TY - JOUR
T1 - The institutional foundations of religious politics
T2 - Evidence from Indonesia
AU - Bazzi, Samuel
AU - Koehler-Derrick, Gabriel
AU - Marx, Benjamin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.
PY - 2020/5/1
Y1 - 2020/5/1
N2 - This article explores the foundations of religious influence in politics and society. We show that an important Islamic institution fostered the entrenchment of Islamism at a critical juncture in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country. In the early 1960s, rural elites transferred large amounts of land into waqf-inalienable charitable trusts in Islamic law-to avoid expropriation by the state. Regions facing a greater threat of expropriation exhibit more prevalent waqf land and Islamic institutions endowed as such, includingmosques and religious schools. These endowments provided conservative forces with the capital needed to promote Islamist ideology and mobilize against the secular state. We identify lasting effects of the transfers on the size of the religious sector, electoral support for Islamist parties, and the adoption of local sharia laws. These effects are shaped by greater demand for religion in government but not by greater piety among the electorate. Waqf assets also impose costs on the local economy, particularly in agriculture, where these endowments are associated with lower productivity. Overall, our findings shed new light on the origins and consequences of Islamism. JEL Codes: D72, D74, P16, P26, Z12.
AB - This article explores the foundations of religious influence in politics and society. We show that an important Islamic institution fostered the entrenchment of Islamism at a critical juncture in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country. In the early 1960s, rural elites transferred large amounts of land into waqf-inalienable charitable trusts in Islamic law-to avoid expropriation by the state. Regions facing a greater threat of expropriation exhibit more prevalent waqf land and Islamic institutions endowed as such, includingmosques and religious schools. These endowments provided conservative forces with the capital needed to promote Islamist ideology and mobilize against the secular state. We identify lasting effects of the transfers on the size of the religious sector, electoral support for Islamist parties, and the adoption of local sharia laws. These effects are shaped by greater demand for religion in government but not by greater piety among the electorate. Waqf assets also impose costs on the local economy, particularly in agriculture, where these endowments are associated with lower productivity. Overall, our findings shed new light on the origins and consequences of Islamism. JEL Codes: D72, D74, P16, P26, Z12.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85085762147&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85085762147&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/qje/qjz038
DO - 10.1093/qje/qjz038
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85085762147
SN - 0033-5533
VL - 135
SP - 845
EP - 911
JO - Quarterly Journal of Economics
JF - Quarterly Journal of Economics
IS - 2
ER -