Leading Tunisian Islamist returns from exile

[oberliner]

Source: Reuters

Jan 30 (Reuters) - Leading Tunisian Islamist Rachid Ghannouchi returned home on Sunday from 22 years in exile, witnesses said. Thousands turned out to greet him at the airport.

His return is the most powerful symbol to date of the change that has swept this country since its president was toppled by popular protests this month.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/30/tunisia-ghannouchi-return-idUSLDE70T08O20110130

[Turborama]

1. Interesting they feel the need to call him "Islamist" (did you choose that one on purpose?)

Another take on his release...

Tunisian leader returns from exile
Rachid Ghannouchi, leader of the previously banned al-Nahda party, returns home after 21 years in the UK

Last Modified: Jan 30 2011 12:03 GMT



Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of a formerly banned party, has returned to Tunisia after 21 years in exile.

More than 1,000 people gathered at the main international airport to welcome the leader of al-Nahda as he returned from the UK on Sunday, after the interim government pledged to allow his party and other movements banned under the rule of now ousted President Zine al-Abdine Ben Ali.

"I feel very happy today," the 69-year-old said as he boarded the plane in London.

"When I return home today I am returning to the Arab world as a whole... I am still the leader of my party. If there are free and fair elections al-Nahda will take part - in the legislative elections, not the presidential elections."

Ghannouchi's party was branded an Islamic terror group and banned by Ben Ali, although he is considered a moderate by scholars.

More: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/01/2011130111220856971.html

(emphasis mine)

[oberliner]

3. Reuters, BBC, Irish Times, ABC (Aus), Xinhua, AFP, and AP all use "Islamist" in their headlines

Al-Jazeera and Press TV (Iran) do not.

Edit to add: Are you saying that he is not an Islamist or that the political party he led/leads is not an Islamist party? Is it not possible that one can be an Islamist and a moderate at the same time?

[Xithras]

5. He is both an Islamist and a moderate.

He is an open supporter of imposing a theocratic democracy on Tunisia based on Islamic principles. He's a "moderate" in that he subscribes to a branch of Islam that is pluralistic and is openly supportive of progressive concepts like womens equality and religious freedom for minorities.

So, he's both. He's not a supporter of secular democracy, but he's also not a hard-right jihadist either.

[ellenrr]

33. Moderate Islam

"Imposing" and "theocratic" are not consistent with democracy.

I don't think a regime which is based on the principles of ONE religion, whether it is Islam, Judaism, or Christianity, can be pluralistic.

Which is why NO religion should be in a position to govern.
Religion should be a private matter.

[sufrommich]

35. Al-Jazeera does indeed use the term "islamist",anyone who's

been watching it lately would know that.

[ellenrr]

36. Definitions needed

I think we need a definition of Islamic, Islamist, and Islamicist.

One person says - "An "Islamist" is generally a proponent of political Islam. I generally tend not to use the word, because many draw a distinction between "Islamic" and "Islamist," implying (and sometimes asserting outright) that political Islam is a twisting and hijacking of the original, presumably non-political, non-supremacist Islamic religion. Since that is a false distinction, I shy away from the word. But in this case it is hard to know what to call Ghannouchi. This article suggests that Ghannouchi is anti-Sharia but is nonetheless an Islamist; this is a distinction that I cannot recall being made before, and I'm not sure what it means. Does the AFP author know what it meant when he or she wrote it? Did Ghannouchi really mean that he opposed the implementation of Sharia in Tunisia today? All open questions at this point."

{AFP is I think Agent Francaise Press}

[dipsydoodle]

2. Saw that on our tv news

Huge crowd to welcome him at the airport

[Lars77]

4. Tunisian Islamist leader Rachid Ghannouchi returns home

Source: BBC

The leader of Tunisia's main Islamist movement has returned home after 22 years in exile following the ousting of President Ben Ali earlier this month.

More than 1,000 people were at the main airport in Tunis to welcome Rachid Ghannounchi as he arrived from London.

Mr Ghannouchi, 69, says his Ennahda party intends to work for the popular uprising that toppled Mr Ben Ali.

Observers say his return is the most potent symbol yet of the change that has swept the country since then.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12318824

[MasonJar]

6. Great ! Just what the world needs, more Islamic fundamentalists in power.

[wisteria]

7. +1 n/t

[Turborama]

8. See, that's the exact problem. Everyone these days instantly links "Islam" with fundamentalists.

Where does it say in the article he is a "fundamentalist"?

What evidence do you have that he's a "fundamentalist"?

[pennylane100]

9. while his views seem very moderate

I wonder how a theocratic democracy can work? Are atheists and members of other faiths accorded full equal rights, if so, I hope he does well.

