Southeast Asian Regionalism-ASEAN

Brian Rizky Bimantara I92214016
Regionalisme (Studi Kawasan) CI213042

Rizki Rahmadini Nurika, S.Hub.Int, M.A.

09 November 2015

ASEAN is widely recognized in the international community as an exemplar of enlightened and successful regionalism.  In order to have a good understanding about Southeast Asian Regionalism especially ASEAN, the writer try to explain it with following order, the first is formation of ASEAN, the second is Building ASEAN identity, and the last is Towards ASEAN Economic Community.

At first, before ASEAN, actually some of the country in Southeast Asia have already made an organization. In 1959, there was an establishment of SEAFET (Southeast Asia Friendship and Economic Treaty). This is kind of narrow organization because of its limitation to the economy, trade, and education. In 1961, there was an establishment of ASA (Association for Southeast Asia), this association consisted of Malaysia, Philipines, and Thailand. The background of the establishment this association is the need of Southeast Asia states to seek strength in numbers or through alliances with more powerful actors. Because of those backdrop external pressure and internal tension provided booster for regional cooperation such as ASA.  So, the purpose of ASA itself is to establish regional and peace stability, but on its journey there was a conflict between Malaysia and Philipines which is the end of cooperation of ASA. Not only in ASA, in 1963 there was an establishment of MAPHILINDO (Malaysia, Philipines, Indonesia), the cooperation within MAPHILINDO are such as economy, culture, and social science, but again because there was a conflict moreover confrontation with the use of force between Malaysia and Indonesia which means the end of MAPHILINDO cooperation.

To end the tension between Malaysia and Indonesia, in 1967  ASEAN was established which consisted of five countries. There are Indonesia, Malaysia, Philipines, Singapore, and the Thailand.  Beside trying to end the tension between Malaysia and Indonesia, ASEAN also reduced regional military influence of external actors and prevent communist insurgencies by promoting domestic socio-economic development. There were also pull factors of ASEAN. The first one is War and Threat of War, as the writer stated above, the factor of the establishment of ASEAN was trying to eradicate and prevent war in the other word is make peace stability. Because as we know ASEAN has role of enhancing cooperation in broader aspects, there are security, economic, social, and culture. The second is try to balancing ASEAN member in facing influence of China because of its hegemonic ambition as a bigger country at that time than country in Southeast Asia. Third is one of the ways to reduce the tension between Malaysia and Indonesia, because based on Liberalism theory, International Institution could prevent war within the country of the institution, not only for Indonesia and Malaysia, this factor is also applicable for all members within ASEAN. The last because of the urge to eradicate Inter-State rivalries based on territorial which made unproductive things.

ASEAN is also useful in order to keep countries within ASEAN still trust to each other so the government could focus on attention and resources to domestic without worrying threat from the neighbors because of the aggreement that they have already made. ASEAN also become place for its member to have some either dialogue or consultation.

For next, if we talked about building identity in ASEAN actually is still not clear commonly. Because actually there were some perspectives in building identity of ASEAN. First, based on the bequest of Colonialism (all ASEAN members is ex-collonialism country) the border of national with no cinsideration of cultural division. Second, there was a legacy of cold war which make the foreign policy is based on realist motivations and also ASEAN members perceive another as the pattern of interaction or international relations, and the third is Role of China. As we know in that time China was become communist threat and ethnic conflict as justifications for authoritarianism. The other challange is other member perceived as a threat to national identity, border disputes for instance. Beside that states member also consider balance of power and fear of hegemonic ambitions within ASEAN. The member states the other member will become a boomerang for them because of the increasing of unpredictable situation between ASEAN members state. Especially there is contradiction between integration itself and non interference principle that ASEAN has. The integration through ASEAN also challenges the non interrference principle itself. A belief which said that strong region based on strong states, not strong region also has an influence to the challenges of regional identity. It makes the members state harder for positioning themselves which increases unbelieve sense among them and make them still more concentarte on their own state than region because of that idea. It makes the does not have ambition to become like EU and make ASEAN only a diplomatic community. The members state also still uphold sovereignty and made it as a matter. Domestic stability also become a main focus.

