Contents
Dedication Vanguard Preface Relaxed and Neutral The Quraysh Qurays h Conditio n and the t he Concept of Obedie Obed ience nce Intellectuals Intellectuals and a nd Scholars at a Loss
Chapter One Questions Raised Before Before the Revolution Reform before Revolution The Price of o f Change Cha nge v. the th e Price Pr ice of o f No Change Cha nge Does History Repeat Itself? On the Concept of Revolution Revolution: Revolution: In Search for the Causes C auses When Does a Revol R evolution ution Occur?
Chapter Two Revolution: the Question Quest ion of Legitimacy
One: Is Islamic Islamic Political Po litical Thought in Need of Revisio n? What is Islamic Legitimate Politics? Pol itics? The Prophet’s Prop het’s governme go vernment nt The Four Rig htly-Guided Calip C alip hs The Caliphate Calip hate and Monarchy Monarch y Rules for Rulers Two: Two: Revol Revo l ution a nd the Legitima cy of o f the Wi nner Historical C hange hange Scholars Scholars a nd the Question of Need Obedience and Consultat Co nsultation ion
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Three: Is It t he Role of t he People or t he Elite? Elite ? Whose right? rig ht? Four: Revolution and Strife Five: Revolution: Revolution: Peaceful or Violent? Viole nt? Six: Who Is Behind Behind the t he Revolution: a Party, a Conspiracy, or the Natio n? Mentality o f the Masses The Islamists Islamist s Behind the Curtains The Arab Revolutio Revo lutions ns in i n Israeli Israeli Eyes
Chapter Three After the Revolution.. Rev olution.. A mbiguous Issues Issue s
One: Post-Revolution Post-Revolution States and t he Question of the Enforcement of Islamic Law Status Status a nd Concepts Concepts Self-Renewing Self-Renewing La w A Gradual Appr Ap proach oach Achieving t he Purpose Purpo se Human Error Subject Subject to Discretion Fundamentals Fundamentals a nd Details Two: Two: State Identity Ide ntity after aft er the t he Revolution: Revolutio n: Civil or o r Religious? Religi ous? Three: The Democratic Solutio n and the Islamic Political P olitical System Sy stem Four: The Relatio Relation n between Rulers and Citizens Citi zens
Chapter Four After the Revolution.. Rev olution.. What Relation R elation with wit h Others? Oth ers? One: The The Islamists and a nd Relation with with non-Islamists no n-Islamists 2
Two: Two: The Islamists Islamist s and the t he Relation Relatio n with the t he West Three: National Natio nal Reconciliatio Recon ciliation n and the th e Relatio n with Promine Pro minent nt Figures of o f Old Regimes Regime s Sweeping Sweeping t he Past General Pardon A Share of the t he Gains Gai ns Fearing Revolutionary Conflict Co nflictss No Justificatio Justification n for Revenge It Shall Not Be Said Four: Revolution as a Prelude to Progress Progr ess
Chapter Five Worries after the Revolution. Re volution... Some So me Questions Quest ions and Problems Proble ms One: Stolen Revolutions Two: Two: Internatio nal Intervention Interv ention Three: Revolutio n and Sectaria Sectar ian n Strife
Conclusion: Conclusion: What the Future Holds for the t he Revolution?
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Dedication
To the souls of martyrs, martyr s, residing re siding in i n the t he green birds bird s of o f heaven: heave n: they were alight when w hen born bo rn and alig alig ht when they t hey left our world;
To the martyr who expects no commemoratio commemora tion n on earth; eart h;
To t he last person per son holdi ng out with a n open ope n breas t, nursing t he dreams drea ms of departed depa rted friends;
To justice on o n earth a nd in heaven. heave n.
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Vanguard
There is no need to encourage a revolutio r evolutio n, since si nce revol ution is i s normally beset be set with wit h grave gra ve danger. It inevitably occurs when serious and radical reform becomes impossible. There are no advocates of revolution. Repression, injustice, corruption, backwardness and poverty are the factors that motivate motivat e revolutio revolutio ns. ns. No one starts the preparations for revolution. It comes unplanned. It just starts all of a sudden, sudden, when all means of reform are blocked, justice is stalled a nd repressio repression n rife. Serious reform deserves sacrifice, which does not mean loss. It is indeed the best means of struggle struggle for t he success of revolution.
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Preface Relaxed and Neutral My approach does not touch touc h any particular situation situation i n any any country, co untry, because I would would like my discussion to be unrestrained. I want to be unshackled by the constraints and peculiarities of any local situation. Moreover, I do not want to face the consequences of applying a general discourse to a particular case. We need to be relaxed so as a s to establish establis h a bala nced co ncept of obedie obed ience nce and a nd revolutio r evolutio n at the sa sa me titi me. It must not make either of them negative negative a nd unacceptable unacceptable or a s ublime ideal to be sought after in all situatio ns. ns. We must not adopt adop t an accommodati ac commodati ng approach appr oach t hat justifies justifie s existing existi ng practic practi c es as though they are the foundation of the state, or considers a particular system of government government as ideal a nd incomparably better than tha n all all else. Certain ideas derive thei t heirr validity from being frequently repeated. There are forums t hat focus on certain cer tain religious religio us texts a nd unanimous una nimous verdicts, verdi cts, to t he exclusio exclusion n of others, as fit thei t heirr own preconceived p reconceived ideas. Here is an a n exa example: mple:
The Quraysh Quraysh Condition Condition and and the Concept Concept of Obedience Obedience When you yo u read a book boo k of commentary on t he Prophet’s Pro phet’s Traditions, Traditio ns, suc h as Shar h al- hih Muslim or Fat h al-Bar i, you find under the topic of the ‘Head of State’ Nawaw i [ al al a Sa hih a stateme statement nt such as:
Iy [ t hat the t he Head of State m ust belo ng to the Qurays h is [ Iy [ ad ad says: “ The conditio n that agreed by all scholars. It is considered a question of unanimity. None of the early scholars is known to have disagreed with this. The same applied to all later scholars in all generations.” He adds: “The view of Al-Khaw arij and the Mu[ tazilah tazilah is discounted, as it is contrary to what all Muslims are agreed upon.” Al-Nawaw i says: “The Caliphate belongs to the Quraysh. It is not permissible to assign it to anyone who does not belong to it. This was unanimously agreed during the generation of the Prophet’s companions as also in subsequent generations. Whoever voices a different view, whether belonging to deviant sects
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or others, is countered by the unanimity of the Prophet’s companions and their successors”.1
Al-Qurtub [i expresses a similar view. view. 2 The unanimity me ntioned in these views is questio nable. [Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second Caliph, said: “Had Salim, Ab u H udhayfah’s ally, been alive, I would have made him my succes successor”. sor”.3 Ib n Hajar says says i n Fat Fa t h al-Ba r i: Whoever co nfirm nfirmss the unanimit u nanimityy on o n this questio q uestion n needs to provid p rovidee an explanatio n of what [Umar is quoted as saying. Ahmad quotes this statement by [Umar with an authentic chain of transmission: ‘If Abu [Ubaydah is alive when I am about to die, I will make him my successor...’ He mentions this statement which also includes: ‘And if Ab u [Ubaydah has predeceased me, I will make Mu[adh ibn Jabal my successor.. succes sor...’.’ Mu[adh ibn Jabal belonged to the Ansar and had no ancestors from the Quraysh. An explanation may be given on the lines that the unanimity to make a condition that the Caliph must belong to the Quraysh was achieved achieved after [Umar, or that t hat [Umar changed cha nged his view at a later time.4 The Ansar’s attitude on the day when Abu Bakr was chosen as the Prophet’s successor makes it clear that at least some of them had a different view. Indeed the condition of ancestry appears to be applicable to a certain period of history when the Arabs were only willing to accept t he a uthority uthorit y of t he Quraysh. Qura ysh. Substantive Substa ntive conditions, co nditions, such suc h as t he implementation implementation of justice and consultat co nsultative ive government governme nt are far more important. The aboveabo ve-quoted quoted statements stat ements b y [Iy ad ad, al-Nawawi and others are largely forgotten. They are hardly ever quoted in a paper or a sermon. Had it been related to a question of obeying rulers, some people would have never tired of quoting them so as to denounce dissidents as being deviant, followers of al-Khaw arij or al-Mu[tazilah and opposed to the Muslim community. This is exactly what is being done with a different statement by alNawaw i: “Rebelling against them and fighting them are forbidden according to the unanimous verdict by Muslims. This is true even if [such rulers] are transgressors and 1
al a Sa hih ar h al-Tathr ib , Vol. 8, p. 79. Also, Fat h al-Ba r i , Vol. hih Muslim. Vol. 12, p. 200. Also, T ar Vis. Sharh al-Nawaw i [ al 13, p. 119. 2 Vis. Al-Muf him , Vol. 4, pp .5-6. 3 Al-Tabar i, Tar ikh al-Umam wal-Mul u k, Vol. 4, p. 22. Also, Ibn [ As Asakir, T a r ikh Dimashq , Vol. 58, pp. 404-405. A similar view is quoted by Ibn Sa[d, Vol. 3, p. 317. Also by Ahmad, Al-Musnad , 130, and by [Umar ibn Shabbah, T a r i kh al-Madinah , Vol. 3, p. 922. “If either one of two men is alive and I m ake him m y successor, successor, I will be confident that he will be up to the t ask: Salim, Ab u Hudhayfah’s ally or Ab u [ Ubaydah ibn al -Jarrah .” 4 Vis. Fat h al-Ba r i, Vol. 13, p. 119.
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wrongdoers. wrongdoer s. Several Traditions Traditio ns by t he Prophet Pro phet confirm t his. The Sunn Su nnii scholars scholar s are unani unanimous mous that a ruler may not be deposed on grounds of his being a transgressor...”5 It should be noted, however, that a good number of scholars from the early generations as also a number of other eminent scholars express a different view justifying rebellion against a ruler who is clearly a transgressor or rules unjustly. Such views are quoted by Ib n Hazm, al-Ghazali, al- Iji and others.6 When you carefully care fully consider co nsider t he t wo views vie ws t hat are claimed to be unanimous, una nimous, you will inevitably discover that some people publicize the second, presenting it as universally accepted, while while totally ig noring noring the t he first one. You may also find the reverse. Neutrality in such matters eludes anyone who speaks or writes trying to impart legitimacy to a particular situation, or defending it without paying due regard to considerations of objectivity. This is by no means mea ns peculiar to those who who support supp ort rulers and governments. g overnments. On the th e other o ther side you find people who consider revolution to be t he standard by which to evaluate and classify matters and actions. Some others reject everything that exists. This leads in most cases to a pattern of either individual or collective dictatorship. Many revolution supporters dream of a transformation that leads to the establishment of the type of government they prefer. It may be a type that leads to social division and to the spread of hatred, fanaticism, fear, doubt and suppression of people’s freedom. The se will inevitably lead to a n atmosp here that paves p aves t he way to a co unter revolutio revo lution. n. In suc h a situation situation we see selectivity, and selectivity is incompatible incompatible with both know k nowledge ledge a nd GodGod consciousness. To arrive arriv e at a mature visio n of questio ns related to Islamically slami cally acceptable acceptabl e poli tics, t he relation between people and rulers, revolution and democracy, we need a good measure of psychological and intellectual relaxation and a similar measure of neutrality that rises above personal, family and tribal interests. We must also guard against the pitfall of applying a particular pattern to communities and societies that are fundamentally different different in culture, cult ure, make-up as well as e conomic and social co nditions. nditions.
Intellectuals and Scholars at a Loss
5 Vis.
hi h Muslim. Vol. 12, p. 229. Shar h al-Nawaw i [ al al a Sa hih 6 Vis. Ibn Hazm, Al-Fi Radd al -Mukht a r , Vol. 4, sal fil-Milal wal-Ni h al , Vol. 4, p. 84. Al- Iji, Al-Maw a qif , Vol. 8, pp.2-3, Radd p. 264. Also, Vis, al-Qurt ub i, Tafs ir , Vol. 6, p. 157.
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After t he Second Seco nd World Wo rld War Fra ncois F uret wrote a n article i n whi whi ch he discussed disc ussed how intellectuals found themselves at a loss after World War II. Likewise, after the Algerian Revolution against the colonial power, Malik ibn Nabi wrote about the feeling of loss Algerian Alger ian intellectuals intelle ctuals experie exp erienced nced after t he revolutio n. As we go through throug h the Arab Spring of revolutions, there seems to be a state that we may call: ‘Intellectuals’ loss after the Arab revolutions revolutio ns’. There seems to be a total loss as we try to identify a way out; a loss in the re-structuring of concepts; a loss in establishing a revolutionary vision; a loss in remoulding remoulding relations relatio ns with allies, friends frie nds and enemies. When people peopl e go t hrough hroug h a period perio d of loss, los s, it i s not surprisi surp rising ng to have numerous numer ous propositions, ideas and theses. It is a period when everyone feels his solution to be faultless. People strongly advocate their own solutions. Yet in this period, every proposed solution is beset by fear and a nd hesitation. hesitation. In this rapidly changing Arab situation there is urgent need for the emergence of scholars who who combine penetrative pe netrative vision vi sion with contemporary co ntemporary education, edu cation, i n ad dition ditio n to i ntegrity and moral discipline. States, communities and institutions need to come up with proper and fair formulae, rather than try to gai n power. power. We need the scholar who who deals with t he religiou religi ouss texts more t han the current curre nt situation, situati on, just as we need the intellectual who deals with the current situation more than the religious texts. I am not giving a sermon in these pages. Nor do I claim that what I am writing is free of personal judgement or uninfluenced by the current situation, whether positively or negatively. I do not even suggest that what I am writing or quoting strictly conforms to these conditions except in as much as it raises questions or starts a dialogue that endeavours to be objective and steers away from bigotry and levelling accusations. “If those who are God-fearing experience a tempting thought from Satan, they bethink themselves themselves [of God]; and they begin to see t hings clearly. Their [evil] [evil] brethren bret hren try try to draw d raw them them i nto nto error with unceasing unceasing determination det ermination.. (7: 201-202) 201 -202) It is only fair that I should say that my role in writing this book has largely been to select, adapt or quote what I feel to be right of other people’s writings. I have read a large number of books and far more articles. My role has largely been to take from here and to add there so that I could come up with this work. This is a humble effort, e ffort, which w hich I find strenuou s trenuou s after I have been bee n away from research researc h for a long time. Yet it is less than what the reader expects. I have concentrated on ideas more than proper organization and the flow of information. The time was too pressing to address both aspects together. I hope hope that t hat I can achie ac hieve ve that i n a later edition. 10
I wish to express my gratitude to the Nama’ Centre for having encouraged me to concentrate over several months on reading religious and political works, many of which are in Arabic while others are translated, in order or der to prepare this work.
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Chapter One
Questions Raised Before the Revolution
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One Reform before Revolution
The be st option o ption for any society soci ety i s to set i n place a process pro cess for c hange hange so as to meet t he ever-changing ever-changing needs of its people. Ma ny states states have put in place ways and mechanis mec hanisms ms to gauge the feelings of society and determine how best to respond to them. Thus, what people feel feel a nd what what they discuss disc uss in private accurately reflec re flectt what w hat should sho uld take place. Centres of studies and research undertake this task in the developed countries and give advice and recommendations to decision makers. They draw graphs; undertake surveys and study statistics to gauge people’s concerns, visions, aspirations, preferences and needs. needs. Thus they help to make policies reflect people’s co ncerns, ncerns, and a nd ensure that policies are modified as people’s concerns develop and change. Government policies need to be close to what people feel. Only in this way, society remains fresh and comfortable as the early hours at dawn. Otherwise, it will feel suffocated as time passes with people feeling deprived, unable to achieve justice or to claim their rights. The result would be an explosion that comes totally unexpectedly to decision makers who do not try to needs. understand understand people’s f eelings or respond to t heir heir health, health, p sychological and political needs. Karl Marx predicted that the main capitalist powers, such as Britain and Germany, would be the ones where revolution would occur, because their affluent societies have their deprived classes. This, however, did not take place. Instead, revolution occurred in poorer countries, such as Russia and China. The reason was that the ruling classes in Europe were quick to recognize the danger presented by the Communist theory. Therefore, they promulg pro mulgated ated laws law s that gave g ave benefits be nefits a nd rights to the working classes and the deprived, such as paid holidays and other privileges. Moreover, they guaranteed freedom of speech. These measures were successful in averting revolution which, otherwise, otherwise, would would have have bee n inevitable. inevitable. Dictatorial regimes, on the other hand, often find it difficult to deal rationally with changing situations. Some people in high positions in such regimes fear for their interests. Such regimes dread that reform might lead to their demise. Their philosophy is that reform means concession and that the first step along that way is the most serious. They argue arg ue t hat once onc e you take o ne step down dow n the ladder, lad der, you will ultimately ultima tely find fi nd yourself yo urself at the bottom.
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The best option optio n is to take t he opportunity opp ortunity a nd use t he time, whi whi ch may often be i njury time, in order to achieve achieve t he desired desired result. This must m ust not be in the form o f giving giving small bribes to people, reducing their economic and social plight by wage increase, providing easy loans, subsidizing some basic items and punishing some aspects of corruption by making some junior officials scapegoats. What should be done is to put in place some serious and brave reforms to prevent social implosion. These measures start with the relaxation of state security measures and the abandonment of monopolizing wealth and political power. They must also ensure e nsure people’s rights and freedoms, freedoms, particularly political freedom freedom and a nd the freedom of expression. expre ssion. Perhaps most people have given up on existing regimes, believing that they will not change after having been in a state of stagnation for many years. It is important, nevertheless, to remember that the most urgent and useful option for Arab regimes, in order to sort out the present crises is to be more open with people. They must offer serious and brave concessions in the areas of the rights of citizenship, justice and rule of law. They must also restructure the relationship between rulers and citizens so as to put an end to repression and futile slogans and to endeavour to win people’s acceptance throug through h guara guarante nteeing eing their th eir freedom freedom a nd decent standards standards o f livi livi ng. Al-Jarrah ibn ib n [ Abdull Abd ullah, the Governor of Khurasan, wrote to the Caliph, [Umar ibn Abd al-[ Az Aziz: “Peace be to you. The people of Khurasan have become corrupt. The [ Abd only remedy to reform the t hem m is to use t he whip and the sword. If the Calip h permits permits me, I will apply ap ply this remedy.” The Caliph’ Ca liph’ss reply rep ly wa s as follows: “ I am in re ceipt of your letter in which you state that the people of Khurasan have become corrupt and that the use of the the whip w hip and the sword is the o nly remedy for them. You ask my permissio n to to use these. Your statement state ment is false. The remedy to bri ng them back to order ord er is the proper pro per administration administration of o f justice and giving e veryone their rights rig hts.. There T herefore, fore, apply this t his to them.” 7 An essential prelimi nary step is to accept pluralism a nd diversity. diver sity. A well balanced social contract contract is needed needed to reconcile opposing trends and g uarantee uarantee e qual opportunity for all to participate in the political field a nd in running the country. This social contract is between agr ee “by “ by mutual co nsent” (4: 29) to t o fulfil fulfil commitme co mmitme nts and a nd oblig o bligations: ations: two parties who agree “Be true to your contracts” (5: 1). The two parties are politicians and people, while the purpose is to ensure the fulfilment of rights and the protection of freedoms and security. It should be understood that ‘security’ does not mean the security of a small group of people who monopolize decision making in all political, financial and administrative spheres.
7 Vis,
al-Khatib, Al -Muttafiq As akir, T a r i kh Dimashq , Vol. 72, p. 59. -Mut tafiq wal-Muf tariq , Vol. 3, p. 1731. Also, Ibn [ As
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It is under the banner of ‘security’ that the security and safety of entire nations are violated, violated , as are ar e their freedom, rights and a nd lives. By contrast, contr ast, revolutionary revolutio nary e nthusiasm nthusias m may postpone or ignore the question of security, particularly in the most important period of rebuilding rebuilding the t he state and the society based o n justice.
The peoples peo ples of Arab A rab countries t hat have witnessed witn essed revolutio r evolutio ns say: “Any future situation is better than the ones they overthrew. Decades of flowery slogans have given us nothing other than defeats, regression and increased of backwardness, corruption, repression and poverty.” We say t hat change, c hange, i n any shape a nd by any means, is a risk t hat des erves to be taken take n in in order to rid ourselves of a long period of awful stagnation. It opens up a new state of affairs that achieves, perhaps most importantly, self determination for people so that they can shape their future by t hemselves, hemselves, without a ny imposition or exclusion. Many people raise doubts d oubts based on the history history of different d ifferent revolutions. revolution s. This is due to the fact that they belong, in some way, to the current status, or benefit by it. Alternatively, they may despair of any change: they realize that the current situation is very low, but they see nothing beyond it other than a precipice. In either case, these people are ultimately ultimately among amo ng the victims of the current sit uation. uation. Others may raise doubts from a different angle, looking only at a balance sheet of profits and losses. They feel that temporary release does not justify the heavy price that is bound to include include loss of o f life, destruction of property a nd spreading hatred.
