Radicalism is the big threat to Asia-Pacific

Radicalism is the big threat to Asia-Pacific

Don Pathan, The Nation, Asia News Network, Bangkok

Islam and the global war on terrorism continue to dominate
discussions among the world's leading security analysts and
policy makers and nowhere was this more evidence than in the
just-concluded meeting of the Council for Security Cooperation in
the Asia-Pacific (CSCAP).

But concerns over the rise of China are still very much on the
radar screen.

Some see China as an opportunity because of its sheer market
size, while others think the growing influence of the communist
giant in Southeast Asia will eventually alter the existing
balance of power.

For the time being, China is preoccupied with continuing its
economic growth while sticky issues like territorial disputes in
the South China Sea have been shelved.

Analysts here think a time will come when Beijing plays its
sovereignty card over the disputed areas, which are also at
Southeast Asia's maritime heartland.

On global security, efforts were made to separate Islam from
the global war on terrorism.

But no matter how hard the academics and analysts tried to be
politically correct, fingers always pointed to Islamic militancy,
a growing problem, according to Indonesian Foreign Minister
Hassan Wirajuda, that is quickly gaining ground at the expense of
the U.S.'s misguided policy in Iraq.

In one of the harshest statements issued by the government of
the world's most populous Muslim country, Hassan said American's
unilateralism was fueling support for terrorism and made the
Middle East so much more insecure and vulnerable.

In his keynote address, Hassan said the U.S.-led war has
created "emotional vibrations" that makes it easier to gather new
recruits.

The allegation drew a strong response from the U.S. ambassador
to Indonesia, Ralph Boyce, who insisted that it was too early to
dismiss the "historic effort" in Iraq as a failure.

Both sides, however, appeared to be in agreement that handing
over power to Iraqis without reform could mean disaster.

Though the Chatham House Rule prevented what was said in the
conference from being made public information, nevertheless on
the side of the three-day meeting, participants complained that
Muslims with solid Islamic credentials were not doing enough to
set the record straight.

In many parts of the Muslim community in the region, civic and
political leaders chose to stand back while their communities get
caught up in conspiracy theories.

Some say it is a selfish attitude of the political leaders who
don't want to be caught up in what they see as a sensitive
debate, or be dismissed as a lackey of the West.

Others said there is a genuine belief among the conservative
element within Islamic circles that Islam is not compatible with
modernity and that the religion already has a unique and
comprehensive social-political belief system that can serve as a
basis for a modern state.

But one leader with strong Islamic credentials, Ahmad Syafii
Maarif, chairman of the Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's largest Islamic
organization with 50 million followers, rejected the notion that
Islam and democracy are incompatible.

"Islam is full of references to the principles of democracy
and pluralism, and the importance of human rights," said Marrif,
in his keynote delivered to the participants.

He pointed to the principles of nasiha (advice), shura
(consultation), ikhtilaf (airing and resolving disagreement),
tasamuh (tolerance) and hisbah (public accountability and
ombudsmanship).

Maarif said injustice and poverty throughout the world have
forced many to seek comfort in their respective religions.

In Indonesia's case, "the uneven process of economic
development, and the brutal oppression of dissent by the state,
has set the context for radicalization within the community".

Maarif said the challenge is how to address these problems in
an appropriate way so that radicalism does not become more
attractive to ordinary Muslims.

"The answer lies in what we, the Muslims, do within our own
communities, and . . . recognize our own weaknesses," he said.

"We realize that justice, especially in the economic sense,
should be established and upheld, because it is justice that
serves the foundation for a violence-free society."

For others, said Maarif, it is important to understand that
Islam cannot be understood within the context of terrorism.

Maarif said there has to be willingness to move beyond the
current impasse in understanding of Muslims and non-Muslims and
that Islamic activism should be prepared to move beyond
opposition towards implementation.

"It is no longer enough to decry what one is against. The time
has come to craft concrete plans to build a bridge between the
Muslim world and the rest," Maarif said.

He also called on the rest of the world to move beyond their
preoccupation with the notion of Islam as a "threat" or "terror"
and begin to understand Islam with all its complexity and
plurality.

"Through this willingness to learn about each other in an
honest way, a better world should not be too difficult to
achieve," Maarif said.