The Muslim Brotherhood

ISLAMIC MOVEMENT AND DOMINANT IDEOLOGICAL TRENDS IN EGYPT: A CASE STUDY OF MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF Doctor of Philosophy IN WEST ASIAN STUDIES (POLITICAL SCIENCE) BY AFSAHN UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF DR. MOHAMMAD GULREZ PROFESSOR Maulana Azad Library, Aligarh Muslim University DEPARTMENT OF WEST ASIAN STUDIES & NORTH AFRICAN STUDIES ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY ALIGARH (U.P.)-202002 (INDIA) 2016 DEPARTMENT OF WEST ASIAN STUDIES & NORTH AFRICAN STUDIES ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY, ALIGARH-202002(U.P) India Date: Certificate This is to certify that the Ph.D. thesis entitled “Islamic Movement and Dominant Ideological Trends in Egypt: A Case Study of Muslim Brotherhood” submitted by Ms. Afshan under my supervision is his own original contribution and suitable for submission for the award of the degree of Ph.D. It is further certified that Ms. Afshan has been engaged in fulltime research and that he has put in required attendance as prescribed by the University. (Dr. Mohammad Gulrez) (Dr. Mohammad Gulrez) Maulana SupervisorAzad Library, Aligarh MuslimChairman University i PREFACE & ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The purpose of this study on “Islamic Movement and Dominant Ideological Trends in Egypt: A Case Study of Muslim Brotherhood” is not to give a modern history and contemporary trends of all kinds of thought expressed by the Egyptian scholars since the second half of the nineteenth century. The emphasis however is on the ideological trends about politics and society within a certain context. This thought process was influenced by the growth of European and the Islamic resurgence movements calling for radical social reforms and for changes in the system of government. These movements are characterized by a strong religious component. Their call for reforms were couched in the Muslim idiom - i.e., in demands for social justice (adala) and the satisfaction of man’s basic necessities and were accompanied by demands for a return to an Islamic form of government, one that is ruled by the Sharia. This nomenclature covers a multitude of organizations with different principles and slogans, but all have one common denominator - their reformist appeal derives from religious belief and were asserted to be found in Muslim principles. This study, in this context intends to elaborate discussion of the political ideas as developed in the context of the institution building in Egypt by the respective contemporary political leaders of the state; Nasser, Sadat and Mubarak. Under Nasser, this ideology was seen as revolutionary nationalism, but thereafter, the ideology of the 1952 revolution was gradually replaced by a new conservative consensus that reflected the interests of an establishment with no interest in further radical change. Sadat pioneered this ideological transformation in the October Working Paper, which outlined his view of Egypt’s new course after the October 1973 War, through a ‘de-Nasserisation’ propaganda campaign; and by subsequent efforts to revive the legitimacy of capitalism and to justify his Western alignment. Sadat also sought to root legitimacy in constitutionalism and democracy. Maulana Azad Library, Aligarh Muslim University Under Mubarak, however, democratization became the main legitimacy formula. Nevertheless, it was limited. The masses were held not to be prepared for full- blown democracy, lacking sufficient responsibility and consciousness, they were susceptible to ‘alien’ (leftist) or ‘Islamist’ ideas. Strong presidential tutelage, the careful ii channeling of political discourse through regime-managed institutions, and limits on overt attempts to incite the masses was needed for the sake of social peace. By the Mubarak era, this new conservative consensus seemed to bind the elite, affecting ideological divisions. Hence, in the current research the focus is placed on Islamic movements, in particular on the ideological, organizational and operational character of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and other dominant ideological trends generally bowed and controlled by the Egyptian elite with a view to examine the genesis of the contemporary state system in the context of changing dimension of state-society relations. In doing so, the current research aims to provide an analysis of the evolution and growth of the Muslim Brotherhood, completed from a perspective that was inspired by five distinct areas, leading to significant conclusion about the overall phenomenon of the Islamic movement and dominant ideological trends in Egypt. The areas chosen have been put in a logical order so as to the central thesis of the study. The First Chapter: ‘Intellectual influence & Islamic ideologue in Egypt,’ is an attempt to find out and analyse the