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Muslim Democracy explores the relationship between politics and
religion in forty-seven Muslim-majority countries, focusing
especially on those with democratic experience, such as Indonesia
and Turkey, and drawing comparisons with their regional,
non-Islamic counterparts. Unlike most studies of political Islam,
this is a politically-focused book, more concerned with governing
realties than ideology. By changing the terms of the debate from
theology to politics, and including the full complement of Islamic
countries, Schneier shows that the boundaries between church and
state in the Islamic world are more variable and diverse than is
commonly assumed. Through case studies and statistical comparisons
between Muslim majority countries and their regional counterparts,
Muslim Democracy shows that countries with different religions but
similar histories are not markedly different in their levels of
democratization. What many Islamists and western observers call
"Islamic law," moreover, is more a political than a religious
construct, with religion more the tool than the engine of politics.
"Women who drive in Saudi Arabia," as the author says, "are not
warned they will go to hell, but that they will go to jail." With
the political salience of religion rising in many countries, this
book is essential reading for students of comparative politics,
religion, and democratization interested in exploring the shifting
boundaries between faith and politics.
Muslim Democracy explores the relationship between politics and
religion in forty-seven Muslim-majority countries, focusing
especially on those with democratic experience, such as Indonesia
and Turkey, and drawing comparisons with their regional,
non-Islamic counterparts. Unlike most studies of political Islam,
this is a politically-focused book, more concerned with governing
realties than ideology. By changing the terms of the debate from
theology to politics, and including the full complement of Islamic
countries, Schneier shows that the boundaries between church and
state in the Islamic world are more variable and diverse than is
commonly assumed. Through case studies and statistical comparisons
between Muslim majority countries and their regional counterparts,
Muslim Democracy shows that countries with different religions but
similar histories are not markedly different in their levels of
democratization. What many Islamists and western observers call
"Islamic law," moreover, is more a political than a religious
construct, with religion more the tool than the engine of politics.
"Women who drive in Saudi Arabia," as the author says, "are not
warned they will go to hell, but that they will go to jail." With
the political salience of religion rising in many countries, this
book is essential reading for students of comparative politics,
religion, and democratization interested in exploring the shifting
boundaries between faith and politics.
By examining the institutions of government through the lens of
constitution-making, Crafting Constitutional Democracies provides a
broad and insightful introduction to comparative politics. Drawn
from a series of lectures given in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the
drafting of the U.S. constitution, the book illustrates the
problems faced by generations of founders, through numerous
historic and contemporary examples. Both Indonesia in 1999 and the
United States in 1789 faced the same basic issue: how to construct
a central government for a large and diverse nation that allowed
the majority of the people to govern themselves without intruding
on the rights of minorities. What kinds of institutions make for
'good government'? What factors need to be considered in designing
a government? Author Edward Schneier explores these questions
through a rich variety of examples from both recent and historic
transitions to democracy. Drawing frequently upon the arguments of
the American Federalist Papers and more contemporary theories of
democratization, Crafting Constitutional Democracies lucidly
explores the key questions of how and why democracies succeed and
fail. A concluding chapter on constitutional change and decline
raises provocative and important questions about the lessons that
citizens of the world's older democracies might take from the
struggles of the new.
By examining the institutions of government through the lens of
constitution-making, Crafting Constitutional Democracies provides a
broad and insightful introduction to comparative politics. Drawn
from a series of lectures given in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the
drafting of the U.S. constitution, the book illustrates the
problems faced by generations of founders, through numerous
historic and contemporary examples. Both Indonesia in 1999 and the
United States in 1789 faced the same basic issue: how to construct
a central government for a large and diverse nation that allowed
the majority of the people to govern themselves without intruding
on the rights of minorities. What kinds of institutions make for
"good government"? What factors need to be considered in designing
a government? Author Edward Schneier explores these questions
through a rich variety of examples from both recent and historic
transitions to democracy. Drawing frequently upon the arguments of
the American Federalist Papers and more contemporary theories of
democratization, Crafting Constitutional Democracies lucidly
explores the key questions of how and why democracies succeed and
fail. A concluding chapter on constitutional change and decline
raises provocative and important questions about the lessons that
citizens of the world's older democracies might take from the
struggles of the new.
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