The Price Price of Change Change v. the Price of No Change Change Achieving serious reform re form that respects respe cts people peop le and treats t hem well remains remai ns t he best option, wherever possible. Other people’s experience confirms that this is possible. In Canada, for example, a democratic system was achieved without going through wars or revolutions. Scholars of Islamic jurisprudence who look at the objectives and purposes of legislation always attach due importance to the overall objectives of guaranteeing people’s rights, protecting their freedoms, ensuring justice, preventing corruption and improving living conditions. When these objectives are achieved at minimum cost and least losses, then that that is what what Islam prefers. Its spirit and a nd general principles support that. Some governments believe that they are well stable and immune to change. They cite in evidence the fact that their regimes have been in existence for many decades. This, however, is no better than an elderly person suggesting that attaining to old age proves 15
that he will not die. Yet old age is the only stage of human life that can be extended throug through h proper health and psychological care.
Two Does History Repeat Itself? Revolution in the Muslim world has a very lo ng history, history, starting with the rebellio n agai agains nstt [Uthm a n, the third Caliph, then the one led by al-Husayn, the Prophet’s grandson, and the the rebellion by the people of Madinah which witnessed the Battle of al -Harrah. Then the Abd al-Ra a l-Ra hm an ibn al-Ash[ath, ‘Scholars’ ‘Scholars’ Revolution’ Revolutio n’ took place under under t he command comma nd of [ Abd leading to the Battle of Dayr al-Jamajim. All these took place in the first century of Islam. Al-Khaw arij staged several rebellions. The Abbasid Caliphate foug foug ht ma ma ny rebellions such as that led by Muhammad ibn Abdullah, known as al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah, and his brother Ibrahim, M us a al-K azim’s revolt, and the Zaydi revolt at al-Raqqah. Revolts against against the Memluks Memluks and t he Ottomans Ottomans were also very frequent. The best k nown o f these was the t he revolt led by the scholars scholar s of al-Azhar al -Azhar in Egypt. However, However , the Abbasid Abb asid revolution revolutio n is perhap perhapss the o nly one that succeeded in establishing a vast state that survived for several centuries. Islamic history also witnessed other rebellions and revolts by scholars both in the the East and in t he Andalus. Andalus. On the world stage there were revolutions that re-shaped societies and introduced fundamental change in the political and economic fields. They even changed the course of history in Eastern and Wester Western n Europe and in the Americas A mericas.. In the eighteenth century, the French monarchy could not adapt itself to the changes taking place in society. As a result, several factors combined to lead to the French Revolution in 1789. Its consequences continued for many years, leading to a social, economic and political crisis. It took the French 80 years to achieve a truly democratic system. Ten years after the revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte, a 29 year old army officer seized seized power and a nd ruled ruled Fra nce nce until u ntil his his defeat at Waterloo. Twent Twenty-six y-six years year s a fter the revol r evolution, ution, t he French Frenc h royal family was wa s back ba ck in power, so as a s to make the loss of life by hundreds of thousands of people were not guillotined or died in war appear ap pear all in vain. In 1830 a new ne w revolt revo lt took to ok place to replace one tyrant with another a nother who who tried to obliter o bliterate ate all t hat was ac hieved by t he revolution. revolutio n. In 1848, the Fre nch people revolted again, putting up barricades in the streets. Hundreds of people lost their lives in a hard struggle between the people who were determined to remove tyranny, whatever
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the sacrifice, and the ruling elite who relied on support by the aristocracy and others in influe influentia ntiall positions. The masses mas ses were happy when w hen t he Second Seco nd Republic R epublic was declared, declar ed, thinking thinki ng that tha t they th ey have done away with tyranny. However, the new president, Louis Napoleon, followed the same line as his uncle and monopolized power. Weary and exhausted, the people succumbed. However, his defeat by Prussia in 1870 led to a new revolt. The Third Republic was thus ushered in and things stabilized. One result of this was the declaration of human human rights, includi ng the right rig ht of all people to liberty, j ustice and security. Europe witnessed witnessed revolutionary revolutio nary action in most countries cou ntries.. Some of o f the t hese se revolts led to the t he promulgation of democratic constitutions that defined the relationship between the people and their rulers. Indeed, European history is full of revolutions and counter revolution. However, counter revolutions that sought to re-establish the old regimes, with their royal ro yal and a nd clerical cler ical orders, ord ers, were largely la rgely unsuccessful. unsucces sful. What is strange stra nge is that Fasci st and Nazist uprisi ngs took place in some of t he most civilized European countries, with the result that a democratic system gave rise to a totalitarian tyranny. The problem was that the democratic pattern did not lay down checks that would prevent tyranny. Therefore, some intellectuals and philosophers, like Karl Buber, argued in an article on lessons learnt from the twentieth century that the most fundamental fundamental principle of democracy is to formulate formulate a system that precludes all types of individual, party, family family or sectarian dictatorship. Eastern European countries managed to oust their dictatorial regimes which were in power for for more than a ce ntury. ntury. According Accord ing to research centres, our world is witnessing a steady increase in democratic democr atic regimes and increased pressures on repressive and dictatorial o nes.
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Three On the Concept of Revolution
Revolutionary spirit may mean a call for renewal and self criticism, in the hope of progressing to a better situation. Within this framework, revolution becomes continuous evolution and a dialectic relation that aims to change things to the better. b etter. From this perspective, we may speak about a broad concept of revolution that starts with accepted facts, but without having to submit to them. The world has thus experienced the Industrial Revolution, the revolution of knowledge, the electronic revolution, the genetic revolution, the communications revolution, etc. These have introduced radical changes into well established concepts and opened the way to unprecedented achievements achievements t hat have have served man. In this light, revolution means to review and develop what exists, and to build over it. It does not mean the mere destruction of the existing situation. Continuous paradigm development development t hus hus becomes a revolutionary r evolutionary spirit tha tha t societies are well w ell advised advised to uphold. The same sa me applies ap plies to t he social a nd cult ural paradigms. parad igms. This i s t he opposite opp osite o f sticking sticki ng to tradition and submitting to what exists, believing t hat it could not be improved. Indeed, it is possible to build b uild on any a ny situatio situation n and make it better. Factors of weakness and deterioration creep into every human situation. To be alert to such factors and resist them reflects a determination to survive and maintain legitimacy. This applies to individuals i ndividuals and a nd natio ns alike. Revolution calls the existing situation into question, trying to sort it out, and to rebuild over it, using either new or existing bricks. Scholars and researchers differ as to its specific concept. Raymond Williams wrote a book, The Long Revolution , on this subject, tracing the Latin roots of the word which connote a rolling movement. In this context, ‘rolling’ means a change over that brings what is on top to the bottom and what is at the bottom to the top. In this context we may cite the Qur’anic verse that says: “Such days [of fortune and misfortune], We deal out in turn among men.” (3: 140) Williams says that revolution started as a concept that turns the ruled into rulers. This is exactly what Ahmad Shawqi, a famous Egyptia n poet of the late nineteenth nineteent h a nd early twentieth twentiet h centuries, expresses as he addresses a dictator calling him Pharaoh. He says: “The age of individual tyranny has gone, as has the state ruled by elite classes. Rulers everywhere now defer to the rule of the people”. The linguistic lingui stic mea ning reflects reflect s a noble concept. co ncept. It recalls 18
a system of values that seeks a fruitful marriage between modernity and renewal on the one hand and integrity and preservation on the other. The fruits of such a marriage inspire creativity. Within t his context, co ntext, revolutio n is different from wars of i ndependence. ndepende nce. The latter often mean that the colonial system remains but brings into power national figures. Revolution seeks seeks to tra nsform nsform the regime so as to make it natio national nal.. Revolution Revolutio n is also different from a military coup that is normally staged by a small group of officers who may raise some revolutionary slogans, but then lay their hands on everything. In most cases, a military coup leads to a small section of people monopolizing all affairs. In essence, a revolution is an expression of general fury. It differs from an uprising or a popular movement that has limited limited objectives. However, an uprising may develop int o a revolution, revolutio n, depending depending on on the the political reaction reactio n and the response o f the general public. Specifically speaking, revolution is a social phenomenon that aims to change the political system through general social action. Certain public figures are in the forefront of such a radical change, but the whole society, not a small political section or a party, participates in enforcing such a change. Reform calls to a return to the fundamental principles in an attempt to rectify malpractices. By contrast, revolution attempts to change the whole system system in i n order to replace it with a new one. Revolution is a leap, not a gradual g radual change. It is t he product of accumulated dissatisfactio dissatisfaction n over a long period. It seeks to end an earlier experience that has failed to introduce any measure of reform and change that satisfies people’s aspirations. De Tocqueville, a famous French historian, is of the view that stalled or ineffective programmes of reform constitute one of the most serious causes of revolution. This is due to the fact that the population would have recognized the importance of reform and the need for it. They are aware of the urgency to put it into effect. Therefore, inaction or slow response adds to their frustration so as to make them despair of any positive outcome from such stalled programmes. De Tocqueville Tocqueville arrived at this conclusion after after having having st udied a number of revolutions. Revolution is an attempt to bypass the great gulf between the rulers and the ruled. It, therefore, seeks to achieve equality between the ruled on the one hand, and between them and the rulers on the other, through the reinstatement of the social contract. A contract presupposes the equality of the two parties to it, and that they are both subject to the law of universal justice that makes no exceptions. Revolution is sometimes a way of protest against the gulf between what exists in practice and the presumed state of law and order.
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It is not always that revolution involves killings and bloodshed, although many revolutions go close to that. Indeed, revolution is essentially a peaceful action. However, it may be met with much violence. A stage is then reached when those in the thick of revolution find find it necessary n ecessary to defend themselves. In such such a case, cas e, the revolution becomes accompanied by armed rebellion. However, a revolution maintains this status as long as such armed armed rebellion r ebellion remains limited to sel f defence and does not lead to i nter nternal nal fighting fighting or a civil war that targets civilians. History speaks of what is known as ‘coloured revolutions’, which are acts of civil disobedience that aim to enforce certain demands by peaceful means. They may adopt an emblem with a particular colour, and normally end without bloodshed. In this category the revolutions of Yugoslavia, Georgia, Lebanon, Pakistan, Tibet and the green revolution of Ira Iran n are placed.
The police a nd t he army play a n importa nt role i n t he success succe ss a nd peacefulness peace fulness o f a revolution. We often see people in the revolution giving roses to army and police personnel, and hugging them. This is the reason why the Tunisian revolution was called the Jasmine revolution. It was totally different from the Libyan revolution which had to become militarized due to the t he heavy heavy shelling of o f the rebels by the Gaddafi brigades. Revolution does not seek to be militarized. However, repressive regimes try to defend themselves using military force, destroying everything and turning cities into living hell. This makes fig hting inevitable. i nevitable.
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Four Revolution: Revolutio n: In Search for the Causes People do not like revolution, just as they do not like war. However, dissatisfaction may considerably exhaust their tolerance so as to bring them close to a flashing point. Their closeness closeness to it may be a vital factor in the break out o f revolutio revolution. n. A wise gover nment nme nt will always alwa ys be aware of t he nation’s mood. mood . When Whe n it feels dissatisfaction growing into a social fever, it will offer palliatives, but will seriously look for solutions through real reform that ensures security and guarantees a safer future. Safeguarding the country and preventing revolution are achievable only through the proper administration of justice, guaranteeing people’s rights and freedoms, allowing free expression and political participation by all, even in a gradual process. When the nation sees real hope of the fulfilment of its aspirations, it will most probably try to support reform and safeguard the gains it ai ms to bring about.
A slap on someone’s face by a policeman, or an attitude by some official may start an unpredictable series of events. Sometimes, the masses act like a huge dinosaur, in a collective spirit that may be new, strange and totally unexpected. The most serious case of revolution is a sudden, unexpected explosion that shatters all values and constraints. Internal and external forces feel that it represents the present and the future. They try to deal with it in this way in order to safeguard their future position. This is what happened in the recent r ecent Arab revolutions. Some people believe that revolution is a sudden, uncontrolled change. This is a rather flawed view. All revolutions that produced fundamental change were preceded by clear signals and indications. Revolution is the result of a host of flaws, problems, lack of will and repression by an ageing regime. Such a state of affairs is contrasted with vitality, action, action, determination and clear cl ear vision by t he people. Sometimes, people draw a clear vision of the future. This may help to keep their thinking on the right track and make them aware of how transformation works and change is accomplished. Samuel Huntington, the author of Clash of Civilizations , believes that revolutions are historically linked to the need to modernize. De Tocqueville, on the other hand, notes that revolution occurs as a result of ineffective modernization programmes or reluctant measures measures o f reform coupled coupled with much repression. To my mind, t he most importa i mportant nt causes o f revolution revol ution are: 21
1. The divine law of change and the occurre nce of defects and weakness. Prophet Muhammad says: “It is a divine law that whatever rises high in this world shall come down”.8 This is coupled with the need for renewal, fresh blood and vigorous vigor ous spirit. spi rit. Some ailing ai ling situations situatio ns accuratel a ccuratelyy reflect r eflect the t he Qur’anic vers Qur’anic verse: e: “When God wills people to suffer some misfortune, none can avert it. Besides Him, they have none to protect them.” (13: 11) This verse occurs in the Surah [i.e. Qur’anic chapter] chapter] entitled Thunder, which w hich focuses on change. The same message is given give n i n the verse that says: “When [the end of] their term approaches, they can neither delay nor hasten it by a single moment.” (7: 34) Boredom is enough to change the mood of many people. Hence, change is a natural requirement. Referring to the Children of Israel, the Qur'an says: “ And [remember] when you said: Moses! We can no longer put up with one kind of food.” (2: 61) Time and apathy will only increase the effect of the factors of weakness, making the need to change even more acute. 2. The absence of a joint programme approved approv ed by the government governmen t and the absen ce of a well defined aim agreed agr eed upon by the t he natio nation, n, people people go people. In the absence their divergent ways. The national dimension becomes a personal dimension, and people have diverse interests. Thus, instead of a gain for all, the gain of some means a loss for othe ot hers. rs. 3. Backwardness, poverty, miserable conditions, injustice and dictatorship. The enviro nment that t hat leads to revol r evolution ution is one of cumulati ve anger a nger caused caus ed by the t he spread of corruption, unemployment, poverty, lack of social and human security, miserable daily life conditions, social and political deprivation, insults, lack of freedoms, freedoms, ill-treatm ill -treatment ent of o f people by the t he security forces, a nd the humiliation felt by ordinary people when they deal with gover nment nment officials o fficials.. Ibn Khaldun says: “Do not think that injustice means only taking someone’s money or property, giving nothing in return, as many people think. Injustice is much wider than that. Whoever takes someone else’s property, oppresses him at work, demands from him or imposes on him somethi so mething ng unsanctioned unsa nctioned by the divine law, is guilty of injustice. Those who unjustifiably take people’s money are unjust, as are those who forcibly take it away or plunder it. Those who deny people their rights are unjust, as are those who confiscate people’s property. The evil of all t his will ultimately ultimately rebound rebou nd to the state and it will decline and fall”.9
8 Related Related 9 Vis.
b y al-Bukhari, number 2872. Ibn Khald u n, Al-Muqaddimah Al-Muqaddim ah , (Arabic edition) pp. 35-356.
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People’s anger is at the core of rebellion. Hence, most revolutions are characterised by anger and the lack of clear objectives. The people in revolt are fully aware of the conditions they want to eradicate, but in most cases they do not know what they want in their place. They raise general slogans, but the road to achieve these is unclear. In one of his interviews after the Arab revolutions, Henry Kissinger said that the angry protesters know well enough how to meet together, but when the existing regime falls, they do not know what to offer in its place.
Although Althoug h his analysis is neither accurate accur ate nor universal, u niversal, it gives g ives a clear signal sig nal to the angry protesters protesters i n the Arab world, telling telling them t hem to clearly define the t heir ir objectives. 4. All powers concentrated corr uption conce ntrated in one hand. This l eads to t he spread of corruption that soon gets out of control. Some contemporary regimes reflect what H ar un alRashid, the Abbasid Caliph, is reported to have said to a cloud: “Let your rain fall wherever you yo u wish; wis h; I will still receive my taxes for what you produce”.10 This means that all threads end up at the same point, and all roads lead to Rome, as the saying saying goes. 5. People’s hopes and aspirations. Such new hopes and aspirations are the result of renewed awareness of what they can achieve as they compare themselves to other nations. They discover greater potentials that their governments could have realized. Our modern world has introduced new means of instant communications with sound, vision and information. It has thus reduced barriers between nations and provided ways of comparison. With the new communications networks, the old political barriers and borders are brought down. People are able to look at other societies that are free and able to grow and prosper. They compare such situations to their own, which is full of injustice and corruption, despite the fact that they have have the elements eleme nts and factors factors necessary necessary for progress prog ress and advancement. The increased awareness aware ness of human rights and their concepts concept s as well as the wider scope of knowledge and education have enabled man to acquire a different mentality mentality to that t hat of the age o f ignorance and lack of a wareness. Shaikh Muhammad [ Abdu Abd u refers refer s to this when he says sa ys that it is the middle midd le and lower classes that rebel against dictatorship when proper and useful education is extended to them as they come to acquire a public opinion. It has never occurred anywhere in the world that the upper classes, the rich and those in power advocate
10 Vis. Ta’atht Ta’atht hur al -In -In a fah f ah
[a lim al-Khl a fah f i Ma [a f ah , Vol. 1, p. 194.
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equality with the rest of the population, relinquishing their own privileges and ending their monopoly of power and public offices so as to make these available to the rest of society. society.11 6. Availability of means of commun comm unic ication, ation, mutual influence and emulation emu lation of others. Some people describe revolution as a type of ‘fever’ which has its early signs and indications. It can be diagnosed only by a competent ‘doctor’. It is sometimes accompanied by delirium, and the patient may suffer one relapse or more, and may acquire immunity for a while. New technologies, satellite channels, the new media, such as Facebook and Twitter, provide a suitable environment in whi whi ch the deprived depr ived classes can ca n meet a nd discover t heir importa impor tance nce a nd t he resources resources available to them, t hem, which are simple and great at the same time. 7. Negation of Identity. We may recall that Bourguiba, the former Tunisian President, used to look with contempt at Islam and its values, as well as Arabism. He was succeeded by Ben Ali who targeted the Islamic identity by his repressive policies and democratic slogans. The author of The Tunisian Identity, Islam, Arabism mentions that Tunisia could acquire a Francophone, Mediterranean, African or even a Roman or old Carthage identity, but it must never have an Arab Islamic identity. 8. The availability availa bility of a model to be copied. copie d. In most cases, it is the democratic system that is available in most countries. It is a system that can be developed so as to adapt itself to t he special circumstances of o f every count cou ntry. ry. 9. Breaking through the barrier of fear with readiness to sacrifice. This takes tak es place gradually and then t hen escalates.12 Some people imagine that the o nly way to rule is by enforcing a strong system based on security forces. They further think that the relaxation of repression leads to collapse. A dictator may imagine that his people are a special case. But this is incorrect. His people can by no means be more backward than the Europeans of the Middle Ages who ultimately revolted and were able to gain t heir heir rights. 10. Available Opportunity. rivalr y or competition co mpetition Opportunity . This may be i n t he form o f rivalry between different sectors of the ruling classes, with some of them trying to gain advantage over others. When this takes place, they may compete for popularity, with some so me of them exposi ng the repressiv r epressiv e practices p ractices others other s commit. It is a case of a dispute between t hieves hieves leading to t he discovery of t he stolen goods.
11 Muhammad
Abdu , Complete Works , Vol. 1, p. 341. [ Abdu 12 Vis. From Dictatorship to Democracy .
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Failure to cope with internal disasters may provide an opportunity as it exposes the lack of preparedness or the inability to handle the crisis. Other situations that provide an opportunity are military defeats, government indiscipline and inability to monitor details. All these may bring about a new situation that provides an opportunity for social action, or a confused situation that leaves analysts unable to judge accurately. The relaxatio relaxa tion n of stringent stri ngent security securit y a nd admi nistrative measures i s the i nevitable outcome of changes taking place. It may lead to an intermediary situation that gives analysts analysts a new insight into the new mood mood of the population.
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Five When Does a Revolution R evolution Occur? Occur?
