Rethinking Islamist Politics

"I like this book a lot. Salwa Ismail got inside the Islamic trend – especially in Egypt but also around the entire Middle East – and really broke out the wide variety of different strands in Islamist politics. The differences between the Muslim Brotherhood and the conservative Salafi trend, between official Islam and neighbourhood level, popular Islam. It is going to be an important guide for people who are trying to make sense of the resurgence of Islamist movements in this coming period. What she shows is that there isn’t a single, monolithic Islamist movement. For example, when we look at Egypt right now, or Tunisia, people in general have been stunned at the sudden appearance of these very large, powerful Salafi trends. Salwa Ismail was writing about this years ago. This is a 2006 book. She saw the Salafi trend coming long before Mubarak fell. The other important thing about Ismail’s book is that she shows how deep the transformation of public culture has been. Islamism is not just a shallow political trend – it has fundamentally reshaped identities and public cultures around the region, and people shouldn’t expect that that is going to simply evaporate overnight. This is a process which has been going on for decades. The Islamists didn’t start these uprisings, but they have a wide and deep presence in society. As society becomes more empowered, naturally Islamists will be more empowered also. If these countries become more democratic, they are necessarily going to play a major role. But again, one of the things Ismail points out – I think effectively – is that we shouldn’t expect there to be a single unified Islamist bloc. What you’re already seeing in Egypt, Tunisia and across the region is different Islamist groups competing with each other for the same votes – arguing with each other, splintering, forming competing parties. I think that’s going to be the trend. Islamism and Islam have to play a role if there’s going to be any real democracy there. But I’m less worried than others that you’re going to see an Islamist sweep of elections, or Islamists imposing harsh Islamic law on their countries. Especially in a place like Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood was able to maintain its unity because it was under so much pressure from Mubarak. With Mubarak gone, the movement is splintering, because there are lots of different trends and internal disagreements."