The State and Religion in Malaysia: Religious Conservatism and Muslim Women Activism

• In Event: 151. The State and Religious Actors in South Asia and Southeast Asia: Differing Motivations and Implications

Abstract

This paper examines the forms of interactions between the Malaysian state and different local Muslim religious actors (this includes the religious scholars; religious bureaucrats; Islamic civil society organizations and religious-based political parties) that have contributed to the rise in religious conservatism observed in Malaysian society. In doing so, the paper elucidates the differing motivations of each actor, and argues that the particular forms of religious conservatism expressed in Malaysian society today are not necessarily the intended objectives of all of the Muslim religious actors, but rather a consequence of the various actors’ cooperative and antagonistic approaches in dealing with the state. The paper looks at the dynamics of these interactions through the lens of Muslim women activism. Given that females account for approximately three out of four students in tertiary education institutes in Muslim-majority Malaysia today, women are important contributors in shaping the public discourse on pertinent socio-political issues in different segments of society. In particular, the paper analyzes responses by Muslim women civil society organizations of differing focus, i.e., the Islamic-oriented, progressive Muslim and secular-oriented, to recent socio-political issues that affect women in the context of rising religious conservatism – for instance, in the application of Shariah (Islamic) law; emphasis on religious dress codes for women; and conceptions of gender equality, roles and identity.

Author

• Saleena Saleem, Nanyang Technological University