The Political Mobilization of the Christian Community in Malaysia

The Political Mobilization of the Christian Community in Malaysia

  • Author: Choong, Pui Yee
  • Publisher: Leiden University Press
  • ISBN: 9789087284374
  • eISBN Pdf: 9789400604773
  • Place of publication:  Holland , Netherlands
  • Year of digital publication: 2024
  • Month: February
  • Pages: 220
  • Language: English
'The Political Mobilization of the Christian Community in Malaysia' outlines how the Malaysian Christian community defends its religious rights without being construed as anti-Islam.
  • Cover
  • Contents
    • List of abbreviations
    • Acknowledgments
    • Chapter One: Contextualiz6ing and Theorizing Christian Political Mobilization in Malaysia
      • Overview
      • Objectives, scope, methods, and limitations
      • The repression–mobilization nexus: A contested relationship
      • The matter of regime type and political context
      • Towards a typology of repression and mobilization
      • Political mobilization and alternative responses
      • Of framing, resources, and political opportunities
      • Chapters
    • Chapter Two: A Competitive Authoritarian Regime, Islamization, and the Christian Community
      • Introduction
      • Under a competitive authoritarian regime
      • Christians and Christianity in Malaysia
        • Overview
        • Christianity and decolonization
      • The Islamization processes
        • Overview: From the ‘dakwah’ movements to political rivalry
        • Process 1: State-led Islamization
        • Process 2: The politicization of Islam
        • The general effects of Islamization
      • Islamization’s specific effects on Christians
        • Prohibition of preaching to Muslims
        • Prohibitions on using select Malay and Arabic words
        • Restrictions on the importation of Christian literature
        • Church buildings, lands, and burial grounds
        • Management of missionary schools
        • Overt and surreptitious conversions of Christians
      • Conclusion
    • Chapter Three: Unflinching Principles and Whimpers of Protest, 1980–90
      • Introduction
      • Initial responses to state-led Islamization
      • Introduction of regulatory repression in the early 1980s
        • Banning of the Al-Kitab
        • Restrictions on using ‘Islamic’ words
      • Targeted repression in the early 1980s
      • Resisting repression
        • Defying state policy under the pretext of nation-building
        • Forging networks and alliances
        • Fledgling electoral mobilization
      • Operasi Lalang and its aftermath
        • Several Christian experiences
        • Moving towards principled engagement
        • Legitimizing civil disobedience in the Kuching Declaration
      • Conclusion
    • Chapter Four: Learned Submission to Semi-opposition Engagement, 1991–2002
      • Introduction
      • Reasons for the community’s apolitical approach
        • Closed-door meetings and mixed results
        • Absence of enforcement
        • Learned submission and fear of repression
        • Growth of Pentecostal-Charismatic churches and intra-Christian divisions
      • The Reformasi: A catalyst of political mobilization?
      • Electoral mobilization in the 1999 general election: Of official and unofficial voices
      • Resisting the push for an ‘Islamic state’
      • Targeted repression and subsequent responses
        • The Shah Alam Church of Divine Mercy
        • The ‘Srigala Incident’ and other Orang Asli-related incidents
        • Attacks on churches in the context of the ‘War on Terror’
      • Conclusion
    • Chapter Five: Seizing Political Opportunities for Mobilization, 2003–7
      • ‘A breath of fresh air’
      • Arbitrary enforcement of regulatory repression
        • Restrictions on religious texts
        • Demolition of Orang Asli churches
        • The Silibin Incident
      • The growing jurisdiction of the Sharia court
      • Grassroots-level Christian mobilization
        • Emergence and further polarization
        • Invoking the Federal Constitution
        • Relationship with other mass rallies
        • Electoral mobilization
        • NECF’s ’40-Day Fast and Prayer’ initiative
        • Oriental Hearts and Mind Study Institute
      • Conclusion
    • Chapter Six: From Resisting Repression to Oblique Oppositional Mobilization, 2008–15
      • Introduction
      • Contestations over usage of the word ‘Allah’
        • Notable court cases
          • The Herald
          • Sidang Injil Borneo
          • Jill Ireland
          • Collective rather than Separate Cases
        • The ‘10-Point Solution’ and the Sarawakian context
        • Targeted repression by the Selangor Islamic Department (JAIS)
        • New standard operating procedures pertaining to Christian publications
      • Increased political mobilization
        • The logic of repression
        • The NECF’s ‘Nation-Building Agenda’
        • Electoral mobilization
        • Grassroots mobilization
      • Mobilizing through various outlets of expression
      • Divergent approaches within the Christian community: A comparison
      • Conclusion
    • Chapter Seven: Stories from the East: Resisting Islamization and Preserving Local Rights
      • Introduction
      • Christians in East Malaysia
      • Sabah
        • Historical overview and federal–state tensions
        • Explaining a lack of resistance to state-led Islamization
        • Emergent resistance
          • Religious misclassification
          • Conversions of indigenous Christians
          • Grassroots mobilization and traditionalism
      • Sarawak
        • The anomalous case?
        • Relationship between Christian leaders in Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia
        • Church–state relationships and divergent views
        • Politicizing religious sentiment in Sarawak
      • Conclusion
    • Chapter Eight: Conclusion
      • Introduction
      • Electoral dynamics after Barisan Nasional’s defeat
      • Principled strategies, pragmatic resistance
        • Typologies and sequences of resistance
        • When defending rights also means opposing the regime
        • Emphasizing the importance of subjective interpretations
      • Closing remarks: Old structures, new manifestations?
    • Bibliography
      • Books
        • Monographs
        • Chapters
      • Journal articles
      • Theses and dissertations
      • Newspapers (printed)
      • Court cases, Statements and Letters
      • Surveys
      • Reports
        • Government reports
        • Organization reports
      • Online sources
      • Interviews
    • Appendix A: Official Letter from Najib Razak to Bishop Moon Hing Ng Proposing a 10-Point Solution
    • Index

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