Islam and Human Rights

- an introductory study by Asim Khan, Germany -

I

On December 10, 1948 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Following this historic act the Assembly called upon all Member countries to publicize the text of the Declaration and "to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories."

This Universal Declaration of Human Rights has indeed become an essential and common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

Unfortunately, however, the realization of these rights has virtually been limited to Western countries, whereas the so-called Islamic nations have never been able to fully grasp the value of human rights nor did they ever acknowledge the basic and fundamental teachings of Islam.

For if they did, they would have come to realize that the Holy Prophet of Islam, Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa, peace and thousands of blessings of God be upon his soul, was revealed a book which- more than 1400 years ago- postulated the very same rights which the United Nations have been able to establish just a few decades ago.

The Holy Quran indeed contains all rules and regulations which are necessary to grant a peaceful and just society where all people- independent of their race or religion- have the same fundamental rights and can thus live in peace and harmony. Violence and terrorism, on the other hand, have no place in this religion.

This being so, it is a matter of deep regret that the Western view of Islam is diametrically opposite to the actual spirit of this beautiful religion. Mad “Mujahedeen” killing in the name of Allah and Jihad only contribute to these prejudices, thus further aggravating the status quo. And unfortunately, western intellectuals are apparently not willing to analyze what Islam really teaches, basing their judgments on emotions, rather than on facts.

In the light of this sad situation, I deem it most essential to introduce the reader to the Islamic concept of Human Rights. In the following, therefore, I will quote different verses of the Holy Quran as well as various Traditions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad in order to scrutinize whether they are compatible with the modern concept of Human Rights or not, proving that the Holy Quran is in fact the source of Human Rights and that there is absolutely no contradiction between the teachings of Islam and Human Rights as declared by the United Nations.

II

The opening Articles of Universal Declaration of Human Rights postulate that

“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.  They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status”

In full accordance with theses ideals, we read in the Holy Quran:

“O mankind, We have created you from a male and a female; and We have made you into tribes and sub-tribes that you may recognize one another. Verily, the most honourable among you, in the sight of Allah, is he who is the most righteous among you. Surely, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.”

(Sura 49, verse 14)

The present verse lays down the basis of an all-comprehensive, all-pervading brotherhood of man, emphasizing the role of fraternity and equality.

The verse, in fact, lays the axe at the false and foolish notions of superiority, born of racial arrogance or national conceit. Having been created from a male and a female as human beings all men have been declared equal in the sight of God. The worth of a man is, therefore,  not to be judged by the pigments of his skin, the amount of wealth he possesses, or by his rank or social status, descent or pedigree, but by his moral greatness and by the way in which he discharges his obligations to God and man. The whole human race is but one family. Division into tribes, nations and races is, however, only meant to give them better characteristics.

On one occasion of the Last Pilgrimage at Mecca, a short time before his death, the Holy Prophet, addressing a vast concourse of Muslims, said:

“O ye men! Your God is One and your ancestor is one. An Arab possesses no superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab over an Arab. A white is in no way superior to a red, nor, for that matter, a red to a white, but only to the extent to which he discharges his duty to God and man. The most honoured among you in the sight of God is the most righteous among you.”

These noble words epitomize one of Islam’s loftiest ideals and strongest principles. It deserves a special mention in this context that the Holy Prophet preached these intensely democratic principles at a time and in a society which were riven with class distinctions.

As far as the role of women is concerned, the Holy Quran unmistakably recognizes the equality of men and women and promises both equal share in Divine favours, saying that:

“Whoso acts righteously, whether male or female, and is a believer, We will surely grant him a pure life; and We will surely bestow on such their reward according to the best of their works.”

(Sura 16, verse 98)

Underlining this fundamental teaching of Islam, the Holy Prophet once said:

“The best among you is he who gives the best treatment to his wife.”

Considering this, it becomes clearly manifest that subjugation of women as seen in many “Muslim” countries today is totally un-Islamic and cannot be ascribed to this religion. On the contrary, it was with the emergence of Islam that women were granted fundamental rights, whereas in the pre-Islamic era they were subject to discrimination, violence and hostility.

According to the Quran women stand on the same level with men, and they can attain to all those spiritual heights to which men can attain and enjoy all those political and social rights which men enjoy. Only their spheres of activities being different, their duties are different. It is this difference in duties of both the sexes that has mistakenly, or perhaps deliberately, been misunderstood by hostile critics of Islam as implying a lower status for women.

Let us now turn to the second important issue dealt with in the UN Human Rights Declaration- the freedom of faith:

“Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

(Article 18)

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and

ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”

(Article 19)

Referring to this, the Holy Quran says:

“There should be no compulsion in religion”

(Sura 2, verse 257) 

According to this verse, man is left to his free choice and acceptance of the truth. Faith is not commanded on the basis of authority, but is invited on the basis of understanding.

Converting people to Islam by force, on the other hand, is strictly prohibited, as the following verse explains:

“It is the truth from your Lord; wherefore let him who will, believe, and let him, who will, disbelieve.”

(Sura 18, vers 30)

Therefore, there cannot be any worldly punishment for religious omissions or blasphemy, nor should be “Jihad” understood as a “Holy” war requiring death and destruction. 

In fact, when studied in the light of the historical events, it appears that the purpose of such wars in the early Islamic era never was to convert people to Islam by force, nor to explore new markets and get new colonies, as Western Powers did. It was to fight in self-defence and to save Islam from extermination and to establish freedom of conscience and liberty of thought. Thus the first and foremost object of the wars of Islam was, and will always be, to establish freedom of belief and to fight in defence of an unprovoked attack.

When speaking of Jihad and martyrdom, let us also remember what the Holy Prophet said on one occasion:

“The ink of the scholar is more sacred than the blood of the martyr.”

III

From an in-depth study of the arguments presented above the reader can easily deduce that the verses of the Holy Quran, along with the Traditions of the Holy Prophet, leave no room for any different or deviated interpretation and clearly show that Human Rights do not contradict but rather confirm Islamic teachings.

Unfortunately, Human Rights are trampled underfoot by “Muslim” nations nowadays, with the “scholars” perpetually cranking out hundreds upon hundreds of new fatwas aimed at infiltrating the Muslim masses with their propaganda which mostly has a political background and uses religion as a pretext.

Those who justify their barbarian deeds claiming to act in the name of Islam are, however, well-advised to verify their limited knowledge of this religion, the literal meaning of which is “peace”.

In the end, I would like to draw the reader’s attention to the fact that all the monotheistic religions of the world were, in the process of their history, subject to misinterpretation and arbitrariness of those in power. But eventually, rationalism and truth always remained victorious. Such will be the case with Islam, though today things are indeed very difficult.

Let us hope, therefore, that this difficult period may be overcome and that finally people all over the globe- whatever their religion- may live in peace and harmony. May God make it so!

by Asim Khan, contact: asim.k@lawyer.com