Ahmed Rashid ,  Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia, New Haven & London: Yale University Press, 2002.

Fachrizal Halim

 The advent of independence from the Soviet Union has created an unprecedented problem for Muslims in Central Asia. For the majority of people in these regions, independence from the Soviet Communist system did not immediately translate into the realization of democracy, the market economy, or the Western culture of consumerism as was the case elsewhere in other former Soviet Union republics, such as the Baltic states.  Independence from the Soviet Communist system created an environment of turmoil with the emergence of militant Islamic movements in several parts of Central Asia.

The author of this book,  Ahmed Rashid, a Pakistani born journalist, captures the Islamic resurgence among the Muslims of Central Asia which started a few years before September 11 2001. He bases his argument upon the thesis that massive repression by existing regimes eliminated almost all opposition, but strengthened organizations based on various forms of radical political Islam. While Rashid does not deny the role of countries such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, or Turkey in bringing the Islamic banner to the region, he emphasizes that   the repressive nature of the Central Asia regimes is main cause for the emergence of militant Islamic movements. The Central Asia regimes, because of their long dependence upon the Soviet Union, were not able to establish policies to foster economic development and to build political systems that guarantee public participation.

The militant Islamic movements of Central Asia, in this case, have been considered a solution for this stagnancy. Islam, in this context, has been utilized by political reasoning as an ideology of these movements. The statement, “establishing an Islamic state” or “the application of Shariʿa”, inter alia, are some slogans that gave these movements a messianic character and therefore attracts more people. Islamic movements are considered the dominant factor for the future of Central Asia, not only because they provide political structures for the people in the region, but also because Muslims of Central Asia considered Islam as part of their inseparable identity.

 Indeed, from an historical perspective, Islam was rooted in Central Asia since the mid-seventh century. By the early eighth century it was the dominant religion, at least for the elites. History also witnessed in the ninth century cities in Central Asia, such as Bukhara in present day Uzbekistan, had become one of Islam’s leading centers of learning.  Before the Bolsheviks seized power in 1917, the madrasas and mosques of Bukhara, Samarkand, Khiva, and other cities in the region were the dominant forces shaping the culture and social identity of the people. However, during 70 years of Soviet rule, many mosques and schools that had previously thrived in Central Asia were closed, converted into factories and museums, or destroyed.  When independence came in 1991, the need to reassert Islamic tradition reappeared almost immediately. However, it created another problem as the need to re-establish Islamic tradition was mixed with politics. The emerging dominant factor was the politization of Islam, rather than simply a religious expression within politics.

This book focuses on the major Islamic movements of Central Asia, such as the Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP), the Hizb-ut Tahrir (HT) and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). The emergence and organization of each of these movements is discussed comprehensively in each chapter.  However, before the author discusses the Islamic movements, he reviews the history of Islam and Central Asia; the pre-Soviet story of Central Asia and the role it played in the Muslim world and beyond; how Islam survived underground in the face of fierce repression during the Soviet era; and the failure of the post-Soviet regimes to foster either democracy or economic development.

This book also contains first hand information as the author interviews the leaders of various Islamic movements along with his own experience living in the regions where conflict took place.  His familiarity with the region enhances the reliability of his analysis of Islamic movements, preceding strategic studies by the United States on the region.

In addition to providing political Islam as the internal dynamic in the region, this book also discusses the interest and the rivalries of the neighboring countries; that are Turkey, Pakistan, and Iran. The author argues that these countries, far from being constructive to the economic development of the region, have become destabilizing factors due to their own competing policies with the Islamic radicals and the lack of reforms and transparency of the Central Asia governments. In the end, the author concludes that “if the Central Asian regimes have failed to understand the need to incorporate their own Islamic organization into their state, the wider Muslim world has failed to understand the needs of Central Asia and the vital necessity of helping stabilize the region”.

This book is a must reading for those who are studying the Muslims of Central Asia, especially with the emphasis of political Islam in the region.