Islamic Resurgence in South Africa

The contemporary Islamic resurgence and spirit of pan-lslamism thatare being experienced today throughout the world did not come aboutovernight. They are the results of two counterforces operative in any giveperiod of time. On the one hand, there was the deconstructionist force, inthe form of the colonial and imperial forces that sought to destroy theIslamic value system. On the other hand, there was the reconstructionistforce of 'ulama haqq and the Sufi shaykhs, who served as the prime stiinulatorsof the reform impusle and of change in the religiopolitical outlookof Muslims throughout the world.Islam in South AfricaSouth Africa has played a forceful role in maintaining Islam's dynamicposition for about three centuries. The picturesque activities of the earlierulama (in the broadest sense of the word)-particularly the Sufi shaykhs- andearly imams laid the foundations for the contemporary Islamic resurgencein South Africa, as seen in the Musliin Youth Movement and suchother da'wah movements as the Call of Islam. Past workers and presentmovements have been religiopolitical positivists and activists. From theoutset, Muslims needed to reconstruct Islamic education and maintain themomentum of revivalism and resurgence activities.The Dutch East India Company and English East IndiaCompany: A Deconstructionist ForceThe East India Company refers to any of a number of commercialenterprises formed in Western Europe during the seventeenth and eighteenthcenturies to further trade with the East Indies. These companies weregiven charters by their respective governments to acquire territory whereverthey could and to exercise therein various governmental functions,including legislation, the issuance of currency, the negotiation of treaties,the waging of war, and the administration of justice ...