"To date, most of the published scholarship on Islamist parties in Indonesia has fallen into two main categories, either single case studies, or articles that assess the grand sweep of Indonesian political parties. While many of those studies are highly insightful and theoretically grounded, comparatively few have succeeded in balancing depth with breadth. This book is impressive for several reasons. First, it is thoroughly grounded in the Islamic politics literature. Second, the book is based on a remarkable degree of fieldwork and primary documents, including official party publications, banayats (rulings), speeches, and conference proceedings, as well as books and articles authored by party officials. This access has enabled Platzdasch to offer fresh insights on party debates over electoral strategy, ideology, and political positioning on specific issues. Third, as there have been few studies conducted on PPP and PBB and none of this magnitude in English, Platzdasch's book is especially notable for illuminating the internal debates within these parties, their organizational dynamics, and the challenges they currently face. Islamism in Indonesia constitutes a welcome and important contribution to the literature on Indonesian Islamic parties" (Indonesia).
About the Publication

The fall of President Soeharto in May 1998 and the introduction of multi-party democracy by President BJ Habibie have unleashed religious parties (both Islamic and Christian) in Indonesian politics. This study shows that the Islamist agenda of the Islamist parties is overshadowed by their political pragmatism. This book is a must-read account on the rise and failure of the Islamist struggle in Indonesia's emerging democracy. Platzdasch's work is without a doubt a significant and timely contribution to a better understanding of Islamic politics in contemporary Indonesia. - Professor Azyumardi Azra, Professor of History & Director, Graduate School, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia