The Rise of Religious Extremism in Malaysia

 

In recent years, the phenomenon of politicisation of religion could be observed to be rampant among the Malaysian politicians. In Malaysia, the politicisation of religion is mostly done  in  order  to  garner  political  votes  and  support.  In  this  sense,  religion  is  used  as  a manipulative tool by the political parties in portraying themselves as the defenders of religion to the extent of ‘devilising’ those who oppose their religious ideas. In many respects, this is all for the benefit of a political agenda rather than for the communities.

The usage of religious sentiments mostly revolves around the Malay-Muslim identity, being the majority population in the country. The politicisation of religion is mostly observable today as being the imbued with ethnicity as the main drivers.

In Malaysia, Islam and Malayness are strongly interconnected which thus make the politicisation of Islam easier and easily accepted by many. Ultimately, religion and ethnicity are bound to make a strong political tool. Islamisation is an effective factor to promote politics in Malaysia, and Islamic language was utilised in favouring their values such as the usage of the controversial issue of  Christianisation in  the country in  order to  garner political needs. 

Politicisation of religion will create an exclusive community that builds on the idea of racism and the feelings of superiority over the others. Since 2012, the case of the usage of the word Allah by the Christians in Malaysia has fanned the flames of a huge conflict between the Christians and the Muslims. In this case, religion has been heavily politicised. Reported by Utusan Online, EXCO Pemuda UMNO (UMNO Youth Exco), Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz insisted that political parties like UMNO, Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) and People's Justice Party (PKR) unite in protecting Islam. According to him, if the issue of the word ‘Allah’ were ignored, then it would diminish Islam as the official religion of the country (Mengapa sekarang kongsi kalimah? 2010, paras. 5–6).

The idea of the Islamic ummah was used as a representation of weaknesses by some individuals. For Muslims in Malaysia, in championing this case, the concept of ummah was used  in  attaining  a  united  Muslim  community  regardless  of  the  political  differences. The banning of the word ‘Allah’ for non-Muslims reveals a sense of exclusivism among the Malay Muslims. This is despite the fact that there is an unequivocal indication that the word ‘Allah’ is a universal term free to be used by the followers of faiths other than Islam. Referring to the former Mufti of Perlis, Datuk Dr. Asri Zainul Abidin, the usage of word ‘Allah’ denotes the concept of ‘Supreme Being’ by the non-Muslims. In fact, the usage was advocated by the Qur’an and Hadith of the Prophet  (PBUH).

The banning received several commentaries from the international society, such as by Jakarta Post, which stated that the court proceedings will only cause religious exclusivism and are against the basic Islamic teachings. Additionally, it also shows that Malaysia is becoming more intolerant (Endy M. Bayuni, 2013). The politicisation of religion in Malaysia has widened the gap  between ethnicities.  The extensive  politicisation of  religion by the  politicians and religious leaders will not create a tolerant society; rather, it will only exacerbate intolerance . 

Politicising religion will create an exclusive society, with the kind of exclusivism that promotes  religiously  intolerant  and  radical Muslim  communities.  Taking  Indonesia  as an JURNAL ISLAM DAN MASYARAKAT KONTEMPORARI, 21(2):46-59   51 example, radicalism has increased due to exclusivism and bigoted understanding of religious tenets. Islamic philosophy, mysticism and political philosophy that specifies religion into an ethnic feature  will  form  an  exclusivism  in  interrelationship  with  the  religious  violence,  also, exclusivism is an act of extreme religious behaviour of takfirism.

Extremism in this sense is the product of a parasitic ideology that influences someone’s behaviour. The success of this tactic makes it easier for an individual to be command in conducting extreme activities. Propaganda is an effective tool,  and usually, religious  propaganda is  more potent  than political  propaganda Today, the dissemination of propaganda is assisted by the advancement of technology such as the internet and social network.

This method is proven being effective, as in the case of Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi, whose nickname was ‘Malaysia’s jihadist celebrity’ because he used the social media platforms as a means to spread  extremism  under  the  Islamised  name  ‘Generasi  al-Ghuroba’  (Generation  of  the Foreigners). The success of this psychological effect lies not only in the content, but also the name used to identify the account. For instance, the term ghuraba is found in the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), who mentioned the generation of ghuraba or the ‘strangers’ as being the true Muslims living in the final days, an eschatological term referring to the time before the Day of Judgement. From here, it may be noted how an Islamic narrative was carefully used in justifying an extremist agenda.

Social media serves as the platform that proliferator of radical propaganda by relying on the phenomenon of halo effect which makes an individual message  appear  to  be  valid  and  trustworthy  The psychological ground here lies on the extremist group’s strategy to appear more appealing and convincing  to  captivate  the prey  with religious  promises,  such as  spiritual prosperity  and assurance of the best place in the hereafter. In psychologising the target to act more extremely, promises of martyrdom and declaring an individual as a soldier of God. Once brainwashed, an individual’s perception of what is right or wrong also changes. This is evident, as many extremists today perceive themselves as the defenders of religion or race and being on the right path, while others are considered the opposite.

Propaganda can be a powerful tool to attract an impressionable individual to join what is thought to be the right course in defending religion and the ideals of the ummah.

