Maajid Nawaz
Encyclopedia
Maajid Nawaz is a British
Pakistan
i and former member of the Islamic political group Hizb ut-Tahrir
. He holds a B.A. (Hons) from London University's School of Oriental and African Studies and a M.Sc. in Political Theory from the London School of Economics. He is the co-founder and Executive Director of Quilliam (think tank), the world's first counter-extremism think tank. He is also the co-founder of Khudi, a counter-extremism social movement working towards the promotion of social democratic change in Pakistan.
Nawaz cites racism whilst growing up and feeling divided between his Pakistani and British identities as important factors in his struggle to find his own identity. The Nation of Islam and genocide in Bosnia also influenced him. Maajid's experience of Islamism began at the age of 16 when he left home to pursue a design course in London - it was then that he was recruited to Hizb ut-Tahrir (The Liberation Party). Maajid very quickly became a national speaker and international recruiter for the party, travelling first to Pakistan and then to Denmark to export the party's ideology and set up cells from London. He resigned from Hizb-ut-Tahrir in May 2007.
alongside the British writer Ed Husain
. Today he is the Executive Director of Quilliam
, a counter-extremism think tank, created by former activists, including Husain, from radical Islamist organisations.
Nawaz entered the spotlight in 2002 when, as part of a compulsory year abroad as part of his university degree, he travelled to Egypt and was jailed in Alexandria with two others, Ian Nisbet and Reza Pankhurst, for belonging to Hizb ut-Tahrir
, a banned organization in Egypt.
During his time in the same prison he spoke at length with the Muslim Brotherhood leadership such as with Mohammed al-Badee’, who in his youth personally smuggled Qutb’s Milestones out from prison, and their spokesman Dr Essam el-Erian. He also befriended Dr Sa'ad al-Din Ibrahim and the imprisoned runner-up to Egypt's 2006 presidential elections, liberal head of the Tomorrow Party, Ayman Nur. Throughout this time, Maajid continued his studies, sitting with graduates of Cairo's Al-Azhar University
and Dar al-'Ulum
. He specialised in the Arabic language whilst studying historical Muslim scholastics, sources of Islamic jurisprudence, Hadith historiography and the art of Qur'an recitation. He also committed half of the Qur'an to memory.
During his imprisonment in Egypt, Maajid was tortured along with his fellow prisoners. During his trial, Maajid Nawaz was adopted by Amnesty International as a "Prisoner of Conscience".
Reasons for Nawaz’s departure from Hizb ut-Tahrir were due to profound doubts. As he describes in his own words: "My journey from prison was not an easy one to make. After all, there were many reasons for why I should not leave, and very few for why I should. The one reason that I could not ignore, the one reason that grew deep inside me till it consumed me with guilt was the realisation that I was abusing my faith for a mere political project. After learning through my studies in prison that Islamism was not the religion of Islam, but rather a modern political ideology, I no longer felt guilty simply for criticising a political system inspired by 7th century norms."
Since his departure from Hizb-ut-Tahrir, Maajid Nawaz has been active in the Quilliam Foundation
. He also writes regularly for UK and international newspapers and speaks at a variety of forums worldwide. On July 11, 2008, he addressed US Senate Homeland Security and Government and Affairs Committee on the subject of Islamist extremism. In January 2009, he attended the Doha Debates alongside other Muslims to debate the threat of political Islam to the West. He presented the Lent Talks
on BBC Radio Four on March 10, 2010.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i and former member of the Islamic political group Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Sunni. pan-Islamic political organisation but keeps it open for all including shias,some of its beliefs are against sunni school of thought, whose goal is for all Muslim countries to unify as an Islamic state or caliphate ruled by Islamic law and with a caliph...
. He holds a B.A. (Hons) from London University's School of Oriental and African Studies and a M.Sc. in Political Theory from the London School of Economics. He is the co-founder and Executive Director of Quilliam (think tank), the world's first counter-extremism think tank. He is also the co-founder of Khudi, a counter-extremism social movement working towards the promotion of social democratic change in Pakistan.
Nawaz cites racism whilst growing up and feeling divided between his Pakistani and British identities as important factors in his struggle to find his own identity. The Nation of Islam and genocide in Bosnia also influenced him. Maajid's experience of Islamism began at the age of 16 when he left home to pursue a design course in London - it was then that he was recruited to Hizb ut-Tahrir (The Liberation Party). Maajid very quickly became a national speaker and international recruiter for the party, travelling first to Pakistan and then to Denmark to export the party's ideology and set up cells from London. He resigned from Hizb-ut-Tahrir in May 2007.
Biography
Maajid Nawaz studied at Newham College of Further EducationNewham College of Further Education
Newham College of Further Education is a college of further education in the London Borough of Newham, United Kingdom. Previously called Newham Community College, it was created from the merger of the former West Ham College and East Ham College. The main site is in East Ham, with a further site ...
alongside the British writer Ed Husain
Ed Husain
Mohammed Mahbub Husain is the author of The Islamist, a book about Islamic fundamentalism, and an account of his five years as an Islamist activist. Husain also helped to create, with Maajid Nawaz, the counter-extremism organisation the Quilliam Foundation. He is currently at senior fellow at the...