[Turborama]

10. It doesn't have to be a "theocratic democracy" just because they are Muslims

After their revolution in 1998 Indonesia (the largest muslim majority country in the world) now has a multi-party http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslim_world#Secular_states">secular democracy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Indonesia#Political_parties_and_elections

This graphic needs a bit of updating but it does show how democracy vibrant democracy has become since the revolution started in 1997:



See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Indonesia

[ellenrr]

34. yes, but

Yes, but there is a difference between having a country which is majority Muslim, like Indonesia, and a country having a religious regime.
Like the US - a majority is Christian, which is not a problem, but is a problem that Christians - like those in The Family - have a hidden influence on the government.

[marasinghe]

11. true. my problem with guys who live in exile is that -

they leave the heavy lifting to people in country, then return to ride the crest of the wave - after it breaks.

unlike, say, Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma; who walks the line she talks.

[Joanne98]

12. Thousands greet Tunisian Islamist leader's return

Source: ABC

Thousands of people turned out to welcome Tunisian Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi's return after more than 20 years in exile, as political Islam prepared a comeback following the fall of the country's regime.

"God is great!" Mr Ghannouchi cried out, raising his arms in triumph as he walked into the arrivals hall of Tunis airport, with thousands of cheering supporters crowding around him, before driving off to visit his family.

The crowd intoned a religious song in honour of the Prophet Mohammed, as supporters held up olive branches, flowers and copies of the Koran.

"I am so happy to be bringing him back home. I never thought I would see my brother again alive in Tunisia," his sister, Jamila, told AFP.



Read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/01/31/3125237.htm?section=justin

[no_hypocrisy]

13. I remember how the Iranians turned out in 1979 to welcome back Ayatollah

Khomeini when he returned from his exile in Paris.

[The Wielding Truth]

14. Here's some info on him. He seems more open to civil rights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashid_Al-Ghannushi

Philosophy

Rashid Al-Ghannushi represents a progressive strain in Islamic reformism, and continuously stresses the need for innovation against social injustice. He underscores the importance of local culture, and an Islamist movement based in the needs of Tunisians and not in "the obscure theories of Sayyid Qutb". He has sided with worker's rights, unionism, and women's education and rights, though those rights are based in Islam and not Western liberal feminism.<2>

Ghannoushi maintains that, women being one half of the Islamic community, women should have full access to education<4> He cites oppressive cultural codes in Islamic cultures as the major force behind women's choices to turn to Western culture, and believes that Islamic reform, as part of a larger reformist movement, is needed to address women's education, participation, and respect.<5>

For women, there was no path to freedom, knowledge or self-determination except through a revolt against Islam and its mores and the imitation of the West-until the Islamist movement. Before the emergence of the Islamist movement, woman found herself in an unstable and decaying society whose "liberation" was purely superficial: nudity, eroticism, leaving the house and the intermingling of the sexes. So she revolted against these superficial manifestations and called for the return to Islam. But not without trepidation, because for women the return to Islam still portended a return to the age of decline: the harem, self-negation and the inability to determine her own destiny.<5>

In discussions of plurality within Islamic societies, Rashid Al-Ghannushi believes that non-Muslim citizens should not be barred from positions in government, aside from the presidency and other leadership roles, setting himself against more conservative viewpoints.<6>

On January 22, 2011, in an interview with Al Jazeera TV, Rashid Al-Ghannushi confirmed that he is against an Islamic Caliphate, and supports democracy instead, unlike Hizb ut-Tahrir. (in the interview Al-Ghannushi accused Hizb ut-Tahrir of exporting a distorted understanding of Islam) <7>

[aquart]

15. Sounds like he'll be a very nice dictator.

Is he the one who's going to be in charge? Or are a bunch of guys going to duke it out?

[The Wielding Truth]

16. ? Just sharing what I found on him.

[riderinthestorm]

17. Eek. So he's a nicer male chauvinest pig?

2 things jumped out at me from the snip you posted.

1. "women's education and rights, though those rights are based in Islam and not Western liberal feminism" which basically means that a woman's testimony is worth half a mans, and she inherits less, and is inferior to men etc.

2. "Rashid Al-Ghannushi believes that non-Muslim citizens should not be barred from positions in government, aside from the presidency and other leadership roles" which indicates to me that non-Muslims can be the worker drones but can't rise in his version of an Islamic society to any kind of leadership or management. Permanent second class citizens.

If this is the "new" moderate Islamist, I'm not sure how much different this is from the "old" version....

[DissedByBush]

19. I guess the difference is

They just keep keep women and infidels as second class citizens.

They don't come right out and stone you or cut off your head if you get uppity.

[greiner3]

21. "a woman's testimony is worth half a mans, and she inherits less, and is inferior to men etc."

I thought you were talking of America a few decades ago, and currently in the deep South.

[boppers]

23. Didn't you get the memo?

The US is no longer sexist. Pass it on.

[Violet_Crumble]

26. Didn't you read the post yr replying to?

They clearly said 'a few decades ago', but they'd have been correct if they said that the US is still sexist, just in different ways than it was famed for before...

