, The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Fri, 09/21/2007 3:04 PM | Opinion
Michael Vatikiotis, Singapore
The sight of several hundred of saffron-robed Buddhist monks marching in protest through the streets of the Myanmar capital Yangon, their hands clasped in prayer, is a strong reminder of the significant role that religion plays in the politics of Asia.
It may be too early to tell whether the fledgling alliance of monks, many of them students in saffron robes, will prove strong enough to topple the country's military regime, but many observers recall that the popular revolt that forced Burmese strongman Ne Win to step down in 1988 was also spearheaded by the country's influential Budhhist clergy.
Religion in Asia is a powerful leveler in unequal societies. Few popular movements for freedom and democracy in the region have taken off without strong support, if not inspiration, from religious quarters. The earliest movements for independence in Burma (now Myanmar) as well as Indonesia, drew inspiration from religious organizations. In modern Indonesia, Islamic scholars and thinkers like Abdurrahman Wahid and Nurcholis Madjid spearheaded the fledgling democracy movement of the 1990s, and Wahid eventually became President.
Elsewhere in the region, the link between struggles for freedom and religion is less overt but present nonetheless. In the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo rode to power in 2000 on the back of a mass movement that consciously tapped support from the Catholic Church. In Hong Kong, the pro-democracy movement that mobilized hundreds of thousands of people to march down the busy streets of the territory in 2002 and 2003 took inspiration from the Catholic Church, which is strong in the territory.
The religious tinting of popular protests against authoritarian rule has helped keep many of them non-violent and reduced levels of conflict. Political change in Asia has been accompanied by short bursts of violence, but all out civil war is rare.
Yet, to the Western mind, religion and politics should not be mixed. The dominant Catholic Church of Europe keeps a tight rein on its clergy and followers through the Vatican to maintain the strong division between church and state embedded in European political culture. The Western mind is also affected by a long history of conflict with the Muslim world, which makes it hard to imagine the Muslim faith as a liberating force.
Terrorist attacks by Islamic militants over the past decade or longer, have entrenched the view that the militants who carry out these attacks are bent on curbing freedom and undermining democracy. The irony of course is that it is precisely the quest for freedom in Muslim society that breeds Islamic militancy. Al Qaeda itself was a combined product of fierce opposition to a feudal Saudi regime and an active role in liberating Afghanistan from Soviet occupation.
But the reality in Asia is that mainstream religion and liberation politics form a highly combustible compound. Despite the focus on a few irrational extremists in Indonesia and understandable fear of violence, the majority of Muslim activists engage in politics in the name of populism.
Their agenda is usually based on the idealistic premise that an Islamic way of life promotes freedom and justice. In a country where politicians and officials are popularly perceived as selfish and corrupt, this is a powerful message and one that forces secular politicians to temper their behavior and adjust their programs or lose at the ballot box.
There is of course a limit to political movements mobilized by religious faith. East Asia has proved more resistant to theocracy than many parts of Western Asia like Iran and Pakistan. Despite the important role of Islam in Indonesian political life, the constitution guarantees freedom of religious faith and several attempts to nudge the country towards conservative Sharia Law have been voted down.
The Buddhist kingdoms of Thailand and Cambodia maintain a healthy balance between ""church"" and ""state"", and even in Myanmar today the Buddhist hierarchy has yet to declare its support for the protests spearheaded by younger monks, many of them students.
The role of religion in Asian politics will only be further marginalized once political pluralism is more firmly established in the region. This is why the agenda for political reform must go way beyond simply ensuring free elections.
For now, democratic politics in many countries of the region represents a marginal adjustment by vested interest groups who continue to trample on the rights of ordinary citizens and hide behind flimsy policies and manipulated mandates.
There is an urgent need in Indonesia's fledgling democracy, for instance to build on the progress of the past decade by encouraging political parties to develop equitable policy platforms and ideologies instead of dressing up old traditions of patronage in democratic garb. The same goes for the Philippines and Thailand, where democracy at street level seems an elusive dream and explains why ordinary people still place an inordinate amount of faith in stone amulets and pray for miracles. Many of them would surely support the marching monks of Myanmar.
The writer is Regional Director of the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue based in Singapore.
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