Context of Consequences

5.9.3 Context of Consequences

The above discussion in many ways points out the fact that the essential component of the context for the consequences stage is the acceptance resources, in the sense that the The above discussion in many ways points out the fact that the essential component of the context for the consequences stage is the acceptance resources, in the sense that the

To support this point of argument, this study has utilised the data that had been generated by the date of conversion sampling where the availability and the nature of the acceptance component is dependent upon either the Muslim Dusuns converted in the 1990s and beyond which Islam had become the majority religion, or before this particular period of time during which Islam was still a minority religion within the realm of the Dusun ethnic group.

Kose argues that new converts should expect negativity and hostility from their surroundings as a conversion would move them from a realm of social acceptability to that of social unacceptability (Kose 1996: 140). In other words, by converting to a new religion, new converts would be accepted by some and rejected by others.

To extend Kose‟s argument, this study argues that the intensity of the social acceptability versus non-acceptability differs, depending upon the type of religious setting within wh ich one‟s conversion process takes place. For instance, although the Muslim Dusuns who converted between the 1960s and the 1980s were able to attain their Muslim identity, they nevertheless also experienced hostility and rejection from some Dusuns. The following interview excerpt of a 70-year-old former army personnel who converted in 1968 revealed the negative treatment he received after his conversion:

[E73.Muslim Dusun.I39]

I still remember an incident that happened not long after my conversion. I went to the neighbouring village to attend a family ceremony and there, I was served with alcohol. I politely refused the drink and my refusal clearly upset the host. They thought I had become arrogant now that I am a Muslim... [Trans.]

Whereas an interview with a 44-year-old school teacher revealed, firstly, the social acceptability with her family circle:

[E74.Muslim Dusun.I38]

Before my family converted, the way I dressed had never become a priority to me. But all that changed after I converted. I had to be careful and made sure my dressing was according to what Islam prescribed. I was lucky I had Muslim cousins who were willing to guide me... [Trans.]

At the same time however, she was aware of the sense of unacceptability within the realm of the broader Dusun community:

[E75.Muslim Dusun.I38]

Our neighbours just simply avoided us. They stopped coming around to visit my parents and even some of my school friends had suddenly stopped coming over to play or study with me... [Trans.]

Similarly, a conversion experience of a 57-year-old housewife who converted in 1973 illustrates the discriminatory attitudes within the ethnic realm despite the fact that her family generally accepted her conversion:

[E76.Muslim Dusun.I30]

I became the recipient of negative remarks and open ridicule from my Dusun relatives. My cousins kept telling me that my conversion was an ill-considered decision because they believed that Islam is a burdensome religion. It was really a hard time for me because all my relatives clearly resented my convers ion. But I couldn‟t do anything to avoid this sad situation as

I didn‟t want to abandon my family and I didn‟t want to abandon my family and

be able to accept my conversion, and attempted as much as they possibly could to accommodate my new way of life. My mother even bought new kitchen wares and cooking utensils to replace the old ones... [Trans.]

Thus, despite the fact that Islam was promulgated as a state religion in 1959, the implication of the state directives was yet to be felt in the 1960s and the 1980s. Islam was still a minority or even foreign religion within the Dusun ethnic realm that a conversion of the members of the ethnic group to Islam would noticeably play out the many differences between a Muslim lifestyle and that of the Dusuns in their everyday lives. This also indicates the practical cultural separateness between the Dusun Muslim converts and the ethnic group during this early period.

In this particular situation, the availability of the acceptance component of context to support the attainment of a new religious identity during this period was uneven and often restricted due to the marked social, cultural and religious boundary between the converts and the Dusuns. As a result, the uneven availability of the acceptance resources was likely to cause the new converts to experience discrimination in some forms or another, as evident in the above interview excerpts, and as explained by a 72- year-old male convert whose family in the past singled out their Muslim relatives solely because of the differences in lifestyle:

[E77.Muslim Dusun.I22]

When someone converted to Islam especially in the 1970s or even the 1980s, the Dusuns could no longer consider the convert as one of them and this view is mainly based on the grounds on differences between the two. The Dusuns were clearly not keen with the fact that the Muslims have these strict Islamic laws to observe which the Dusuns considered as burdensome and too difficult to accommodate. Porks and alcohol are not permissible for Muslim consumption and When someone converted to Islam especially in the 1970s or even the 1980s, the Dusuns could no longer consider the convert as one of them and this view is mainly based on the grounds on differences between the two. The Dusuns were clearly not keen with the fact that the Muslims have these strict Islamic laws to observe which the Dusuns considered as burdensome and too difficult to accommodate. Porks and alcohol are not permissible for Muslim consumption and

It is clear from the above interview excerpt that the tendency among the Dusuns to fend off the Muslim converts through discrimination and exclusion is primarily because of the oppositional nature of Islam and the Islamic lifestyle, versus the Dusun religion and the Dusun way of life. What possibly made such differentiation to further provoke the unpleasant treatment is the fact that the opposing Dusun and Islamic cultures are in a close proximi ty to one another, because a “clash is seen most clearly at the interface between cultures and during the interaction of individuals from the different cultures” (Mohammadi et al 2007: 12). Moreover, as the Muslim converts

were seen as emulating the lifestyle of the born-Muslim ethnic groups and abandoning many aspects of the Dusun way of life, it is inevitable for the Dusuns to think that the converts had turned their back on their ethnic roots. This further explains the ill-feeling and resentment that were engendered by a conversion to Islam.

