Muslim Participation Research Articles

The Problem of Citizenship and the Question of Social Rights for Muslims in France

This study presents a definition of the problem of Muslim integration in the French public sphere, including the policy of discrimination between Muslim and non-Muslim citizens. It discusses a series of racist practices that have led to the suppression of the religious and social rights of Muslims in France. The study poses a general question: What is the situation of Muslims in France, and what is the nature of their citizenship in French? This question addressed in four sections covers: firstly, citizenship in the French manner; secondly, the dilemma of citizenship for Muslims in France; thirdly, the social status of the Muslim community in France; and finally, the arguments of the far-right against the social participation of Muslims. Using a descriptive approach, the study concludes that the citizenship of Muslims in France faces a real dilemma despite the widespread media propaganda about the fairness of French official policy towards the rights and social roles of Muslims.

Philanthropic Impact of Investing Via Waqf-Featured Unit Trust Funds: Determinant Factors Influencing the Participation in Waqf Unit Trust Funds in Malaysia

Purpose — Waqf unit trust funds are a form of value-based impact investing that combines financial investment with philanthropic goals through waqf (Islamic endowment). This study uses the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) to investigate the factors that influence people’s intentions to participate in waqf unit trust funds in Malaysia. Furthermore, the study investigates the function of religion as a moderator in predicting an individual’s intention to engage in waqf unit trust funds. Design/Methodology/Approach — Four hundred and four completed survey questionnaires have been obtained. Descriptive analysis and Partial Least Square–Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) are performed to analyse the data. Findings — The findings show that an individual’s intention to engage in waqf unit trust funds is influenced by attitude, subjective norms, perceived behaviour control, and moral norms. Furthermore, religiosity influences the relationship between moral norms and the intention to join in waqf unit trust funds. Research Implications and Limitations — Findings from this study which focuses on Muslims’ involvement in recently established waqf unit trust funds can be used by the waqf unit trust managers in Malaysia to develop appropriate marketing strategies in encouraging Muslim participation in waqf unit trust funds. Participation in waqf unit trusts is not limited to Muslims; hence, future studies can be conducted to cover a wider base of respondents among non-Muslims.

Digipreneurship as an Effort to Strengthen The Digitalization of The Islamic Economy in Indonesia

The digitization of the Islamic economy in Indonesia offers opportunities to strengthen economic growth based on Islamic principles. Through the development of sharia e-commerce platforms, technology-based financial services, and sharia-based fintech innovations, this digitization facilitates easier and faster access to Islamic products and services. This research uses three theoretical approaches: digital economy theory, entrepreneurship theory, and Islamic economic theory, with the aim of understanding the contribution and impact of digipreneurship in strengthening the digitalization of the Islamic economy in Indonesia and analyzing the principles of Islamic economics that can be applied in digital business. The research method used is qualitative with a descriptive content analysis approach and phenomenological design. The results highlight the importance of digipreneurship as an effort to strengthen the digitalization of the Islamic economy in Indonesia and integrate the principles of Islamic entrepreneurship into digital businesses. Digitalization of the Islamic economy through digipreneurship opens opportunities for Muslim participation in the digital market, encourages innovation, and promotes inclusive economic growth. The integration of Islamic values and principles into the digital economy is important in the digital era in Indonesia. Digipreneurship serves as a means to harness the potential of digital technology by upholding Islamic values, so that individuals and businesses can play an important role in advancing the digitalization of the Islamic economy, driving economic growth, and creating a prosperous future.

Does Service Innovation, Reputation Risk, and Word of Mouth Impact Customer Behavior in Choosing Islamic Banking? An Empirical Evidence in Indonesia

Indonesia is a country with the largest Muslim population in the world. However, since Islamic banks were established in Indonesia in about 20 years, the participation of Muslims in using Islamic banks is relatively low. The purpose of this study is to analyze and find out the impact of service innovation, reputation risk, and word of mouth on customer behavior in choosing Islamic banks as a place for financing, investing, and so on. The research method uses quantitative. with an experimental and survey approach. Probability sampling of 250 questionnaires distributed to customers throughout Indonesia. The research findings show that service innovation and reputation risk have good external validity to the culture of Indonesian society. The most interesting finding is that the word-of-mouth variable greatly increases customer intention and participation in choosing an Islamic bank. Therefore, this research recommends targeting community leaders or opinion leaders to explain Islamic banking to the whole community.

