(I) Recent Criticisms of PAS and PAS’s response

Source : Photo tagged with PAS 

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Extracted from : The Islamic Opposition In Malaysia, New Trajectories and Directions? by Dr Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid, an academician in Political Science.

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Criticisms of PAS have come not only from the trans-ethnic middle class-dominated civil society, but also from fellow lslamists. Given a choice at the ballot box, Islamists holding
similar opinions as the critics would probably vote PAS anyway, if only for the lack of a better Islamist representative in electoral politics.

But in the event of them abstaining during polls, PAS would have to regard such “lost votes” as costly, considering the narrow margins of victories in many Malay-majority marginal constituencies.

Since the pool of votes from PAS members would be limited, Islamists who are not members of PAS would naturally form a potential constituency to deliver “sympathetic” votes for PAS  in regular elections.

But the appearance of recent critiques of PAS from fellow Islamists,  who are former PAS leaders to boot, point to a different trajectory resulting from  disappointments with PAS.

In the past year, two books by two well-known if somewhat controversial Islamist leaders have offered stinging criticisms of PAS. The first,  ‘Politik Islam Membawa Kasih Sayang’ (Islamic Politics Brings Forth Love and Fraternity) ,was authored by Ustaz Ashaari Muhammad, former leader of the Sufi-revivalist Darul Arqam movement that was banned by the Malaysian state in 1994 over theological questions.

 

(A photo of  Ustaz Ashaari Muhammad during Al Arqam times in the 80’s)

Consequently, the security forces instituted a clampdown on Darul Arqam’s self-sustaining  settlements and activities, culminating in large-scale detentions of its leaders under the ISA. Following the official disbandment of Darul Arqam,Ustaz Ashaari and his family were relocated to the town of Rawang, Selangor, and later to Labuan island off the Bornean coast of Sabah until late October 2004, when he was eventually released from restricted residence regulations.

A successful businessman, Ustaz Ashaari has since 1997 remobilized his loyal followers under the aegis of Rufaqa’ Corporation, which is involved in such  diverse forms of businesses as retail supermarkets, restaurants and cafeterias, polyclinics  and maternity services, traditional therapy, production and distribution of herbal-based products, boutiques and tailor shops, travel and tour agencies,book and magazine publishing, an arts  and cultural academy, laundry services, bakeries, motivational and counselling programmes, multimedia products, electrical and electronic workshops, vehicle workshops and hotel and inn chains.

Ustaz Ashaari is also a prolific writer of socio-religious tracts but most of his nearly 70 books have been banned by Malaysia’s Internal Security Ministry.

‘Politik Islam Membawa Kasih Sayang’ is presently under scrutiny by the Department for the Advancement of Islam in Malaysia (JAKIM, Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia) - the hub of Malaysia’s religious bureaucracy.

In ‘Politik Islam Membawa Kasih Sayang’, Ustaz Ashaari, a stem PAS activist in Selangor during his youth, castigates Islamic parties which vie for political power via elections, the process of which is marred by a melange of unIslamic traits and practices. 

Links: : To Kelantan, An Islamic State or A State of Muslims? (I) & (II)

To Ustaz Ashaari, the ends do not justify the means. He outlines what he believes to the true characteristics of Islamic leaders, followers and jemaahs (organizations), and contrasts them with what transpires in modern so-called Islamic political parties, which he calls “secularist Islamic parties”, whose bastion is ideology, not religion, which is based on revelation.

The alternative to electoral politics would be internal motivational courses for and tarbiyyah (education) of party members, until love and care are  externalized towards not only fellow Muslims but also non-Muslims, who would and should be delighted at the ascendancy of Islamic parties.

In contrast to contemporary Muslim politics that involves itself in pugnacious campaigns, slogans and propaganda, true Islamic politics practises and exhibits love and fraternity through the operation of exemplary multi-dimensional systems of life.

