Human Rights In Islam

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Human Rights In Islam
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Since God is the absolute and the sole master of men and the universe, He
is the sovereign Lord, the Sustainer and Nourisher, the Merciful, Whose
mercy enshrines all beings; and since He has given each man human dignity
and honor, and breathed into him of His own spirit, it follows that, united
in Him and through Him, and apart from their other human attributes, men
are substantially the same and no tangible and actual distinction can be
made among them, on account of their accidental differences such as
nationality, color or race.  Every human being is thereby related to all
others and all become one community of brotherhood in their honorable and
pleasant servitude to the most compassionate Lord of the Universe.  In such
a heavenly atmosphere the Islamic confession of the oneness of God stands
dominant and central, and necessarily entails the concept of the oneness of
humanity and the brotherhood of mankind.

Although an Islamic state may be set up in any part of the earth, Islam
does not seek to restrict human rights or privileges to the geographical
limits of its own state.  Islam has laid down some universal fundamental
rights for humanity as a whole, which are to be observed and respected
under all circumstances whether such a person is resident within the
territory of the Islamic state or outside it, whether he is at peace or at
war.  The Quran very clearly states:

"O believers, be you securers of justice, witness for God.  Let not
detestation for a people move you not to be equitable; be equitable - that
is nearer to God-fearing." (5:8)

Human blood is sacred in any case and cannot be spilled without
justification.  And if anyone violates this sanctity of human blood by
killing a soul without justification, the Quran equates it to the killing
of entire mankind.

"...Whoso slays a soul not to retaliate for a soul slain, nor for
corruption done in the land, should be as if he had slain mankind
altogether."  (5:32)

It is not permissible to oppress women, children, old people, the sick or
the wounded.  Women's honor and chastity are to be respected under all
circumstances.  The hungry person must be fed, the naked clothed and the
wounded or diseased treated medically irrespective of whether they belong
to the Islamic community or are from among its enemies.

When we speak of human rights in Islam we really mean that these rights
have been granted by God; they have not been granted by any king or by any
legislative assembly.  The rights granted by the kings or the legislative
assemblies, can also be withdrawn in the same manner in which they are
conferred.  The same is the case with the rights accepted and recognized by
the dictators.  They can confer them when they please and withdraw them
when they wish; and they can openly violate them when they like.  But since
in Islam human rights have been conferred by God, no legislative assembly
in the world or any government on earth has the right or authority to make
any amendment or change in the rights conferred by God.  No one has the
right to abrogate them or withdraw them.  Nor are they basic human rights
which are conferred on paper for the sake of show and exhibition and denied
in actual life when the show is over.  Nor are they like philosophical
concepts which have no sanctions behind them.

The charter and the proclamations and the resolutions of the United Nations
cannot be compared with the rights sanctioned by God; because the former
are not applicable on anybody while the latter are applicable on every
believer.  They are a part and parcel of the Islamic Faith.  Every Muslim
or administrator who claims himself to be Muslim, will have to accept,
recognize and enforce them.  If they fail to enforce them, and start
denying the rights that have been guaranteed by God or make amendments and
changes in them, or practically violate them while paying lip service to
them, the verdict of the Holy Quran for such government is clear and
unequivocal:

"Those who do not judge by what God has sent down are the disbelievers."  (5:44)

Human Rights In An Islamic State

  »  The Security Of Life And Property:
In the address which the Prophet
delivered on the occasion of the Farewell Hajj, he said: "Your lives and
properties are forbidden to one another till you meet your Lord on the Day
of Resurrection."  The Prophet has also said about the dhimmis (the
non-Muslim citizens of the Muslim state): "One who kills a man under
covenant (i.e., dhimmi) will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise."

  »  The Protection Of Honor:
The Holy Quran lays down:

  »  "You who believe, do not let one (set of) people make fun of another set."

  »  "Do not defame one another."

  »  "Do not insult by using nicknames."

  »  "Do not backbite or speak ill of one another."
(49:11-12)

  »  Sanctity And Security Of Private Life:
The Quran has laid down the injunction:

  »  "Do not spy on one another." (49:12)

  »  "Do not enter any houses unless you are sure of their occupant's consent." (24:27)

  »  The Security Of Personal Freedom:
Islam has laid down the principle
that no citizen can be imprisoned unless his guilt has been proven in an
open court.  To arrest a man only on the basis of suspicion and to throw
him into a prison without proper court proceedings and without providing
him a reasonable opportunity to produce his defense is not permissible in
Islam.

