1.8 A REVIVAL OF FORTUNES

The years between the two world wars represent perhaps the lowest point in the history of Islam, but with the conclusion of hostilities at the end of the Second World War marked the beginning of a revival of fortunes in the Islamic world, heralded by the emergence of independence movements in many Muslim countries then under colonial rule. These movements were inspired by the writings of prominent Muslim thinkers from the first half of the twentieth century such as Muhammad Abduh and Rashid Rida in the Middle East, and Maududi in India in the early 1900s. Muhammad Abduh distrusted the Westerners and discouraged parents from sending their children to schools run by missionaries; however, he was not opposed to Western science and technology per se, recognizing their essential role in their lives and encouraged mastering such knowledge. A disciple of Muhammad Abduh, Rashid Rida supported the establishment of an Islamic state, emphasizing the importance for Muslims to return to the basic principles of Islam, whilst empowering themselves with modern science so as not to fall behind the western powers. Maududi did not believe that muslims should be governed by a secular government and so rejected Western Imperialism.

The Process of achieving independencewas uneven. Egypt, for example, achieved nominal independence from Britain in 1922, but Britain retained enormous influence until the free officers coup under Gamal  Abd al-Nasser deposed King Faruq in 1952. Syria achieved independence from France in 1941, whilst Britain unilaterally left Palestine in 1948, leading to the creation of a political division between Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. Full independence was granted to Jordan by the British in 1932. The Algerian war of independence won independence from France in 1962. The Kingdom of Morocco recovered its poitical independence from France in 1956 and through subsequent agreements with Spain in 1956 and 1958, Certain Spanish-ruled areas were returned to Morocco.

The nationalist regimes that came to power following independence fom the Western mandates tended to maintain a tight control over their economies. Using a socialist economic model, countries like Egypt, Iraq, Algeria and Syria agreed to pool national resources and spend them centrally to spur economic development. One strategy adopted in the 1960s was import-substituting industrialization (ISI). This was an attempt to build local industries that would create jobs, use local resources and allow countries to stop importing Western goods. To achieve this, Government raised trade barriers and heavily subsidized infant industries (often owning them outright) in order to stimulate rapid economic development. Unfortunately, the ISI scheme failed when these industries became bloated, inefficient enterprises riddled with bureaucracy and corruption; they could not meet local demands and were a drain on national resources.

By the late 1970s, Egypt, under President Anwar Sadat, had abandoned the strategy of ISI in favour of infitah, which he means opening up the economy to foreign investment. Other muslim countries decided to follow suit and encourage foreign investment in order to stimulate their economies. Unfortunately, the strategy of infitah has also been a disappointment. Much of the sought-after foreign investment has been in Western consumer goods and luxuries, like McDonald’s and name-brand clothing, rather than in local industry. This important of Western commodities and associated cultural values has done little to raise the general standard of living in the region. Instead, it tends to increase the cultural and economic gapa between a wealthy class that has benefit from Western investment and adopted a more Western lifestyle, and a much larger population of the poor. Furthermore, many muslims feel that the unrestricted importation of Western goods and cultural values challenges important social traditions and Islamic values. This is one factor in the rise of resentment against the West and the increasing popularity of Islamic opposition groups that promise to restore cultural and economic independence to the region.