Apostasy and Democracy
The apostasy prohibition is the 'hidden' encumbrance to a Muslim leader who places Islam in the public domain.
The Arab psyche is in a cage. On one hand, they are born into a religion that prohibits them from leaving at the risk of death. On the other, they yearn to experiment with democracy, a construct based on personal freedom, freedom of religion inclusive. A construct that challenges the underlying prohibition.
Morsi installed a Sharia-centric constitution in December 2012 but resisted turning Egypt into a full-blown Islamic state. He experimented with democracy and embraced its institutions. A Muslim leader in a Muslim majority state must choose between placing Islam in the public domain or keeping it private. Keeping it private, as in Azerbaijan and Malaysia, allows for a secular constitution, whereas placing it in the public domain demands a Sharia-centric constitution and its enabling institutions.
Otherwise being encumbered with such prohibition himself, a Muslim leader will grudgingly lead Muslims who yearn for democracy and personal freedom, let alone non-Muslims who are truly free.
Words - Tommy Peters
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