[boppers]

27. "currently in the deep South." eom

[Violet_Crumble]

28. Yr claiming there's not sexism in the deep South?

Bullshit there isn't...

[boppers]

29. I am, once again, living proof that no matter how absurd a statement is,.....

sometimes you still have to add one of these. -> :sarcasm:

...to indicate humor, or a lack of literal seriousness. (I would have thought the "memo" part would be a clue...)

[Violet_Crumble]

30. I think it's an example of Poe's law...

Also, me not being familiar with you or yr posts didn't help me out there. My apologies :)

[Violet_Crumble]

25. Even if he's the world's worst misogynist, that doesn't mean he shouldn't be allowed to return home

About point #2, even Americans who weren't born in the US are banned from the presidency, so the US really needs to clean up its act as well in that regard. I can also think of one Western country in particular where the head of state must always be a certain religion. All that sort of stuff sucks, regardless of where it is. Basing it on religion rather than nationality is far worse, though, imo..

I'm not sure why they called this guy an Islamist. When I was studying, we were taught that Islamist was a term used for fundy extremist types and those who carried out violent attacks, not to describe any Muslim cleric. Maybe things have moved on in the few years since I was studying, though I suspect it's more to do with sloppy headlines than anything...

[riderinthestorm]

31. I don't know if I agree, especially when it concerns religious fundamentalists

in the ME. Sorry, but that's not a simple issue. Re-defining politically toxic (even potentially toxic) exiled leaders as simple citizens longing to see the homeland, is disingenuous. And I don't know any country that allows it's president or head of state to be a foreign national (other than the Vatican). This guy goes beyond that in stipulating that "leadership roles" for non-Muslims are also verboten. How far down the scale does THAT extend? Sorry but I don't trust any of these guys.

And they called this guy an Islamist because he is an Islamist. By current definitions (Wikipedia - sorry if this doesn't meet your specs but they ARE the go-to reference right now) he is an Islamist...

"Islamism (Islam+-ism; Arabic: الاسلامية ‎ al-'islāmiyya) also Arabic: إسلام سياسي‎ al-Islām al-Siyāsiyy, lit., "Political Islam" is a set of ideologies holding that Islam is not only a religion but also a political system; that modern Muslims must return to the roots of their religion, and unite politically.

Islamism is a controversial term and definitions of it sometimes vary. Leading Islamist thinkers emphasized the enforcement of sharia (Islamic law) on Muslims; of pan-Islamic political unity; and of the elimination of non-Muslim, particularly western military, economic, political, social, or cultural influences in the Muslim world, which they believe to be incompatible with Islam.<1>

Some observers suggest Islamism's tenets are less strict and can be defined as a form of identity politics or "support for identity, authenticity, broader regionalism, revivalism, revitalization of the community".<2> Still others define it as "an Islamic militant, anti-democratic movement, bearing a holistic vision of Islam whose final aim is the restoration of the caliphate".<3>

Many of those described as "Islamists" oppose the use of the term, and claim that their political beliefs and goals are simply an expression of Islamic religious belief. Similarly, some scholars favour the term activist Islam <4><5> or political Islam instead.<6>

Central figures of modern Islamism include Abul Ala Maududi,<7> Sayyid Qutb, Hasan al-Banna, and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.<8>"

[Violet_Crumble]

32. He's not an extremist, though. He's Tunisian, so he should be allowed to return home...

I wasn't talking about countries that allow foreign nationals to become heads of state. I was talking about countries where the head of state must have been born in that country (the US), or where the head of state must be of a specific religion (the UK)...

I think I'd take what academics who taught me at uni over Wikipedia (which isn't particularly reliable depending on what the entry is, nor is a 'go-to' reference. The references at the bottom of entries can sometimes yield some valuable info, but the articles are generally only handy for a quick browse and not much else. Wikipedia was banned as a source at my daughter's college, due to the sloppiness of some of the entries. The headline calling that guy an Islamist was sloppy and misleading. He's no extremist, and his views on women and non-Muslims are no different than quite a few Americans. I'm not sure why he's seen any differently than Americans who hold similar views about women and Muslims...

[Safetykitten]

18. Charming.

[rollin74]

20. Tunisian women rally ahead of Islamist leader's return (yesterday)

TUNIS (AFP) – Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi vowed a transition to democracy as hundreds of women rallied on Saturday in the Tunisian capital to express their fears of an Islamist resurgence.

Women's groups took to the streets of Tunis to defend the extensive rights for which they have fought for more than half a century, on the eve of the return of Islamist leader Rached Ghannouchi from exile

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110129/wl_afp/tunisiapoliticsunrest

[Turborama]

22. I saw footage of an airport FULL of women welcoming him home

And in the enormous crowd outside the airport. I'll add a link to the report if it gets uploaded.

[Violet_Crumble]

24. And what are yr thoughts on this?

Do you think it's a bad thing that he's finally able to return to his homeland?