The last, the writer will also try to explain the economic development within economic integration in this region. Based on Balassa, ASEAN applied the first step in order to integrated economically by establishing Free Trade Area in 1992 with its enforcement since 1993 until 2002. Its appearing happened because of the changing of international patterns of investment flows also the purpose of it is declining foreign investor interest ASEAN economies. AFTA (ASEAN Free Trade Area) also retains and attracts FDI, and FDI enhances economic growth which make the member states of ASEAN in better positioin in global economic competition.

After completing AFTA, ASEAN initiated the AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) project in 2003 with the enforcement since 2015 until 2020. Based on Balassa AEC is the instance of common market which means that ASEAN did not comply to the step that Balassa stated. ASEAN did not apply the custom union as the second step toward integration economically. The writer also agree with the scholars assumption that this kind of situation may become a problem for ASEAN further.

The writer concludes that ASEAN is a tool for states within Southeast ASEAN to survive in globalization area and also as a response to the global economic development by establishing AEC. But the writer sees that ASEAN is in rush to respond it as there was no custom union within ASEAN.

REFERENCES

Amitav Acharya and Alastair Johnson. 2007. Crafting Cooperation. New York: Cambridge Express.
Kristina Jonsson. 2010. Unity-in-Diversity? Regional Identity-building in Southeast Asia, in:
Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affair.German: GIGA
Mark Beeson. 2009. Institution of the Asia Pacific. Routledge: New York.
http://www.asean.org/asean/about-asean/history/item/the-future-of-asean , accesed on Oct 25th 2015

European Regionalism

Brian Rizky Bimantara (I92214016)–International Relations Departement

Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Ampel Surabaya

Europe is a continent that comprises the western most part of Eurasia. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south.[1] In its historical background the European continent was the theatre of conflicts, which brought millions of dead humans and lots of destruction. For all of the centuries, Europe had a lot of bloody wars, only France and Germany for the period 1870 to 1945 fought three times.[2] 

Beside World War I and World War II, actually Europe has its own conflicts among countries in Europe continents such as France and Germany. Because of those adverse war, in 1950 the French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed integrating the coal and steel industries of Western Europe, which led to the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951 – the predecessor of today’s European Union. But if traced back to the past, actually the idea to unite European politically originated in 17^th century. But all of those are failed which means it didn’t give a big effect. So we may say that actually after the world war I, all the proposal or organization had no effect in order to unite or integrate state within Europe area. But some of the integrations after World War II could run well in order to developed the integration until European Union.  These kind of integration could be happened because European leaders came to the conclusion that only economic and political integration can secure the peace between their countries. The vision of a new Europe, which would overcome antagonistic nationalism, finally emerged from the resistance movements, which had resisted totalitarianism during the Second World War.[3] 

Obama untuk Amerika: “Steel” against Romney

Brian Rizky Bimantara I92214016
Komunikasi Politik CI113035
Dias Pabyantara Swandita Mahayasa, M.Hub.Int.
27 Oktober 2015

Sebagaimana kita tahu, bahwa media massa memiliki peranan penting dalam kehidupan manusia sehari-hari, hal ini berkaitan dengan digunakannya media massa dalam kehidupan manusia, bidang politik sebagai contohnya. Pada tahun 2012 telah diadakan pemilu presiden Amerika Serikat untuk menentukan presiden ke-45. Peranan media masa memiliki andil yang cukup besar terhadap terpilihnya Barrack Husain Obama sebagai pemenang yang menjadikannya presiden ke-45, mengalahkan saingan terberatnya dari Partai Republik yaitu Mitt Romney, terkait dengan adanya penggunaan media masa sebagai alat kampanye Obama dalam meraih dukungan suara terbesar sehingga ia bisa terpilih menjadi presiden. Bagi penulis, salah satu contoh iklan kampanye yang perlu di analisis ialah iklan kampanye Obama yang berjudul “Steel”.[1] Sebagaimana kita tahu bahwa media dapat menjadi sebuah kekuatan tersendiri bagi kepentingan seorang individu maupun kelompok.[2] Oleh sebab itu disini penulis merasa perlunya memahami lebih dalam mengenai maksud dan latar belakang adanya iklan kampanye bertajuk video yang berjudul Steel.
 

