In Pursuit of Legitimacy: The Muslim Brothers and Mubarak, 1982-2000 (Library of Modern Middle East Studies)
Hesham Al-Awadi | 2005-01-15 00:00:00 | Tauris Academic Studies | 256 | Politics
Hesham Al-Awadi argues that the growing impact of the Muslim Brotherhood on Egyptian politics and society is part of the movement's struggle to gain official legitimacy since its ban in 1954. The movement's remarkable presence in syndicates, student unions, investment companies and parliament was the outcome of its highly organized structure, consolidated during the earlier years of President Mubarak. Although the Brotherhood failed to secure the recognition of the state, they did secure a degree of informal legitimacy, based on their services to middle class beneficiaries. This "social" legitimacy was soon employed politically against the regime as Mubarak, haunted by the sudden rise of Islamists in Algeria and his failure to legitimate his leadership, was impelled to revoke his policies in the nineties.
Reviews
This is an excellent book on the Muslim Brotherhood's experience in Egypt during Mubarak's rule as president. The framework is one of legitimacy on the part of both and how social welfare and civil society matters inform much of the Brotherhood's actions. Political, economic, and social issues are all covered, moving chronologically from 1982 onwards up to 2000. The author conducted many interviews with government members as well as tons of Brotherhood fellows. Also included in the appendices are four hitherto unpublished internal policy documents on the Brotherhood by the Brotherhood. All in all a well-crafted and insightful look on a religious organization's attempt to inculcate itself in a political system that, in the end, denied its place.
The author, though, really needed to have had someone else edit this text. Grammatical, syntactic, and spelling errors abound, sometimes muddying the author's intent in a passage...
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