  »  The Right To Protest Against Tyranny:
Among the rights that Islam has
conferred on human beings is the right to protest against government's
tyranny.  Referring to it the Quran says:

"God does not love evil talk in
public unless it is by someone who has been injured thereby." (4:148)

In Islam, as has been argued earlier, all power and authority belong to
God, and with man there is only delegated power which becomes a trust;
everyone who becomes a recipient of such a power has to stand in awful
reverence before his people toward whom and for whose sake he will be
called upon to use these powers.  This was acknowledged by Hazrat Abu Bakr
who said in his very first address: "Cooperate with me when I am right but
correct me when I commit error; obey me so long as I follow the
commandments of Allah and His Prophet; but turn away from me when I
deviate."

  »  Freedom Of Expression:
Islam gives the right of freedom of thought and
expression to all citizens of the Islamic state on the condition that it
should be used for the propagation of virtue and truth and not for
spreading evil and  wickedness.  The Islamic concept of freedom of
expression is much superior to the concept prevalent in the West.  Under no
circumstances would Islam allow evil and wickedness to be propagated.  It
also does not give anybody the right to use abusive or offensive language
in the name of criticism.  It was the practice of the Muslims to enquire
from the Holy Prophet whether on a certain matter a divine injunction had
been revealed to him.  If he said that he had received no divine
injunction, the Muslims freely expressed their opinion on the matter.

  »  Freedom Of Association:
Islam has also given people the right to
freedom of association and formation of parties or organizations.  This
right is also subject to certain general rules.

  »  Freedom Of Conscience And Conviction:
Islam has laid down the
injunction:

"There should be no coercion in the matter of faith." (2:256)

On the contrary, totalitarian societies totally deprive the individuals of
their freedom.  Indeed, this undue exaltation of the state authority
curiously enough postulates a sort of servitude, of slavishness on the part
of man.  At one time slavery meant total control of man over man - now that
type of slavery has been legally abolished but in its place totalitarian
societies impose a similar sort of control over individuals.

  »  Protection Of Religious Sentiments:
Along with the freedom of
conviction and freedom of conscience, Islam has given the right to the
individual that his religious sentiments will be given due respect and
nothing will be said or done which may encroach upon his right.

  »  Protection From Arbitrary Imprisonment:
Islam also recognizes the
right of the individual not to be arrested or imprisoned for the offenses
of others.  The Holy Quran has laid down this principle clearly:

"No bearer of burdens shall be made to bear the burden of another." (35:18)

  »  The Right To Basic Necessities of Life:
Islam has recognized the
right of the needy people for help and assistance to be provided to them:

"And in their wealth there is acknowledged right for the needy and the
destitute."  (51:19)

  »  Equality Before Law:
Islam gives its citizens the right to absolute
and complete equality in the eyes of the law.

  »  Rulers Not Above The Law:
A woman belonging to a high and noble
family was arrested in connection with theft.  The case was brought to the
Prophet, and it was recommended that she might be spared the punishment of
theft.  The Prophet replied: "The nations that lived before you were
destroyed by God because they punished the common man for their offenses
and let their dignitaries go unpunished for their crimes; I swear by Him
Who holds my life in His hand that even if Fatima, the daughter of
Muhammad, had committed this crime, I would have amputated her hand."

  »  The Right To Participate In The Affairs Of State:

"And their business is (conducted) through consultation among themselves." (42:38)

The "Shura" or the legislative assembly has no other meaning except that
the executive head of the government and the members of the assembly should
be elected by free and independent choice of the people.

Lastly, it is to be made clear that Islam tries to achieve the above
mentioned human rights and many others not only by providing certain legal
safeguards but mainly by inviting mankind to transcend the lower level of
animal life to be able to go beyond the mere ties fostered by the kinship
of blood, racial superiority, linguistic arrogance, and economic
privileges.  It invites mankind to move on to a plane of existence where,
by reason of his inner excellence, man can realize the ideal of the
Brotherhood of man.

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Reprinted with the permission of World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY),
P.O. Box 10845, Riyadh 11443, Saudi Arabia
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