The Politics of Religion in South and Southeast Asia

by Ahmed; Ishtiaq

• ISBN13: 9780415602273
• ISBN10: 0415602270
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-06-09
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

The notion of a 'politics of religion' refers to the increasing role that religion plays in the politics of the contemporary world. This book presents comparative country case studies on the politics of religion in South and South Asia, including India, Pakistan and Indonesia. The politics of religion calls into question the relevance of modernist notions of secularism and democracy, with the emphasis instead on going back to indigenous roots in search of authentic ideologies and models of state and nation building. Within the context of the individual countries, chapters focus on the consequences that politics of religion has on inclusive nation-building, democracy and the rights of individuals, minorities and women.The book makes a contribution to both the theoretical and conceptual literature on the politics of religion as well as shed light on the implications and ramifications of the politics of religion on contemporary South Asian and South East Asian countries. It is of interest to students and scholars of South and South East Asian Studies, as well as Comparative Politics.

Table of Contents

List of contributors	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
The politics of religion in South and Southeast Asia	p. 1
Religion as a political ideology in South Asia	p. 13
Islamism beyond the Islamic heartland: a case study of Bangladesh	p. 26
Secular versus Hindu nation-building: Dalit, Adivasi, Muslim and Christian experiences in India	p. 45
Sikh politics and the Indo-Pak relationship	p. 66
Religious nationalism and minorities in Pakistan: constitutional and legal bases of discrimination	p. 81
Women under Islamic Law in Pakistan	p. 102
Religion as a political ideology in Southeast Asia	p. 120
Political Islam in Indonesia	p. 136
Religion and politics in the Philippines	p. 157
Creating a Muslim majority in plural Malaysia: undermining minority and women's rights	p. 174
Keeping politics and religion separate in the public square: managed pluralism and the regulatory state in Singapore	p. 195
Transnational religious-political movements: negotiating Hindutva in the diaspora	p. 225
Negotiating rights through transnational puritan networks: religious discourses; cyber technology and Pakistani women	p. 242
Index	p. 261
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