Behaviour determinants of two Muslims classes towards cash waqf for productive purposes: explanation from Indonesia

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the behaviour determinants towards cash waqf for productive purposes between two different classes of Muslims: the upper-middle class and the lower-middle class. Design/methodology/approach Under the Theory of Planned Behavior framework, this study modified previous literature to investigate the determinants of two Muslim classes’ behaviour towards cash waqf for productive purposes. A structural equation model was applied to test the hypothesis, and an in-depth interview was conducted to explain the findings further. Findings The behaviour of participating in cash waqf for productive purposes differs between the two Muslim segments. Upper-middle-class Muslims’ intentions will not necessarily consider subjective norms, even though they will consider religiosity as their deciding factor. Meanwhile, this study found different results on the influence of attitude, religiosity and subjective norms to intention in the lower-middle-income group. Other attributes such as perceived behaviour control, knowledge, trust and perceived benefits show positive and significant effects on the intention for both income classes of Muslims. Research limitations/implications The current findings may not accurately reflect ideal conditions due to the low level of waqf literacy and actual participation of Muslims in cash waqf for productive purposes. Researchers can conduct further studies based on other criteria, such as gender, age, education level or area of residence, using experimental or simulation methods to complement the research. Practical implications This study’s findings can support policymakers and related waqf stakeholders to set strategies for cash waqf literacy and participation by providing more detailed information about the differences in Muslims characteristics based on the income classes. Originality/value This study specifically modifies the behavioural framework to investigate differences in the behaviour of two classes of Muslims towards their participation in cash waqf for productive purposes in Indonesia.

Hajj as an Element of Spatial Mobility of the Muslim Population of Siberia in the Context of the State‑Confessional Policy of the Russian Empire in the Second Half of the 19th to Early 20th Centuries

Hajj represents one of the most significant events in the life of the Muslim community. In the Russian Empire where Islam had become the second largest denomination in terms of the followers by the beginning of the 20th century, the Hajj transitioned from being a purely religious phenomenon to acquiring a certain political significance too. It was through this pilgrimage that Russian citizens professing Islam established relationships with their coreligionists from abroad.
 The aim of this study is to trace the degree of participation of Siberian Muslims in this process during the second half of the 19th to early 20th centuries and to assess their ability to perform the Hajj. Relying on archival materials, the authors demonstrate the importance of the process of organizing the Hajj and the participation of Muslims from the Russian Empire. The research revealed that Siberian Muslims were relatively minimally involved in the Hajj for several reasons. Firstly, a portion of the Muslims in Siberia had the status of exiles, which limited their movement both abroad and within the country. Secondly, the remoteness of the territory from the main sanitary checkpoints also discouraged potential pilgrims. In light of these circumstances, a phenomenon known as the “small hajj,” i.e., visiting holy places in Central Asia, became common among Siberian Muslims. The administrative challenges associated with performing the Hajj led many Muslims from various regions of the Russian Empire, including Siberia, to partake in pilgrimages illegally.
 This article may be of interest to religious scholars, historians, ethnographers, as well as a broad readership interested in the issues of state-confessional policy in the Russian Empire.

Cash Waqf Behavior: Explaining Financial Consciousness and The Moderating Role of Religiosity

The role of cash waqf in empowering the economy of Muslims needs to be continuously improved. This study assesses individuals’ behavior towards cash waqf from a behavioral finance perspective by proposing four elements of financial consciousness: financial locus of control, financial capability, financial willingness, and financial sophistication in encouraging cash waqf behavior. This study also investigates the moderating role of religiosity as a Muslim-specific internal factor. Data was collected from a questionnaire of 337 Muslim government employees in the Ministry of Religious Affairs of Indonesia. The Partial Least Square was used to analyze the data. The findings show that financial locus of control, financial capability, financial willingness, financial sophistication, and religiosity have a significant positive influence on individual behavior towards cash waqf. The findings also suggest that religiosity moderates the financial locus of control, as well as financial sophistication, on cash waqf. This implies that initiatives to increase Muslim participation in cash waqf should be embedded in behavioral finance patterns through a combination of financial consciousness and religiosity.

