Defining Religion Based States in West Asia

Rushda Siddiqui

India Quarterly: A Journal of International Affairs, 2011, vol. 67, issue 4, 341-353

Abstract: As speculation grows about the possibility of a turbulent Egypt, Libya, Tunisia or even Algeria drifting from demanding democracy and political liberalism to establishing an Islamic state, this article, by attempting to define religion based states would want to form a background to the speculations. The author would like to point out that the coming power by a political party with a religious affiliation would not make the states into Islamic States. As a matter of fact, given the kind of external and internal forces at play in West Asia and North Africa, it would not be possible for any country to redefine the basis of its identity, let alone transform itself into a theocratic state in classical parlance. With the close of the Second World War and the establishment of nation–states in the new world order, two deviant states were created from Asia. Israel and Pakistan were created taking religion, instead of geography or history of the land or ethnicity or race or existing socio-political structures, for the foundational basis of their identity. It heralded a new era for history. These states were going to be yardsticks for later day religion based socio-political movements. If these movements were going to gain power, they would need to conform to the newly set patterns for religion based states. Re-creating a theocratic state based on classical historical lines, is no longer an option.

Keywords: Greater Middle East Initiative (GMEI); religion based states; territory; fundamentalists (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:indqtr:v:67:y:2011:i:4:p:341-353

DOI: 10.1177/097492841106700404

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