Political and Religious Authority in the Middle East

Presenter:
Bassma Kodmani— Senior Program Officer for Governance and International Cooperation, Ford Foundation Middle East Bureau and Visiting Scholar, Carnegie Endowment

Moderator:
Marina Ottaway— Senior Associate, Democracy and Rule of Law Project, Carnegie Endowment

Bassma Kodmani's presentation focused on the complex interplay between the power of the state and the power of religious authorities, as represented by Al Azhar University and Dar al Ifta, in Egypt. While Egyptians often call for reform and openly criticize the government, the government shows little interest in public opinion unless it threatens its vital interests. The government controls political space and limits access to it. Thus, political issues are diverted towards the cultural, economic, judicial, and social spheres, which the religious establishment increasingly dominates. Egypt's religious establishment is outwardly non-political. The government controls key appointments and is a major, although by no means the only, source of financial support. Nevertheless, the religious establishment is increasingly gaining the upper hand and is asserting control over a large number of issues with political implications. For example, most books are now submitted to religious authorities for approval prior to publication. For the moment, both the political and religious establishments remain content with the selective deference each shows the other, but the government is in an increasingly difficult position as it cedes more and more power to religious authorities.

While the government has been extremely fearful of Islamist parties participating in the political process, Kodmani argued that in fact the purportedly non-political Islam of the religious establishment is more dangerous. Referring to the democratic experience in Turkey and Iran, she called for an opening of political space to all political currents present within society. Currently, all political parties, including the NDP, feel they have to respond to the pressure of the religious establishment and incorporate, or at least tolerate, a brand of Islam that is often intolerant and chauvinistic. Allowing Islamist political parties to participate expands political discourse. In turn, this permits many, often more moderate variants of political Islam and other ideologies that are not found in current political discourse to participate.

Synopsis prepared by Geoffrey Swenson, Junior Fellow with the Democracy and Rule of Law Project at the Carnegie Endowment.