Perception of justice, citizens’ trust and participation in a democratic Islamic society

Justice has a high status in Islamic societies, and as one of the most important human ideals, has long been the focus of thinkers and researchers. In fact, when the citizens do not understand the presence of justice in the behaviour of the officials of their society, their trust in the current procedures, and consequently the public participation will be affected. Considering the importance of the subject, the present study has been conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of perception of justice on citizens’ trust and participation in the creation of a democratic Islamic society. The statistical population of this research included 3578 Indonesian Muslim citizens in 2022, and the research questionnaires were distributed among them. Data analyses were done using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Linear Structural Relations (LISREL) statistical software. The results of statistical analyses indicated that the perception of Islamic justice does not have a significant effect on the participation of Muslims in creating a democratic Islamic society. In addition, the perception of Islamic justice has a positive effect on the trust in officials of the Islamic society. Moreover, trust in the officials of the Islamic society positively affects the citizens’ participation in creating a democratic Islamic society.Contribution: According to the results of this research, it is necessary for the officials of the Islamic society to use all their efforts in creating a justice-oriented Islamic society in order to create trust among the citizens, and to involve Muslims in development decisions and to establish democratic Islamic society.

The Life of Imam Abi Zara'a: the Iraqi Kurd Imam and his Scientific Efforts

The research came as an answer to many of the questions that came to mind, before uttering and responding to them with the tongue, and to prove the participation of Kurdish Muslims and that they are not less than others in constructing and protecting the structure of Islam, and understanding its teachings and knowledge of it. Therefore they had established and participated in building Islamic thought and its civilization with others, away from the alien ethnic national sense, by showing and raising its banner in scientific forums and its fields, as they raised it in the arenas of jihad and protecting its nucleus, and their scientific councils were full, in addition to their participation in the fields of investigation, authorship, commentary and footnotes, in various types of knowledge, in parallel lines with their worship and teaching in mosques and schools, Along with their involvement in the soldiers' companies and brigades, and their link in the front.

Peran Majelis Agama Islam Thailand dalam Penerbitan Sertifikat Halal Food di Thailand

This study aims to determine the role of the Thai Islamic Religious Council in the Process of Giving Halal Certificates to Food and Beverage Products and the obstacles faced in the process of granting halal certificates. This research is a type of field research with a descriptive qualitative approach. The data obtained are in the form of primary data sources and secondary data. Data collection techniques using interviews, observation, and documentation. The data collected will be analyzed qualitatively using a qualitative descriptive method. The results showed that the role of the Thai Islamic Religious Council in the Process of Giving Halal Certificates to Food and Beverage Products, had complied with the provisions of the Thai Islamic Religious Council or MAIT. MAIT is an institution in fostering the participation of Muslims in Thailand. The Thai Islamic Religious Council in determining the standardization of halal food products by checking the company's location, logo and halal certificate in Thailand, making stamps on halal food products in Thailand.

Muslims among the modern Cossacks

The article is devoted to the role of Muslim Cossacks at the present stage of the Russian Cossacks development. The issue is debatable and has not ever been discussed by domestic and foreign researchers. Following the succession from the Cossack troops of pre-revolutionary Russia, the Muslim Cossacks are active participants in the so-called Revival, characterized by creating Cossack farms, military formations and etc. The Russian Federation state policy towards the Russian Cossacks considers the possibilities of their incorporation into military Cossack Societies and concedes forming large public associations of Cossacks. An important component of the policy is the participation of Muslims in the confl ict in the Donbass, which takes place on the historical lands of the Don Army Region. The work is based on journalistic materials and research papers from online publications. As a result of the analysis, it was possible to determine the actual aspects of studying the factor of Islam in the Russian Cossacks, which has not only historical foundations, but also modern practical directions.

New India, Hindutva Constitutionalism, and Muslim Political Attitudes

This article explores Muslim political attitudes in contemporary India. It contextualizes the political responses of Muslim communities in the backdrop of two crucial legal-constitutional changes introduced by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government: the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution and the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019. These changes, I suggest, stem from the official doctrine of New India and its operative mechanism, Hindutva constitutionalism. Analysing the nature of Muslim participation in the anti-CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) protests and Muslim electoral responses in two subsequent elections (Delhi Assembly Election, 2020 and the Bihar Assembly Election, 2020), I argue that political engagement of Muslims could be interpreted as an ever-evolving discourse, which not merely responds to Hindutva politics but also asserts its relative autonomy.