intellectual influence of the Islamic ideologues in Egypt in the context of growing Western influence & culture. In the light of existing theoretical debates, an attempt has also been made to find out the difference between the political ideas imbibed in liberal western political thought and the Islamic political ethos. In the context of Egypt, two theoretically important arguments emerged. The first believed in revival the Islamic ideology that guides society as a whole and that (teaches) the law must be in conformity with the Islamic Sharia. These ideologues seek cultural differentiation from the West and reconnection with the pre-colonial symbolic universe. The second are those moderate and reformist Islamic ideologues who accept and work within the democratic process and Western culture and have been making an attempts Maulanato reconcile Azad Western Library,and Islamic political Aligarh ideas. Eventually, Muslim both terms yieldedUniversity to Islam, the name of the faith and a world free to either pejorative or comparative association. The overall aim of applying this combination of theories is to reveal the growing influence of Islamic ideologues, their theories and other related issues, as a guiding principle for the governance and state building. iii The Second Chapter: ‘The Muslim Brotherhood: An Introduction,’ examines the emergence and growth of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt from the 1930s. It begins by outlining and empirically evaluating possible explanations for the organization’s growth based on (1) theories of political Islam and (2) the concept of political structure in the social movement theory. The successful mobilization of the Muslim Brotherhood was possible because of the way in which its Islamic message was tied to its organizational structure, activities, and strategies connected in the everyday lives of Egyptians. The analysis suggests that ideas are integrated into social movements in more ways than the concept of framing allows. It will help in expanding our understanding as to how the organization can stay in a highly repressive environment. The Third Chapter: ‘Political Development in Egypt: Nasser and the Muslim Brotherhood,’ systematically elaborates on the growth of the Muslim Brotherhood vis- a-vis characteristics of the nation state system in Egypt in the context of the existing socio-economic, socio-political and social-cultural conditions. These conditions are manifested in the inter-related and multifaceted crisis of political development, inequality and identity over the century and produced oppression and dependency in their wake. It is thus concluded that this ruin of religious activism lies in the failure of the political system to address & to focus on these intractable issues - indeed, minimally, to safeguard the Egyptian community from exploitation in various forms. The Fourth Chapter: ‘Islamic Brotherhood & contemporary Islamic Movements under Sadat,’ focuses on the cultural, social and political system in Egypt in particular time and space. Egypt’s national economic policy of the Nasser (1952-70) was systematically abandoned by Sadat’s Infitah as soon as he consolidated his political power. It is in this context that this chapter examines how Sadat, encouraged the Islamists in order to counter-balance secular opposition from Nasserist, Marxist, and the nationalist circles. By doing so, Sadat strengthened political Islam in Egypt, releasing Maulanahundreds Azad of members Library, of the organization Aligarh and other politicalMuslim prisoners. University It was mainly during his presidency of Anwar al-Sadat that many contemporary Islamic movement along with the Muslim Brotherhood re-emerged, paying way to proficiently organize their programmes within the civic spheres. The Fifth Chapter: ‘Governance and Political Order in Egypt under Hosni iv Mubarak,’ aspires to understand that the area of concern under study is about the nature of governance in Egypt. Islamist movements seek to shift Egypt’s political culture toward an Islamic solution. Other segments within the population seek a greater voice in the affairs of state through democratization for Egypt’s political future. The ruling elites of Egypt’s multiparty autocracy seek to retain their own power and wealth in spite of the interests of these groups. It is in this framework, the study attempt to reveal that Egypt is still in the midst of a comprehensive crisis and which has led to a confusion about its very identity, future choices and destiny. Its poor achievement in the economic and social field forces Egypt to reflect on the causes of protracted failure and accordingly on the nature of the society that it aspires to create. The Last & Concluding Chapter: ‘Egypt at the Cross Roads,’ focuses the relationship between the state and society in Egypt. This

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