Generalization Generalization after a single si ngle case can be faulty. faulty. It certainly certai nly does not provide pr ovide a reliable rule to be applied in other cases. Strangely enough, no one could accurately predict the Arab revolutions, even after their early signs appeared. Egypt said: “We are not Tunisia”. Libya echoed echoed that t hat,, and words with similar similar effects were used by Syrian and Yemeni Yemeni politicians. p oliticians. It also appears that no one o ne expects the same scenario in his own country. What is a mazing is that t he situatio sit uation n may improve, impro ve, but t he feeling of i njustice becomes becom es more acute because of increased awareness and greater demands. Thus, any concessions given by the government are considered to be responding to ‘earlier demands’ that have become obsolete. However, there comes what we may term ‘the critical moment’ which represents a divorce from the present situation so as to deal with it in a totally different way. It appears that predicting this critical moment is uneasy. Should a number of the aforementioned causes combine, the possibility of a revolution breaking out becomes greater.
The law of o f history is subtl e and rat ra t her unclear. u nclear. It is unlike t he laws of physic s. Revolutio n is like a fruit which could experience anyone of several possibilities: it may dry up, or be picked before it has ripened. On the other hand, it may ripen first and be picked on time, or else be left and then be picked much later when its quality has deteriorated. These possibilities indicate awareness of the situation and its requirements with a proper response response to each eac h requirement or neglecting the t hem m altogether. altog ether. Major events events of t he last century ope ned ned many windows for the Arabs. These included t he collapse of the Ottoman Caliphate; the liberation from colonialism; the collapse of the Soviet Union; political cooperation with the United States; military cooperation with the US in the ‘war on terror’ and giving her a green light to intervene in the region. Yet all these windows did not encourage democratic change in the Arab world. They were exploited by dictatorial groups and inward looking ideologies. The desire desir e for participation partici pation and political p olitical action by b y the mas ses was wa s not merely weak in t he 1950s and 1960s; it was also confused. The masses just accepted the dogma laid down by the ‘inspired leader’ who spoke about the decadence of pluralism and party politics and 26
drummed up the benefits of one voice, one party and one leader. Added to this was the confusion of peculiarity and repression, justice and arbitrary rule, within the totalitarian system of the Eastern Block where no discussion of human rights was allowed. It was considered considered i nter nter ference in internal affairs. The failure of nationalist project proj ectss a nd t he defeat of nationalist natio nalist policie po liciess meant mea nt the t he failure of an entire generation and the collapse of its dreams. It could do nothing other than nursing nursing its wounds, wi wi tho tho ut finding any alternative.
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Chapter Two
Revolution: the Question of Legitimacy
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One Is Islamic Political Thought in Need of Revision?
What is Islamic Islamic Legitimate Legitimate Politics? Politics? We often hear the t erm, al-Siy asah al-Shar [iyyah , which we have translated as ‘Islamic legitimate politics’. However, the term is not clearly understood and has no clear definition. definition. Although Althoug h the concept it points poi nts to is very serious and important i mportant in any civilized structure, it is often overlooked by those concerned with Islamic scholarship. This is due to two reasons: rea sons: preoccupatio preoccupation n with matters of detail detail a nd fear fear of delving delving into into a matter that concerns concerns t he ruler further t han what what t he r uler approves. A number number of scholars scholar s describe describ e politics as ‘deputizing for the Legislator’.13 This is stated by Ibn Khaldu n. 14 Al-Ma ward i expresses it as ‘deputizing for the Prophet’.15 Both statements statements are confusin con fusingg because b ecause they place politics po litics in the area o f what what is sacred. In his encyclopaedic work, Al-Fun un , Ibn [ Aq il, an eminent Hanbali scholar, records a debate he had with a scholar from the Shafi[ i school of thought. The latter said that the only acceptable politics is that which is in agreement ag reement with the divine law. Ibn [ Aq il said said in in reply: Politics include such actions as will help people to be closer to goodness and away from corruption, even though such actions are not included in the legislation God’s messenger had promulgated or in Islamic divine revelations. If by saying ‘the only acceptable politics is t hat which is in agreement with wit h divine divi ne law’ you yo u mean that it is not in conflict with what divine law states, then you are right. If, on the other hand, you mean that the only acceptable politics is what divine law states, then this is wrong. It also puts the Prophet’s companions in the wrong. Ibn al-Qayyim records this in his book, I [ [ l l am al- a nd other works. works. 16 Muwaqq [i [i n , and According Accord ing to Ib n [ Aq il, the essence of politics is the sort of action that is judged on the basis of its usefulness through experiment and people’s experience, even though it may not be mentioned in Islamic law, provided that it does not clash with any religious text. We do not need religious religi ous text to determine, for example, the usefulness useful ness of working
13 In
– Editor’s note. Islam ic t erminology, erminology, the L egislator egislator is God. – Editor’s Al-Muqaddim ah , (Arabic edition) p. 2 72. Khald u n, Al-Muqaddimah 15 Al-M a ward i, Al -Ah ka m al-Sul ta ta niyyah , p. 15 & 254. 16 Vis. Ibn al-Qayyim, I [ l a m al-Muwaqq [i u ruq al- [H ukmiyyah , p. 12; Bad a i [ [l [in , Vol. 4, p. 283; Al- T Turuq [H ukmiyyah [ al-Faw a ’id , Vol. 3, p. 152. 14 Ibn
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through institutions, or implementing administrative patterns, or effecting change. It is enough enough that s uch matters matters are not in conf co nflict lict with any religious text. Again according accord ing to Ibn [ Aq il, we may consider Islamic legitimate politics on the basis of the fulfilment of two objectives: Firstly, implementing such religious orders and texts that are within the jurisdiction of the ruler, whether they apply to individuals or to the community as a whole, such as the system of inheritance. Secondly, commitment to the universally universally agreed essential essential values valu es and standards, such suc h as justice, freedom, guaranteeing of rights, and life preservation. Included into this is what i s term ed ‘the preservation of the five essentials’ and what is added to them such as guaranteeing human dignity and safeguarding safeguarding the t he human community. To put it a nother way, Islami Islamicc legitimat e politics politi cs is: 1) implementatio imple mentatio n o f t he religious religi ous text, wherever a definitive text occurs, and 2) ijtih ad , or scholarly discretion to achieve the interests of the people in the areas to which no religious text applies. Public interest is influenced by the existing circumstances. It abides by the prevailing local and international traditions, but it draws on the historical experience of the community and its highest values. The academic debate deba te i n history a nd at present prese nt about t he legiti mate politics, polit ics, benef be nefii t and harm is is certainly important, but it does not produce a complete theory. Nor does it meet the present practical needs. It mostly concentrates on trying to win the debate and to sho sho w that the other party is on s hallow hallow groun gro unds. ds.
The Prophet’s Prophet’s Government Government Prior to Islam, Islam, the t he Arabs in Makkah and the t he whole of the Arabian Penins Pe ninsula ula did not have any form of government. The system established by the Prophet was the first real government government they ever had. One of t he tasks assig ned ned to the th e Prophet was t hat of the ruler, whi whi ch included i ncluded choosing army commanders, co mmanders, financial fina ncial administratio ad ministratio n, entering enter ing i nto peace pea ce agreements, enforcing the punishment of criminals, corresponding with other heads of state, receiving foreign delegations, etc. Books documenting his life and books of Had ith are full of such matters. Hence, the question of government and succession was never raised during his lifetime. His companions only asked him who would be the ruler after him. When o ffered a c hoice bet ween bei b eing ng a messenger messe nger a nd serva nt of God and bei b eing ng a ki k i ng and a messenger of God, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) chose the first so as to free himself of the burden of kingship and its consequences. He also made it clear to his provincial governors that they must not resort to dictatorship. They should rather abide by God’s instructions, such as: “You are not one to use coercion with them.” (50: 30
ar e not their overseer. o verseer.” (88: 22) Qatadah, an early scholar, says: “God Almighty 45) “ You are dislikes coercion. He has prohibited it and explained its nature”.17 This is contrary to wha wha t Ali A li Abd A bd al-Raziq maintains mai ntains i n his book, boo k, Al-Islam wa U su l al- ukm , saying that there H ukm is no no religious foundation for the Caliphate system. It is true that the terms ‘state’ and ‘politics’ were not in use in that period. However, the Qur'an gives a clear order to rule in accordance with God’s revelations. This applies to questions and issues to which religious texts apply. The Qur'an also establishes general principles principles such as obedie nce nce according to w hat is ge nerally nerally accepted as reaso nable, the administration of justice to all, honesty, responsibility, i hs an or doing things well, and consultation. It also forbids injustice, unfair dealings, aggression and dictatorship. The Qur’anic address on political matters is not detailed as it is the case with matters of worship a nd faith. fait h. Its address addr ess is orie nted to obje ctives, taking taki ng into consideratio co nsideratio n the t he ever changing circumstances in time and place. Therefore, the standard to be applied in implementing Islamic legitimate politics, referring always to God’s revelations, is to put those those general g eneral principles into ef fect. fect.
The details, measures a nd patter ns are left for people peopl e to determi ne i n accord ac cordance ance with their circumstances and what suits them. These differ from one community to another and from one generation to another. They are subject to discretion which will inevitably vary. We do d o not find in t he Qur'an Qur'a n or the Prophet’ Pro phet’ss Traditions Traditio ns ma ny details abo ut t he nature of Islamic government and how it should be handed over, nor about the relationship between ruler and subjects. The same is the case of questions of medicine, commerce or administration. Such fields are covered by the principle stated by the Prophet: “You know know your world better”.18
Buraydah, a companion of the Prophet who commanded an expedition, reported the instructions given to him by the Prophet: “ If you besiege a fort and its people request you to give them a pledge by God and His Prophet, do not do that, but give them a pledge by your honour and the honour of your companions. It is a lesser sin that you violate your own pledges pled ges than to violate a pledge pled ge by God and His Prophet. Likewise, if you besiege a fort and its people request you to apply God’s judgement to them, do not do that, but apply to them your own judgement. You do not know whether you can determine determine God’s God’ s judgement of t heir heir case”.19
17 Al-Tabar i, A[h ka m al-Bay a n , Vol. 21, p.477. 18 Related Related 19 Related Related
b y Muslim, nu mber 2363. 2363. b y Muslim, nu mber 1731.
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This had ith defines the general areas of legitimate politics that serve the interests of the Muslim community but cannot be attributed to God and may not be discussed or determined in the name of Islam. An error in determining the interests of the community may lead to a distortion of Islam and its principles. Political relations and administration should be attributed to the people running them and those who lay them down. They may not be attributed to Islam. The same applies to treaties and covenants. These should be based on the principles of justice and human relations. They may not be made as pledges given by God and His messenger, because violating them in this case means violating God’s God ’s own o wn pledges pledg es and those t hose of His messenger. mes senger. The h ad ith also establishes the area of ‘people’s judgement’ and its status in Islamic law. The leader or commander comma nder e nforce nforcess his own j udgement udgeme nt and that of his compa nions to other people, informing them that should any error occurs, it is his own fault, as he is the one who determines the judgement according to his own discretion. Therefore, it is Islamic in as much as it serves the objectives of Islamic law and is in accordance with Islamic principles. The Prophet’s Pro phet’s stateme statement nt is of special importance to those who w ho work in the Islamic field. They must make clear that their views are based on their own scholarly discretion, discretion, i.e. ijtih ad . They cannot attribute their human discretion to Islam itself. Where scholarly discretion applies, the one who has greater knowledge and experience takes a lead. Ibn Taymiyyah mentions that legitimate politics is determined on the basis of the more useful useful and a nd suitable for implementation and admi nistration. nistration. It does not rely on who is more God-fearing or more religious. 20 In dealing with other towns and tribes, the Prophet generally approved their practices, considering that it was enough that they had adopted Islam. He only sent officials to collect their zakat and sent people to educate them. His was akin to decentralized government that ensured obedience and commitment and allowed advocates of Islam to do their work. At the same time, it allowed every area or tribe to retain its own character, introduci introducing ng no amendment, except where the practice is fundamentally fundamentally wrong. wrong. Modern states assign responsibility for every individual to the state, from birth to death, including all details, secrets and personal affairs. The state is also responsible for the collective areas, such as transport, residential policy, employment, travel, economy and relations relations with others. By contrast, the pattern that was applied at the time of the Prophe Prop hett in the area of the relation between the ruler and individuals focused on the collection of zakat, organization of jihad and similar areas. A person may go through his entire life witho witho ut knowin kno wingg the ruler or being known know n to the ruler. ruler .
20 Ibn
[a sah al-Shar [ [ iyyah Taymiyyah, Taymiyyah, Al -Siy [a iyyah , pp. 15-19.
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It may be difficult for people to understand the difference between the concept of government at the time and our contemporary situation where we have close interaction in the areas ar eas of politics, econom eco nomics, ics, information and development.
The Four Four Rightly Rightly Guided Guided Caliphs Caliphs The first di fference of opi nion a mong t he Prophet’ Pro phet’ss compa nions was t hat which whic h
occurred in the meeting at the Saq ifah. The meeting, however, ended with a unanimous agreement to choose Abu Bakr as the Prophet’s successor. Another disagreement took place after [Umar was killed. The disagreement was all in i n public. It was not kept in i n closed rooms. Then discord, discor d, i.e. the Fitnah , took place, but the antagonists did not manipulate religion to serve their interests in the fight. They only spoke about rights, legitimacy and discretion. This means that the dispute was political. The Fitnah at the end of [Uthm an’s reign was closely co nnected with social change and the long duration of the Caliph’s reign. This frequently happens. However, its most striking aspect was [Uthm an’s determination to be the victim, refusing to let the situation develop into civil war or to allow bloodshed in the capital of the Muslim state. This is exactly the opposite of what we are witnessing t hese days a nd what took place in history where the loud outcry is: “either “either I rule or the country will be i n ruin”. ruin”. Perhaps the most important issue was the choice of the Caliph, as well as the transfer of power and the general framework in which this took place. In each of the four cycles, the process relied on the choice made by the Muslim community. Although Ab u Bakr was given special approval in several statements by the Prophet, people differed about him in the Saq ifah meeting, which some scholars describe as the first parliament in Islamic history. Yet eventually they agreed to appoint him. He only nominated [Umar to succeed him after having consulted the people and gauged their views. [Umar in turn appointed a consultative committee to choose his successor. They undertook a comprehensive process of consultation, seeking the views of everyone including young women. They ultimately narrowed the choice, nominating either [Uthm an or [ Al Al i. When [Uthm an was assassinated, [ Al Al i was chose n to to succeed succ eed him. We may say here t hat the Shia’s view on the choice of the Imam removes it from the human area and the right of citizens to participate in that choice. It makes it a choice by God. Thus, the whole issue is removed from the area of legitimate politics that are not subject subject to definitive d efinitive religious texts a nd fundamental Islamic Islamic principles. p rinciples. It is placed i nstead nstead in the area ar ea of beliefs and faith.
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To limit t he ways by whi whi ch po wer is transferred tra nsferred to the four patter ns t hat took place at that time cannot be supported by any evidence. The fact that they took place means that they are permissible, but does not exclude other patterns and systems. A certain pattern may be suitable in a particular social environment. When that environment undergoes educational, educational, technological or geographic change, it may require different patterns. Indeed Indeed it is most remarkable that God’s will left the proces s of choosing or nominating the Caliph in the early period of Islam undefined in any detailed measure. In his infinite wisdom, God left le ft their t heir methods method s of c hoice to be based o n the t he principles prin ciples o f justice, ju stice, i hs an [i.e. doing things well], right and consultation as they interacted in that period of history. Abd ullah ibn [Umar gives this highly significant report: “I attended my father when he [ Abdull was stabbed. stabbed . People Peop le commended com mended him and said to him: ‘May God reward re ward you well for what you have done’. He said: ‘Some are looking up to something and some fear something’. They asked him to nominate a successor. He said: ‘Shall I bear the burden of responsibility for you during my life and after my death? I wish I end up with nothing for me or against me. If I nominate a successor, I will be doing like someone who is better tha tha n me. [He meant Ab u Bakr]. Bakr]. If I leave you withou wit houtt nominating anyone, anyon e, I will be doing like one who is better than me, God’s messenger.’ I realized when he mentioned the Prophet that he would not nominate a nyone.” 21 The early Caliphate Calip hate was a unique historical histor ical system t hat cannot ca nnot be repeated. repeated . It was, therefore, required to put in place Islamic rulings that could not be put otherwise. This is due to several reasons, such as: 1. Its closeness to the time of the Prophet and the fact that the Caliphs learnt from him directly. Their reign, reign, therefore, represent represe ntss a role model. No o ne, ne, however, can hope to emulate their experiment. Theirs was a ‘Caliphate following the system laid down by the Prophet’. An authentic h ad ith reported by al-[Irbad ibn S ariyah quotes the Prophet as saying: “Whoever of you lives long after me will see great differences. Therefore, hold on to my way and to the way followed by the rightlyguided Caliphs. Hold on to it and never let it slip away from you...” 22 It is clear that the phrase ‘the way followed by the... Caliphs’ refers primarily to the general affairs of the state. Hence the reference to their post as Caliphs. Their way is what they all agreed upon, or what was widely known with no objection voiced. The had ith also allows differences over the issues they differed upon. The way they conducted government was to administer justice, refrain from taking public money for themselves, refrain from favouritism, select people for public posts on the the basis of competence, competence, regardless r egardless of their ancestry, and choose governors on t he basis of co nsultation. nsultation. 21 Related Related
b y Muslim, nu mber 1823. Related by Ab u Da w u d, number 4607, al-Tirmidhi, number 2676, Ibn M ajah number 44, Ibn Hibb an, number 5 and al- Hakim, Vol. 1, p. 176. 22
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2. They combined k nowledge o f Islam sl am with admi nistrative ability. Thus, they were the scholars and the rulers at the same time. Therefore, the Qur’anic statement, “Believers, obey God and obey the Messenger and those from among you who have been entrusted with authority,” (4: 59) applies to them in all situations. Early scholars scholars i nterpret nterpret t his Qur’anic statement in two ways, the better known of which says that it refers to scholars and rulers. Ibn al-[ Arab Arab i says: “In the early period of Islam, the rulers were competent scholars...” 23 They were the authority in matters of government and in Islamic scholarship at the same time. After them we had divergent schools of thought in matters of religion and diverse views in government government and a nd politics.
That was, t hen, a period perio d t hat set standard sta ndardss a nd a sublime model. To require requir e people peop le to emulate this model in every generation is impossible. What we should do is to consider that generation to be the practical explanatory memorandum that takes a religious text from its theoretical field to place it in practical life, with all its problems, contradictions, right and error. On this basis we say that the practice of the rightly guided Caliphs is the highest and practical point of reference. The purposes they sought can only be achieved by adopting the measures that ensure justice and fairness among people, i hs an , consultatio consultation n and the preservation of people’s rights. The difference differ ence between bet ween t he post of t he Calip h or the overall ov erall ruler and other ot her governors gover nors requires requires t horough consideration and discussion.
The Caliphate Caliphate and and Monarchy Monarchy Ibn Taymiyyah mentions that although the Caliphate is theoretically the preferable system, it may not be suitable in all situations. Monarchy or a different system of government government may be more suitable for people at times, provided that justice is e nsured.24 One religious Umayyad Caliph tried to force people to follow a very religious and ideal way o f life. lif e. He t hought t hat he could co uld emulate [Umar ibn al-Khattab or [Umar ibn [ Abd Abd al-Aziz, but this led to a rebellion against him and it is said that some of the rebels drank his blood. He was in no way insincere, but the reason appears to be that he did not fully understand understand how circumstances had changed.
23 Vis. 24 Ibn
Bad a ’i [ ab a ’i [ [ al-Silk f i T ab [ al-Mulk , p. 391. u[ al-Fat Taymiyyah, Taymiyyah, M ajm u[ al-Fat a w a , Vol. 35, p. 22.
