An Internationalist National Islamic Struggle?

Abstract

Localized constructions of transnational Islamic kinship or ‘brothers abroad’ are an integral part of discursive practices within the community of the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS). Based on empirical data gained from anthropological fieldwork between 2009 and 2010, this article examines domestic manifestations and the implicit subtexts of the party's foreign policy, with particular regard to the Palestinian cause. Narratives of victimization and heroism are thereby as important as demonizing projections of delinquency and evil, while at times images of local and external enemies melt together. Furthermore, it is shown that PAS's Islamist internationalism is essentially (g)local, whereas national and ummahist identities are referred to only selectively.