Islamism and the Quest for Hegemony in Indonesia

Description

This book examines the failure of Islamic politics in becoming a hegemonic force in Indonesia and the far-reaching consequences for current practices of democracy and of Islam itself. In contrast to the thesis of compatibility between Islam and democracy following the dominant discourse of the Global War on Terror (GWOT) and neoliberal democracy, this study situates Islamic politics in broader social settings by examining its nature and trajectories throughout Indonesia’s modern political history. The book thus investigates how the practices of Islamic politics, or Islamism, have shaped and been transformed through political contestations and the formation of coalitions of multiple forces in constructing Indonesia’s socio-political landscape. Using the concept of hegemony from poststructuralist discourse theory, the analytical framework applied in this book goes beyond liberal epistemologies of Islamism that prescribe the separation of religion from politics and treat Islamism as an object of intervention. Instead, the book is premised on the contention that Indonesia is a political construction,  in which Islam has become one of the major discourses that have defined and transformed Indonesia’s nation-state throughout history. In this view, it is argued that the nature and dynamics of Islamism are not driven primarily by different interpretations of religious doctrines, cultural norms or by the imperative of institutions. Rather, the struggles of different Islamist projects in their quest for hegemony are contingent on the outcomes of socio-political changes and contestations that involve multiple political forces, both within and beyond the Islamists, in specific historical conjunctures. Acknowledgements Contents 1 Islamism in Indonesia: Setting the Stage Islamism and the Epistemological Critique Islamism as Ideology Islamism as Culture Islam and Institutionalism New Departures: From Political-Economic Conditions to Hegemonic Struggles Political Economy of Islamism Islamism as Discourse Outline of the Book Bibliography 2 Islamism and the Politics of Hegemony The Ontology of the Social: Hegemony and Social Transformation Contentious Issues Politics of Hegemony and the Studies of Islamism Gramsci’s Breakthrough Dislocation, Islamism, Hegemony: Towards a New Framework Discourse as Conceptual Category Linking Discursive Formation to Structural Conditions Conclusion Bibliography 3 Islamism and the Making of Indonesia Dislocations and Anti-Colonial Discourses: Islamism, Communism, Nationalism Islamism and Anti-Colonial Outlooks The Rise and Fall of Islamist Hegemony: Sarekat Islam and Its Adversaries Pancasila as a Foundation: Islamic Nationalism Versus Secular Nationalism Islamism and the Postcolonial Nation-State Formation Pancasila Versus Islam: Islamism and Parliamentary Politics, 1949–1957 Politicising Identities, Coopting Representation: Islamism and the Guided Democracy, 1957–1965 Conclusion Bibliography 4 New Order and the Politicisation of Islam Islamism and the New Order Formation Anti-communism and the Regime Change Islam in the New Order Discourse: Strategies of Exclusion and Accommodation In Search of a Political Format: Pancasila Democracy and Developmentalism Disciplining Islamism and New Order Developmentalism: The Consolidation Period Universalising Pancasila Democracy: A Master Signifier Islamic Developmentalist Subjects Islamism and the New Order’s Hegemonic Crisis: The Negotiation Period Pancasila as the Sole Ideology: Three Forms of Islamism Islamism in the ‘Political Openness’: Towards the New Order’s Hegemonic Crisis Political Unravelling and Soeharto’s Fall Conclusion Bibliography 5 Islamism and Its Hegemonic Failure in Democratising Indonesia Political Liberalisation and Fragmented Islamism The Islamists and Political Representation Conflicts and Consensus: Caught Between Reform and Status Quo Decentralised Development: Islamism and Localisation of Power Islamism and Decentralisation Islamising Local Politics: A Symptom of the Islamists’ Hegemonic Failure Islamism and Multiculturalism in an Age of Terror GWOT and Securitisation of Islamism Multiculturalism and Politicisation of Difference Conclusion Bibliography 6 Neoliberal Hegemony and the Populist Moments: Whither Islamism? Democratisation Without Hegemonic Forces Post-Democracy and the Disappearance of the Political The Making of the Electoral Ummah Islamism and the Populist Moments: Representation and the Politics of Inequalities Islamism and the Politics of Populism Aksi Bela Islam and the Ahok Saga: Competing Forms of the Electoral Ummah Politicising Identity, Depoliticising Citizenship: Islamism and Democratic Challenges Dealing with the Islamists: Politicisation of Identities and Its Contradictions Anti-Democratic Turn and the Impasse of Islamism Conclusion Bibliography 7 Conclusion Beyond Liberal Epistemology of Islamism Islamism and Indonesia’s Nation-State: Three Discursive Formations Implications Bibliography Glossaries Index