Routledge Political Islam and Violence in Indonesia (Asian Security Studies)

About the Author Zachary Abuza is Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations at Simmons College, Boston. He is a specialist in the Security and Politics of South-East Asia and is the author of Renovating Politics in Vietnam (Lynne Rienner, 2001) and Militant Islam in South-East Asia (Lynne Rienner, 2003). Product Description Political Islam and Violence in Indonesia presents a penetrating new investigation of religious radicalism in the largest Muslim country in the world.Indonesia is a country long known for its diversity and tolerant brand of Islam. However, since the fall of Suharto, a more intolerant form of Islam has been growing, one whose adherents have carried out terrorist attacks, waged sectarian war, and voiced strident anti-Western rhetoric. Zachary Abuza's unique analysis of radical Islam draws upon primary documents such as Jemaah Islamiyah's operations manual, interviews, and recorded testimonies of politicians, religious figures, and known militants, as well as personal interviews with numerous security and intelligence experts in Indonesia and elsewhere, to paint a picture at once guardedly optimistic about the future of Indonesian democracy and concerned about the increasing role of conservative and radical Islam in Indonesian society.This book will be of great interest to students of Indonesian politics, Asian studies, political violence and security studies in general. Review 'Abuza has attempted to address the full spectrum of Islamist activism from democratization, through party-political Islamism to vigilante mujahidin activism and jihadi terrorism. No other writer has tackled so broad a sweep of movements and issues in a single volume and for this reason alone Abuza's book deserves a place on the shelf of anyone with an interest in modern Indonesia or Islam in Asia.' - Greg Barton, Contemporary Southeast Asia, Volume 29 Number 2, 2007