The Political Dynamics of Islamic Reformation: The State and the Tablighi Jamaat in Pakistan

Pakistan

Family reactions and assessments of all family members towards family members belonging to specific religious groups still occur. This interpretation can trigger disharmony in the family and is an interesting social phenomenon to research. This research uses a qualitative research method. This research assumes that empirical realities occur in a socio-cultural context that is interrelated with one another. This research aims to describe family reactions, family social relationships, and family assessments on their family members’ involvement in specific religious groups. The informants were selected using a purposive sampling technique by taking three people from each religious group (Jamaah Tabligh, Wahdah Islamiyah, and Lembaga Dakwah Islam Indonesia known as LDII). Data were collected using in-depth interviews, observation, and documentation. The data analysis used in this research is descriptive qualitative. The results showed that family social relations on family members’ involvement in certain religious groups tended to get the same reaction based on their interpretation. Contravention interpretation from dominant family on family members belonging to specific religious groups still occurs compared with accommodative relationships. Meanwhile, family assessments on their family members’ involvement in certain religious groups are generally negative.

The history of Sufism in the Indian subcontinent spans centuries, and continues to be influential both in the spiritual and the political realm of society. Historically, as well as today, various groups are vying for “political authority” in the state (Rozehnal, 2007: 21). These political differences have also extended to the religious groups. For example, three of the main historical influences of most modern-day religious groups in Pakistan are the Deoband, the Ahl-e- Hadith, and the Sufis (Lieven, 2011). Anatol Lieven (2011) explains that “all the Sunni Islamist groups … are drawn from one of two traditions: the Deobandi, named after a famous madrasa founded in Deoband (now in Uttar Pradesh, India) in 1866, and the Ahl-e-Hadith (‘People of the hadiths’, or tradition attributed to the Prophet), a branch of the international Salafi… tradition, heavily influenced by Wahhabism, and with particularly close links to Arabia dating back to the original foundations of this tendency in the sixteenth century CE” (128). The Deoband message often rests on a notion of “a return to the pure teaching of the Quran and the Prophet” (Lieven, 2011: 128). Its influence can be seen with the Tablighi Jamaat and with Jamaat-Islami (JI) (Lieven, 2011: 129–130). The Ahl-e-Hadith (or the “Salafis”), while they also desire a return to the conditions that existed during the time of the Prophet Muhammad, do not have a major following in Pakistan, even though they trace their history back to the late 1900s (Zahab, 2009).

The article examines emergence of the Tablighi Jamaat (henceforth TJ) in colonial India. It discusses the emergence of Tablighi Jamaat in light of the proselytizing (Tablighi) competition among various Islamic schools that emerged soon after the failure of the 1857 war. This article answers the question of why Maulana Ilyas founded the TJ in undivided India? This study aims to understand the emergence of the TJ in light of the deprivation and Maududian theory of Islamic revivalism. The discussion is based on qualitative analysis of the existing secondary sources in the form of books, research articles, and reports, etc. This study finds that TJ was founded because several Tablighi Jamaats belonged to different Islamic sects during British rule, responded to the challenges of the Muslim community. The Deobandi, Barailvi, Ahl-i-Hadith, and Shi’a Muslims established their proselytizing societies. This study concludes that the Deobandi Tablighi Jamaat emerged not only in response to the anti-Islamic campaigns of Hindus and Christians. The TJ was also founded in response to the preaching struggles of other Islamic schools in the British Raj. It is recommended that the TJ works to implement the Deobandi version of Islam in the world should be further studied

This research aims to discuss the periodization model of the history of civilization and the development phases of Islamic education. The historical periodization of Islamic civilization and Islamic education developed simultaneously because education existed because of the existence of a civilization. Islamic civilization and education began with the presence of Islam in Mecca. The Prophet established that Islamic education is based on the Koran and Hadith so that all the values of Islamic education are found in the Koran. Harun Nasution divides the history of Islamic civilization into three periods, namely the classical period, the medieval period and the modern period. The development of Islamic education goes hand in hand with the historical development of Islamic civilization. In the classical period, Islamic education was centered on the Prophet, Khulfaur Rasyidin, the Umayyad daulah and the Abbasid daulah. In the middle period, Islamic education focused on three large empires, namely the Ottoman Empire in Turkey, the Safavid empire in Persia and the Mughal empire in India. Meanwhile, in the modern period Islamic education experienced significant changes because in the medieval period Islam experienced decline. Islamic education was born with a new face to develop Islamic education in various aspects.