. Today he is the Executive Director of Quilliam
Quilliam
Quilliam is a surname, and may refer to:*John Quilliam , a British Royal Navy officer and the First Lieutenant on HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar...
, a counter-extremism think tank, created by former activists, including Husain, from radical Islamist organisations.
Nawaz entered the spotlight in 2002 when, as part of a compulsory year abroad as part of his university degree, he travelled to Egypt and was jailed in Alexandria with two others, Ian Nisbet and Reza Pankhurst, for belonging to Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Sunni. pan-Islamic political organisation but keeps it open for all including shias,some of its beliefs are against sunni school of thought, whose goal is for all Muslim countries to unify as an Islamic state or caliphate ruled by Islamic law and with a caliph...
, a banned organization in Egypt.
During his time in the same prison he spoke at length with the Muslim Brotherhood leadership such as with Mohammed al-Badee’, who in his youth personally smuggled Qutb’s Milestones out from prison, and their spokesman Dr Essam el-Erian. He also befriended Dr Sa'ad al-Din Ibrahim and the imprisoned runner-up to Egypt's 2006 presidential elections, liberal head of the Tomorrow Party, Ayman Nur. Throughout this time, Maajid continued his studies, sitting with graduates of Cairo's Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University is an educational institute in Cairo, Egypt. Founded in 970~972 as a madrasa, it is the chief centre of Arabic literature and Islamic learning in the world. It is the oldest degree-granting university in Egypt. In 1961 non-religious subjects were added to its curriculum.It is...
and Dar al-'Ulum
Dar al-Ulum
The Egyptian Dar al-Ulum is an educational institution designed to produce students with both an Islamic and modern secondary education. It began as a means to introduce those in mosque colleges to new knowledge emanating from the West...
. He specialised in the Arabic language whilst studying historical Muslim scholastics, sources of Islamic jurisprudence, Hadith historiography and the art of Qur'an recitation. He also committed half of the Qur'an to memory.
During his imprisonment in Egypt, Maajid was tortured along with his fellow prisoners. During his trial, Maajid Nawaz was adopted by Amnesty International as a "Prisoner of Conscience".
Reasons for Nawaz’s departure from Hizb ut-Tahrir were due to profound doubts. As he describes in his own words: "My journey from prison was not an easy one to make. After all, there were many reasons for why I should not leave, and very few for why I should. The one reason that I could not ignore, the one reason that grew deep inside me till it consumed me with guilt was the realisation that I was abusing my faith for a mere political project. After learning through my studies in prison that Islamism was not the religion of Islam, but rather a modern political ideology, I no longer felt guilty simply for criticising a political system inspired by 7th century norms."
Since his departure from Hizb-ut-Tahrir, Maajid Nawaz has been active in the Quilliam Foundation
Quilliam Foundation
The Quilliam is a London-based think tank that focuses on "counter-extremism", specifically Islamism, which they argue is the cause of Muslim terrorism. They lobby government and public institutions for more nuanced policies regarding Islam and the need for greater democracy in the Muslim world...
. He also writes regularly for UK and international newspapers and speaks at a variety of forums worldwide. On July 11, 2008, he addressed US Senate Homeland Security and Government and Affairs Committee on the subject of Islamist extremism. In January 2009, he attended the Doha Debates alongside other Muslims to debate the threat of political Islam to the West. He presented the Lent Talks
Lent Talks
Lent Talks is a series of talks, normally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 8:45 p.m. on a Wednesday in the United Kingdom, to mark the Christian season of Lent. They typically are brief talks, lasting about fifteen minutes, and have featured various speakers from different backgrounds...
on BBC Radio Four on March 10, 2010.
Personal life
At the age of 21, he married Rabia, then a fellow-activist within the Hizb-ut-Tahrir community and a biology student. Together they have one child, Ammaar. On Maajid's decision to leave Hizb-ut-Tahrir, they separated.See also
- IslamismIslamismIslamism also , lit., "Political Islam" is set of ideologies holding that Islam is not only a religion but also a political system. Islamism is a controversial term, and definitions of it sometimes vary...
- ExtremismExtremismExtremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards...
- Hizb ut-TahrirHizb ut-TahrirHizb ut-Tahrir is an international Sunni. pan-Islamic political organisation but keeps it open for all including shias,some of its beliefs are against sunni school of thought, whose goal is for all Muslim countries to unify as an Islamic state or caliphate ruled by Islamic law and with a caliph...
- Ed HusainEd HusainMohammed Mahbub Husain is the author of The Islamist, a book about Islamic fundamentalism, and an account of his five years as an Islamist activist. Husain also helped to create, with Maajid Nawaz, the counter-extremism organisation the Quilliam Foundation. He is currently at senior fellow at the...
- Quilliam (think tank)
External links
- Maajid Nawaz on TwitterTwitterTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
- Maajid Nawaz appears on BBC Hardtalk
- Free Egypt 3
- Interview with the Guardian - 'People were begging for mercy'
- Comment by Nawaz in The Sunday TimesThe Sunday TimesThe Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
- In and Out of Islamism
- The Quilliam Foundation
- To lionise former extremists feeds anti-Muslim prejudice