Belying its formal registration as a private limited company, what takes place in Rufaqa’ Corporation, claims Ustaz Ashaari, is part of the realization of Islamic politics. He devotes the entire Chapter 7 of his book to listing the achievements of his prescribed methods, citing testimonies from foreign scholars and tangible accomplishments of his jemaah, seen as a continuum since the founding of Darul Arqam in 1968. This success story is then contrasted with the myriad problems faced by PAS in administering Kelantan, outlined in Chapter 8.

Ustaz Ashaari criticizes PAS’s Kelantan government for prioritizing legalistic changes, such as the abortive attempt to introduce hudud laws, as the cornerstone of an Islamic state. Such endeavours took place without prior adequate tarbiyyah of the Kelantan population and, more importantly, of Kelantan’s PAS members, who are supposed to lead the way of Islamizing the state by becoming role models for others.

As a result of the weak human development machinery in Kelantan, PAS members lack the  internal strength to sacrifice their material wealth and comfort to help their state government beset with financial difficulties.

To Ustaz Ashaari, the solution to economic  disparities lies not so much in the efforts of Islamic banks and public and private sector  financial institutions, but in inculcating in affluent citizens the moral obligation to depart from part  of their wealth in order to shelter the poor. Such a feat is impossible without a comprehensive tarbiyyah programme that emphasizes spiritual education.

While praising Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat for personally sacrificing his personal allocations and privileges, Ustaz Ashaari separates Nik Abdul Aziz’s private demeanour from the public domain, where even PAS members fail to emulate their Murshid al-’Am, not to mention the Kelantan common folk. Ustaz Ashaari regards the propensity of Kelantan’s PAS administration to rely on federal funds to develop its Islamic state as embarrassing.

In contrast to their leaders’ virtuous  character, PAS’s grassroots members’ conduct leaves much to be desired.

The second book criticizing PAS is a self-authored autobiography by Dato’ Emeritus Professor Shahnon Ahmad, a sasterawan negara (national literary laureate), entitled ‘Perjalananku Sejauh Ini: Sebuah Autobiografi’ (My Journey till Now: An Autobiography).

A productive writer of best-selling novels, some of which have been turned into films and television dramas, Shahnon had a distinguished academic career  at the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang, as lecturer, professor, Dean of the School of Humanities and Director of the Islamic Centre.

In recognition for his services and academic contributions at the national and international levels, the Kedah state government and USM honoured him with the titles of Dato’ and Emeritus Professor in 1980 and  1993, respectively. A long-time UMN0 member, he became dose to PAS leaders in the mid 1990s and  as a consequence fell out of favour with the ruling establishment.

PAS President Fadzil Noor twice visited his home to offer him PAS candidature for general elections: in 1995,when he declined, and in 1999, when he accepted and went on to memorably beat Minister in  Prime Minister’s Department, Abdul Hamid Othman, to become a one-term Member of Parliament for Sik, Kedah (1999-2004). He claims to be quite close to Anwar Ibrahim.

Thus, in the heat of the Reformasi ferment, he produced the notorious political satire, Shit, which lampooned the UMNO-led ruling elites.

The uppermost factor determining Shahnon’s volte-face towards PAS was a firm conviction in the concept of ulama leadership. He eulogizes  especially Murshid al-Am Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, whose writings revolve a lot around eschatological-cum-spiritual questions of life after death.

But Shahnon expresses disappointment that lower-level PAS leaders and the rank-and-file denigrate the importance of such discourses, and prefer instead to focus on political diatribes. Shahnon attributes this  negative development of “politics overwhelming and controlling ‘aqidah (faith)” to the aggressive tactics and activities of the PAS Youth. Shahnon expresses aghast and disgust at the prospect of PAS being eventually overtaken by “secular” leaders who brand themselves as modern and post-modern ulama.

He admonishes the new breed of PAS’s ulama for failing to come out with written discourses of substantive intellectual quality for public consumption, such that the role of the Ulama Section has been submerged by upcoming political rhetoricians…..( To be continued )