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After t he Caliphat e, stro ng-fisted rule rul e took over, ov er, with t he pretext pretex t of preve nting chaos. Subsequently, a situation of authoritarian rule developed through the Umayyad and Abbasid Abb asid dynasties. This authoritaria aut horitaria n rule relied o n three elements: eleme nts: 1. God’s will as its source of legitimacy. The ruler would try to make people understand that he is part of God’s will, which made any objection to him an objection to God. As such, it is futile and destined to fail. This allowed the concept of ‘force’ to creep into Islamic thought. The thought that government was assigned assig ned by an act of God was circulated. circulat ed. As such, such, i ndividuals, institutio ns and society have nothing to do with it. They could neither amend it nor object to it. Indeed, they could not voice any reservation concerning it. This concept was the worst thing government did to the people, making them believe that they would be b e following followi ng t heir religio religi o n by submitting submitti ng to unjust unj ust r ule. They believed beli eved t hat they had to accept it as God’s will and that it was not up to them to combat a situation situation of inju i njustice stice by tryi ng to to impose justic j ustice, e, or replace a situation of falsehood false hood by a situation of right. 2. Making financial gifts to win popularity and people’s loyalty and to drum up support, instead of using state funds according to need and competence. Thus, numerous gifts were given to people. Calling them ‘gifts’ implied that the ruler owned owned the money mo ney and that t hat he he was right to make whatever whatever gifts g ifts he wanted to make to whomever he wished. This made wealth circulate among a special group of people. This is contrary to the principle of distributing war gains and its objective [ war gains] gai ns] would not just jus t circulate circ ulate amo a mong ng those of o f as stated stated in the Qur'an: “ Thus, [war you who are rich.” (59: 7) 3. Force. The fact that a person managed to win power should be enough to make people accept him and ensure stability. People’s views were of no importance, as co ntii nued rule was ‘fear, ‘fear, not long as he could could impose i mpose his will. His means to e nsure cont love’. The Prophet mentioned that the Caliphate to succeed him would last thirty years, after which God will give power to whomever He will. This is stated in an authentic had ith . 25 The Qur'an states: “Say: Lord, Sovereign of all dominion, You grant dominion to whom You will and take dominion away from whom You will.” (4: 26). It also says about David: “God bestowed on him the kingdom and wisdom, and a nd taught taug ht him whatever what ever He H e willed. willed .” (2: 251) It seems, therefore, that the main problem is not with the nature of the political system and whether it is headed by a Caliph, King, President or Prince. The most important
25
Vis, Al-Musn ad , by al-Tay alisi, number 1203, Al-Musn ad , by Ahmad, number 21919, Al-J Al- J ami [, by al-Tirmidhi, Al-Silsil ah al- hi h , by Ibn Hibb an, number 6657, Al -Munt akhab min [Ilal al-Khall a l, number 129 and Al-Silsilah number 2226, Sa hih S a h ahih ih ah , number 459.
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matters are justice, good government, independence of the different authorities and making making sure that power is not all in t he hand hand of one o ne person. It is not right that we treat Islamic history generally and the political history of Islam in particular as sacred. Nor is it right to say that we must defer to it. We should treat it as a human experiment that provides us with lessons to learn, mistakes to avoid and right measures measures to emulate. emulate. Generally speaking, the concept of ‘force’ as applied to politics may be a means to ensure stability. However, it gives the masses a subtle, or not so subtle, impression that the change of government, the administration of justice and the enforcement of reforms can only be achieved by the use of force. This view has been adopted by some revolutions, but it is a course beset with danger.
Rules for Rulers Some of the writings of those periods were influenced by the existing situation or by neighbouring cultures, particularly the Persian. Some writers, who served the rulers, such as Ibn al-Muqaffa [ , copied copied t he Persian model that gave the ruler a m easure of holines holiness. s. They used u sed too many ma ny great titles title s for rulers, a nd put p ut i n place etiquette s for speaki ng to t he ruler, how to behave in his presence and how to enter a room where he is. Some of them said that that if t he ruler sne s neezes, ezes, no one o ne is allo allowed wed to say, ‘bless you’, to him. According to al Jahi z, a famous literary figure of the Abbasid period, certain groups alleged that a ruler is not held to account on the Day of Judgement. Those great titles that were given to rulers were useless usele ss a nd meaningless. meani ngless. An A ndalusia n poet describes d escribes t his stating stati ng that rulers of city states are given titles of kings and emperors. Thus they are made to look like a cat trying to emulate emulate a lio n. Scholars who wrote on what is legitimate in the political area, or what they called Al- ta niyyah , were more or less describing what was actually in practice and Ah hkam al-Sul ta trying to give it legitimate justification. What took place eventually was that great power was concentrated concen trated in t he hands of o f rulers. Al-Ma ward i was one of the most famous scholars who wrote on this subject. A section of his book is taken directly from the Persian culture. Hence, we find the theme of obedience prominent in his writings. Justice Abu Ya[l a followed a similar line. Later, al Juwayni and al-Ghazali wrote largely in the same vein. Their writings are the result of the scholarly scholarly effort ef fort they exercised within the prevailing conditio ns at the time. However, our study of what took place in our political history must not stop us from looking at the essential values stated in the Qur’an and by the Prophet which define 37
justice in government. Nor can we overlook the scholarly and popular efforts that aimed to influence influence gover nment nment and deal with its digression. We may say t hat the fact that religious relig ious scholars scholar s stood away from t hose i n power in Islamic history led to the spread of dictatorship and weakened the moral and institutional spirit of the state. However, it had its positive aspect: it kept our Islamic history immune to what happened in Europe, where where t he C hurch imposed its hege hegemon monyy on t he state. state.
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Two Revolution and the Legitimacy of the Winner Historical Cha Ch ange Both a student of Islamic history and a religious scholar observe a huge gulf between ‘the practice followed by the rightly guided Caliphs’, which represents the course followed by the Prophet’s companions in implementing the values and concepts of the Qur'an and the the Sunnah, Sun nah, and what what happened in the Umayyad Umayyad period p eriod and subsequently.
Mu[a wiyah, t he first Umayyad Calip h, was first a gover g over nor of o f Syria appointed appo inted by b y [Umar ibn al-Khattab. He was generous, forbearing and a man of integrity. This enabled him to gain popularity. He took over at a time when Islamic society had just gone through a painful period of strife and crisis in which the blood of some great people was shed. It led to a state of confusion and shock. Mu [a wiyah used this to pave t he way to t he establishment of the Umayyad dynasty which ended the system of the rightly guided Caliphs. The term ‘the practice practi ce of t he rightly rightl y guided Caliphs’ refers refer s to their method of government and state administration. It is reported that the Prophet said: “The first one to change my Sunnah [i.e. practice] is a man from Umayyah”. 26 This had ith , if authentic, is understood to refer to changing the system of choosing the Caliph and make it a hereditary hereditary system. s ystem.
Abd al-Malik ibn Mar w an, the Umayyad Caliph, was the first to take the Caliphate by the [ Abd sword, openly and without offering any justification. People were forced to pledge loyalty to him after [ Abdull Abd ullah ibn al-Zubayr was killed. He certainly changed the Caliphate and was himself himsel f changed by b y it. The transformatio tra nsformatio n was profou pro found: nd: politically, polit ically, socially a nd culturally. cultura lly. The choice of t he Caliph was no longer by consultation; it became hereditary. The pledge of loyalty became forced and compulsory. Money became the means to win over those in opposition and to buy people’s loyalty. loyalty. There T here was no financial accountability.
26
Related by Ibn Abi Shaybah number 35877; Ibn Ab i [As im in Al-Aw a ’il number 63, Ab u Ya[la. It is also wal -Nih a yah , Vol. 11, p. 648, as also in Al-Ma ta ta lib al- [A [Aliyah , Vol. 18, p. 284. mentioned by Ib n Kath ir in Al-Bid a yah wal - It is m entioned entioned by al-Du lab i in Al -Kun a , Vol. 2, p. 508, Ibn [ Adiy in Al-K amil , Vol. 4, p. 97, 97, A l-Bayhaq l-Bayhaq i in Dal a ’il al - Nubuwwah , Vol. 6, p. 466, Ibn [ As T r kh Dimashq Al-Silsilah Al-Sils ilah al-Sa ah a i hih h ih Asakir in , Vol. 65, p. 250. Vis. also , number 1749.
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All this was coupled with a grad ual change of concepts, particularly particular ly t he political politi cal ones, such as government, people’s pledges, consultation and the Caliphate. The political practice went through a fundamental change which also led to a change in scholarly writings. The changeover cha ngeover was gradual. gra dual. During Mu[a wiyah’s reign, many o f t he Prophet’s Pro phet’s companions were alive, and they spoke out against whatever was unacceptable. The gulf, however, was growing wider with every new Caliph, except for the three known for their justice Mu [a wiyah ibn Yazid, [Umar ibn [ Abd Abd al-[ Az Azi z and Yazid ibn al-Walid. They planned for a return to the political system that operated during the reign of the rightly guided Caliphs. Caliphs. Perhaps the fact that the Arabs came to know administrative and political organization only recently had some effect on the turn of events. The tribal role began to reappear, whil whilee t he elites elite s i n society feared a ret r eturn urn to insecurity insec urity a nd political p olitical upheavals. This was a product of the outcome of the dispute between [ Al Ali and Mu [a wiya h which whic h developed develo ped into into a n armed co nflict. nflict. The reactionary reac tionary changeover cha ngeover i n t he Isla Islamic mic political politi cal system was not accomplis hed peacefully, but it was ultimately able to impose itself, exploiting the fear from the violent rebellions by al-Khaw arij and the fear that the outer regions could secede causing the state to split up. The defeats of the people of Madinah in the Battle of al-Harrah and the scholars in Dayr al-Jamajim also helped the spread of the mentality of submission to authority. Qat adah said: “It was only after the defeat of the scholars that the philosophy of al- Murji’ah was started”.27 Perhaps the revolution by al-Husayn ibn [Ali in 61 AH (681 CE) was the best known in Islamic history. He called for a return to the practice of the rightly guided Caliphs. The reaction to al-H usayn’s killing was far reaching and long lasting. It led to several rebellions such as those of al-Tawwabi n and al-Mukht ar ibn Ab i [Ubayd. These rebellions rebellions had widely divergent aims. It was at t his point that the intellectual history of the S hia a nd their beliefs started. The Umayyads U mayyads a nd t hose who followed t hem relied on t he principle prin ciple of ‘t he winner’, win ner’, but clothed it with a claim of right and the need to avenge [Uthm an’s killing. The Abbasid revolution overthrew the Umayyad rule by force, as their state weakened beyond repair.
27
Vis. Ibn al-Ja[d, Al-Musn ad number 1056, [ Abdull Abd ull ah ibn Ahmad, Al-Sunnah number 644, Al-Khall al, Al-Sunnah Al-Sun nah
number 1230, Ibn Ba tt ah, Al-Ib a nah al-Kubr a number 1235 and Lalaka’ i, Shar h U t iq a d Ahl al-Sunnah wal- sūl I [ [tiq a[ ah Jam a[ ah num ber 1841.
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The Abbasids Ab basids were able to recr uit suppor s upportt by b y t he Sunnah S unnah and t he Shia. The Battle of al Zab, near Musil in Iraq, was the decisive confrontation that put a final end to the Umayyad Umayyad rule. rul e. Scholars and the Question of Need
The legiti legi timacy macy of the winner was t he subject o f discus di scussion sion due to t he lack of social and civil institutions that could tilt the balance and the absence of a constitution that defined rights and duties. Islamic scholars found themselves in a difficult position because of the limited choices available. Moreover, they recalled cases of failure that led to increased authoritarian rule in a situation that was akin to a state of emergency that allowed the ruler to discard the little that remained of justice and people’s rights. The scholars were keen to preserve the unity of the Muslim nation and to avoid the possibility of civil war that threatened a fragile social structure. Therefore, they rejected division even at the price of having to justify aut horitarian r ule. Theirs was a practical practica l r uling in a particular p articular cultural cultura l period p eriod a nd temporary tempo rary circumstances. circ umstances. It was by no means an everlasting religious ruling. Just as it could not be suitable at the time of the Prophet’s companions and the rightly guided Caliphs, it is equally unsuitable for later generations, but for different reasons. Even those who approved it considered it temporary and changeable as circumstances change. It was by no means a constant ruling that that relied on clear texts or clear practices pr actices by the first Muslim generation. Yet the ruling ruli ng involved some so me contradictio co ntradiction n a nd a measure of appeas ement. If someone someo ne manages to score a victory, people have to submit to his authority by reason of force. Should another one rise against him and oust him, the people will have to submit to this latter one. They will even consider an attempt by the first one to regain power a rebellion that could lead to a death sentence, regardless of his status. Those scholars considered this to be a ruling necessitated by a pressing need in a society that could only submit to such situations. Such r ulings ulings by scholars did not prevent the t he Abbasids from stagi ng their their successful revolt and establishing their state. They realized that the majority of the scholars would give them their support if they were to win. By the same token, the scholars would be against them them should they they lose. los e. It is as the saying goes: “Whoever wields power m ust be obeyed”. If, after the Abbasids victory, the Umayyads were to regroup and try to stage s tage a comeback, their their attempt would be a rebellion against legitimate authority and t hey hey should be fo ught. ught. If they had enoug enoug h power a nd were were able to reinstate r einstate themselves themselves by b y force, they would gain legitimacy.
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This begs t he questio n: which whic h successful succes sful revolutio ns will the sc holars support? Which Whic h will t hey condemn co ndemn because be cause of their failure? failur e? When Wh en will t he rebels reb els by considered co nsidered traitors traito rs and when will they be t he supreme leaders? The a nswer i s based o n two factors. The first is t he balance balan ce o f power pow er a nd careful care ful planning. planning. This was what w hat the Abbasids Ab basids did, as they patiently and a nd care carefully fully worked in secret for 30 years. The second is the nature nature of the period and whether it is one o ne of stability stability that militates against change, or one of mild dissatisfaction that is not ready for a change, or one that witnesses strong dissatisfaction that goes up to the critical point when the general general mood is ready for a total change. We do d o not find this clearly stated i n books boo ks o f Islamic sla mic j urisprudence. urisprud ence. We find it i n books boo ks of sociology, sociology, such s uch as Ib n Khaldun’s Al-Muqaddimah n’s Al-Muqaddimah , in which he says: Under this heading we may mention the case of people who rise to change some wrong, whether wheth er they belo ng to t he masses or t hey are religious religi ous scholars. scholar s. Ma ny of those those who are devoted d evoted to worship and a religious life stand up to oppressive o ppressive r ulers calling on them to refrain from doing what is wrong and counselling them to do what is right. They do so hoping to earn God’s reward. reward . They They gain popularity pop ularity among among the masses a nd in so so doi ng they they expose themselves to great danger. d anger. Most of them are killed as a result, and they are accountable for their deeds rather than earning reward for them, because God has not required them to do what they did except in situations where they are able to do it in safety. The Prophet says: “Whoever of yo u sees an evil action, should change it with his hand. If he is unable to do so, then with his tongue. If he is still unable to do so, then in his heart. heart. That T hat is the t he weakest weakest degree o f faith”.28 Kings and regimes are normally strong and stable. They cannot be undermined except through strong demands widely supported by tribes and communities, as we have already alr eady explai expl ained. ned. Such was the case of God’s prophets (peace be upon them all) when t hey advocated their messages with the support of their tribes or communities. Had God so willed, He would have given them the support of the entire universe. In His infinite infinite wisdom, He let le t things take t heir heir normal course. co urse.
If an individual takes this way, advocating what is right indeed, the fact that he is acting without adequate support leaves him exposed to serious danger. If, on the other hand, he is seeking power, he is likely to face many impediments and to be 28 Related Related
b y Muslim, n umber 49. 49.
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placed in danger, because what he seeks is something granted by God and cannot be achieved without His help. He helps only those who are sincere and have the interests of the Muslim community at heart. No Muslim or man of insight doubts that for a moment. 29 The position po sition o f Islamic sla mic scholars sc holars appears appear s to be i ndicating ndicati ng that a perso p erson n without s ufficient power and one who does not meet the necessary conditions must bear the consequences of his rash action and failure. We may understa nd t his attitude attit ude t hat was i nfluenced nfluen ced by circumstan circ umstances ces a s o n t he o ne hand encouragi encouraging ng a person who w ho meets the necessary conditions to lead the nation to have enough power, and on the other attempting to break the cycle of conflict and unsuccessful takeover attempts which makes rulers more dictatorial. Moreover, the logic of Islamic scholarship aimed to preserve social peace and prevent chaos and strife, by whi whi ch terms term s scholars most prob p robably ably meant mea nt civil war. We cannot put all al l t he blame o n Islamic sla mic scholars. sc holars. Part of the blame b lame must be placed at the door of the community for failing to build its political institutions. This led to the aggrandizement of the ruler’s power. He looked at his people with contempt, even to the extent of nominating a child as his heir. Ibn al-Khatib wrote a book about kings and rulers who assumed power before attaining puberty.30 It should be noted that the book is not written to critici critici ze or protest against this phenomenon pheno menon.. The non-existe non-exis tence nce o f t he institutio n o f consultatio co nsultatio n allowed allow ed t he logic o f force a nd t he wielding of o f power to gain the upper up per hand. Rather than t he wholesome wholesome condition of “they conduct their affairs by mutual consultation” (42: 38) there prevailed the condition “Strong is their internal hostility ”. ”. (59: 14) The adoption adopti on of t his attitude by Isla Islamic mic scholars sc holars mea nt that ma ny stated rul es concerning con cerning the system of government were bypassed. These included that the pledge of loyalty must be by free consent; that should two Caliphs be given pledges of loyalty at the same time, the second should be killed. The guidance provided by the practice of the rightly guided Caliph was also bypassed. Moreover, the hereditary system, repression, monopolizing wealth a nd gover nment, the politiciza polit icization tion of the j udiciary syste m a nd even ev en t he politicization of religion itself were all tolerated. Eminent scholars and judges, such as Sharik and Ibn Taymiyyah, were accused accu sed of heresy and deviation. Yet many m any scholars scholar s rejected reject ed t he way followed follow ed by t he gover nment, b ut t heir rej r ejectio ection n was merely at the individual level. Their attitudes were applauded by the people and recorded 29 Ibn 30 The
Al-Muqaddim ah , (Arabic edition), p. 200. Khald u n, Al-Muqaddimah [l [ qabl al-I h til a m min Mul u k al-Islam . book has the l engthy title, title, I [ l a m al-A[ l l a m f i man b u yia [
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in books. We learn about the attitudes of scholars like Ma [qil ibn Yas ar, Abu Hazim, Sufy an al-Thawri, Sa [id ibn Jubayr, Malik, Ahmad ib ib n Hanbal and Ab u Ha nifah. It seems clear that the people found themselves with two options: either to submit to the ruling authority or to revolt. The third option of organized and watchful opposition did not exist, due to local and historical reasons that merit a study. Therefore, putting all the blame on the religious scholars betrays a measure of overlooking all historical facts and circumstances. It does not study the available options or take into account causes and effects.
Obedience and Consultation Consultation Obeying the ruler in what is reasonable is certainly right. Without it chaos and anarchy nce will prevail. p revail. We will discuss a number of Qur’anic Qur’ani c and H ad ad ith texts that require obedie nce in a later chapter. As we are speaking about Islamic law we need to discuss the right of choosing who is to be listened to and obeyed before the pledge of loyalty is given to him. We must m ust also speak abo ut t he duty o f consultatio n which whic h protects pro tects t he commu nity from dictatorship dictatorship and protects t he ruler from his own lea lea ning towards tyranny a nd selfis selfis hness. hness. We note t hat t here are Qur’anic commands comma nds at both levels. level s. God says: “Believers, obey God and obey the Messenger and those from among you who have been entrusted with authority.” (4: 59) He also says: “ Consult with them in the conduct of public affairs.” (3: 159) The physical a nd military power pow er of t he state stat e cannot ca nnot be c hecked either eit her by humble submission or the spread of chaos and social violence. It can only be checked by strong institutions institutions that represent society and act as safeguards, providing controls and defending people’s rights r ights.. A spiralling spirall ing problem pro blem occurs when t he state sta te considers consid ers that t he establis estab lishment hment of such suc h institutions an erosion of its authority or a step towards power being wrenched away from it. It resorts to stifle these institutions and suppress them. Thus, even a cultural or social meeting, or one that seeks to provide voluntary social service becomes a cause of suspicion and grounds for indictment. A meeting that seeks to provide advice or to call for reform reform is treated treat ed as a declaration of war. In Islamic history, the general Islamic orders developed into public institutions addressing addressing areas ar eas such as the t he administration of the law, education, e ndowments, ndowments, zakat and
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controls [i.e. hisbah ]. However, there was no i ndependent ndepende nt i nstitution to provide pro vide consultation.31 Authors like Louis Massignon, Massig non, Bernard Louis, George Maqdisi and Sherman Jackson wrote about t he role o f t he Fiqh institutions in Islamic history. They show this role in bright colours, describing it as a desperate attempt to ensure balance in society. Massignon considers them as one of the earliest, if not indeed the earliest, ‘trade unions’ in history. Maqdisi outlines the most important features of trade unions, such as being independent, having common grounds uniting their membership, self-managing, income generating and self financing through endowments and other ways. These were characteristic of schools in Islamic history. They were not merely educational institutions. They were also i ndependent social centres t hat maintained mai ntained their own ideas, championed champio ned the causes of the community, and guarded their full independence from politicians and their supervision. They went as far as expressing reservations concerning the ruler, or criticizing him, or demanding further rights. 32 Yet most of these schools were established by princes princes and a nd rulers rulers who w ho patronized patronized them t hem and made endowments to finance fi nance them. th em. While these t hese academics aca demics speak sp eak of o f early trade trad e unions unio ns and a nd institutio instit utions ns in Islamic history, well before they developed into their present Western shape, the institutions available in our Arab world do not play a role as social a nd civil safeguards, safeguar ds, providing pro viding people peop le with protection against injustice and tyranny. tyra nny. We have gone gon e through throug h a very long debate about whet whether her consultatio n is obligatory oblig atory or not. This despite a clear Qur’anic text ordering consultation, the Prophet’s practice and the enforcement of this text by the Prophet’s companions in the most serious issue of choosing the Caliph as well as other issues. We have also witnessed a long debate on a question raised in our time, but was not discussed by early scholars. This is the question of whether whether co nsultation nsultation is bi nding nding o n the ruler or merely informative. The practice practi ce of t he Prophet’s Pro phet’s compa nions conf co nfirm irmss that consultation is both obligatory and binding. Al-Jassas says: “The order given here indicates obligation. The purpose of consultation is to put the results of consultation into effect.” 33 Also Ibn [ A Atiyyah agrees: “Consultation is one of the essential rules of Islamic law. Whoever does not consult experts and religious scholars must be removed from office. There is no disagreement on this this issue.”34
31
[asrah f i al-Siy a sah ; Abd al-Hameed Abu Sulayman, Ishka liyyat al- Vis. Nasr Muhammad Arif, Al-Itt ij a h at al-Mu [as Istibd ad wal-Fas a d , p. 9; Ahmad al-Raysooni, Al-Sh u r a . 32 Vis. Sherman Jackson, Islamic La w and the St ate , p. 108 in the Arabi c edition. Jackson, Islamic 33 Al-Jassas , A[h ka m al-Qur'an , Vol. 2, pp. 329-331. The same view view is stated stated b y al al -R az i, Vol. 9, pp. 409-410. 34 Vis. Tafs i r Ibn [ Att iyyah, iyyah,, Vol.1, p. 534.
