Book Talk: Islam and Citizenship in Indonesia: Democracy and the Quest for an Inclusive Public Ethics
The Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs (CURA), The Center of the Study of Asia, and the Department of Anthropology invite you to join us for a book talk — moderated by Andrew March (UMass Amherst) — on Robert Hefner’s (BU) recently published monograph Islam and Citizenship in Indonesia: Democracy and the Quest for an Inclusive Public Ethics. See below for book abstract and to register for the event.
BOOK ABSTRACT:
With some 280 million citizens, Indonesia is the most populous Muslim-majority country in the world. It is also the third largest democracy. After 32 years of authoritarian rule under Suharto’s New Order regime, in 1998 this sprawling Southeast Asian country returned to electoral democracy; it remains among the most stable constitutional democracies in the Muslim majority world today. Indonesia’s successful return to electoral democracy stands in striking contrast to the failure of similar reform initiatives in most Arab-spring lands.
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Against this complex backdrop, my talk builds on my book to examine the Indonesian example in an effort to explore the lessons it offers on the conditions facilitating and/or undermining democracy and inclusive citizenship in modern political settings, Muslim-majority as well as non-Muslim. I examine both the achievements and challenges of Islam, democracy, and citizenship in this vast country.. The study highlights the way in which Muslim understandings of Islamic traditions and ethics have co-evolved – sometimes synergistically, other times in tension — with the understanding and practice of democracy and multireligious citizenship.