Paper Titles & Abstracts

Research on Secularism has moved from considering secularism as a necessary arrangement for democracy into studying the democratic secular bargains that take place in most democratic systems. Secularism has neither a linear nor a precise relation to democracy, especially in the European context. Yet, recent empirical research shows that different European democracies have developed different arrangements to deter but also accommodate the public role of religion. The phenomena is less studied in Islamic-majority newly democratising countries in Europe where negotiating and accommodating secularisms are still considered a tabu. Although generally committed to the general separation between the state and religion, organised Islamic actors have used democratic channels and expansion of religion freedoms to negotiate the assertive and often strict models of secularism. This paper aims to analyse the relation between secularism and democracy in two Muslim majority countries -Turkey and Albania. Both countries have established a top-down assertive form of secularism, and both countries have witnessed the rise of bottom-up Islamic movements that use democratic channels to contest established models of secularism. Is this contestation part of claim-making that reinforces democratic participation or seeks to limit democratic opening? The paper aims to 1) explore forms and channels of Muslims' contestation of secularism and 2) analyse its relation to democratization process. The question is particularly relevant to wider debates on Islamic Politics, moderate Islamic movements and as well as their relation to democracy. The argument proceeds in three parts. First, we explore the differences and similarities of secular arrangements adopted in the case of Albania and Turkey. The second part analyses Muslims' successful negotiation of the secular model in Turkey while the third part analyses why Albanian Muslims' have instead co-opted with the top-down assertive model.