The struggle of Arab secularists within their environments is a
complex one with centuries of theocracy and tyranny. Over the last century and
a half, Arab secularists have both progressed and been delayed repeatedly
because of their bitter struggle with several forces. Among these forces are
ignorance, illiteracy, tyranny, the power of religious institutions, and
finally the Islamic tide that has hit the region since the failures of both the
liberal project followed by the Arab national project. I am not pessimistic about the future of
secularists in Egypt and the Arab societies though I realize the magnitude,
dimensions and gravity of the battle between these two parties: the proponents
of science, civil society and the values of modernity versus the proponents
of tyranny and theocracy.
The essence of secularism is not related to hostility towards
religion. Rather, it is based on the
cornerstone of separating religion from the state, establishing a civil
society, and establishing the relationship between the sons and daughters of
the society with each other and with the state on the basis of citizenship.
There is no doubt that the greatest enemy to this vision today is the current
of political Islam. Giving the "separation of religion from the
state" law an opportunity to be supported by broad sectors of society
requires leadership that is not hostile to religion, but to mix religion with
state references. It also requires extensive wisdom and administrative
capabilities to prevent political Islam from gaining popular acceptance. Here
we should focus on the difference between intellectuals who do not have
leadership, administrative and political experience, and between leaders who
know the deep and subtle differences between the criticism of religion as a
religion (and this is within the field of academic study) and the separation of
religion from the state.
Arab intellectuals were generally influenced by either Arab
nationalist ideology or political Islam, which made most of them hate the
United States. Indeed, the United States, like the great powers of history (the
British Empire in the recent past and the Roman Empire in the distant past),
cannot be viewed from the perspective of love and hate. The superpowers become
so under economic and military imperatives, not by emotional or idealistic
matters. In short, the position of most Arab secularists towards America is
intellectually flawed. The United States of America is a great power looking
out for its interests and we have to deal with it in this sense.
There also exists a mental correlation between secularism and
the Arab dictatorships that ruled in the name of secularism. This correlation must be broken and replaced
by the banner of "liberalism, modernity and civil society”, not
just secularism. Rulers such as Abdel Nasser, Hafez al-Assad, Houari
Boumediene, and Saddam Hussein were secular (to a certain extent). But they
were the enemies of political and economic liberalism in varying forms. In the
face of certain aspects of their failure, they also provided a great
opportunity for the obscurantists to gain significant ground at the grassroots
level. And let us not forget that those I mentioned were simple men with modest
intellectual abilities.
The liberal movement’s battle with reality in Egypt and most Arab
societies is a mirror image of a similar battle that has taken place in Europe
since supporters of science began to pull the rug out from under the feet of
dictators and their religious supporters. I have no doubt that proponents of
science will win in the Arab region as well, but it will not happen easily.
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