Since the end of communism, Kyrgyzstan, like other Muslim-majority regions of the former Soviet Union, has experienced an ‘Islamic revival’. Among its manifestations has been a rising number of veiled women. Many of them have joined the Tablighi Jamaat (the Society for Spreading Faith) which provides Islamic teaching (taalim) and organises weekly religious sessions (ijtimas). The chapter examines the ways in which the Tablighi Jamaat has been shaping Kyrgyz women's understanding of Islam and what it means to them to be Muslim. It is particularly interested in the implications of the Tablighi Jamaat's proselytizing among Kyrgyz women for the wider multi-ethnic and poly-confessional Kyrgyzstani society. The study is based on observations, interviews with the veiled women and leaders of women jamaats (communities).

In his book, The Taliban Phenomenon, Kamal Matinuddin does not offer a central thesis regarding Afghan politics or the Taliban movement. Rather, he discusses a number of important questions pertaining to the Taliban movement. Since the rise of the Taliban, their identity has been disputed. The opponents of the Taliban claim that many members of the movement are natives of Pakistan. In contrast, the supporters of the Taliban assert that they are ethnic Afghans. Matinuddin's discussion of the origins of the Taliban addresses this controversy. According to Matinuddin, during the 1980s a large number of Islamic seminaries (d―in―i mad―aris) were established in Pakistan. The government of Pakistan and oil-rich Arab states paid for most of the expenses of these institutions. In 1997, about 220,000 students were enrolled in these seminaries. After the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, a large number of young Afghan refugees registered in these institutions. When the Taliban movement began, not only Afghan students (Taliban) of these seminaries joined the movement, but Pakistani Taliban from these institutions also joined their Afghan colleagues in their efforts to take control of Afghanistan. Thus, according to Matinuddin, the Taliban movement is an Afghan phenomenon, but occasionally Pakistani Taliban help their Afghan colleagues in the battlefield. However, Pakistani Taliban do not take orders from the government of Pakistan.

REVIEWS 785 tendency amongst Western analysts to underestimate the significance of the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan and a failure to address the prospective regional implications.This was not, though, a mistakethe statesin the region made. Despite the growing divergencesand conflictsbetween the post-Soviet CentralAsian states,which is brought out in an excellent chapter by Martha BrillOlcott, the risingIslamistthreatof the late I990S led to a closing of ranks behind their traditional protector, Russia. The two other major regional powers Iran and China -also joined the loose Russian-dominated coalition, a sort of secular version of the 'Holy Alliance', to combat the perceivedthreatsfromPakistaniand Saudi-supportedIslamicfundamentalism and international terrorism.By 2000, the missing link in the construction of an inclusive co-operative frameworkfor dealing with these threats was the absence of the United States and its allies, Pakistanand Saudi Arabia. The events of September i i finally provided the impetus for the US, and more reluctantlyPakistanand SaudiArabia,tojoin an anti-Talibancoalitionwhich had alreadybeen established. Despite failingto explore the possibilitiesof such a broad inclusive alliance being formed, the contributorsto Central AsiaSecurity,like those of US-Russian Relations, provide a good analysisof the securitysituationin the region in the late I99os. They also highlight the underlying tensions -weak distrustful states,deterioratingeconomies, resourcescarcities,regionalstrategiccompetition which remain close to the surface. September i I might temporarily have focused attention away from these issues, much as it has dampened the sources of conflict between the US and Russia. The key question is whether September iI has trulyopened a new chapterin US-Russian relationsand for the Central Asian region or whether the old problems and disputes, as well describedin these two books,will inevitablyre-emerge. Department ofPolitics R. DANNREUTHER University ofEdinburgh Muckle, James, and Morgan, John. W. (eds). Post-School Education and the Transition fromStateSocialism. Continuing Education Press, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, 2001. XXii + 2I6pp. Tables. Notes. Index. ?34.95. THEconsequences of the collapse of communism in Central-Eastern,Eastern and South-EasternEurope,oritsfar-reachingevolutiontowardsverydifferent models of socio-political and economic forms of organization in many formerly rigidly communist countries in other parts of the world, will for a long time yet attract the attention of different categories of scholars. Educationalexpertscannot fail to neglect the necessityfor a sharpanalysisof the repercussionsof thisprocessfor the aims,principlesof administrationand finance, the structure, contents and teaching/learning methods in the educational systemsof the countries concerned. Yet, that analysisis far from being an easytask.It is clearthatthe transitiontowardssomethingnew, which is very different from anything that had been going on before, follows a differentpath in each country,resultingfroma numberof influences,to which 786 SEER, 8o, 4, 2002 different, country-specificweights must be attached. In addition, education systems as such consist of various sectors, subject to diverse stimuli and incentives which render the analysis difficult. Under such circumstances examining one particularlevel of education at a time, without attempting a full geographicalcoverage of all the countriesinvolved in the processseems a very sensiblestrategy. The present volume concentrates on post-school education only, even though this in itself embraces higher education, vocational training and retraining as well as diverse forms of adult and continuing education. The freedom allowed by the editors for the contributorsto concentrate uponjust one formof post-school education, ratherthan dealingwith all of them makes, however, direct comparisons difficult.Covering only some countries (e.g. in Europe:Russia and Bulgaria,but not Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, or any of the Baltic Republics) does not allow for valid generalizations , applicable to all post-communist European states. Outside Europe, examining the paths to some kind of a new orderclearlymakesthe book very interesting. Particularlyso, because the different contributors, dealing with China, Tibet, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Mongolia and Cuba, are persons intimatelyfamiliarwith the most recent developments and undercurrentsnot easily detectable to the more detached outside observers of the rapidly changing scene in these countries. What happens in China under 'the tidal wave of marketization'is of great importance. This is examined in a rigorous way by David K. K. Chan, an Associate Professorin the Department of Applied Social Studies in the City University of Hong Kong. As he underlines, 'the ability to cope with the incentives to improve efficient use of resources, quality, efficiency and accountability have now become the...