The role of religion in female labor supply: evidence from two Muslim denominations

AbstractThis paper investigates the association between religion and female labor market outcomes using new micro-level data on two distinct Muslim denominations in Turkey: Sunni and Alevi Muslims. We find a positive and significant association between being an Alevi Muslim and female labor force participation and employment, whereas there are no significant differences in male labor market outcomes between the two denominations. We provide evidence that Alevi Muslims have more gender-equal views regarding the role of women in the labor market and consider themselves as more modern. Both Sunnis and Alevis consider themselves as believers in religion (Islam). However, Sunnis are more likely to abide by the rules of religion. We argue that differences in views on gender roles and self-identity regarding modernity between the two denominations drive the results on female labor market outcomes.

Partisipasi Politik dalam Pemerintahan Non Muslim Perspektif Yusuf Qardawi

This study aims to reveal the thoughts of Yususf Qordawi about Muslim political participation in non-Muslim governments. Data obtained from the main source in the form of the book ghoiru Muslim fi al-mujtama 'al Islami (non-Muslim minority in the Islamic society). Then the data were analyzed using the content analysis method. The results showed that the existence of a Muslim must be carried out within the framework of the state and society life order as an implementation of obedience to the leader. This thought is based on the interpretation of fundamental Islamic values in the sentence rahmatan lil 'alamin, in every case it must be placed in a balanced place and in accordance with the rules or laws that apply in the region. So Muslim participation in non-Muslim governments is allowed.

Non-Institutional Forms of Political Participation of Muslim Youth in Modern Scotland

The article examines the main forms and socio-cultural features of the participation of Muslim youth in Scotland in non-institutional politics. As their research goal, the authors chose to identify the mechanisms through which political processes specific to the Scottish context (different from the general British or, for example, the English context) generate various forms of political participation of young adherents of Islam. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study was a significant layer of empirical data (mainly Scottish), comprehended through an interpretive paradigm, which allowed the authors to analyze the non-institutionalized political experience of young Muslims, finding patterns in how Muslim youth perceive and construct the social world around them. The result of the study was an understanding that the strengthening of the “Islamic factor” in the social and political life of Scotland is explained not only by the growth of the Muslim population, but also by the obvious support that the Scottish authorities provide to adherents of Islam. According to the authors, the issue of national and state independence, the specificity of Scottish nationalism, the attractiveness of the political platform of the Scottish National Party for ethno-confessional minorities became the most important primary factors that predetermined the active entry of Scottish Muslim youth into politics. The main conclusion in this article was the idea that the specific socio-political and sociocultural contexts of Scotland create appropriate forms of political participation of young Muslims. Despite the prevailing opinion that Scottish Muslim youth are interested mainly in international events, the authors show a clearly traceable institutional and non-institutional involvement of young Muslims in national and local political issues in Scotland. According to the authors, the non-institutional political participation of young Scottish followers of Islam is manifested in such forms as social movements, activism and charity, and volunteer work.

Locating Muslim Cinema(s)

The four essays collected here raise a series of questions that unsettle and reconfigure some of the most persistent boundaries in studies of world cinema. In “Hollywood’s Bad Muslims: Misrepresentations and the Channeling of Racial Violence,” Imed Ben Labidi highlights the potential pitfalls of such an attempted mapping, focusing on Hollywood’s essentialized and essentializing portrayal of Muslims and Arabs. Conversely, while remaining within the confines of a small national industry, in “The Poetics of Tajik Cinema,” Sharofat Arabova transcends the implicit distortions of schematic periodization, tracing evolving traditions of film poetics across the major historical transformations of the Soviet and sovereign periods. Similarly, while feminist theory has been at the core of film studies since its inception, the two pieces in this collection complicate understandings of the construction of gender in Muslim cinemas. Sitara Thobani’s “Locating the Tawa’if Courtesan–Dancer: Cinematic Constructions of Religion and Nation” resists the impulse to understand tawa’if solely in terms of gendered spectacle, instead exploring the less examined question of this figure’s Muslim identity. In the final piece, “Defa’-e Moghaddas (The Sacred Defense), Hamdeli va Mehrvarzi (Camaraderie and Love from Knowing the Other), and the Making of Social Cinema in Post-Revolutionary Islamic Iran,” Fakhri Haghani contrasts the front-line masculinist cinema of the Iranian “sacred defense” with social dramas that reveal undertheorized gender dynamics of sacrifice and justice. Each of these pieces, then, invigorates core questions within the field of religion and popular culture by positing Muslim cinema as a point of intersection at which Muslim participation in the creation and viewing of film may productively be explored, while simultaneously offering a broader, more universal alternative perspective by attending to cinema′s functions in the quotidian lives of members of religious communities.

