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Islamists and Illiberal Democracy in a New Middle East
Oxford University Press
April 2014
On Sale: April 14, 2014
280 pages
ISBN: 0199314055
EAN: 9780199314058
Kindle: B00INW8126
Hardcover / e-Book
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Non-Fiction
In 1989, Francis Fukuyama famously announced the "end of
history." The Berlin Wall had fallen; liberal democracy had
won out. But what of illiberal democracy--the idea that
popular majorities, working through the democratic process,
might reject gender equality, religious freedoms, and other
norms that Western democracies take for granted? Nowhere
have such considerations become more relevant than in the
Middle East, where the uprisings of 2011 swept the Muslim
Brotherhood and other Islamist groups to power.
In
Temptations of Power, Shadi Hamid draws on hundreds
of interviews with leaders and activists from across the
region to advance a new understanding of how Islamist
movements change over time. He puts forward the bold thesis
that repression "forced" Islamists to moderate their
politics, work in coalitions, de-emphasize Islamic law, and
set aside the dream of an Islamic state. Meanwhile,
democratic openings in the 1980s--and again during the Arab
Spring--pushed Islamists back toward their original
conservatism. With the uprisings of 2011, Islamists found
themselves in an enviable position, but one for which they
were unprepared. Groups like the Brotherhood combine the
features of both political parties and religious movements,
leading to an inherent tension they have struggled to
resolve. However pragmatic they may be, their ultimate goal
remains the Islamization of society. When the electorate
they represent is conservative as well, they can push their
own form of illiberal democracy while insisting they are
carrying out the popular will. This can lead to overreach
and significant backlash. Yet, while the Egyptian coup and
the subsequent crackdown were a devastating blow for the
Islamist "project," obituaries of political Islam are
premature.
As long as the battle over the role of
religion in public life continues, Islamist parties in
countries as diverse as Egypt, Tunisia, and Jordan will
remain an important force whether in the ranks of opposition
or the halls of power. But what are the key factors driving
their evolution? A timely and provocative reassessment,
Hamid's account serves as an essential compass for those
trying to understand where the region's varied Islamist
groups have come from and where they might be headed.
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