Steel merupakan sebuah video kampanye yang diterbitkan oleh Obama for America (OFA) sebagai bentuk kampanye atas pemilihan umum amerika pada tahun 2008. Pada dasarnya Steel dibuat untuk menyerang kandidat lawan dari Partai Republik yakni Mitt Romney. Mitt Romney merupakan pendiri perusahan investasi Bain Capital  pada tahun 1984, dan pada sepuluh tahun kemudian, di tahun 1994 ia mencoba meraih menempati kursi senat Amerika di Massachusetts tetapi gagal, hingga pada akhirnya pada pemilu presiden pada tahun 2012 mencoba ulang peruntungannya dengan menjadi salah satu kandidat calon presiden amerika serikat.[3]

International Relations. Was ist das?

As far as I know, International relations (IR) can be defined as the connections made by the international actors such as nation-states, international organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and multinational corporations who crossing the limits of state sovereignty. All of the interactions are the focus in the International Relations studies. Therefore, the discipline of International Relations is an interdisciplinary discipline and field of  its study is very diverse. There are so many field’s included in International Relations such as International Politics, International Economics, International Law, International Organizations, Diplomacy, Foreign policy analysis, Strategic Studies, Conflict and Peace, and International political economy.

Following the Peace of Wespthalia (1648) , International Relation appeared while the sovereignty of nation state has been accepted based on the definition of The Peace of Wespthalia. There are sovereignty, equality, and how to manage interstate relation.

The study of International Relations grew after World War II into a major focus of social science to encompass these new realities, new states, and new issues.[1] In the first case, social scientific studies endeavor to understand why state actors behave as they do, including how technology helps to determine their capabilities. In the second case, advances in science and technology became integral aspects of the relations between and among states including, among others, their role in war and peace, in the management of conflict, in the promotion of economic development, and in the analysis of decision marking.


[1] International Relations Encyclopedia of Science, Technology, and Ethics Ed. Carl Mitcham. Vol. 2. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2005 Gale.

ISLAM AND THE CHALLENGES OF MODERNITY

1. Understanding the meaning of the word modernization

 

Modernization has a very broad meaning, one of them is covering the process of obtaining a new image as the image on the direction of change or the image of possible development.[1] The limits of modernization are only focused on the change of aspects in technology and economics. However, as stated by Manferd Halpren, modernizing revolution actually involve the transformation of all previously existing systems in society, political system, social, economic, intellectual, religious, and psychological.
 

 2. Modernization, Globalization, Industrialization, Urbanization and Secularization

 
Globalization shows the rapid development in communications, technology, transportation and information, which makes the world more narrow because everything is easier to achieved. The process of globalization is also formed by the exchange of information and culture.
 

The relation with the western world, there are several theories about modernization. For example Daniel Lerner, assume that the modernization is identical with westernization, secularization, democratization, and liberalization. But there is something which makes a dichotomy between modernization and westernization, which is modernization kind of technological and westernization consist of value oriented. But this dichotomy in some ways is not appropriate. For example, aircraft and cinema is a creation of the West, but we can accept the plane but we can not accept cinema. Beside that, in several studies of sociology said that in some areas, industrialization is part of the modernization. This means that modernization has implications for the emergence of industrialization. However, in some other countries, there are some different thinking, which industrialization give implications for modernization, so there is  a statement that modern age is due to the industrial revolution.

