Islam in Indonesian Politics and Foreign Policy : Selected cases from Southeast Asia

Ahmad Nizar, Yaakub (2023) Islam in Indonesian Politics and Foreign Policy : Selected cases from Southeast Asia. In: Does Democracy have a Future? Selected Cases from Southeast Asia. UNIMAS Publisher, Kota Samarahan, pp. 91-110. ISBN 978-967-0054-34-6

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Abstract

This chapter begins with constructivist theories of Alexander Wendt and Stephen Walt that religion is an ideational construct which is often left out from the discussions by leading theories as a factor in explaining developments in politics and international relations. The author stresses that religion has a role to play in a state domestic politics and that sometimes extends influence in foreign policy and how a state reacts to the global issues. Indonesia which has the largest Muslim population in the world cannot avoid the factor of religion in discussing its domestic politics, foreign policy and its reaction to the plight of the Muslim world and other global affairs. This chapter argued that Islam did not feature prominently during Sukarno’s presidency and as well as in the first two decades of the Suharto’s New Order. However, Islam began to emerge as a growing force to a varying degree on the Indonesian political scene and somewhat influenced its foreign policy in the last decade of the Suharto’s New Order regime and the Reformasi (Reformation) era. The concern on Islamic identity among Indonesians, an increasing number of formal and informal Islamic political parties, the elevation of Islamic leaders like Abdurrahman Wahid as President and later Hamzah Haz as Vice President and the introduction of a Syariah law in Aceh showed the growing importance of Islam in Indonesian politics. Subsequent Indonesian leaders later on consolidate their political powers by attracting support from the formal and informal Islamic parties. At the same time, Indonesia’s involvement in D8 and Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), its concern on Bosnia, Palestine and the fight against domestic and global terrorism to some extent showed that Islam began to frame the issues and approaches in Indonesia’s foreign policy.

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