saying that calling the Pas-controlled state ``Islamic'' should not be seen in any negative manner. He explained further by describing Singapore as Islamic, because its strict rules on littering were a means of maintaining its pristine cleanliness. In Mr Husam's view, this is an Islamic principle. Despite his seemingly progressive leaning on this specific affair, many still wonder about the limits of Mr Husam, and consequently Pas, on other matters, and for good reasons. If the concerts were anything to go by, the segregated seating arrangements splitting males and females in the grandstands indicated a conventional Islamist position on issues of modesty and, to a certain extent, gender relations. After all, it is doubtful if the party will ever eradicate its ruling to fine Muslim women who do not wear headscarves while out in public places in Kelantan. Exclusivism is another cause for concern. Just last June, The Straits Times newspaper reported that members of the party rejected plans by non-Muslim organisations in Kota Bharu to form an Interfaith Commission. Authorities in the state ruled that the commission ``will push the government to drop Islamic `moral laws' and press for legal reforms to protect Muslims who convert to other religions''. So such a commission was banned. Incidents such as these appear to validate the widespread cynicism about Pas' alleged moderation strategy. Meanwhile, pundits will concede that the benefits to observing the developments of this supposed transformation in Pas' tack is not limited to Malaysian politics alone, but also inter-state relations between Thailand and Malaysia. Muslim majority Pas-controlled Kelantan, as the Malaysian state bordering Narathiwat and Pattani, has a major role to play in the troubles conflicting Thailand's deep South. Most recently, the transfer of 131 Thai Muslims deserters from Kelantan to Umno-led Terengganu was based on accusations of ``meddling'' by Pas _ though Kelantan police chief Zulkifli Abdullah vehemently denied this to the Kuala Lumpur newspaper New Straits Times. What was clear, however, was that Pas pledged to support the Thai Muslims and even organised a fund for them. This will surely challenge the political demands for non-intervention by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. But a flicker of hope shines on. During a recent visit to Singapore, Pas secretary-general Nasharudin Mat Isa said the party would refrain from meddling in Singapore's affairs, even though Pas remains concerned with the welfare of Malay-Muslims in Singapore with family relations in Malaysia. Is Pas the leopard that can change its spots? Much remains to be seen, and it will be seen in the near future. If the party truly is serious about re-inventing itself as a serious political contender, it will have to move quickly beyond the rhetoric of conservative Islamism, and take on universal bread-and-butter concerns. In the meantime, not even the tunes of Mawi can appease critics who doubt the shedding of a conservative Pas image. Nazry Bahrawi is the managing editor of `The Muslim Reader' magazine published in Singapore. |
| Posted by:DanNY |