The advocates of this approach are, generally, traditionalist, conservative Muslims or what the westerners call fundamentalists. In this category, there are four countries in which a concerted effort is underway to “Islamise” the existing legal systems.
They may, therefore, be called the Islamisation group. This includes the following nations: Iran, Sudan, Muaritania, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
In all these countries, but especially in Iran and Pakistan the move toward establishing a powerful regime of Islamic law has been in progress constitutionally since 1979. The aim here is to ensure the supremacy of the Islamic law over all other types of law.
In the West these Islamisation countries are referred to as Islamic fundamentalist. This is only right if it indicates that these Muslims desire to transform the existing Muslim societies into the basic and fundamental patterns prescribed by Islam.
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These so- called fundamentalists project Islamic law as ‘static’ in the sense that pure and true Islam is what has been revealed by God to the Prophet Muhammad.
Hence, at least theoretically, there is no room for evolution of the Islamic law, let alone for its reform or repeal.
The Islamisation group itself can be divided into radicals and conservatives. Examples of the former groups are the Salafiyun (the traditionalists) who nostalgically wish to return to “salaf”, i.e., what pertains to ancestors.
These radical groups are active in Kuwait and other parts of Arabia. Examples of the conservatives and puritans are the Wahhabis in Saudi Arabia and the Sanusis in Libya.
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Nevertheless, more or less in most Muslim countries Islamic law is being re-asserted in one way or another.