Which Islam? Whose Shariah? Islamisation and citizen recognition in contemporary Indonesia

Abstract

ABSTRACT Since Indonesia’s return to electoral democracy in 1998–1999, analysts have spoken of the deepening ‘Islamisation’ of politics, public culture, and personal life in this Southeast Asian nation. Just what these trends entail for citizenship and social recognition, as well as the varied meanings of ‘Islamisation’ itself, are the questions at the heart of this article. The article begins by sketching a theoretical framework for how to understand the forms and meanings of Islamisation. The approach emphasises that Islamisation is always socially contingent, epistemologically heterogeneous, and varied in its impact on citizenship and social recognition. The article then reviews trends in Islamisation and public ethics in modern Indonesia, devoting primary attention to developments since 1998. It emphasises that Islamisation’s long term implications for citizenship and public recognition will depend on which variety of Islamisation achieves political and public-ethical hegemony. It also emphasises, however, that the Islamisation projects currently underway in Indonesia have already had profound effects on gender practices and ethnoreligious relations. The article ends by highlighting the political and moral complexity of Islamisation in Reformasi Indonesia by comparing several rival Islamisation projects, each with different implications for politics, citizenship, gender, and the practice of Islam.