Events

CHAIRPERSON

Dr Eve Warburton, Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore

ABSTRACT

Pluralism is usually considered a pillar of liberal democracy. States that embrace and protect religious and ethnic diversity are in general more likely to uphold freedoms of expression, belief and organisation. In Indonesia, the state’s pluralist foundations, enshrined in the constitution, have long been viewed as an important bulwark against Muslim majoritarianism and extremist Islamist movements. In the eyes of many observers, therefore, the defence of pluralism is critical to Indonesia’s democratic survival. Professor Dan Slater, for example, argues that President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and his pluralist coalition won the 2019 elections by promoting an egalitarian and inclusive nationalism, which has deep roots in Indonesian history. Slater has contrasted the Indonesian experience with that of India, where Prime Minister Modi has instead mobilised a majoritarian Hindu nationalism in order to strengthen electoral support. But analysts also increasingly characterise pluralism as a threat to Indonesia’s democracy. In a recent piece, Nava Nuraniyah warned of the undemocratic potential of a “militant” brand of pluralism promoted by Nahdlatul Ulama, Indonesia’s largest Muslim organisation and important ally of the incumbent government. Associate Professor Greg Fealy, meanwhile, recently wrote that the Jokowi government’s “repressive” defence of pluralism is eroding Southeast Asia’s largest democracy. And, despite framing itself as the guardian of pluralism, evidence also suggest the Jokowi administration has not improved protections for Indonesia’s minorities.

Drawing on their recent research and on comparative studies too, in this webinar our three experts—Dan Slater, Nava Nuraniyah and Greg Fealy—will examine and debate the state of pluralist politics in contemporary Indonesia, and the dilemmas that democracies face when managing diverse, conflicting, and sometimes illiberal, religious constituencies.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Dan Slater is Professor of Political Science at the University of Michigan, and the Ronald and Eileen Weiser Professor of Emerging Democracies and Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies Director. He specializes in the politics and history of enduring dictatorships and emerging democracies, with a regional focus on Southeast Asia. His book, Ordering Power: Contentious Politics and Authoritarian Leviathans in Southeast Asia, was published in the Cambridge Studies in Comparative Politics series in 2010. He is also a co-editor of Southeast Asia in Political Science: Theory, Region, and Qualitative Analysis (Stanford University Press, 2008). His published articles can be found in disciplinary journals such as American Journal of Political Science, American Journal of Sociology, Comparative Politics, Comparative Political Studies, International Organization, Perspectives on Politics, Studies in Comparative International Development, and World Politics, as well as Asia-oriented journals such as Critical Asian Studies, Indonesia, Journal of East Asian Studies, South East Asia Research, Taiwan Journal of Democracy, and TRANS. In this seminar, Dan will be drawing upon his recent chapter ‘Indonesia’s tenuous democratic success and survival’ in Democracy in Indonesia: From Stagnation to Regression? (edited by Eve Warburton and Thomas Power, published by ISEAS Press, Singapore).

Greg Fealy is Associate Professor of Indonesian politics in the Department of Political and Social Change at The Australian National University. He gained his PhD from Monash University in 1998 with a study of the history of Nahdlatul Ulama. He is the co-author of Joining the Caravan? The Middle East, Islamism and Indonesia, Radical Islam and Terrorism in Indonesia and Zealous Democrats: Islamism and Democracy in Egypt, Indonesia and Turkey. He is also the co-editor of: Contested Belonging: The Place of Minorities in Indonesia, Soeharto’s New Order and its Legacy, Expressing Islam: Religious Life and Politics in Indonesia, Voices of Islam in Southeast Asia: A Contemporary Sourcebook. He is the director of the Partnership in Islamic Education Scholarships (PIES) program. He has been a consultant to DFAT, USAID, The Asia Foundation and BP. From 1997 to 1999 he was an Indonesia analyst at the Australian Government’s Office of National Assessments. He is the chair of Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Australia-Indonesia Institute. In this seminar, Greg will draw upon his forthcoming article in the Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies – ‘Jokowi in the Covid Era: Repressive Pluralism, Dynasticism and the Over-Bearing State’.

Nava Nuraniyah is a PhD candidate in the Department of Political and Social Change at The Australian National University (ANU). Her research is focused on the role of women in violent extremism, extremist use of social media, Salafi political mobilisation and Sunni-Shi’a relations in Southeast Asia. Prior to joining PSC, Nava was an analyst at the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) in Jakarta. She also worked as terrorism analyst at the Centre of Excellence for National Security (CENS), a research unit of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Nava’s research has featured in academic journals such as Terrorism and Political Violence, as well as in policy outlets such as the Carnegie Council, Lowy Institute, and the Australian Institute for International Affairs. She holds a Master of Arts in International Relations, with Honours, and a Master of Diplomacy from ANU. She obtained a BA in International Relations from Muhammadiyah University Yogyakarta. In this seminar, Nava will be drawing on her recent publication, ‘Divided Muslims: militant pluralism, polarisation and democratic backsliding’ in Democracy in Indonesia: From Stagnation to Regression? (edited by Eve Warburton and Thomas Power, published by ISEAS Press, Singapore).

REGISTRATION

Registration is closed, and instructions on how to participate in this webinar has been sent out to registered attendees. Please write to aritm@nus.edu.sg if you would like to attend the webinar.