Historically, in fact the two terms above are closely related, but not synonymous. Modernization is more inclusive, due that modernization can occur regardless of industrialization. As stated by Apter, that modernization in the West preceded by commercialization and industrialization, while in the non - Western, commercialization and modernization preceded by bureaucracy, so Bendix defines that modernization as a whole social and political changes that accompanied industrialization in most countries which follow western civilization. So Modernization can be seen regardless of Industrialization. In conclusion modernization has established a fundamental change of behavior and belief in the economic, political, social organization, and forms of thought.

Economic field, the change can be seen in the form of industrialization and economic growth, the emergence of the need - the need for large amounts of capital, the growth of science and the emergence of class - a new class and social mobilization. Actually Islam’s impact on economic performance is a particularly contested terrain.[2] At the most basic level of individual psychology, one can cite Qur’anic verses that would appear to counsel a fatalistic acceptance of destiny and discourage the kind of striving, experimentation and innovation thought to underlie economic advance (for example, “Believing men and women have no choice in a matter after God and His apostle have decided it” [Sura 33:36]). Yet one can also cite verses that could be reasonably interpreted as encouraging effort and enrichment (“When the service of prayer is over, spread out in the land, and look for the bounty of God” [Sura 62:10]). The Prophet Mohammad himself was a merchant, and some scholars go so far as to argue that of the major world religions, Islam is the most consistent with economic advance. It means that Islam has a possibility to do a modernization based on the economic.

In politics, marked by the emergence of the political parties, units and youth groups. We can see in Mawdudi’s effort.[3] Sayyid Abu al-A‘la Mawdudi (1903–1979) was the one influential Muslim Thinkers. He was the most systemastic thinker of modern Islam. This article is started with  a change in the Egyptian Government which led to the release of most Muslim Brethren from emergency detention and also the banning of Ikhwan Organization. The Egyptian Prime minister  Mahmud Fahmi and the founder of Ikhwan, he was Hasan Al Bana was dead in that time. Because of that assassination, some of the university students and graduates began to ask themselves questions such as: Are we on the right track of true Jihad to establish Islamic justice through an Islamic state that enforces a God’s Law? Before Bana’s assassination Bana often have writings and speechs which present Islam as a way of life in very broad lines.

After that in Cairo around 1950 a small committed group among those puzzled youth released from detention established a modest bookstore which contained of Mawdudi’s concise writings for example al-Din al-Qayim ( The True or Right Religion ) the Mawdudi’s writing became popular among arab readers. Mawdudi’s also visited and lectured in many cities in the Arab world. Moreover Mawdudi’s writings spoke the aspirations of puzzled Muslim youth, then they trust him as the Islamic thinker and leader who believed not only in the vital role of the educated Muslim youth in the revival of Islam but also in addressing their particular intellectual interests side by side with their spiritual and moral needs and by involving them in social and political activities. So that’s why Arab youth committed to the revival of Islam found and would continue to find enlightenment for their minds and hearts in Mawdudi’s words. Mawdudi believed that negatives and failures must be objectively and honestly presented in the same manner as positives, and he applied this to the political history of Islam, including the period under the last two of the four Caliphs: Uthman (644-56) and ‘Ali (656-61) known as the “fitnah”. He also applied this concept to the history of Islamic revivalist endeavors Mawdudi understands ‘social movement’ as a deliberate, collective endeavor to promote change in certain directions by certain means, an effort by an organized group founded with conscious volition, normative commitment to the movement’s aims and beliefs and active participation on the part of followers and members.
 

Mawdudi underscored the grievances that Muslims all over the world had against Christian European and American support of Israel against the palestinian people in his response to Pope Paul in 1967. Since the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and the British mandate on Palestine after the end of World War One in 1918, Jewish immigration to Palestine had increased enormously, and culminated in the establishment of Israel in 1948. Israel then carried on subsequent aggression and expansion in Palestine and neighboring lands. Palestinians lost their land and their lives. The Vatican’s suggestion was to put all Jewish settlements under British mandate. Referring to this bitter experience, Mawdudi asked the Pope how one might expect good and friendly relations between Muslims and Christians.

