Singapore’s religious law and common space: time for a review

The recent arrest of full time national serviceman Muhammad Fadil under Singapore's Internal Security Act is a reminder that extremist Islamist ideologies can be nurtured in any environment. The Ministry of Home Affairs states that twenty year old Fadil actively sought out jihadist websites, even going so far as to try to contact a radical Yemeni cleric.

Undoubtedly, Fadil's arrest is an isolated incident among Singapore's Muslim minority population. (Muslim's comprise approximately 14% of Singapore's total population.) Like most Muslims, Singaporean Muslims are more interested in improving their quality of life rather than waging jihad against the non-Muslims.

Yet, Fadil's detention raises interesting questions about Singapore's Muslim community; questions concerning integration, self-erected barriers and the role of Sharia in a modern civil society.

Historically, Singapore's Muslims have been synonymous with the Malay community. Given the sensitivities associated with Singapore's break from Malaysia, a 'light touch' approach was adopted. In essence, Malays were given a relatively free hand to regulate themselves, even being granted a parallel legal structure via the Administration of Muslim Law Act (AMLA) in 1968.

Through AMLA, Sharia courts were established to regulate aspects of personal and family law for Singapore's Malays. AMLA led to the establishment of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) as a statutory body to "advise the President of Singapore on all matters relating to Muslims in Singapore."

Among other tasks, MUIS regulates Singapore's religious teachers and sermons. Both are important roles to minimize the influence of extremist ideologies within Singapore.

So, Singapore did what all Muslim societies have done since the advent of Islam: it subordinated organized religion to the state, basically by making Islam an (autonomous) organ of the state. The Malay community became a 'millet' within the Singapore state, much like the Christian subjects of the Ottoman Empire.

That was 1968. Today's Singapore has developed a national identity distinct from its regional neighbours. Singaporean Muslims are no exceptions, they too have benefitted from the transformation of the city-state into a wealthy and cosmopolitan global city.

Along with the disappearance of the kampong, the kampong mindset is also no more. Singapore's national personality is visible in the younger generation of Malay and non-Malay Muslims.

Singapore's cosmopolitan and largely secular atmosphere colours the nature of national debate, including within the Muslim community. For example, in Singapore, serious deliberations surrounding 'khalwat' or banning Muslims from drinking alcohol are non-starters. More important are discussions about the role of religion in Singapore's 'common space,' homosexuality, or single mothers.

Today's Singaporean rightly views religion as a matter of personal conscience. In a uniquely Singaporean paradox, she is 'religion-blind' while yet being supersensitive to religion, say in dietary matters.

She regards increasing common space among different religions (or atheists) a necessary part of national social progress. Consequently, she wonders why Singapore, a modern nation state governed by civil law, regulates her personal freedoms through the imposition of Sharia.

Parallel religious legal frameworks eat into precious common space and potentially foster a communal identity, at the expense of a national Singaporean identity. Additionally, contentious issues relating to the interpretation of 'genuine' Islamic law will likely increase as Singapore's Muslim community becomes more diverse in character.

2010 Singapore is far removed from the Singapore of 1968. It is time the government establish an independent commission with broad terms of reference to evaluate the role of religiously inspired legislation within Singapore's primarily secular legal framework. A Sharia based legal system is an anachronism in modern Singapore.

As Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said, "Ours is a secular society. This allows us to treat all religions equally and no one religion is regarded by the state as superior to another."

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Imran is a business and management consultant. Through his work at Deodar Advisors, Imran improves the profitability of small and medium sized businesses. He can be reached at imran@deodaradvisors.com.

Muftis, Grand Mooftis, Malays, Bengalis and the Umayyad Caliphate

I confess to being an imposter. Singapore's genuine Mufti is Syed Isa Semait. He is tasked with leading Singapore's faithful into the next decade.

Me, I only have my blog with which to pontificate. And, I am grateful that you take the time from your busy schedule to read my posts!

The Mufti and the Islamic Religious Council (MUIS) of Singapore have all the instruments of the state at their disposal, including imposing the Official Secrets Act on emails when they disagree with the content.

It is unlikely you will find the texts of any Friday sermons here. That is, unless a hacker breaks through Google's extensive security measures surrounding my blog and posts a few as a practical joke.

I may not be a genuine Mufti, but any Grand Moofti worth his salt must share observations on some recent news items.

A few days ago MUIS made a call to Muslim community leaders to be 'inclusive' in their approach towards non-Malay Muslims. "We have encouraged local Muslims to contemplate this matter and avoid taking a fanatical, dogmatic or intolerant attitude towards differences within the Muslim community," said the MUIS President.

By contrast, the Straits Times carried an article a day earlier (December 17) entitled, "New, young leaders for Muslim professionals grouping." The text of the article refers substantively and exclusively to the Malay community. The word 'Muslim' is essentially dropped from the article, after its use in the title.

"But getting more young Malay professionals to serve the community is an uphill struggle because many do not feel committed to the community, observed Mr. Mohd Nizam [New Chairman of the Association of Muslim Professionals]."

It is difficult to expect non-Malays to feel a part of such a professional grouping. By the sound of it, the organization may just as well be named the Association of Malay Professionals.

Mosques, large or small, play a pivotal role in Muslim communities. The picture depicts a small mosque in Mubarak Village, Sindh, Pakistan

Recent press reports indicate that twenty percent of Singapore's Muslims are 'newcomers.' (I assume that means non-Malay.) Twenty percent is a significant minority. It cannot be wished away.

It will take time for the Singaporean Muslim community to come to terms with the changing demographics. It took the Arabs several centuries before they accepted non-Arab Muslims into the fold. In fact, the schism between Arab and non-Arab Muslims or mawali was a key factor in the downfall of the Umayyad Caliphate in the eighth century.

The admission by MUIS that there exists a plurality within Singaporean Islam is a welcome step forward.

Nevertheless, Singaporean lawmakers must demonstrate the intellectual courage to revisit the Administration of Muslim Law Act (AMLA). In the context of the dynamic, civil society which Singapore has developed in the last four decades, a 'one-size fits all' religiously inspired legislative act is an anachronism.

The boundaries of the Republic's secularism are broached by the Administration of Muslim Law Act

As an open and tolerant society, Singapore's Muslims do not need reminding of Surah 2, verse 256, "Let there be no compulsion in religion." Religion depends upon faith and will.

Religious practices induced by legal coercion are meaningless. (Yes, I have informed the Taliban about verse 2:256 but they don't seem to listen. In fact, they don't much care for the rest of my blog either.)

As for me, I want to be able to write a Will; and know whether I should turn to MUIS or the Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA) for help in case of need!