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Ibn Khuwayz Mand ad says: “It is obligatory for governors to consult scholars on issues of religion that they do not know or are ambiguous to them, and to consult army commanders on issues related to war, and consult the dignitaries in society concerning matters of public interest, and consult ministers, officials and governors concerning the interests interests of o f the country and its development.” 35 The co mment by b y Ib n [Atiyyah that ‘There is no disagreement on this issue’ is not taken as totally correct. Disagreement is found and the final say is what is supported by clear evidence. Imam Ibn [ Arafah Ara fah rejected reje cted this view, vie w, saying: sayi ng: “This “T his i s incorrect, incor rect, and has no support by any scholar. It is well known that when the ruler does what is more serious than abstaining from consulting scholars and religious men his removal is not obligatory.”36 Al- Tahir ibn [Ash ur, a scholar of high repute considers Ibn [ A A tiyyah’s view to be correct. He argues that Ibn [ Arafa Arafa h compared the abandoning aba ndoning of consultatio n to an act that makes the ruler a wrongdoer. Such actions do not justify the removal of the ruler. He then adds: “The analogy is seriously questionable. Wrongdoing brings harm to oneself, whil whilee ignoring ig noring consultatio co nsultatio n exposes expo ses the t he interests inter ests of t he Muslim community com munity to great risks. The M alik i school of thought considers the order concerning consultation as binding. According Accord ing to them, t he text o f any a ny legislatio legislati o n i s general g eneral unless t here is evidence evide nce to make it otherwise other wise.” .” 37 This rule rul e t hat a n order ord er stated i n t he Qur'an Qur'a n or t he Sunnah Sun nah i s binding bindi ng unless unle ss t here is evidence to make it otherwise is supported by the overwhelming majority of scholars of Fiqh methodology. Ab u Hurayrah said: “I never saw anyone who consults his companions more than God’s messenger (peace be upon him)”. 38 Needless to say, no one needs to consult his companions less than God’s messenger. He consulted them in obedience to God’s order whi whi ch signif sig nifie iess obligation. oblig ation. His other ot her purpose purp ose is to se t the example for later ge nerations. neratio ns.
35 Vis.
t tu Tafsir al-Qur t tu b i, Vol. 4, p. 250. Vis. [ Abu Abu al-[ Abb Abb as al-Busayli, Nukat wa tanb i h a t f i Tafs ir al-Qur'an al-Maj i d , Vol. 2, p. 130. This book is a summ ary ary of Ibn [ A A rafah’s Tafs i r . 37 Vis, Al-Ta h r i r wal-Tanw i r , Vol.4, p. 148. 38 Related Related b y al-Shafi[i in his Al-Musn ad , p. 277, [ Abd Abd al -Razz aq number 9720, Ahmad number 18928, Al- Tabar i in his commentary on the Qur'an, Vol. 21, p. 296, I bn Hibb an num ber 4872. 4872. The basic meaning of the h ad i th is h included in al-Bukh ar i’s S a ahih ih : vis. Fat h al-Ba r i, Vol. 5, p. 334. 36
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Three Is it the Role of the People or the Elite? The term Ahl al- H all all wal- [ Aqd Aqd does not occur anywhere in the Qur'an or the Sunnah. I am not aware of it being ever used by any of the Prophet’s companions. However, it is widely used by t he scholars. scholar s. It means mean s t he ‘people ‘peop le o f sound so und j udgement, udgeme nt, i nfl nfl uence and management’. Ahmad states, as reported by Is haq ibn Ibr a him: “The overall ruler is t he one who is approved by Ahl Ahl al- H all all wal- [ Aqd A qd , when everyone of them refers to him as Imam, Imam, mea ning ning the ruler.” 39 The term i s decisive, d ecisive, suggesting suggesti ng t he existe exis tence nce of o f an a n elite i n every ev ery period perio d of time which is able to made momentous decisions in all major issues. However, the term needs to be looked into, as it was coined in a particular period of history. Life normally moves from simplicity to complexity, and from spontaneity to regulation and order. Apart from the case of the rightly guided Caliphs, Islamic history does not show any institution that cared to gauge the views of the elite and whether they agreed on an issue. We are referring referring here to bot h an elite of scholars and one o ne of l eaders of society. Islamic history is a history of elites in the main part. The prevailing culture looks down on the so-called masses, who are often described as uncivilized mobs. A similar notion prevailed in the West. The English philosopher Thomas Hobbs claimed that the love of war and evil i s ingrained ingra ined in their t heir nature. Human experience encourages the institutionalization of this term and consulting people on who to represent them. This should be coupled with a consultative role for the elite, provided that this role does not encroac encroach h on the rights of ordinary or dinary people.
Whose Right? Right? The right belo ngs to t he community com munity a s t he community com munity i s the principal party i n t he contract. The ruler is its representative. However, his authority has no divine basis. The pledge of loyalty is a contract based on mutual agreement, without coercion. This is universally universally agreed by the early scholars. sc holars.40
39 Vis. 40 Vis.
ta niyyah , p. 23. Ab u Ya[la, Al -A[h ka m al-Sul ta ta niyyah , pp. 36-38. Al-Tabar i’s comm entary entary on the Qur'an, Vol. 6, p. 245. Also, al-Ma ward wa rdi, Al -A[h ka m al-Sul ta
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The authority author ity granted grant ed to the ruler rul er does not negate t he original orig inal rig hts. Nor is it a permanent contract that cannot be revoked. 41 Ab u Bakr said to the people: “Obey me as long as I obey God and His messenger. If I disobey God and His messenger, I can have no claim to be obeyed by you.” 42 [Umar said: “The Caliphate is based on o n consulta consulta tion”. 43 Al-Qurtubi comments: “ [Umar has made government, which is the most serious of all Al i said: “The pledge of loyalty to me must be based events, based on consultation”. 44 [ Al only o n the consent of the M uslim community.”45 It is perfectly the right of the Muslim community to give a conditional pledge of loyalty, stipulating conditions of length of term or specific action. The Prophet’s companions stipulated a condition that [ Al Al i would punish [Uthm an’s killers.46 [ Abd Abd al-Ra hman ibn Awf stated a condition co ndition for both [ Al Al i and [Uthm an that they would follow the Qur'an, [ Awf the Sunnah and the practice of the first two Caliphs. A well known h ad ith states: “Muslims abide by their conditions, except for a condition that forbids something lawful or makes la la wful what is forbidden.” 47 Those who w ho have the t he origi orig i nal right rig ht may ma y speci fy a term ter m for t he contract, co ntract, as it is t he case i n the constitutions of some countries, where the term of office is specified as four or five or six years. This comes under the heading of undefined interests of the community, i.e. sa li h al-Mursalah , and also under conditions of agreements. The Prophet says: Al-Ma “Muslims abide by their conditions, except for a condition that forbids something lawful or makes lawful what is forbidden.” The purpose is to ensure justice. Some of the alMuwahhidd in Calip Calip hs specified two years as the term of o f office for judges.48 ing no governor to stay in office [Umar is quoted to have said: “I have thought of allow ing more than four years. If he is just, people will have become bored with him, and if he is unjust, unjust, people will be relieved when w hen he departs.”49 Ahmad relates in Al-Mus nad on the authority of al-Sha[bi: “[Umar wrote that no governor of mine should stay in one place for more than one year, but al-Ash[ari may 41 Vis.
Ibn Mufli h , Al-Fur u [, Vo l. 7, p. 41. Vis. Mu [ammar, Al-J a mi [ number 20702; Ibn Hish am, Al-S irah al-Nabawiyyah , Vol. 2, p. 661; Al-Tabari, T ar i kh al- Umam wal-Mul u k, Vol. 3, p. 210; Ibn Hibb an, Al-Thiq a t , Vol. 2, p. 157; Qiw am al-Sunnah, Al-Targh Al-Targ h ib wal-Tarh i b , p . wal -Nih a yah , Vol. 8, pp. 89-90 & Vol. 9, 716; Ibn al-Ath ir, Al-K amil fil-T a r i kh , Vol. 2, p. 193; Ibn Kath ir, Al-Bid a yah wal p. 415. 43 Vis. Ibn Ab i Shaybah, Al -Mu ahih ih sannaf number 37062; Ahmad, Al-Musn ad numbers 186 & 341; Muslim, S a h number 567. 44 Vis. Al-Qurt ub i, Tafs i r , Vol. 4, p. 251. 45 Al-Tabar i, T a r ikh al-Umam wal-Mul u k, Vol. 5, p. 63. 46 Vis. Al-Tam im i, Al-Fitnah Al- Fitnah wa waq [at al -Jamal -Jamal , p. 102; Al-Tabar i, T a r ikh al-Umam wal-Mul u k, Vol. 4, p. 444. 47 Related Related b y Ahmad num ber 8784; 8784; Ab u Da w u d number 3594, al-Tirmidh i num ber 1352; Ibn Hibb an num ber 5091. [i l , Vol. 5, p. 142. Vis also Irw a ’ al -Ghal -Ghal [i 48 Al-Lu’lu’i al-Zarkash i, T a r ikh al-Dawlatayn al-Dawlatayn , p. 44. 49 Ibn Hajar, Fat h al-Ba r i , Vol. 2, p. 240. 42
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stay for four years. In his will, [Umar stressed that no governor should stay in office more than two years. 50 Among the scholars scholar s who wrote on t his point was my teacher teac her Shaykh Shayk h Muhammad ibn [Uthaymin who wrote: “It is perfectly appropriate to limit the term of an official post to one year, or two or three or four or a specified duration. This is indeed useful. Specifying a number of years for the term in office has the benefit of testing the official and judge his work. Many a person may be thought to be unsuitable for office then proves himself to be suitable, while while we may think someone suitable and he proves to be unfit for office.” He justifies his view by saying that employment is unlike a tenancy agreement. Determining the term of office should take public interest into consideration, regardless of the length of the term. 51
50 Vis. Al-Tar a t i b 51 Vis.
al-Id a riyyah , Vol. 1, p. 299. H isbah Ibn [Uthaym in’s comments on Al- Taymiyyah. isbah by Ib n Taymiyyah.
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Four Revolution and Strife Historically, ‘revolution’ ‘revolution’ has been given negative connotations, such as the revolutions of al-Zanj and al-Qaramitah. It is also associated with failure and its terrible consequences such as the death penalty and long imprisonment. Such punishments are the outcome of failure failure to judge the situation situatio n carefully.
This grim gr im image, imag e, however, was later l ater modified as it came to refer to successful revolutio revol utions ns whi whi ch managed to establish stro ng states, such suc h as t he Abbasid Abb asid revolution, revolutio n, and t he revolts against colonialism in the Arab world, as also great world revolutions such as the French, the the American and a nd Russian Russian revolutions revolutio ns.. These These latter revolutions establishe establis hed d states and put in place strict comprehensive laws. Perhaps it is usef useful ul in this context to mention the Magna Carta which represented o ne of the earliest revolutions against despotism. It took place in Britain in the thirteenth century, and ultimately produced a document of that name. In 1215, the King was besieged and forced to sign the document that curtailed his power and stressed the rights r ights of individual citizens, making clear that no one could be imprisoned except under the law. The Magna Carta remained the reference point to later conventions. It inspired the French revolution, the American constitution (1787) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As a result, the first world parliament was elected in Britain. At the time, the the Muslim M uslim world world was r uled by the Memluks, as mentioned by Profes Pro fessor sor Umar Farroukh. F arroukh. It is worth mentio mentioning ning that this was the t he period of Imam Ibn Taymiyyah. When revolutio n is mentioned, mentioned , the first t hing hing to be heard after that is Fitnah , which means sedition. Sedition leads to ruin, disunity and erosion of peace in society. It replaces the the state system with civil civil war and a nd chaos. People’s fortunes will not improve if the alternative to despotism means chaos and tribal or regional conflicts like those that continue to take place in Somalia. Few, however, are those that remember that it is despotism that leads to such chaos. A long period of injustice coupled with depriving the people of their rights of meeting and organizing themselves, making that a criminal offence, will eventually lead to an uprising. Times change and today’s world stability does not allow chaos to prevail for a long time. The culture culture of safeg safeguarding uarding people’s rights and political partnership is making its mark on t he world, while whil e the mec hanism of peaceful peace ful resistance resista nce is becomi b ecoming ng deeply rooted. roo ted.
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From a historical standpoint, we need to study the practice of the rightly guided Caliphs, even in the way they dealt with revolution. If our outlook is practical, we need to realize that the world is witnessing great changes and different patterns. These cannot be reduced to a single type of outcome. If we adopt a logical outlook, we must look at results and consequences, trying to prevent what is harmful and evil and to facilitate the attainment of sound objectives. We also need to understand the divine law of nature, making use of it. We should also try to achieve the best outcome, remembering the rule that that one form of God’s will may b e avoided by another form. If, on the other hand, our standpoint is Islamic, we should realize that the whole issue of revolution comes under the heading of ‘preventing the means to evil’. This does no t mean that all doors should be closed and people should be silenced so that they do not say what others do not like to hear. It means making a fair contract that safeguards all rights a nd prevents surprises and adverse developments. developme nts.
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Five Revolution: Peaceful or Violent? Resorting to violence is a very serious matter, as it opens the doors to civil war. It is the opposite of well considered peacefu peace full action which w hich often gives u nexpected nexpected positive results. This is particularly parti cularly t he case c ase when such suc h pea ceful actio n is u ndertaken ndertake n by t he whol wholee natio n with the particip p articipatio atio n of all groups gro ups and trends, tre nds, and not limit ed to a particular p articular community or political group. I understand a particular advice by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as laying clear and strong emp hasis on peaceful action, which is referred to as ‘staying away’. This is included in a had ith entered in both authentic anthologies of the Prophet’s Traditions. Ab u Hurayrah quotes the Prophet as saying: “This group of the Quraysh people will bring my nation to ruin. He was asked: ‘What do you advise us to do?’ He said: ‘If people will only o nly stay away a way from t hem’.” 52 The p hrase ‘t his group gro up o f the t he Quraysh’ Qur aysh’ refers to the people who assume power after the reign of the rightly guided Caliphs Calip hs.. ‘Bringin ‘Bri ngingg t he nation to to rui n’ refer referss to the use o f force and killing killing people. The advice to ‘stay away’ means mea ns tha tha t people shou s hould ld not cooperate with wit h them. This will undermine their authority. It is indeed peaceful resistance, or civil disobedience, disobedience, and a nd refraining from giving such suc h rulers rulers support s upport to strengthen strengt hen their their hand.
Peaceful revolution is not a new phenomenon. As far back as 494 BC, the people of the Roman Empire revolted against the nobility, and their revolt was peaceful. Later, mankind managed to make far reaching political changes without resort to violence. The high cost the European nations paid through their violent revolutions is by no means inevitable. Through their sacrifices and their blood those nations have paved the way for others. Our world has undergone fundamental changes that make it easier for people to win their th eir rights. A n importa impor tant nt factor i n all t his was JeanJean Jacques -Jacques Rousseau’s Rous seau’s On the Social Contract . Since Since 1980, 198 0, many nations nations were able to overthrow overt hrow dictatorial regimes regimes without the t he resort to violence. These i ncluded Estonia, Lithuania, Lit huania, East Germany, Germ any, Czechoslov Cze choslovakia, akia, Slovenia, Slove nia, Madagascar, Mali, Bolivia and the Philippines. Peaceful resistance also consolidated the democratic change in many other countries, such as Nepal, Zambia, South Korea, Chile, Argentin Arg entina, a, Haiti, Brazil, Uruguay, Malawi, Mala wi, Thailand, Bulgaria, Bulgar ia, Hungary, Zaire, Nigeria and a number of t he republics rep ublics o f the old Soviet U nion. nion. 52 Related Related
b y al-Bukhari al-Bukhari num ber 3604 3604,, and Muslim number 2917.
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According Accord ing to a survey undertaken undertake n by Freedom Freed om House, the number of countries cou ntries that are classified as ‘free’ has considerably increased in the last ten years. This is confirmed in Gene Sharp’s book From Dictatorship to Democracy . The book contains information, experiences, mechanisms and nearly two hundred methods that have been used in the past and at present. Many of these may be used and adapted to different circumstances, even under the most repressive regimes. Experts speak of campaigns of boycott and civil disobedience. These represent a message to the strugglers for freedom that they must not despair, and a message to the society that it can do something, and a third one to the dictatorial regimes that they must respond to people’s demands or go. The book mentions certain highly effective methods that cannot be countered by state security forces, such as expression by clothes, slogans, posters, balloons, or non-compliance. The list is long. Henry David Thoreau is considered the founder of the theory of civil disobedience when he refused to pay tax in protest against the slave law and the war against Mexico in 1846. His philosophy influenced such figures as Mahatma Ghandi and his work in both South Africa and a nd India, and a nd Martin Marti n Luther Lut her King in i n America. The Arab Spring revolutions revolut ions surprised surp rised most observers observer s as t hey started a spontaneous sponta neous action using the new media that enabled quick communications, organized action and expression in the absence of any scope for reform or negotiation with the dictatorial regimes. Dictatorships have points of weakness which make it possible to level a fatal blow to them at a particular point. They have their own Achilles heel. In Greek mythology, when Achilles was Achilles was a baby, it was foretold that he would die in battle. To prevent pr event his deat h, his mother Thetis Theti s took Achilles to the River Styx which was supposed to o ffer powers of invincibility and dipped his body into the water. But as Thetis held Achilles by the heel, his heel was not washed over by the water of the magical river. Achilles grew up to be a man of war who survived many great battles. At the time of the Battle of Troy, his family kept him on an island, but he decided to join the battle. A poisonous arrow shot at him was lodged i n his heel, killi kil ling ng him shortly shor tly after. a fter. In the th e Arab revolutions, the use of force was wa s an exception that took place in Libya Lib ya and to a lesser extent in Syria. To achieve the desired result, the use of force must take the following following co nsiderations nsiderations int i nto o account: ac count: Firstly, it must be a last resort option which is adopted only after all other options have been tried and failed;
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Secondly, it must be a reaction to the regime’s violence and its use of force against the protesters. In other words, it should be a response to the other side within the limits of self defence and protecting the population. It must not reach a stage of revenge or targeting targeting others ot hers who are not involved in t he conflict co nflict..