This study aimed to explore the representation of Taliban in the editorials of two leading English newspapers of Pakistan. Through the content analysis technique, the slant of the contents was measured. The slant of the editorials was further categorized into three subcategories; favorable, unfavorable and neutral. For one year, a total number of 352 editorials were specified for the Taliban by Dawn and The Nation. Findings of the study revealed that the slant of both newspapers was mostly negative towards the Taliban. Most interestingly, the slant was noticed to be similar with the stance of the government of Pakistan concerning Taliban. The print media have conformed the Pakistan’s foreign policy about the Taliban as they are terrorists. Therefore, the outcomes of this study have supported the Media Conformity Theory in the context of Pakistan.

This research work attempts to investigate the militant groups’ activities against Pakistan after the re-emergence of the Afghan Taliban in Afghanistan. The core objective of this research is to highlight the security threats that have emerged as challenges to Pakistan, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Pakistan perceived that the Taliban coming into power would reduce terrorist threats to Pakistan. However, after the Taliban took power, Pakistan faced a new wave of militancy, with the TTP in particular becoming a major security concern. The research findings disclosed that the Taliban interim government in Afghanistan encouraged militant groups like the TTP, BLA and IS-K based in Afghanistan to engage in disruptive activities against Pakistan. A qualitative research approach was applied to this study, in which the primary data was collected through personal interviews and the secondary data was collected through published sources. A non-probability judgmental sampling technique through a semi-structured interview was conducted. Moreover, the study recommends that the threat to peace in Afghanistan persists and will have repercussions for Pakistan's stability in the future. However, if the Afghan Taliban interim government addresses the legitimate concerns of their neighbouring states, it can bring peace and stability to the region. Keywords: Afghan Taliban, TTP, BLA, IS-K, Terrorism and Militancy

The article contains the political positions and experiences of the ulemas of the Daru-l Deoband school, as well as a brief history of the institution. Daru-l Deoband, founded in 1866 as a madrasan in the Indian town of Deoband, is not only an educational institution that provides religious education, but is also considered a school of thought. The establishment of Daru-l Deoband was mainly spearheaded by ulemas in India and they also established the main principles of the madrasan. The second half of the 19th century was a politically difficult period for India. It was the beginning of the national liberation struggle of the Indian people against the colonial rule of the British. In such turbulent times, Deobandi scholars could not stay out of political processes. Along with the Hindu people, Muslim scholars also took an active part in the national liberation struggle and even led some uprisings. In the first half of the 20th century, there were two different views among the Deobandi scholars regarding the future of Indian Muslims: the first group wanted the Indian state to remain independent and intact, while the second group advocated the need to create a separate state for Muslims. The first group belonged to the Ulama of India and supported Mahatma Gandhi’s Non-Cooperation Movement. And the second group created the organization of Islamic scholars. As a result, the independent state of Pakistan was established in 1948. Deobandi scholars continued to influence the politics of Pakistan through various parties. Over time, two groups were formed based on the Deobandi idea. The first is the Tablighi Jamaat, the second is the Taliban movement. The first of these was engaged in religious missionary work, while the second had political ambitions. The article analyzes the political side of the Daru-l-Ulum Deoband school and focuses on the two organizations mentioned above.

