Bakar, Osman (2023) Articulating a Madani framework for counter-extremism: a Malaysian perspective. In: Southeast Asia Regional Centre for Counter-Terrorism (SEARCCT) International Conference 2023, 13-15 June 2023, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
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Abstract
The main aim of this article is to discuss the epistemological role of the Madani philosophy as a source of conceptual and policy framework for counter-extremism responses. The discussion is set against the background of contemporary discourse on terrorism in which there is growing criticism of the lack of objectivity in the approach to terrorism. The article argues that the global search for a universally agreed definition of terrorism would be better served if the issue of terrorism is to be discussed within the framework of a broader discourse on extremism of which it is treated as a special case. The article further argues that the Malaysia Madani concept and philosophy introduced by Anwar Ibrahim, the country’s tenth and present Prime Minister, possesses the necessary epistemological characteristics to provide such a framework. The argument is buttressed by philosophical support from al-Farabi’s theory of civilisation, the very theory that inspired Malaysia Madani. The most consequential element of epistemological support from the theory is the ethical concept of middleness (wasatiyyah), which is also known in Western thought as the golden mean. The article briefly discusses the sense in which the idea of middleness is consequential on the madani framework for counterextremism responses. In the conclusion, the preliminary nature of the discussion in the article is pointed out and the need for a refinement of the framework is emphasised.
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