By the 1990s however, the implementation of the Islamic- and MIB-driven state policies for the past twenty years or more had led to the breakdown of many cultural and social boundaries. The cultural distinctiveness between different ethnic groups have become less obvious as the cultural and many religious elements which were previously exclusive to the Malay and Muslim ethnic groups have infiltrated and significantly influenced the daily life of the population, irrespective of their ethnic background.

In the case of the Dusun community, its assimilation into the mainstream Malay culture and knowledge has produced a community that exhibits Malay-like behaviour and lifestyle, although these could be somewhat superficial in some ways. As a result, and unlike in the earlier decades, a religious conversion no longer causes a convert to appear exceptionally and conspicuously different from other members of the ethnic group. There is still, of course, cultural aspects that essentially indicate the differences between the Dusun Muslim converts and the ethnic group. For example, the prohibited food items such as pork and alcohol and gambling activities remain off-limits to the converts. However, in general the Dusuns have already become accustomed to, for example, the Islamic way of dressing and there is even a wider acceptance of Islamic dietary laws by the ethnic group.

Thus when one analyses the consequences stage of the Muslim Dusuns who converted in the recent decades, the differences between their experience of the consequences stage and that of the early converts are unmistakable. Almost all informants who converted during and after the 1990s did not report events that indicate ill-feeling or discriminatory treatment which they could possibly receive after their conversion. Examples of this positive experience can be detected in the interview data of a 61- year-old housewife who converted to Islam with her family in 1998:

[E78.Muslim Dusun.I24]

I am certain that there is no ill- feeling between us, and I don‟t see any reason why they should feel that way towards us. During Hari Raya, I would invite all my relatives, neighbours and friends to this house to celebrate the event together. Many of them are non-Muslims but I

d on‟t think there was anything that could make them feel differently. We are all the same in one way or another... [Trans.]

Similarly, the family and relatives of a 59-year-old former custom officer who converted to Islam with his wife and son in 2004 also accepted their conversion positively:

[E79.Muslim Dusun.I5]

I still go and visit my relatives, just like I did before my conversion, and they do not seem to have any problem of hosting me at their home. I believe, if we genuinely respect our family and maintain good ties with them, that will give them an assurance that we have not changed. What I notice now, they do not just accept me but also my religion. For instance, every time I go and visit my non-Muslim brother, he would prepare a room in his house for me to perform the Muslim prayer. He even knows the direction of the qiblat... [Trans.]

The above interview excerpts illustrate the availability of the acceptance component of context, both within the converts‟ personal network and the broader realm of the Dusun community. This accordingly defines the distinctly positive characters of the consequences stage experienced by the recent generation of Dusun Muslim converts.

In addition, the availability of such acceptance component, together with the evident emulation of a Muslim way of life among the Dusuns, leads to a successful attainment of the Muslim identity with relative ease. The following interview excerpt of a 62- year-old housewife who converted in 2006 provides the evidence to support this argument:

[E80.Muslim Dusun.I32]

I got asked a lot after my conversion, how does it feel now I am a Muslim? I believed the reason why they asked this question was

because they couldn‟t see any difference between the way I looked before conversion and afterwards. I often wore headscarf even before

I converted especially when I attended Muslim functions... [Trans.]

Whereas a 51-year-old welfare officer who converted in 2003 revealed his involvement in the religious activities in his workplace is a natural extension of his voluntary participation in the same activity before his conversion:

[E81.Muslim Dusun.I15]

I used to attend the weekly mass recital of Yasiin verses before my conversion. No one forced me to be there; it was completely a voluntary participation on my part because I liked listening to the sound of the recital. Then, after my conversion, I still go and attend the event but now, I can feel my Muslim colleagues accepted me even more... [Trans.]

Likewise, a 60-year-old male convert continues his participation in da’wah activities which he was already involved in before his conversion where he now perceives the participation as a religious duty:

[E82.Muslim Dusun.I23]

My daie friends were more than happy to see me joining them again after my conversion. The routine remained the same but I did feel different. I slowly accepted the fact that the rounds of visit to non- Muslims were no longer solely to accompany the daie group but I myself am the daie now... [Trans.]

The above interview excerpts clearly demonstrate how the high level of social acceptability in Brunei‟s majority-religion context provides the Dusun Muslim converts with better means to attain their Muslim identity. The familiarity that the

Dusun community has with Islam and the fact that the existing Dusun lifestyle already emulate some aspects of the Muslim lifestyle evidently define the rather positive characteristics of the consequences stage of the Dusun Muslim converts. As shown by the excerpts, it is no coincidence that the main features of the consequences stage of the Dusun Muslim converts are the adoption of Muslim lifestyle and the simultaneous Dusun community has with Islam and the fact that the existing Dusun lifestyle already emulate some aspects of the Muslim lifestyle evidently define the rather positive characteristics of the consequences stage of the Dusun Muslim converts. As shown by the excerpts, it is no coincidence that the main features of the consequences stage of the Dusun Muslim converts are the adoption of Muslim lifestyle and the simultaneous

This argument therefore confirms the key argument of this chapter where the actual characters of the consequences stage are defined contextually. The influences of the majority- religion context „directed‟ the adoption of the Muslim lifestyle and the simultaneous integration into the Muslim community to fall under the definition of the consequences stage of the Dusun Muslim converts. These findings provide substantial evidence to support the findings of the literature review in Chapter 3 in demonstrating that the differences in the conversion process is rooted in the religious context within which the process occurs. The summary of the findings of this chapter is as follows.