That were the example of Mawdudi’s thinkings and writings which contribute to the development of of Modern Islamic Thinking in The Arabic Speaking World which can rise the emergence of political parties and youth groups in Islam age.

In the social field, a change in the relationship between the opposite sex, mass communication, and urbanization. And modernization also cause diffusion of rational secular norms culture.

Peter Berger states that there are five pillars of modernization:
a. Abstraction, the lifestyle in the form of bureaucracy and technology.
b. Futurity, that the future becomes the principal orientation in the activity and imagination, as well as lifestyle set by time.
c. Individualization, the separation of the individual from any sense of collective entities and forming alliances.
d. Liberation, that worldview is dominated by choice rather than necessity, which means that everything beyond the needs, can be realized.
e. Secularization, a slump in the field of religious belief.

Andrew Rippin mentions factors which have a very big impact in the Islamic world:
a. Ascendasy and Dicline, which means that with the strength of Europe and America in the world, the world of Islam in all parts of the developing world oppressed.
b. Nationalism and Socialism. Modern political ideology by some circles is not the cause of the problem deterioration, but also an attractive modern thought.
Emmanuel Sivan stated that television is one of the primary means and a symbol of an invasion of the modern world, as the most effective means to perform propagation modernization. Meanwhile, DJ Dwyer stated that the town became the center of social change and modernization. Indeed there is a thorough study on the structure of the city, as was done by Terry McGee, said that the city was not a center of renewal, modernization, or changes of society, so there is the theory of dualism within urban communities, which distinguish between modern and traditional sectors. However, the study was conducted in an underdeveloped society, where this kind of life lived by those who come from inland, and in big cities they live in semi village. The city is referred to as the center of civilization and modernization, because of the continuous movement by the people of the village to the town (urbanization), which is based on the desire to achieve live changing in economics, and social changes better. Then Daniel Lerner, in theory, stated that urbanization is preconditions for modernization and development or progress. However, many experts are less optimistic towards urbanization. The city is no longer seen as the center of change and progress, but as a regional crisis, as the center of social problems, disease, crime, and poverty. In the end, poverty is a major cause of social tensions and threatens to divide a nation because of the issue of inequalities, in particular income inequality.[4] This happens when wealth in a country is poorly distributed among its citizens. In other words, when a tiny minority has all the money.The feature of a rich or developed country for example is the presence of a middle class, but recently we've seen even Western countries gradually losing their middle class, hence the increasing number of riots and clashes. In a society, poverty is a very dangerous factor that can destabilize and entire country. The Arab Spring is another good example, in all of the countries concerned, the revolts started because of the lack of jobs and high poverty levels. This has led to most governments being overthrown). So that is why we have to think critically with modernization.

[1] Tim Reviewer MKD UIN Sunan Ampel. 2014. Pengantar Studi Islam.
[2] http://www.worlddialogue.org/content.php?id=302 , accesed on December 22th 2014
[3] Brian, Ghofar, Wulan. 2014. The Review of Article Mawdudi Thinking in Arabic Speaking World. A review for mid term assignment of Introduction to Islamic Studies in Sunan Ampel Islamic State University
[4] http://www.poverties.org/effects-of-poverty.html ,Accessed on December 24th 2014

ISLAM AND ITS PROBLEM

The religion of Islam as taught by Prophet Muhammad, there are instructions on how  human should respond to life and realize that this life is more meaningful. Islam teaches that life is dynamic and progressive, being balanced in the material and spiritual needs, constantly developing social care, respect the time, being open minded, quality-oriented, egalitarian, partnership, loving cleanliness and putting fraternity. In the Qur'an and hadith was found that the largest proportion is shown in social affairs.

In the study of social science, it found some structural-functional theory, which states that everything that does not work

Mawdudi’s Contribution To The Development of Modern Islamic Thinking in The Arabic Speaking World

 A Review of the Article

Sayyid Abu al-A‘la Mawdudi (1903–1979) was the one influential Muslim Thinkers. He was the most systemastic thinker of modern Islam. This article is started with  a change in the Egyptian Government which led to the release of most Muslim Brethren from emergency detention and also the banning of Ikhwan Organization. The Egyptian Prime minister  Mahmud Fahmi and the founder of Ikhwan, he was Hasan Al Bana was dead in that time. Because of that assassination, some of the university students and graduates began to ask themselves questions such as: Are we on the right track of true Jihad to establish Islamic justice through an Islamic state that enforces a God’s Law? Before Bana’s assassination Bana often have writings and speechs which present Islam as a way of life in very broad lines.
 

After that in Cairo around 1950 a small committed group among those puzzled youth released from detention established a modest bookstore which contained of Mawdudi’s concise writings for example al-Din al-Qayim ( The True or Right Religion ) the Mawdudi’s writing became popular among arab readers. Mawdudi’s also visited and lectured in many cities in the Arab world. Moreover Mawdudi’s writings spoke the aspirations of puzzled Muslim youth, then they trust him as the Islamic thinker and leader who believed not only in the vital role of the educated Muslim youth in the revival of Islam but also in addressing their particular intellectual interests side by side with their spiritual and moral needs and by involving them in social and political activities. So that’s why Arab youth committed to the revival of Islam found and would continue to find enlightenment for their minds and hearts in Mawdudi’s words. Mawdudi believed that negatives and failures must be objectively and honestly presented in the same manner as positives, and he applied this to the political history of Islam, including the period under the last two of the four Caliphs: Uthman (644-56) and ‘Ali (656-61) known as the “fitnah”. He also applied this concept to the history of Islamic revivalist endeavors Mawdudi understands ‘social movement’ as a deliberate, collective endeavor to promote change in certain directions by certain means, an effort by an organized group founded with conscious volition, normative commitment to the movement’s aims and beliefs and active participation on the part of followers and members.

Mawdudi underscored the grievances that Muslims all over the world had against Christian European and American support of Israel against the palestinian people in his response to Pope Paul in 1967. Since the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and the British mandate on Palestine after the end of World War One in 1918, Jewish immigration to Palestine had increased enormously, and culminated in the establishment of Israel in 1948. Israel then carried on subsequent aggression and expansion in Palestine and neighboring lands. Palestinians lost their land and their lives. The Vatican’s suggestion was to put all Jewish settlements under British mandate. Referring to this bitter experience, Mawdudi asked the Pope how one might expect good and friendly relations between Muslims and Christians.

That were the example of Mawdudi’s thinkings and writings which contribute to the development of of Modern Islamic Thinking in The Arabic Speaking World.

Sejarah Kodifikasi Hadits

 A.    Definisi Kodifikasi Hadits

Kodifikasi atau tadwin hadith secara resmi di sinonimkan dengan tadwin al hadith Rasmiyan, tentunya akan berbeda dengan penulisan hadith atau kitabah al hadith. Secara etimologi kata kodifikasi berasal kata codification yang berarti penyusunan menurut aturan/ sistem tertentu. Atau dari kata tadwin dapat berarti perekaman (recording), penulisan (writing down), pembukuan (booking), pendaftaran (listing, registration). Lebih dari itu, kata tadwin juga berarti pendokumentasian, penghimpunan atau pengumpulan serta penyusunan. Maka kata tadwin tidak semata- mata berarti penulisan, namun ia mencakup penghimpunan, pembukuan dan pendokumentasian.

Adapun kata rasmiyan (secara resmi) mengandung arti bahwa suatu kegiatan dilakukan oleh lembaga administratif yang diaukui oleh masyarakat, baik langkah yang ditempuh tersebut diakui atau tidak oleh masyarakat itu sendiri.

Jadi yang dimaksud dengan kodifikasi hadith secara resmi adalah penulisan hadith nabi yang dilakukan oleh pemerintah yang disusun menurut aturan dan sistem tertentu yang diakui oleh masyarakat.

Adapun perbedaan antara kodifikasi hadith secara resmi dan penulisan hadith adalah :