In recent years, the phenomenon of politicisation of religion could be observed to be rampant among the Malaysian politicians. In Malaysia, the politicisation of religion is mostly done  in  order  to  garner  political  votes  and  support.  In  this  sense,  religion  is  used  as  a manipulative tool by the political parties in portraying themselves as the defenders of religion to the extent of ‘devilising’ those who oppose their religious ideas. In many respects, this is all for the benefit of a political agenda rather than for the communities.

 

The usage of religious sentiments mostly revolves around the Malay-Muslim identity, being the majority population in the country. The politicisation of religion is mostly observable today as being the imbued with ethnicity as the main drivers.

 

In Malaysia, Islam and Malayness are strongly interconnected which thus make the politicisation of Islam easier and easily accepted by many. Ultimately, religion and ethnicity are bound to make a strong political tool. Islamisation is an effective factor to promote politics in Malaysia, and Islamic language was utilised in favouring their values such as the usage of the controversial issue of  Christianisation in  the country in  order to  garner political needs.

 

Politicisation of religion will create an exclusive community that builds on the idea of racism and the feelings of superiority over the others. Since 2012, the case of the usage of the word Allah by the Christians in Malaysia has fanned the flames of a huge conflict between the Christians and the Muslims. In this case, religion has been heavily politicised. Reported by Utusan Online, EXCO Pemuda UMNO (UMNO Youth Exco), Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz insisted that political parties like UMNO, Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) and People's Justice Party (PKR) unite in protecting Islam. According to him, if the issue of the word ‘Allah’ were ignored, then it would diminish Islam as the official religion of the country (Mengapa sekarang kongsi kalimah? 2010, paras. 5–6).

 

The idea of the Islamic ummah was used as a representation of weaknesses by some individuals. For Muslims in Malaysia, in championing this case, the concept of ummah was used  in  attaining  a  united  Muslim  community  regardless  of  the  political  differences. The banning of the word ‘Allah’ for non-Muslims reveals a sense of exclusivism among the Malay Muslims. This is despite the fact that there is an unequivocal indication that the word ‘Allah’ is a universal term free to be used by the followers of faiths other than Islam. Referring to the former Mufti of Perlis, Datuk Dr. Asri Zainul Abidin, the usage of word ‘Allah’ denotes the concept of ‘Supreme Being’ by the non-Muslims. In fact, the usage was advocated by the Qur’an and Hadith of the Prophet  (PBUH).

 

The banning received several commentaries from the international society, such as by Jakarta Post, which stated that the court proceedings will only cause religious exclusivism and are against the basic Islamic teachings. Additionally, it also shows that Malaysia is becoming more intolerant (Endy M. Bayuni, 2013). The politicisation of religion in Malaysia has widened the gap  between ethnicities.  The extensive  politicisation of  religion by the  politicians and religious leaders will not create a tolerant society; rather, it will only exacerbate intolerance .

 

Politicising religion will create an exclusive society, with the kind of exclusivism that promotes  religiously  intolerant  and  radical Muslim  communities.  Taking  Indonesia  as an JURNAL ISLAM DAN MASYARAKAT KONTEMPORARI, 21(2):46-59   51 example, radicalism has increased due to exclusivism and bigoted understanding of religious tenets. Islamic philosophy, mysticism and political philosophy that specifies religion into an ethnic feature  will  form  an  exclusivism  in  interrelationship  with  the  religious  violence,  also, exclusivism is an act of extreme religious behaviour of takfirism.

 

Extremism in this sense is the product of a parasitic ideology that influences someone’s behaviour. The success of this tactic makes it easier for an individual to be command in conducting extreme activities. Propaganda is an effective tool,  and usually, religious  propaganda is  more potent  than political  propaganda Today, the dissemination of propaganda is assisted by the advancement of technology such as the internet and social network.

 

This method is proven being effective, as in the case of Muhammad Wanndy Mohamed Jedi, whose nickname was ‘Malaysia’s jihadist celebrity’ because he used the social media platforms as a means to spread  extremism  under  the  Islamised  name  ‘Generasi  al-Ghuroba’  (Generation  of  the Foreigners). The success of this psychological effect lies not only in the content, but also the name used to identify the account. For instance, the term ghuraba is found in the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), who mentioned the generation of ghuraba or the ‘strangers’ as being the true Muslims living in the final days, an eschatological term referring to the time before the Day of Judgement. From here, it may be noted how an Islamic narrative was carefully used in justifying an extremist agenda.

 

Social media serves as the platform that proliferator of radical propaganda by relying on the phenomenon of halo effect which makes an individual message  appear  to  be  valid  and  trustworthy  The psychological ground here lies on the extremist group’s strategy to appear more appealing and convincing  to  captivate  the prey  with religious  promises,  such as  spiritual prosperity  and assurance of the best place in the hereafter. In psychologising the target to act more extremely, promises of martyrdom and declaring an individual as a soldier of God. Once brainwashed, an individual’s perception of what is right or wrong also changes. This is evident, as many extremists today perceive themselves as the defenders of religion or race and being on the right path, while others are considered the opposite.

 

Propaganda can be a powerful tool to attract an impressionable individual to join what is thought to be the right course in defending religion and the ideals of the ummah.