Thirdly, it must be a generally g enerally agreed ag reed option optio n by t he people. peop le. The decisio d ecision n must i n no case be unilaterally adopted by a section or a party, because in this case it puts others in a position that is not of their choice and it could lead to the splintering of the protest movement. Fourthly, the use of force must not mean having to fight the world. In other words, the protest movement must make sure that the international situation is likely to win it regional and international support to secure better results and ensure that help will be forthcoming forthcoming till the end. Fifthly, the use of force must avoid implicating any civil group, or public institutions, or religious or community aspects. Such implication could adversely affect the social fabric of the country, its pluralist and civil character, and its neutral achievements. These belong to the nation, history and the country, and they have nothing to do with the dictator or anyone else. The use u se of o f force i nvolves i ncreased bloodshed bloo dshed a nd creates cr eates future crises cris es t hat may ma y be very difficult difficult to solve. Its consequences could be very serious. Therefore, it must re main very limited limited even if that t hat means greater sacrifices.
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Six Who Is I s Behind the Revolution: Revolutio n: A Party, Pa rty, a Conspiracy, or the Natio Nation? n? It is not unusual that when people are unable to analyze an event that comes all of a sudden, they attribute it to a carefully planned conspiracy. The Arab mentality often leans towards a conspiracy theory, because it removes the need for accountability and self criticism. A conspiracy means that we are victims to the plots cooked by others. In analyzing an event as serious as a revolution, objectivity is hard to come by. Many explain the the event eve nt in the light of t heir heir i nitial nitial attitude, whether supportive or other o therwis wise. e.
Mentality of the Masses Most people cannot cannot accurat a ccurately ely gauge g auge the mentality of the masses. They, therefore, find find it difficult to explain their action. There is no doubt that different forces and parties try to exploit popular action for their own interests. However, simplifying matters in a way that paints the th e masses as being remotely r emotely controlled is a grave mistake. Many are those who do not believe that nations can liberate themselves, but this is not always true. History shows that dictatorship is weak and can speedily collapse in the face of public pressure. Machiavelli said that a prince who finds himself in opposition to all the people cannot feel secure. The more ruthless he is the weaker is his regime. 53 Even the one who looks at the masses with contempt must realize that they exist and must be carefully carefully studied. They have have a spirit of the t heir ir own and they can be motivated. It is interesting to realize, as Gustave Le Bon says, that human life and the course of history do not rely on facts alone. He considers that a true and modern principle. 54 Crowds applauding their favourite singer or lining the pavements to greet their passing leader can work miracles. They can burn today what they yesterday considered sacred. When a dream drea m is shown to hungry hu ngry or poor poo r masses, they become beco me a force of legendary proportions. The ‘masses’ phenomenon pheno menon ca n be explained expla ined as follows:
1. Everyone comes together with a single spirit and common emotion. As such, differences between people in mentality and thought is temporarily removed so as 53 N.
Machiavelli, The Prince , (Arabic edition) pp. 106-107. Peoples , (Arabic edition), p. 24. Le Bon, The psychology of Peoples
54 Gustave
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to allow everyone to live at the same level. Just as the great flood carries stones, the the great g reat crowd will carry t he i ndividual, whether he is highly highly educated educa ted or illiterate. Such considerations are of little effect. The spirit of the masses can be generous, heroic heroic and ready to sacrifice. It can also be destr uctive uctive or o r a combination of o f both. both. 2. An individual individ ual acts co nsciously, b ut the masses mas ses act in i n an unconscio u nconscious us manner. ma nner. 3. The masse s need a leader who doe s not use logic to persuade them; rather, rat her, a charismatic charismatic leader who w ho has a magical ef fect fect and a nd uses simple but powerfu power full slogans sloga ns.. This leader may later become becom e a despot despo t acti a cting ng in the name of o f the masses. mas ses.
Many philosophers confirm that we live in the age of the masses, because the masses are the new force that will overpower all other forces. The fate of nations is no longer decided in preside president ntial ial off o ffices; ices; it is deter mined by the spirit of t he masses. When we speak of t he masses, we are not poi po i nting nting to any groupi gro uping. ng. We are referring to a temporary entity, entity, comprising numerous numero us and diverge nt elements, elements, but are stro ngly united at a particular moment of time in pursuit of a clear objective. Motivation and emotional fever and shared thoughts combine to channel enthusiastic fervour into clear action. The individual individual becomes part of a whole mass a nd his action is not determined by his own will. We do not need to go bac b ackk to the t he age of heroism h eroism in i n order ord er to understa u nderstand nd the pote p otentials ntials of the masses. What we see today makes it absolutely clear that the masses are ready to sacrifice at the time of popular agitation. They are able to attain high standards of heroism and dedication for their noble cause. At such times, they do not know the unlikely unlikely or the t he impossible. impossible. Indeed, Indeed , the the unlik u nlikely ely will be the more attractive and desir able. Understandi Understanding ng the psychology of the masses will greatly change our u ndersta ndersta nding nding of o f the motives of the recent revolutions. Le Bon spoke at length about the role of the press in disseminating ideas and the inability of government to lead public opinion. But Le Bon did not live in the age of the internet and the social media networks. He did not know about Twitter and YouTube which have created a broad virtual audience of all colours and leanings. The masses mas ses are t hen the t he first a nd most important impor tant play er in instigati i nstigating ng revolutio r evolutio n. Even Eve n a small spark may start a revolution, provided that the pressures are so intense as to make an explosion likely. Martyrdom is one of the most important driving forces of revolution. The slogan raised by the Iranian revolution was “The martyr is the spirit of history”. Bouazizi set himself 56
on fire to sign with his blood, spirit and life the most profound political statement in history. The Tunisian masse s respo resp o nded fervently. The response respon se came later i n Egypt, t he largest larg est Arab country which is closely clo sely monitored mo nitored by security securit y and i ntelligence ntellige nce services service s i n t he United States and Israel. However, “ God came upon them from where they had not expected.” (59: 2). The spirit spir it o f the t he masses ma sses lives live s on o n t he failure o f the t he develop develo p ment a nd political p olitical experience. experi ence. Having been placed outside both history and geography to become crowds preoccupied with earning ear ning their living, livi ng, the masses try to regain their importance impor tance and reawake re awake n their failed failed dreams. It may be said that the concept of citizenship was deliberately murdered throughout the Arab world, depriving depr iving the Arab peoples peop les from their basic freedoms and all opportunities opp ortunities of development, including education, health, employment, and self determination. The concept of patriotism, which stresses the bond between citizen and country and complements the values of human rights, justice and freedom, was dwarfed so as to become the mere loyalty to a perso n, or a group, or a family. family. The Arab world is going g oing through a period perio d of profound change with far reachin reac hingg effects on events. It seems that governments have totally overlooked this change. According to the report on Arab development, by 2015 the population of the Arab world will reach 400 million, half of them at a young age. Published reports make it clear that most Arab countries countries have failed failed to achieve their development developme nt targets for the period 1990 -2015, in the the areas of education, educatio n, fair distribution of wealth and political reform. reform. As a r esult, esult, 40% of the Arab population live under the poverty line, i.e. less than $2.7 a day per head. According Accord ing to t he United Nations Natio ns Developme Develo pment nt Progr Pr ogramme, amme, unemployment unemploym ent i n the t he Arab world is more than t wice t he world average, averag e, which whic h means t hat it has reached reac hed 12%. However, reports suggest that the true figure is much higher. A report by the International Labour Organization says the number of the unemployed in the Arab countries countries stood at 25 million in 2010. 2010. It adds that t hat 60% o f those are below the age of 25.
The Islamists Islamists The second seco nd player is t he Islami Islamists. sts. The success succes s achieved ac hieved by the Turkis h Justice Justic e and Development Party under the leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which has Islamic roots, has inspired many people. They realized what may be achieved under a leadership that that combines sound vision with astute ast ute administration. administration.
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Islamic organizations have endured a long period of suppression and media onslaught. Nevertheless, they remained the toughest element of opposition in all Arab countries. It is clear that they took an active role in the revolutions, although they were not the ones to start it. Their organizational experience was of great importance. The results of the elections in Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco, and the successes achieved by the Muslim Brother Brotherhood hood and the t he Salafi groups are i ndicative ndicative of that t hat..
Behind the Curtain Some people stress the idea that these revolutions were instigated by Washington, and with a gree g reen n lig ht from Israel. Their argume a rgument nt is i s based ba sed on two t wo elements: elem ents: 1) t he theory t heory of o f creative chaos; and 2) punishment for the rulers who refused the American reform programme. Washington, in their view, wants to atone for its support of dictators against their their people s. Most certainly, Washington did not wish to see the Arab revolutions, because these revolutions were against its allies. Moreover, the mood of Arab public opinion is normally against Washington and Israel. The West, however, is adept at adapting to changes. Hubert Vedrine, Vedrine, former Foreig n Mini Minister ster of France, wrote in t he Financia Fi nanciall Times: How events How events in the Arab world will world will evolv evol v e is o f co urse uncertai n. What W hat i s certain, c ertain, however, is that we in the west have to adjust to a new reality: an Arab world that will be more mor e nationali stic. For now, the West is frightening itself with the spectre of political Islam. It is premature to say a solution has been found to avoid moving from the overthrow of authoritarian regimes to sinking into Islamism, but no expert on the Arab world foresees foresee s a sce nario à la Iran which took everyone by surprise, including Iranians. Islamic parties will emerge stronger from free elections, but the chances that they will seek to hijack the democratic process are slim. And there is a counter-exampl counter-examplee to Iran – Turkey... The lo ng and comfortable co mfortable era for t he W est a nd Israel has ended. ended . We will have to forgo the cosy relations we had and adapt inte i ntelligently. lligently.55 It is not difficult to conclude that the support shown by the West and the United States in particular for the revolutions was merely to ensure that the new regimes which would emerge from these revolutions will be easy to deal with and to protect the interests of the West. 55
Hubert Vedrine, Dawn of a New Arab Nationalism , Article published in the Financial Times of London, 28 March 2011.
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According Accord ing to Chomsky, the United States State s adopted adop ted a similar attitude towards toward s the former Rumanian dictator when continuing to support him became untenable. The same was the case with former presidents of the Philippines, South Korea and Indonesia. A paper writte writ ten n by a n America n researcher research er and a nd published publis hed by b y the Ra R a nd Corporatio Corp oration n a few years before the Arab revolutions under the title “The Siege Mentality” concludes that it was likely lik ely t hat Islamic sla mic oppositio opp ositio n would be t he only o ne to remain remai n active in t he Arab world. They They suggested sugge sted incorpor incor porating ating such oppositio opp ositio n i n t he political politi cal system so as it would share t he respo nsibility. They warned war ned t hat much muc h caution cautio n needed to be exercised, exercis ed, because because t he situatio situation n is complex. That did not happen happe n at t he time, ti me, but it is happening happe ning now after the Arab revolutio ns i n more than one country. Recently, the West adopted a very negative and gloomy attitude when de d e mocratic elections electio ns resulted res ulted in a landslide la ndslide for t he Islamic slami c Front Fro nt in Algeria Alger ia a nd a victory for Ha mas in Palesti P alestine. ne.
The Arab Revol Revolutions utions in Israeli Israeli Eyes Incitement against the Arab revolutions has been predominant in the Israeli media. Columnists, analysts and academics have been very critical of these revolutions, linking them to Islamist movements. They described them as a delusion, claiming that the social media and some satellite channels, such as Aljazeera, have exaggerated them. Had the Egyptian police fired on the demonstrators, Mubarak would not have had to step down, they claimed. Furthermore, many wrote that the Arabs are not suited to live under democracy. Yaron Lo ndon, a C hannel 10 ( Israel) broadcaster, bro adcaster, said that t he change c hange t hat took too k place p lace i n Egypt was not due to the Egyptian Egyptia n public. It happened because Mubarak’s regime did not suppress the first demonstration. He added that the theory that people crave freedom is purely romantic. The truth is totally totall y different. Needless to say, what happened in Benghazi shows the falsity of this assertion. It was the use o f force that started t he revolution. re volution. Dr David David Bukai Bukai feels that t he future will not not be b e democratic. democratic. He calls the Arab Ar ab revolutions ‘Aljazeera revolution’. An analytical study stud y by t he Centre for Contemporar Contemp oraryy Studies Studi es concludes con cludes t hat Israel sees the t he recent recent c hange as a direct threat to it.
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Speakers in the Herzliya National Security Conference in Israel agreed that time was no longer on the side of Israel. It was unwise for Israel to hedge its bets on continued Arab weakness a nd internal inter nal differences. differe nces. They also highlighted t he dimi nishing role ro le of t he US in the region, its preoccupation with home affairs, its failures in Iraq and Afghanistan and the economic crisis it is facing. Danny Rothschild, the Chairman of the conference, emphasized emphasized that t hat the new developments weakened weakened moderate mod erate Arab states and Israel. An Israeli film, Israel 2048, 20 48, shown show n in cinemas, ci nemas, predicted pred icted that Israel will not be in existence to celebrate its centenary. This is due to the loss of national immunity and the absence of internal inter nal co co hesion. hesion. The term ‘civil war’ was frequently freque ntly used by t he Israeli media in t heir coverage coverag e of the events events i n Egypt.
The two t wo Israeli newspapers, newsp apers, Maariv and Yediot Ahronot, Ahro not, spoke sp oke about t he US a nd Israel Israel being torn between displeasure with President Asad and fears of the likely consequences of his fall. What is taking taki ng plac e i n Syria Syr ia shows show s t hat t he world’s world ’s i ndecision ndecisio n will o nly e nd when whe n t he rebels will will make ta ngible gains on the ground.
Such analyses have in common the fact that everyone has been surprised by the Arab explosion, its loud outcry and demand of freedom.
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Chapter Three
After the Revolution.. Revolutio n.. Ambiguous Issues
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One Post-Revolution States and the Question of the Enforcement of Islamic Law
Status and Concept The belief t hat Islamic slami c law, i.e. shari‘ah, takes precedence above everything else is not subject to question in any Muslim community. All national documents produced in Egypt, such as those published by Al-Azhar, the National Council for Constitutional Principles, Muhammad al-Baradai and all parties confirm this. The same applies to Libya and Tunisia. It is merely a documentation of the fact that the predominant majority in these these count cou ntries ries are Muslims Muslims who wish to abide by Islamic law. The T he details of the relation of state and religion should be dealt with in the light of the special circumstances of each country. We need to carefully co nsider two words. The first is ‘enforcement’ which means putting Islamic law into effect. However, the word suggests that we have something ready and specific. All that it needs is to smoothly transfer it from people’s minds, or from books, to practical life. Perhaps many of those who speak about this primarily think of enforcing the mandatory punishments on adulterers, thieves and magicians. They also tend to overlook the circumstances and conditions that must be met to achieve social and political justice, or at least a minimum measure of it, which these laws aim to ensure and protect. Perhaps a better term is ‘to administer’ Islamic law, i.e. iq a mat al shari‘ah as it gives a more comprehensive sense and suggests a gradual dimension. Besides, it is used in the Qur'an: Steadfastly adminis admi nister ter the faith and do not divide into factions.” (42: 13) “Steadfastly
Some enthusiastic people insist on a simplistic approach to complex problems. They do not trouble themselves to think before they take action. Therefore, they start to distribute the the blame when they encounter failure. The seco nd word that t hat requires careful care ful consideratio consid eration n is ‘the ‘t he shari‘ah’, shari‘ ah’, which means mea ns Islamic sla mic law. As it is used in this phrase, it refers to the detailed provisions of the law. However, such provisions provisio ns often often have diff di fferent erent applications. Many cases ca ses are liable to have any of t he five verdicts that make them obligatory, recommended, permissible, reprehensible, or
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forbidden. Pronouncing one of these verdicts depends on the case itself, the situation in whi whi ch the t he verdict verd ict applies a nd the benefit b enefit t hat results from its applicatio ap plicatio n. It is interesting to read that an enthusiastic young man justifies the fact that some rules of shari‘ah were not applied during the time of the Prophet and the rightly guided Caliphs on grounds that the Muslim state was weak at the time. The question is whether he lives lives at a time of Islamic power. We always alwa ys say t hat Islam i s suitable suitab le for all place s a nd all times, but are t he Muslims similarly suitable in all times and places? How can they be when their knowledge of Islam is poor and their practical insight is shallow? s hallow? The e nforc nforc ement o f Islamic law i s perhaps perhap s t he most i mportant mporta nt i ssue t hat requires req uires thorough understanding that neither moves away from the established rules and definitive definitive texts, nor disregards practical pr actical circumstances circumstances and clear interests. Many are t hose hose who who look i nto t he detail s of Islami Islami c law la w witho ut consideri co nsidering ng its purposes, purpo ses, obje ctives, interests, interests, conditions of application and substa ntive ntive stipulations at t he time and a nd in future. The ideal id eal enforcement enforceme nt of Islamic law is closely clo sely related to the system of t he rightly rig htly guided Caliphate. We will see in due course how the Caliphs did their best to achieve this noble objective. After them, well versed versed scholars must always consider the t he practical possibilities possibilities and how people’s interests are served.
Self-Renewing Law During During t he Prophet’s lifetime, his enforcement of Islamic law was only complete 80 days before he passed away. It was completed when the Prophet received revelations that Thi s day d ay I have perfected perf ected your religion relig ion for you included the following divine statement: “ Thi and have bestowed on you the full measure of My blessings and have chosen Islam as a religion for you.” (5: 3) Laws and provisions were revealed as things happened and circumstances required. Islamic law included some provisions that were not enforced either either because beca use their conditio conditio ns did not apply or because because some hindrances prevented their application. This suggests a gradual approach that prevents any turning away from Islamic law.
This confirms t hat t he enforcement enforce ment of Islamic slami c law means t he application appl ication o f the Islamic sla mic principles and the possible benefits on which the detailed provisions of the law is based. It is not right that we should hold on to some laws and rules in isolation of their bases and the benefits they are meant to serve. We cannot take these laws in the same way as we take t he religious relig ious text tex t s that sp eak about a bout rituals o f worship. wors hip. Worship Wo rship is something so mething t hat
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we apply app ly at face values. If we we were to take laws l aws that concer con cern n practical practi cal matters matter s in the th e same light, we may may risk undermining undermining the principles of Islamic law and its it s overall objecti ves. One of the most important and detailed areas in this regard clarifies that Islamic law includes provisions of varying degrees: some deal with essentials, some with needs and others with improvements. We cannot equate a general principle that all people need to ensure their benefits and interests with a special provision that relates to an individual’s personal behavio behavio ur. During the reign of the rightly guided Caliphs we find some cases where the Caliph gave a ruling that differed with what was the practic e during the Prophet’s lifetime. [Umar provides several of these cases and I will discuss some of these presently. This confirms that what is greatly important with regard to the enforcement of Islamic law is to consider consider its it s objectives and rules. Moreover, the universal agreement of the Prophet’s companions and the rightly guided Caliphs on a particular ruling constitutes valid evidence in support of it. Therefore, what took place during that period and was unanimously agreed represented a gradual complement of Islamic law and its provisions. Likewise, careful consideration of new serious events and cases that take place at any time, whether leading to a unanimous verdict or a controversial co ntroversial one, is similarly a gradual grad ual complement. This continues contin ues as long as human life develops and changes. It aims to clarify God’s judgement on such new events events a nd cases. We may compare Islamic slami c principles to factories factorie s which continually contin ually turn tur n up individual products. What these principles produce depends on the information and facts that are placed before them. They return, for example, a ruling that forbids narcotics and this ruling is based on a clear text, or analogy or a unanimous verdict. Likewise, they return a verdict permitting in-vitro in-vitr o fertilizatio n ( IVF) under certai n conditio co nditions, ns, or permitting organ transplant, or a host of modern business deals and contracts. We must always differentiate between what is unanimously agreed and what is subject to different opinions.
A Gradual Gradual Approac Approach h We then need to consider how a certain certai n ruling ruli ng is to be enforc enforced ed in practice, practi ce, the sort of punishments for expected violations and what solutions can be offered to those who are much involved in such violations. It may be a case similar to that of treating an addict by giving him decreasing doses until he gets rid of his addiction. This gradual approach was outlined by the Prophet to Mu[adh ibn Jabal when he appointed him governor of Yemen. He told him to call o n people peopl e to declare declar e t heir belief belie f i n God’s God’ s oneness a nd t he 64
message of Prophet Muhammad. If they do that, he should then tell them to offer their obligatory prayers. If they do, then he should tell them that they have to pay their zakat, i.e. obligatory charity. charity. Abd al-[ Az Aziz was the Caliph at the turn of the first century of the Islamic era. [Umar ibn [ Abd His son, [ Abd Abd al-Malik, thought t hat his father was not enforcing en forcing Isla Islamic mic law fast enough. He took the matter up with him, saying: “What will you say to God when you meet Him to justify that you have slackened in enforcing something right and prohibiting something evil? What stops you from going full speed in administering justice? By God, I will be b e happy if bot h yo u a nd I are ar e broug b roug ht to our deat h for establishing establis hing what i s right.” ri ght.” [Umar’s answer was: “Do not hasten matters, son. God denounced wines twice in the Qur'an before be fore He He forbade it on o n the third occasion. It is enou e nough gh for me that every day d ay that passes sees me abolishing something evil or enforcing something right until I meet my Lord. I fear that if I try to enforce right all at once that the people will reject it totally. This will lead to strife.” 56 The gradual grad ual approac appr oach h takes ta kes into account acco unt people’s peopl e’s readiness read iness to understa nd matters and accept them. It couples that with the practical interests of the people such as improved economic standards, safeguarding their rights, consultative government that makes them feel their importance and enhancing their sense of belonging to the Muslim community. This gives giv es profound pr ofound insight i nto t he area of f easibility which whic h we may call Fiqh al-Isti ta[ ah , ta[ ah or the understanding of feasibility. I have have written on o n this area in more detail.
