The Management of Islamic Activism: Salafis, the Muslim Brotherhood, and State Power in Jordan

Abstract

JORDAN The Management of Islamic Activism: Salafis, the Muslim Brotherhood, and State Power in Jordan, by Quintan Wiktorowicz. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2000. xi + 153 pages. Notes to p. 179. Bibl. to p. 197. Index to p. 205. $17.95. Reinterpreting Islamic activism in Jordan through the lens of social movement theory, Quintan Wiktorowicz traces the ways in which the Jordanian state has manipulated and controlled the development of social movement organizations. Contrasting the political limitations of the Muslim Brotherhood and formal Islamic organizations in Jordan with the widespread but diffuse and informal networks of Salafis, Wiktorowicz argues that the latter provides an underappreciated but crucially important source of social change. With a solid application of social movement theory, a healthy skepticism about the claims made for democracy and civil society in the Arab world, and a solid empirical base, The Management of Islamic Activism makes a useful contribution to the literature on Islamic movements in the Arab world. The Management of Islamic Activism makes a convincing case for disaggregating Islamic movements and studying their distinctive forms of organization and mobilization. State structures within specific political contexts shape the political opportunities and organizational choices available to Islamic actors. These actors, and civil society more generally, mobilize within a space shaped by the administrative power of the state. Formal Social Movement Organizations, such as officially recognized Islamic non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the Muslim Brotherhood, which many social movement theorists see as essential for effective political action, actually serve as instruments of control and disempowerment in the Jordanian context. The Salafi movement, in contrast, relies on informal networks and close interpersonal relationships, carving out a space outside of state-sanctioned civil society in which to pursue their goals of social transformation. While arguments about state structuring of civil society in general, or about the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan specifically, are fairly common in the literature on Jordanian politics, Wiktorowicz offers a fine-grained analysis of the means of this control. The book's main claim to originality lies in its treatment of the Salafis as an informal network serving social movement functions. The primary original case made in the book is not without its flaws, however. While Wiktorowicz demonstrates the depth and significance of the Salafi movement in Jordan, he fails to demonstrate that the informal networks provide any real political advantages. His distinction between Jihadi Salafi branches, which support the use of violence to overthrow a kafir regime, and the more moderate Salafis, which disdain such violence and focus on individual religious purity, is useful and important. Less clear is the relationship between, or movement between, these two wings. …