Human Rights In Islam
Bismillahi ar-Rahmani ar-Raheem
In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful
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.
III&E Brochure Series; No. 7
(published by The Institute of Islamic Information and
Education (III&E))
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