A stronger Islamic flavour after GE13?

ARCHIVES 2013

By admin-s On May 6, 2013

Contrary to popular understanding and believe, DAP and MCA are not the main obstacle to Malaysia turning into an ‘Islamic State’ –making Shariah supreme. It is UMNO.

Anas Zubedy

Ulama Bukan Penentu

Tiada Jaminan Ulama Menang

Ulama Beri Saingan Sengit

Berkempen, Berdakwah

PRU 13 Satu Jihad Perkasa Islam

Calon Ulama Beri Kelebihan

Dekati Pengundi Masjid

Ulama Imbangi Pentadbiran

PRU13 Penentu Hala Tuju Akidah Umat Islam

Ulama Lebih Mendekati Masyarakat

Empat Ulama Bertanding di Perlis

The above are headlines taken from Sinar Harian 29th April, 2013. While the front page reads, “ Ulama Bukan Penentu” and the editorial “Tiada Jaminan Ulama Menang”, all the cover stories inside the daily suggest otherwise. I wanted to post this article earlier but each time I talk about Islam and politics in Malaysia many were quick to suggest that I do so because I want to scare away the non-Muslim voters. As such, I decided to post this letter only after the elections, today after 5 pm, May 5th.

That Malaysia will turn more and more ‘Islamic’ is a foregone conclusion. I will share two main reasons for this; one being local while the other, global.

In Malaysia today, the Muslim majority are giving birth more than the rest. Owing to this rate, by 2050 the Muslims should occupy about 70 % of Malaysia as compared to the current 60. A recent survey about young Muslims aged 15 to 25 years old in Malaysia published on the website of Merdeka Centre reports that more than 70% of them aspire to adopt the Islamic way of life as part of theirs and desire to see the society move forward in the same manner. These statistics I am putting forth are more than just numbers; they indicate where Malaysians are heading and how that journey is re-shaping our nation.

At the global front, while by the 80s and early 90s communism and nationalism being two of the forces obstructing world dominion by the USA were no longer in position to post any challenge to Washington, the Iranian revolution of 1979 thrust Islam to the fore both in national and international politics. A decade later, 1989 saw the Mujahideen’s victory over Soviet Russia in the Afghanistan. This success showed that Muslim resistance by a small, organised, determined and united group of faithful can resist and defeat a superpower.

A new kind of confidence and consciousness were injected within the Muslim world. Muslim revivalism that started in the nineteenth century experienced a new vitality. Muslims especially the young re-thought, reflected, and brought back to life their rich and forgotten history into present memory rekindling the spirit of their own golden era.

Furthermore, events in the Middle-East especially the treatment of Palestinians by Israel and its allies and the double standard practice by the West towards Muslim nations serve as a constant fuel in increasing Muslim consciousness. Muslims today see and want Islam to be a possible alternative in managing people and the nation. Malaysian Muslims too share these ideals.

As Malaysia move slowly but surely towards Islam, we must ask ourselves what face of Islam do we want to create. Whether the Muslim direction is led by:

UMNO in the current BN framework, or.
PAS within the PAKATAN partnership, or
Perhaps a new UMNO-PAS hybrid – led by UMNO,
A new PAS-UMNO hybrid – led by PAS, or,
A totally new entity in the future.

GE 13 and the various possibilities

The results of the GE13 can play a significant role in making the move towards ‘Islam’ is hasten or slowed. It will also determine which shade of Islam will colour the nation and which of the above 5 equations will evolve.