The international trade in arms has an important economic dimension which this paper attempts to examine. After reviewing the evolution of demand and supply, the implications of the current market structure for price and revenue are examined. This suggests that, in purely commercial terms, the promotion of arms exports by a country is not a profitable proposition. Given this, we consider why governments in supplier countries have nonetheless heavily promoted arms exports. It appears that the initial momentum was provided by strategic and political objectives but that the growing dependence of particular interests on arms exports created a powerful economic lobby, despite the lack of commercial logic. In fact these economic pressures tend to undermine the political and strategic objectives. This contradictory relationship is examined by regression analysis of time-series for five countries. Although the estimates suffer severe limitations, a dynamic model suggests that a country's military expenditure has conflicting positive and negative effects on its arms exports.

The political history of Pakistan is divided into two phases: military regimes and political/civilian governments. The military ruled over Pakistan more than half and civilian governments remained in power less than half of its entire history. This paper studies and examines the function of the judiciary and effect of executive on independence of the superior courts during civilian governments in Pakistan from 1947 till 2009. Violation of judiciary independence of through executive are examined under several domains like its undue role in judicial appointments and removal; its undue influence during the case proceedings and decisions; the abuse of judicial proceedings due to political considerations.

The salient fact about Central Asia today is that independent statehood was neither coveted nor sought by the region's ruling Communist elites. It was thrust upon them when the Soviet Union broke up in 1991. Thus the region's rulers were suddenly compelled to fabricate a new identity for their five ethnically diverse states Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan and to contend for the first time with radically differing ideologies. A decade later, the same elites are in power. After a brief period of allowing some political freedom, they embarked on repressive campaigns to eliminate all forms of opposition, subverting democracy and elections almost as meticulously as the Soviets did and eliminating their political opponents through assassination, imprisonment, or exile. With the democratic and nationalist opposition effectively crushed, the survivors have moved underground and become armed and radicalized by Islamic fundamentalism, which seeks to overthrow the ruling elites, impose upon the region an imagined Islamic community of believers that has as its reference point seventh-century Arabia and the era of the Prophet Muhammad, and to restructure Central Asia through an antiWestern and anti-Russian crusade. Examining these insurgent groups will be the focus of this article. Every act of state repression has pushed these militants into adopting even more extreme positions, while the dearth of Islamic teachings during the 74 years of communism has created a new conundrum. The militants' philosophy is based not on the indigenous Islam of Central Asia, which was the birthplace of Sufism a tolerant, moderate form of Islamic mysticism or nineteenth-century Jadidism a modernist interpretation of Islam but on imported ideologies from the Taliban in Afghanistan, the militant madrassas (Islamic schools) of Pakistan, and the extreme Wahabbi doctrine of Saudi Arabia. Contrary to Central Asia's own history, jihad (holy war), rather than ijtihad (reinterpretation and consensus), has become the strategy of these groups to mobilize popular support. The civil war in Tajikistan (1992-97) was the first testing ground for the reinterpretation of Islam in Central Asia. Today, Islamic movements such as Hizb-ut-Tahrir al Islami and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan pose the greatest threats to the Central Asian regimes and stability in the region. Well armed and financed, highly motivated, and with extensive support from the wider world of Islamic radicalism and drug smuggling mafias based in Afghanistan, these are pan-Islamic and pan-Central Asian movements. The danger posed by Islamic radicalism in Central Asia is also rapidly changing the geostrategic picture as China, Russia, and the United States realign their regional strategies to meet this threat while the Taliban and Islamic groups in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, China, and Kashmir help fuel the process of radicalization.

Concentrated HIV epidemic in Pakistan: An opportunity to prevent generalized epidemic