Hijab in the water! Muslim women and participation in aquatic leisure activities in New Zealand: an intersectional approach

ABSTRACT Academic and policy research point to the low participation rate of Muslim women in leisure and physical activities in several Western nations and often linked the issue to their gendered subordination to patriarchal Islamic guidelines. Drawing on 20 semi-structured interviews, online observation and self-directed photography, I challenge this view that Muslim women constitute a homogenous group who withdraw from leisure and sports merely because of religious and gender obligations. This paper aims to explore the ways Muslim women take to (non) participation in aquatic leisure activities (ALA) at the crossroads of their religious, gender, migrant and cultural identities with wider relations of power. Employing cultural geographers’ reading of ’intersectionality’, this study points to the diverse ways that Muslim women negotiate their multiple identities and the intersecting structures that shape their ALA. This article contributes to further an understanding of religious and cultural diversities among Muslim women. Muslim women’s leisure participation as spatial processes constructed through entanglements of religion and gender, with several social identifications including, cultural and migrant identities. The results show that Muslim women’s ALA are informed by intersecting power relations operating across different, yet interconnected, scales of Muslim women’s bodies, their community, families and wider society.

Gender Equity In Hadith Literature: An Analysis Of The Contemporary Hadith Curriculum Of Madrasah Aliyah In Indonesia

This paper stimulated by the fact that Muslim women participation in education in Indonesia is still lower than in neighbouring countries. This condition has been influenced by the weak support of Hadith Curriculum of Madrasah Aliyah toward gender equity. This condition has been miss understood by some scholars that Hadith does not support gender equity. The aims of this paper are to give a clear picture of gender equity in Hadith literature and analyse the content of Hadith Curriculum of Madrasah Aliyah in Indonesia in relation to gender equity support. Data were gained through Hadith literature and Hadith Curriculum of Madrasah Aliyah Year 2013. This study revealed that Hadith strongly support gender equity in all spects of life achieved as in economic, social, and political aspects. In addition, Hadith Curriculum of Madrasah Aliyah does not strongly support the emergence of strong and positive thinking toward gender equity among the students of Madrasah Aliyah who most of them then becoming religious leaders in Indonesian society. The implication of this finding requires us to make changes in the content structure of the Curriculum of Hadith for Madrasah Aliyah in Indonesia.

“There is no harm in it”: Muslim Participation in Levantine Christian Religious Festivals (750–1000)

ABSTRACT This article explores early Muslim participation in local and large Christian festivals through the lens of two discussions within a tenth-century legal responsa, the Ahl al-milal. The local festivals of Job at Dayr Ayyūb and the Epiphany at Ṭūr Tabūr, as well as the larger festivals of Palm Sunday, Holy Fire and Easter, provide evidence of shared attendance at festivals in the ʿAbbāsid period (750–1000). Islamic, and some Christian, legal, literary and geographical literature presents these events as Christian celebrations with shared narratives of venerated figures, which involved both practical and enjoyable aspects. Although the sharing of these celebrations was a common factor, there was a diversity in local practices. A trend developed amongst Muslim attendees to limit their participation to the market and activities outside the church building in some areas of the Levant, but not in Jerusalem. This seems to have occurred spontaneously in some areas and was not specifically due to a ruling by a jurist.

The Difficulties of Italian Muslim Political Mobilization: Anti-Muslim Sentiment and Internal Fragmentation

This paper focuses on the political participation and mobilization of Muslims in Italy, an understudied topic. A few existing studies outline that Italian Muslim involvement in the political process has been quite low on both the local and national levels. However, along with the notable recent growth of the Muslim population in Italy, a certain evolution of political mobilization has occurred as well. This paper will analyze how Italian Muslim political participation, both through non-electoral and electoral channels, has evolved through time. It will question what are the key issues and challenges for participation; and to what extent homeland politics and foreign policy events have affected political mobilization. It will argue that even though some limited evolution of political mobilization has occurred in recent year, the Italian Muslim political participation and impact both remain rather limited due to the strong anti-Muslim sentiment in Italy, as well as due to internal fragmentation of Muslim communities.