South and Southeast Asia continue to be extremely critical regions; deeply intertwined and bound in many ways by centuries of intersecting histories. As the recent experiences of rapid and transformative political and economic changes in several countries in these two regions illustrate; these changes have significant bearing on and are simultaneously affected by the legacy and continued dynamic of dominant-minority group relations. To be sure; while the dynamics of dominant-minority relations in each country are distinct and often mitigated by distinct historical conditions; the phenomenon of these dominant-minority relations; especially along ethnic and religious fault lines; are deeply consequential to many of the nations in these regions. This book; featuring eight case studies; provides a multidisciplinary and multi-layered assessment of the salience of the ethnic and religious realities in shaping various South and Southeast Asian nations. Featuring chapters on Afghanistan; Bangladesh; India; Sri Lanka; Cambodia; Thailand; Malaysia; and Indonesia; this volume provides a deep appreciation of the challenges that these societies confront in integrating and/or responding to specific ethnic and/or religious based conflicts and tensions.
#2024841 in Books Lexington Books 2006-05-02Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.08 x .87 x 6.13l; .96 #File Name: 0739106457294 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Solid basic introductionBy PeregrineIslamic Democratic Discourse is a collection of essays regarding the compatibility of Islam with modern liberal government from a wide variety of positions. It begins with essays regarding classical sources and their discussion of the participation of believers in choosing their leaders with an examination of how the relationship between the rulers and the ruled has changed over the centuries. The next section discusses regional debates covering Malaysia; Turkey; the Sudan and Iran. Finally issues of Islam in the modern world are examined such as the Islamic critique of democracy and Islam in the public square.The essays are clear and serve as a good introduction since they assume no prior knowledge of Islam and its history. It would be quite useful for readers who wish to go deeper than most journalism allows. It would also be suitable for an advanced undergraduate course that covers contemporary Islam and the political debate regarding pluralism and democracy.
