Fatima Abdel Rahim Ali

Secularism is a political ideology that disintegrates religion from state governance. While secularism may work for countries where the majority professed religion that has no specific legal system viz. Christianity, it begins to exhibit its ineptness in countries that either have a multicultural identity or adopt a systematic religion like Islam as its official religion. To unravel this, secularism acquiesced to embody two divisions of secularism entailing freedom of religion and freedom from religion. The objective of the writing is to resolve the conflicts of the secularism ideology in multicultural state.  The methodology adopted in the research is doctrinal legal research which employed qualitative research. For multicultural counterparts, the absolute disintegration of religion raises difficulties, hence, they opt for the secular concept of freedom of religion. However, from the Islamic perspective, secularism contrasts with Islamic teachings as it is conclusive in every aspect of human life. It has its own foundations and laws that shall be followed at all times. Additionally, the impacts of secularism on the social, educational, and moral aspects have made its germaneness be put in question. Thus, there must be a law to regulate the abovementioned matter in order to ensure the community live with peace and harmony

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a ground-breaking free trade agreement that encompasses fifteen Asia-Pacific nations, including significant economies such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Australia. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which was signed in 2020, is one of the most significant free trade agreements in the world. It is comprised of 15 nations, including the ASEAN countries. The primary objective of the paper is to investigate the RCEP as a geopolitical strategy, examining its formation and significance, as well as elucidate on the issues and challenges associated with its implementation in order to effectively promote global trade and regional stability. This article also examines the strategic benefits that are crucial to RCEP member’s interests and the motivations that underlie their participation. The paper employs a doctrinal legal approach to analyse the strategic significance, implications, and formulation of the RCEP. The results indicate that the RCEP substantially improves regional economic integration, reduces economic dependencies, and decreases susceptibility to external trade conflicts. China’s leadership in RCEP, which establishes it as a central participant in regional trade and counters Western influence, supports the Belt and Road Initiative. The agreement enhances intra-regional trade, reduces Western leverage, and cultivates a collaborative framework that transforms the geopolitical landscape of the Asia-Pacific region.