SECURITIZATION OF ISLAM: GLOBAL, REGIONAL AND NATIONAL TRENDS

Abstract

After the collapse of the USSR, various assumptions and discussions were formed regarding the political and ideological role of Islam in the development of future national states. In foreign and domestic scientific and expert circles, conclusions based on the threat that the states of Central Asia can fully join the influence of the Islamic world and become a hotbed of fundamentalism and radicalism have become widespread. As a result, the" Islamic threat " has become the core of official discourse at the regional and international levels, becoming one of the priorities, especially in the activities of law enforcement and security structures. In these conditions, the revival of Islam in Central Asia and Kazakhstan took on a paradoxical character. On the one hand, Islam was observed as a manifestation of the spiritual search of society in the context of socio-economic transformations and neoliberal reforms. On the other hand, political regimes, part of the scientific community, and the secular public environment largely accepted Islam through the prism of securitization, contributing to the intensification of Islamophobic discourses as a result. This article analyzes the content and essence of the phenomenon of securitization in relation to Islam and considers its influence on public policy and public discourse. In addition, the social and political consequences of this process are revealed.