Achieving Achieving the Purpose In discussing the broad area of ‘enjoining what is right’, scholars often cite the story of uri nated i n the t he Prophet’ Pro phet’ss mos que.57 To me, the story raises a question that the man who urinated relates to to what scholars of Fiqh methodology T he question is: is: Fiqh methodology call ‘achieving the purpose’. The ‘What did Islamic law say in this case?’ Does it require immediate objection and acti on to stop the man who is obviously doing something that both Islamic law and human nature consider as unacceptable and ill-mannered? The Prophet says: “Whoever of you sees an evil action should change it with his hand. If he is unable to do so, then with his tongue. And if he is unable to do so, t hen with his heart. That is i s the weak est of faith.”58 56
Al-Zuh d , Vol. 1, p.504; ilyat al-Awliy al-Awliy a ’ , Vol. 5, p. 354; Ibn [ As Vis. Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Al-Zuhd p.504; Al-Asbah an i, H ilyat As akir, T a r i kh Dimashq , Vol. 37, pp. 45-46; Ibn al-Ath i r, Al-K a mil fi al-T a r i kh , Vol. 4, p. 119; Al-Sh at ib i, Al-Mu w a faq f aq a t , Vol. 2, p. 148. 57 The reference here is to the case of a Bedouin who talked to the Prophet in the mosque. He then went aside and urinated. The Prophet’s companions who were in the mosque started rebuking him and wanted to go up to him and stop him. The Prophet told them to leave him alone. When the man finished urinating, the Prophet spoke to him gently, explaining that a mosque is a place of worship which must be kept free of impurities. He then called for a bucket of water to be brought in. He poured the water over the area where the man had urinated. He then told his comp anions that had they scared the m an, they could have caused him a serious problem. – Editor’s – Editor’s note. 58 Related Related b y Muslim, n umber 49. 49.
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Stopping the man was certainly possible both physically a nd by word. Those Those companions companio ns of the Prophet who started to rebuke the man used their tongues. However, the Prophet ordered them to stop, allowing sometime for the man to finish. He then dealt with the matter very wisely, explaining to the man his error. He then ordered that the area be cleansed. In fact, the Prophet objected to his companions’ use of a strong word such as ‘what ‘what are you yo u doing?’ doing?’ W hat would would he have have said, had they said or did something stronger? Islamic law requires that a mosque must be kept clean and free of impurity, and to remove from it whatever is unsightly or disgusting. It also requires that a man who urinates in the mosque should be rebuked and stopped by whatever means possible. What happened happe ned i n t his case was totally different. dif ferent. The strange stra nge t hing is t hat t he Prophet Pro phet halted those who started to express their disapproval, telling them to stop. He wanted them to let the man continue until he had finished. In their case, the Prophet acted immediately, while in the case of the Bedouin, he was most considerate. He most probably trusted that their strong faith would make them understand. The Bedouin’s action was spontaneous and in line with his normal practice, while the action of the Prophet’s companions was based on Islamic law, seeking to enforce clear instructions. There is no doubt that it relied o n clear texts, but t he questio n here is one of enforcement. Here we are faced with the problem of the ‘enforcement of Islamic law’. Does it mean that we put all rulings into effect and implement them, as the Prophet’s companions tried to do in the Bedouin’s case? Or does it focus on a certain aspec t, such as enforcing the specified mandatory punishments, whose function is to deter prospective offenders? offenders? The point poi nt here here is that i f the punishable action does not take place, then no punishment is enforced. Moreover, the mandatory punishments are subject to certain practical procedures. pro cedures. Moreover, the enforcement of the mandatory punishments is not to be diligently sought after. The Sunnah shows that it should be stopped when there is any element of doubt. People must not pursue it. They are encouraged to overlook the offence, wherever possible. The operative principle here is that it is better for the judge to pardon by mistake than to enforce the punishment by mistake. Ibrahim al-Nukha [i said: “I would prefer to prevent punishment in a hundred confirmed cases than to enforce it in one unconfirmed unconfirmed ca se”.59 Ibn Abi Shaybah quotes Ibrahim al-Nukha[i as saying: “ [Umar ibn al-Khattab said: “I prefer to stop mandatory punishments on the basis of doubt to enforcing enforcing them t hem on the basis of o f doubt”.60 The mere enacti ng of a certai n law may be a stronger deterrent deterr ent t han its enforcement. en forcement. Doubt may apply to the case of a single person or to countless people, as in the case of 59 Raghib al-Asfahani, Mu had ar a t ha d ar 60 Ibn
al-Udab a ’ , Vol. 1, p. 282. Abi Shaybah, Al-Mu s annaf , number 28493.
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the controversy among scholars concerning certain drinks. Some of them consider these drinks as intoxicants and rule that they are forbidden, while others consider them permissible. Likewise, certain types of marriage are ruled lawful by some scholars and unlaw unlawfu full by others. The enforcement enforce ment of Islamic sla mic law i nevitably nevitab ly means proper pro per unders tanding ta nding of every ever y case, whether it applies to an individual individ ual or o r to a group of people. peo ple. Such unders unders tanding tandi ng should sho uld be coupled with careful choice of what is most suitable to the case, allowing the element of time to take effect, even if this means a delay in implementation. This is a special type of ijtih ad , i.e. scholarly discretion, which can only be exercised by an elite of God-fearing scholars who devote themselves to the study of Islamic law and its rules, and have thorough insight into the cultural, political and social conditions of the Muslim community.
Human Error The e nforce nforce ment of Islamic law la w does not mean t hat human huma n beings bei ngs will become be come a ngels. Nor does it mean that human error, whether deliberate, unwitting or in clear rejection of Islamic law, will disappear. Human error may be a simple mistake by an individual, as in the case of that Bedouin, or it may be complex and cumulative. It may over time become a long lasting social or political habit. It may also involve confusion. Some errors have become part of the identity of a tribe or a community who will defend them even with arms. Some wrong actions are part of global traditions, endorsed by international relations, relations, media and various influences. Certain things are not considered wrong. They have become interwoven in social tradition. They can be analyzed into several right actions and some ambiguous ones. Some human situations may become so well entrenched that they cannot be resisted. To ignore them is to ignore obvious facts that may be strange but clearly exist. Wrong action is part of human life and cannot be eradicated. For this reason, Islam opens the door to repentance and seeking God’s forgiveness. Compensation for wrong action is also valid. One of God’s attributes is that He forgives sins and errors. The Prophet says: “By Him who who holds my soul i n His hand, if you were not to commit co mmit si ns, God will take you a way and replace you by others who commit sins, then seek His forgiveness. He will then forgive them.” 61 For certain, the Prophet’s attitude was never one of acquiescence in, or justification of any wro wrong ng action. A wrongf wro ngful ul action remains wrong, wrong, even eve n if the majority of people do it.
61 Related Related
b y Muslim, nu mber 2749.
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To object o bject to it i n o ne’s heart is t he lowest lowe st degree d egree o f faith, as stated in the above-quoted had ith .
There is a g ulf bet ween a religious religi ous sta tement a nd its implementatio implem entation. n. The shari‘ah is one thing and its enforcement is another. This is a fundamental point that needs study and discussion. Enforcement involves a human effort which may be right or wrong. The scholarly efforts, or ijtih ad , by the leading scholars are by no means infallible. Any such effort is given a reward when it happens to be wrong, and a double reward when it is right, according to a had ith reported by [ Abdull Abd ullah ibn [ Amr. Amr. Infallibil Infallibility ity belo ngs to the whole Muslim Muslim commun comm unity, ity, when it is unanimous. It does not belong to any group or individual. No one is better in practice or has better understanding of Islam than the Prophet’ s companions. Yet the Prophet ordered them not to pledge to people that they would judge them according to God’s judgement. They had to give them their own judgement. The reason is t hat t hey could not know if their judgement judgeme nt is identical with God’s God’ s judgement.62
Subject to Discretion Islamic law may state a certain verdict, but putting that verdict into a practical form and applying it to the action of a person is a matter that requires human action that applies discretion in fitting the text to the practical situation. Such discretion is made by humans who who may be absol ab solutely utely sincere sincer e and dedicated d edicated,, but t hey remain remai n human. huma n. As Shaykh Shayk h [ Abdull Abd ullah ibn Bayyah says in Fiqh al-W a qi [ wal-Tawaqqu [, the area of this scholarly effort is the point where time, place, man, action and religious text all come together. It is, then, a sort of equation that changes when a change is introduced on either side. Understanding the psychological and intellectual state of individuals and communities, the extent of their tolerance of the enforcement of Islamic law, what suits them and what improves their situation is a serious matter requiring fine and profound insight. Scholars may have varying views in this area. The practical pr actical enforcement enforce ment o f Islamic sla mic la w re quires thorough thor ough knowledge knowled ge of religious relig ious t exts coupled with understanding the historical situation that is in need of a verdict. This involves awareness of acceptability and the likely reaction. Could the reaction be detrimental detrimental to t he commun comm unity, ity, or could it slow life or its gradual grad ual reform? 62 This
is stated stated in a h ad ith related by Muslim, number 1731.
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Slowing life means raising problems that become subject to strong dispute. This could lead to division in the Muslim community that slows development. It may also play into the the hands of the ene e nemy. my. Some reaction may impede the progress of shari‘ah itself. It could lead to turning against it and suspecting the aims of at its advocates. People may come to believe that it belongs to the past and it has no place in the prese nt, nt, because what they have seen of it does not fit the present pr esent circumstances. That That ca n o nly be the result of o f not giving enough thou t hougg ht to proper application ap plication.. Some sincere and honest practices of advocating Islam may lead at times to raising doubt about the religion itself among certain groups in society: women, youth or vulnerable people. This is only due to the fact that their circumstances and background has not been taken into acco unt. unt. The prevailing prevai ling circumstances circ umstances constitute co nstitute a c hangeable, not neutral, factor. People Peop le simply adapt to the conditions and times they live in. There is no set prescription to how we understand understand prevailing prevaili ng circumstances. It relies on effort and ins i nsig ight. ht. During the Prophet’s lifetime, a wounded man was in the state of ceremonial impurity, i.e. jan abah . Some of the Prophet’s companions told him that he must take a bath to remove it. He took a bath which caused his death. When the Prophet heard of it, he said: “They have killed him, may God kill them. Could they not have asked, since they did not know? know? Enquiry is the cure for ignorance.”63
This emp e mphasizes hasizes t he importa impor tance nce of o f sound k nowledge o f the t he matter matt er i n question. No o ne should try to give a ruling without thorough knowledge, insight and the ability to deduce rulings. The Prophet’s reaction was to condemn those who acted on face value without looking into the particular situation of the individual concerned and the fact that theirs was an early earl y community. co mmunity. The Prophet’s Pro phet’s guidance guidan ce tells tell s us t hat t he questio n o f ‘ability’ ‘abili ty’ t hat is mentio ned i n t he Qur'an a nd the Sunnah does not mean only a person’s physical ability to do something. It
is far more than that. It means securing the benefit, i.e. ma sla hah , and preventing the harm, i.e. mafsadah .
63
Related by Ahmad number 3056; Al-D arim i number 779; Ab u Da w ud numbers 336 & 337; Ibn M ajah number 572; Ibn Khuzaymah number 273. Vis. also Ibn Ab i Hatim, Al- [Ilal , p. 77; Shar h bul u gh al-Mur a m , Vol. 3, pp. 1236[Ib 1239 1239 and S. Al- Awdah, Fiqh al- [ I b a dah , Vol. 1, pp. 306-307.
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The Prophet Pr ophet wa s able ab le to stop the Bedouin Bedoui n urinating uri nating in the t he mosque, a nd he co uld rebuild the Ka[bah on the same foundations on which Prophet Abraham built it.64 He was also able to kill the hypocrites in Madinah.65 He did none of these, preferring to leave matters take their course, because he judged that any of these actions would cause more harm than good. In the case of the hypocrites, he said: “People shall not say that Muhammad kills his companions”.66 He felt that killing them would cause people who were not aware of their hypocrisy misunderstand the situation. The harm in this case takes the form of misinformation, misinformation, and t he Prop het het did not wish to give such s uch a chanc cha ncee to fault -finders. With regard to the rebuilding of the Ka[bah, he felt that some people would not easily understand the need for changing its shape. They might think that he wanted to gain some honour by doing so. Moreover, rebuilding it might detract from its sanctity in some people’s mind s.
Fundamentals and Details What was very clear ever since sinc e t he first day of the Islamic sla mic message, messag e, a nd at all times, ti mes, comprises the fundamental principles and the basic doctrines, such as the belief in God’s oneness and the rejection of any form of associating partners with Him, or setting equals to Him. This has always been the most important principle advocated by all prophets and rea sserted d God’s messe messengers ngers.. Prophet Mu hammad (peace be upon him), him), the last of t hem hem, reasserte it in the clearest of terms. The Qur'an advocates it at length, citing the evidence for it and making clear that whatever is contrary to it is false. Incorporated in it are the beliefs in God’s messengers, scriptures, the Day of Judgement and all that a Muslim must believe in. Second came the fundamentals that are closely related to people’s life and safety and the protection of what is essential to their life, interests and the requirements of their wellbeing wellbei ng such suc h as justice, respe r espect, ct, freedoms fre edoms and a nd their ot her rights. rig hts. Scholars of Fiqh methodology group this under the heading , ‘the five essentials’, which refers to the preservation of religion, life, property, mind and offspring (or family honour). Added to these is the protection of association and its requirements, including freedom, freedom, respect of humanity and a nd the social fabric of a community or a natio natio n.
64
The Prophet told his wife, [A’ishah , after Makkah had fallen to Islam that when the Quraysh rebuilt the Kabah, after floods had weakened its building, shortage of funds caused them to reduce it in size. He added: “Had it not been for the fact that your people, i.e. the Makkah population, were newcomers to Islam, I would have rebuilt it on the same same foundations on whi ch Abraham had bu ilt it.” – Editor’s – Editor’s note. 65 The chief of th e hypo hypo crites, crites, [ Abdull Abd ull ah ibn Ubay, was very hostile to Islam but p retended retended to be a Muslim. He did a few actions which were calculated to undermine Islam, weaken its fledgling state and hurt the Prophet and his family. [Umar sought permission to kill the man, but the Prophet refused and told him that he would not do – Editor’s note. something that might be exploited exploited to spread false rumou rs about him or Islam. – Editor’s 66 Related Related b y al-Bukha ri, num bers bers 3518 3518 & 4905 and Muslim, nu mber 2584. 2584.
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Islamic law does not provide only for the protection of these. It provides for their enrichment and consolidation. Careful study of the provisions of Islamic law will show that they all serve these basic purposes. Proper Islamic politics require that these fundamentals must be given precedence over everything else, even if this means that some details details are lost or overlooked. I will attempt to cite evidence showing the Prophet’s policy of giving priority to the fundamentals that relate to faith and those that relate to human life. These are the ones that will ensure the consolidation of the true faith or the sound development of human life and its steady progress.
Unfortunately, the great majority of interested people concentrate on details and finer elements instead of focusing on the fundamentals. This is a flaw in the intellectual and educational system that leads to the neglect of the fundamentals and giving them a very secondary position. They are taken for granted by some people, while others consider their discussion as seeking an easy way out of the arena of debate. The arena witnesses an unending debate over matters of detail most of which have no definitive ruling in Islamic law, or over matters of secondary importa nce in people’s life. This, while fundamental issues issues suffe s ufferr lack la ck of understandi ng and little intere interest. st. When t he Muslims Muslim s defeated defeat ed the Persia n Empire a nd took over Iraq, many of t hem, including a good number of the Prophet’s companions, wanted the Caliph, [Umar ibn alKhattab, to divide the land of Iraq among the army which fought the battles. The rule stated in the Qur'an concerning war gains, whether moveable or immovable property, is that 20% are given to the Muslim state and 80% divided among the fighters. Thus, the argument advanced in this case was in line with the rule as stated. Moreover, such division would would have been bee n most gratifying to the soldiers who risked t heir heir lives and fought these battles. [Umar, however, refused such division, arguing that it was necessary to protect the interests of the future generations. His famous argument was: “How about tomorrow’s Muslims who will find that the land and its people have been divided and inherited? This is not right.” He further said: “If I were to divide the land of Iraq and its population, and the land of Syria and its population, what would be left to protect the borders and to meet the needs? What would be there to provide for young orphans and widows in i n this la nd and elsewhere?” else where?” 67 The issue was debated debate d at length, as clearly documented docume nted i n several books boo ks of reference. re ference. Ultimately, Ultimately, the Prophet’s Pr ophet’s companions were convinced. No one was forced or pressurised pressurised to change their minds. It was a model scholarly debate. [Umar then ordered that a land tax should be levied from its o wners.
67 Ab u
Y u suf, Al-Khar a j , p. 35.
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The Qur’anic verse that defines the beneficiaries of zakat, i.e. the obligatory charity, mentions eight classes of people including one it calls ‘those whose hearts are to be won over’. These are people of influence whose good will to wards Islam will benefit t he Muslim community. They are given a portion of zakat to win them over. [Umar stopped paying them, arguing that the reason that necessitated paying them a portion of zakat no longer obtained. Islam Islam was in i n a position of strengt strength h and could do without without the t heir ir good go od will. It could be argued that the enforcement of Islamic law was to take the Qur’anic verse at its face face value val ue and continue to pay such suc h people. Would that t hat b e right, or was [Umar Umar righ rig ht in in stopping such payments? pay ments? Islamic law states a mandatory punishment for theft, which is to cut the thief’s hand. Does the enforcement of Islamic law mean the application of this punishment in all cases of theft that exceed a certain value when the stolen articles are taken from a secure place, as required by the relevant Qur’anic verse? Could the punishment be stopped in some economic circumstances, as done by [Umar, the second of the rightly guided Caliphs,
during the Year of Famine? Ibn [ Abb Abb as, a top scholar who was a cousin of the Prophet, is reported to advocate the second alternati alter native. ve. What does t he enforcement enforce ment of Islamic sla mic law mean with regard regar d to marriage marriag e between a Muslim man and a Christian or Jewish woman? Is it permissible as clearly stated in the Qur'an, or is it outlawed as [Umar objected to it? His argument was based on fear of associating with prostitutes and turning away from Muslim women, preferring nonMuslim Muslim wome n who might be prettier. Islamic law does not specify a punishment for a drunken person. During the Prophet’s lifetime, he was beaten up, without specifying a method or a number. Some people hit him by hand, some by their robes and some with their shoes. Later, however, Khalid ibn al-Walid complained to [Umar that people were taking the punishment lightly which led co mpanio ions ns.. [ Abd to increa increa se in drunkenness. d runkenness. [Umar consulted t he Prophet’s compan Abd al-Ra al -Rahm an ibn [ Awf Aw f said: “When “W hen a man is dru d runk, nk, he becomes become s delirio d elirious, us, a nd his delirium delir ium may cause him to abuse others. His punishment should be the same as an abusive person, i.e. eighty lashes”. Scholars differ as to his punishment and whether it should be forty or eighty lashes, lashes, a nd whether whether t he punishment punishme nt may be repeated every year if he continues to dri nk. If a man divorces his wife three t hree times times all at once, o nce, how will Islamic la w be enforced? Will it make the three times one divorce, as was the case during the Prophet’s lifetime and Ab u Bakr’s reign? Or will it count as three divorces, as [Umar preferred? The latter is mentioned in a h ad ith related by Muslim on Ibn [ Abb Abb as’s authority: “During the lifetime of the Prophet and Abu Bakr’s reign as well as the first two years of [Umar’s reign, a 72
divorce pronounced three times together counted as one divorce. [Umar ibn al-Khattab then said: the people are precipitating something in which they had better be careful about. Perhaps we should take t hem by their word. He i mposed all three.”68 A certain country cou ntry may declare declar e t he enforcem en forcement ent of Islami Islamicc law, la w, using t he appeal o f the slogan to win popular support. Thus, the very principle of enforcing Islamic law becomes a political slogan. The more important significance of enforcing Islamic law is to ensure justice, judge between people in fairness, protect people’s rights, support the weak and vulnerable, vulnerabl e, safeguard public property, pro perty, protect pro tect people’s honour and protect them against aggression, aggression, abuse, arbitrary impriso nment nment and unjustif u njustified ied killing. killing. On the other hand, a country may become Islamic without declaring the fact. It only need need to work hard to achieve the overall objectives of Islamic la w. In a Muslim society, a clear announcement a nnouncement that Islamic law is the gover ning ning la w will give people reassurance and satisfaction. Islamic law, however, must be taken in total. No process of selectivity may be introduce i ntroduced. d.
