Muslims do want democracy: An Interview with Radwan Masmoudi

by Paul Kengor and Michael Coulter

Q. Dr. Masmoudi, do Arabs and Muslims want democracy?

Over 90 percent of Muslims and Arabs polled in 10 Muslim-majority countries consider democracy to be the best form of government. There were other polls that over 80 percent of the people in the Arab world do not want shari"Ëœa law to govern in their countries. They say they want Islamic values to govern but they don"Ëœt want strict implementation of shari"Ëœa. So there is a struggle for the soul of Islam and it did not start yesterday or after 9-11 but has been going on for at least a century [among] those calling for modernising the Muslim world. People in Egypt in particular have been calling for a reinterpretation of Islam for over one hundred years.

Q. In your publication, Muslim Democrat, you talk about elements of Islam that can be interpreted as "liberal". Tell us about some of those.

Religious freedom is very important -- the idea of no compulsion in religion. To have it [compulsion in religion] defeats the purpose of religion, it defeats God"Ëœs will. Islam really emphasises that people have to decide to believe. There were many examples in Muslim history where people in mosques were debating the existence of God, especially in the first three centuries. I believe that a religion has to be a matter of free choice. That is the way God intended it.

There are two basic political principles that are heavily emphasised in the Qur'an: justice and shura. Shura means consultation. The problem is that there are no clear institutions or methods that are identified on how this consultation should take place. I say that Muslims have failed in interpreting this message and in applying the idea of shura.

Q. Is there a particular country in the Arab or Muslim Middle East that you"Ëœre optimistic about, one that could be held up as an example? And is there any reason for optimism about Iran?

Well, if you"Ëœre talking about the Muslim world in general, I would definitely say Turkey is an example for optimism. Turkey is a very good example today of a Muslim democratic state and society. In fact, I visited Iran and I visited Turkey and the Iranian people are probably the least religious people today. And it is because the Iranian government wants to force religion down their throat. There is a backlash against religion in Iran, because the mullahs are trying to govern in the name of Islam and because they are not very democratic in the way they are doing it. People in Iran are starting to hate the government and some young people hate religion in general. Turkey is almost the exact opposite. You have a state that does not force religion on people, but the people of Turkey are some of the most religious people in the Middle East and in the Muslim world. If you want to convince an Islamic leader of why an Islamic state that forces religion on people is not a good idea, just take them to Iran, let them stay there for
a week or two, and then take them to Turkey. I believe they will change their minds.

Q. Are you optimistic or pessimistic about democracy"Ëœs prospects in Iraq?

I"Ëœm optimistic in the long run, but in the short run I am afraid we are going to see some turbulence.

Q. Give us a final summation of your thoughts on Islam and democracy in the century ahead.

We need to reinterpret Islam, but how can we do that in dictatorships where everything is controlled by the state? Democracy is the key because it will give us the opportunity to talk about all these other problems and to solve them. It will take time. We need the freedom to talk about what Islam means in the 21st century.

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Tunisian-born Radwan A. Masmoudi founded the Washington-based Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy. This article is distributed by the Common Ground News Service (CGNews) and can be accessed at www.commongroundnews.org.

Source: Charlotte Observer, 6 October, 2006, www.charlotte.com
Copyright permission has been obtained for publication.

date: 2006-10-24