50 islam, politics and change
activists. The third stage came during the 1990s, and when the political
environment became more conducive they started to go public, ran
various institutions, while their members advanced their careers in
various professional jobs. Finally, the fourth stage was entered from 1998
when they established a political party, participated in elections, held
government office and implemented public policies.⁴⁷
3.2 Key Ideological Issues
3.2.1Islamic State
The pks, following the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, does not have
a specific blueprint concept of what kind of state or political system
there should be. This is in contrast to Hizbut Tahrir, which seeks to
revive a universal Islamic caliphate, or Jemaah Islamiyah under Abu
Bakar Baʾasyir, that seeks to create a Southeast Asian alliance of Islamic
governments.⁴⁸ In fact, just like those radical movements, the pks believes
that Islam is a comprehensive system of life that should be enacted in
the individual, societal and political spheres. However, for the pks,
what makes those spheres Islamic are not the structures, but rather
the behaviours of individuals within them. An Islamic society is a
society where its people behave according to Islamic teachings, while the
structure of the society can be modern, traditional or tribal. An Islamic
society is where Muslims enact Islamic rituals regularly, Islamic values –
dress codes, cuisines – become norms in public life, and crimes and
immorality are minimised or altogether absent.
Likewise, an Islamic political system is not confined to a universal
caliphate, but can be a kingdom or a republic, as long as it follows Islamic
principles. For the pks, people live in a society and the state is a means
to improve that society. Thus, the state serves as a supporting factor to
create an Islamic society – anummah. It is a structure that provides rules
and regulations by which people should live, and it has the authority to
enforce them, and to punish transgressions. An Islamic state is a political
system that is capable of enacting Islamic principles in society.⁴⁹ The pks
also believes that Indonesia is a fundamentally Islamic state because it
accommodates religion as part of state and government affairs. Pancasila,
as Indonesian state ideology, was formulated by Muslim politicians, and
M. Aay Furqon,Partai Keadilan Sejahtera: Ideologi dan Praksis Politik Kaum
Muda Muslim Indonesia(Bandung: Teraju, 2004), 124.
Sidney Jones, ‘Al-Qaeda in Southeast Asia: The case of the “Ngruki Network” in
Indonesia’,icg Indonesia Briefing, 8 August 2002, no. 14, 693–617.
Interview with Untung Wahono, Jakarta.