68
tt a’ hd al- S S aw da ’il Am i r al- a’ , Vol. 2, p. 748; Ibn [ Abd Mu’min i n [ Umar Vis, Malik, Al-Muwa tt Abd al-H ad i, Ma hd aw a b f i Fa da Umar ibn al- Kha tta al-Marwiyy a t al-W a rdiah f i Shakh siyyat tt a b , Vol.1, p. 323; Abd al-Salam ibn Muhsin Al- Issa, Dir a sah Naqdiyyah f i al-Marwiyy [ Umar tta b wa Siy asatihi al-Id Umar ibn al-Kha tta al-Id a riyyah . Also, Salman al-Awdah, Kayfa Nakhtalif , p. 59.
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Two State Identity after the Revolution: Civil or Religious? The term ‘civil’ is rather loose and can be used to mean more than one t hing. Real importance is given to the constitution and the legal provisions that regulate political activity. Many Islamists do not find any contradiction between a civil state and an Islamic one.
For a state to be Islamic means that it abides by the religious Islamic values and that its decisions and choices are kept within the framework of Islamic law. A civil state means that the nation or the community is committed to the social and human arrangements agreed upon by all groups of the t he community, i.e. the citizens citize ns and thei t heirr convi convi ctions. However, the term ‘religious state’ is rather confusing. Historically, it is linked to theocracy, which means government by a clerical order. This was never part of Islamic thought, nor was it practised in Islamic history except in the new Shia theory of Wil a yat al-Faq ih , i.e. the guiding role of the religious scholar. In Islam, religious scholars are not legislators. They They mo nopolize neither neither power nor politics.
Islamic law, history and thought do not know anything like a religious theocracy. Abu al A[la Mawd udi, one of the best known Islamic intellectuals of the modern era, who advocated the principle of ha akimiyyah , i.e. Islamic government, expressed strong reservations against the concept of a religious state which upholds the authority of religious men. He stated that there was nothing in Islam that supports such a concept. It is both alien to Islam and misguided. It could be used as a means to reinstate tyranny under under the t he name of religion. religio n. The term ‘civil state’ means mean s t hat t here is a civil, social contract co ntract between bet ween t he state authorities and institutions based on justice and the distribution of authority. ‘Islamic state’, on the other hand, means the state functions according to Islamic controls and objectives.
Governments and institutions represent the will and preferences of the people. They represent the people according to a purely civil contract and within certain conditions that must be observed, and under certain controls. In addition, accountability is upheld. God Almighty says of Himself: “He cannot be questioned about whatever He does, whereas they shall be questioned.” questioned. ” (21: 23) All A ll people peop le are, ar e, then, accountable. Authority in the the Islamic system is human, not clerical. 74
When a state stat e is perma nently under t he power of a group gro up or a party, there can ca n be no guarantee against its becoming a dictatorship. The worst type of dictatorship is that exercised in the name of religion. People are forced to accept it under the peril of physical physical punish pu nishme ment nt in this life and a nd the threat of furt further her p unishment in the hereafter. The clear separatio sep aration n o f t he legislativ e, executive exec utive a nd judicia l a uthorities uthoritie s is absol utely necessary in order to keep the central government well balanced and immune to corruption. Such separation was a clear understanding of [Umar, the rightly guided Caliph, when he said to Mu [a wiyah, his gover nor of o f Syria: “ You have no a uthority uthorit y over o ver t he judge judg e in Palestine”.69 [Ub adah ibn al-Samit while he is the There is a clear indication i ndication of o f such s uch separatio sepa ration n in the t he Qur'an, Qur'a n, where the t he legislative legislati ve aut hority is referred to as ‘the Book’, i.e. the Qur'an, and the judicia l authority as al-m iz an , i.e. the balance, and the executive authority as al- had id , i.e. the iron. The Prophet used to send governors and judges to provinces. When a n a uthoritarian uthori tarian r uler controls contr ols the admi nistrative nistrati ve a nd t he j udicial authorities, author ities, corruption becomes a natural result. Even if he tries to check it, he will not be able to do so, because it will have i nfiltrated nfiltrated into the fabric and relations of society.
69 Vis,
Ibn Majah, Sunan , num ber 18; 18; Musnad numb er 390; Usd al-Gh a bah , Vol. 3, p. 158. Mus nad al-Sh a miyy i n , number
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Three The Democratic Solution and the Islamic Isla mic Political System
The fall of a r uthless dictator d ictator is welcomed w elcomed with wit h great grea t celebratio celeb ratio n. It is i s a n event eve nt that t hat gives people some of their th eir happiest and most enjoyable moments. It is a moment to e njoy pure happiness, just like young children who care little for what comes next. However, the suffering of those who were victims to the dictator’s tyranny should not be forgotten. Those who w ho had to pay a heavy price during t he struggle struggl e against ag ainst dictatorship dictato rship a nd survived deserve people’s gratitude and the community s hould hould be proud pr oud of them. Those w ho were killed at the hand of the dictator will have their reward: “ If you should be slain or die in God’s cause, surely forgiveness by God and His grace are better than all the riches they amass.” (3: 157) Many are those who continue to talk about the defects of democracy. This is valid if the person concerned has lived under democracy and has an insight into its philosophy. It is certainly not valid in the case of someone who has not experienced it, but only tries to go back to the roots of its name. Such people will be well advised to speak about the defects of tyranny and authoritarian rule. These are immersed i n evil and corruption. It is right to note that one dictatorial regime may be replaced by a similarly dictatorial one, as Aristotle says. Therefore, we need need to s how eno eno ugh humilit humilit y so that we can agree a formula formula that e nsures justice and takes us i nto nto a better situation. Such a situation will not be perfectly satisfactory to any group, because it will not meet the the total theoretical picture of everyone. It can ca n be, however, however, reasonab reasonably ly satisfactory to all, as the ideal solution in the circumstances or, to borrow Churchill’s phrase, ‘the least bad of all systems’.
Question: How does Islam view democracy? It is generally agreed that the concept of democracy was first initiated in Athens in the sixth century BC. It simply envisaged an end to the rule of the aristocracy so as to allow participation by the largest number of citizens in decision making, either directly or through their representative. However, the right of participation was denied to women and slaves. The Wester W estern n democratic democr atic system i s based ba sed o n materialistic mat erialistic t hought t hat makes human will the the ultimate ultimate arbiter in i n deciding deciding what is i s right. It is a personal matter in the t he sense t hat 76
everyone determines what he considers to be right. Then the community agrees on the course to be b e followed, in accorda nce nce with a system that t hat applies to all. In a nutshell, in the Western democratic system, there is this materialistic philosophy whi whi ch is i s fundame f undame ntally at odds odd s with wit h Islam. However, Ho wever, there are also t he political poli tical practice, practi ce, human experience and administrative procedure which may all be borrowed and adapted in accordance with positive civilized interaction and the special social environment. To succeed in practice, every political experience must conform to the conditions of the environment where it is to be implemented, and to the religious and cultural conditions of the country. Jean-Jacque Rousseau, the French theoretician of the Enlightenment mentions that every nation which wants to put its policy on a sound basis must in the beginning beginning rel y on o n religion. religion. The Qur'an Qur'a n denounces de nounces the majority at times. Does Doe s this t his mean mea n a perm p ermanent anent denunciatio de nunciation n of the majority and t hat the elite is i s always right? In his book, Al- H aq aq iqah al-Jawhariyyah fi Mushkilat al-Aqaliyyah wal-Akthariyyah , 70 Dr Ahmad Rahmani Ra hmani concludes co ncludes a fter a long discussio discu ssion n t hat across human huma n history, histor y, t he majority always stands on the negative side while the well aware minority stands on the positive side. However, this generalization conflicts with the fact that the Qur'an often mala’ , which means the elite and also refers to authority. According to the denounces al- mala’ Sunnah, the Prophet endorsed people’s testimony of whether a certain person is good or bad. He said: “You are God’s witnesses on earth”.71 The unanimity of scholars, i.e. ijm a[ a[ , is one of the sources of reference in Islamic Fiqh . Such unanimity may be approximate, whi whi ch means mean s t he majority view. vie w. In a lesser le sser positio n comes co mes the view vie w of t he majority of scholars, which is right in most cases. It is referred to in some reports as the ‘view of the overwhelmi overwhelmi ng majority’. Just before the Battle of Uhud, the Prophet accepted the view of the majority, but the battle ended in defeat. Yet after the battle, he was given Qur’anic revelations that included the instruction: “Consult with them in the conduct of public affairs.” (3: 159) Ibn Mas[ud, a companion of the Prophet says: “Whatever the Muslims agree to be good is good in God’s sight”. 72 As already alread y stat ed, the Prophet Pro phet made Musli ms God’s witnesses witne sses on earth against one another. This means that testimony belongs to the people.
70 This
title translat es as: The fundam fu ndam ental truth truth in th e question of the m inority and the m ajority. Editor’s note. b y al-Bukha ri, number 1367 and Muslim number 949. 72 Related by al-Tay als i, number 243, Ahmad number 3600. Vis also Al- [Ilal al-Mutan a hiyah , Vol. 1, p. 280; Ibn alQayyim, Al-Fur Al- Fur usiyyah , p. 60; and Kashf al-Khaf a ’ , Vol. 2, p. 245. 71 Related Related
77
An authentic aut hentic had ith related by al-Shafi [i and others on [Umar’s authority states: “Satan is always with with a lone person. Whe n they they are two, he is further afield”.73 The The had ith to which we have already alread y referred, re ferred, mentioning mentioni ng the ‘overw helming helmi ng majority’, majority’ , may be poor poo r in authenticity, but its meaning is valid. Scholars have always given more weight to the greater number. Since government means representing the people, then the people have the rights of choice, choice, making maki ng conditions, authority and dismiss dis missal. al. However, no single group has the right to speak in the name of all the people. The people should speak clearly for themselves, either directly or through their representatives. Mu[a wiyah said sai d to his son Yazid: “The people of Iraq always speak ill of their governors and get fed up with them. If they ask you every day to change their governor, do so.” 74 The Qur'an teaches tea ches us that we will do well to benef be nefii t by other people’s peop le’s experience. experi ence. During the Prophet’s lifetime ideas such as digging a dry moat across the entrance to Madinah to defend it against large forces was borrowed from other nations. Other borrowed ideas included having a pulpit in the mosque and using a seal on the Prophet’s letters.
As Ibn al-Qayyim al- Qayyim says, say s, actio ns a nd statements state ments are j udged primar ily on t heir objectiv es and meanings. 75 This whole area is o ne o f huma huma n experien experi ence. ce. It is not an area are a of worship wors hip a nd purely religious legislation. Moreover, it is an area that is subject to development and change. It is not not cons co nstant. tant. Democracy Democracy is then t he fruit fruit o f human experience. It takes various forms. Eight reputable philosophers published a book in French which discusses democracy in every state. They agree that it is wrong to reduce the concept of democracy to putting ballot papers in boxes, i.e. the rule of the majority. Other mechanisms, including a spirit of mutual accommodation to promote the common interests, are needed for democracy to yield its full benefits. Undoubtedly, Undoubtedly, democracy is infinitely infinitely better than all types of o f dictatorship. One of its best features features is the t he a chievement of a good measure of ju stice, stice, mutual mut ual co co nsent nsent a nd the t he peaceful pe aceful 73
Related by al-Tay als i, number 31, Ahmad number 114, al-Tirmidhi number 2165, Ibn M ajah number 2363, Ibn S a h 430. Hibb an numbers 4576 & 6728. Vis. also Al-Silsilah Al-Silsil ah al- al - S ahih ih ah numb er 430. 74 Vis. Ans a b al-Ashr a f , Vol. 5, p. 100. 75 Ibn al-Qayyim, I [l a m al-Mu waqqi [i [in , Vol. 3, p. 1 43.
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transfer of power, as we see in most countries. Moreover, democracy acknowledges its mistakes mistakes and a nd takes measures to rectify them. In relation to to government, g overnment, Islam Islam lays down certain principles and objectives. The closer a system system comes to the fulfilment of these pri nciples nciples a nd objective, objective, the th e better it is. The most important of these principles is to ensure justice to all. It is a fundamental aim of Islamic law, and a basic objective of the principle of ‘enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wro wro ng’. Justice i s t he essence o f good goo d government. gover nment. The Qur'an lays down t he following followi ng order: ord er: “God commands you... whenever you judge between people, to judge with justice.” (4: 58) The Prophet gives a description of the Mahdi76 who comes at the end of time. The description includes: “He will fill the earth with justice and fairness after it had been full messe ngers with of injustice and oppression”.77 In the Qur'an God says: “ We sent Our messengers clear evidence of the truth, and through them We bestowed the book from on high, setting the balance, so that people could uphold justice.” (57: 25) This confirms that the purpose of sending sending prop hets hets and the exercise of power is to ens e nsure ure justice to all. Shaykh Rashid Reda was one of the earlier scholars who wrote in support of benefiting by the democratic experience. He considered it a form that can implement the Islamic principle of consultative government and fulfil its objectives. He explained this in his commentary commentary o n the Qur'an Q ur'an,, Al-Man ar , (Volume 5, page 165). The fact fa ct t hat the t he constitutio ns of o f several s everal countries cou ntries have abroga abr ogated ted Islamic slami c law is not no t t he result of democracy. Rather, it is an act of dictatorship. Generally speaking, the people in the the Muslim world want Islam to be i mplemented. mplemented. If a nation chooses something other than Islamic law, the fault is not in the system which reflects people’s wishes. The fault belongs to the people who have chosen the wrong course. The task assigned to prophets was one of advocacy so that people would be convi convi nced nced of o f the truth of religion and its morality. There is no need to ignore any situation. situatio n. Rather, it is necessary n ecessary to know the situatio sit uation n and deal with it wisely, with rational advocacy of the truth. No pressure or compulsion may be employed. Is it possible to force people to become believers? Is it not conviction that makes people believe? b elieve?78 76
The Mahdi is an advocate of the truth of Islam who will call on people to reform themselves and adhere to Islam. His title ‘Mahdi’ means ‘a follower of right guidance’. Prophet Muhammad foretold of his coming ‘at the end of time’. – Editor’s – Editor’s note. 77 Related by Ahmad numbers 773 & 11326, Ab u Da w u d number 4282, Ibn Hibb an number 6823, Al- Hakim, Al- Must adrak, Vol, 4, p. 441 & 664. Vis. also Al-Silsilah Al-Silsil ah al- S ahih ih ah num ber 1529. S a h 1529. 78 Vis. Ahm ad al-Raysooni, [rakat al-Raysooni, Al-Sh u r a f i Ma [ r akat al-Bin a ’ , p. 171.
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In the M uslim uslim world t here here are tribes, trib es, social social i nstitutions nstitutions and leaders whose presence is felt. They must not be ignored. ignored . They should be integrated integr ated in the syste m. Undoubtedly, making making the th e transition to a political system based on institutions i s not easy. On the basis of what we have said, it is right to say that Islam has given room for choice between political models and systems, pointing out that the best is the closest to the practice of the Prophet’s companions and the rightly guided Caliphs which gave due emphasis to justice, freedom, consultation and protection of property and all people’s rights. In the field of political and civil action, some groups talk about ‘deviant’ practices, but their memory can only recall such actions as demonstration, sit-in, civil protest or formation of parties. They turn a blind eye to such deviant practices as taking power by force, acquiescing in oppression and the hereditary transfer of power. Some companions of the Prophet considered the last of these to be adopting the system of the Byzantine rulers in place of the Prophet’s Sunnah. Another deviant practice was the appointment of two successors, one after the other, which was first done by [ Abd Abd al-Malik al-Mali k ib i b n Marw Mar w an.
It was objected to by b y the leading scholars of t he time, such suc h as Sa[id ibn al-Musayyib. 79 It should be said, however, that there is nothing to prevent us from adopting some of those practices of other countries in the system of government or some contemporary Western Wester n ways of protest pro test a nd expression. expr ession. They may be accepted if people peop le accept them and rejected if people reject them. Whatever we accept or reject must ensure that a true interest is served and that it is consistent with the values of justice and freedom. Furthermore, Furthermore, it must not be in conflict conflict with a text that is truly authentic and definiti d efinitive ve in in meani meani ng. It must also be allo wed by the country’s co nstitution. nstitution.
79 Vis. Al-Ma [ [ rifah rifah
wal-T a r ikh , Vol. 1, pp. 472-473; and H ilyat ilyat al-Awliy a ’ , Vol. 2, p. 170.
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Four The Relation Relati on between Rulers Rulers and Citizens The Qur'an Qur'a n very clearly cl early speaks spea ks abo ut the principle p rinciple of obedien o bedience ce to rulers. r ulers. One example exa mple is the verse that says: “Believers, obey God and obey the Messenger and those from among you who have been entrusted with authority. If you are in dispute over anything, refer it to God and the Messenger.” (4: 59) At face value, the dispute is between the addressees and their their rulers. In such a case, the dispute should be referred to God and His messenger, messenger, whi whi ch means i n practice practi ce reference refere nce to a neutral arbiter, arbit er, or engaging in a dialogue dialo gue to sort out the differences. In the Sunnah there are numerous texts speaking about obedience. Abu Hurayrah quotes the Prophet as saying: “God will be pleased if you abide by three things... and that you give sound advice to whoever is assigned authority over you.”80 In the two authentic anthologies of H ad ad ith , [Ubadah ibn al-Sa mit of the Ans ar is quoted by his grandson as saying: “We have given pledges to God’s messenger to listen and obey in times of hardship and ease, when we are active or slackening, giving priority to others over ourselves. We further pledged not to engage in dispute to gain power, and also to say the truth wherever wherever we are, fearing fearing no blame for fulfilling fulfilling our o ur duty towards God.”81 Such was the pledge of the Prophet’s companions, denoting their absolute faith. It combined obedience and refraining from wrongful dispute with clearly stating the truth, wherever they t hey might mig ht be, feari ng no blame.
The two t wo a uthentic uthe ntic antholog a nthologies ies e nter a had ith in which Ibn [Umar quotes the Prophet as saying: “A Muslim must listen and obey in all matters he likes or dislikes, except when he is ordered to commit a disobedience to God. Should he be so ordered, then he must neither listen nor obey.”82 Both also relate on the authority of Ibn Mas[ud that the Prophet said: “There will be much selfishness and other matters of which you disapprove.” They asked: “What do you advise us to do?” He said: “Fulfil the duties incumbent on you and pray to God to give you your rights.” 83 Ab u Hurayrah quotes the Prophet as saying: “Whoever refuses to obey, abandoning the Muslim community and dies in this state, will have died like t he people of ignorance.” 84 80
tt a’ a’ , Vol. 2, p. 990; Ahmad numbers 334 & 8799, Muslim number 1715, Ibn Hibb an Related by M [alik in Al-Mu wa tt number 3388 and al-Bayhaq i, Vol. 8, p. 163. 81 Related Related b y al-Bukha ri num ber 7199; 7199; and Mu slim nu mber 1709. 1709. 82 Related Related b y al-Bukha ri num ber 295; 295; and Muslim nu mber 1839. 83 Related Related b y al-Bukha ri num ber 3603 3603;; and Muslim num ber 1843 1843.. 84 Related Related b y Muslim nu mber 1848. 1848.
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In totality, the texts stress two important points. The first is the pledge of loyalty, which is “a contract of agreement between two parties. Two conditions apply to it as they apply to all contracts: consent and absence of coercion.”85 Consent is more important in the case of the pledge of loyalty than a sale contract which is concerned with a transfer of owner ship. Consent to a contract of sale is mentioned in the Qur'an: “ unless it be through trade which you conduct by mutual consent.” (4: 29) It is on the basis of this Qur’anic text that scholars state the main rule in this area, which makes any contract valid only when the two parties consent to it. Al-Qaraf i and other scholars have recorded that this this rule is i s universally agreed by scholars. The Prop P rophet het is quoted to have said: “The best of your yo ur rulers r ulers are ar e the o nes whom you yo u love lo ve and who love you; who bless you and you bless them. The worst of your rulers are the ones you hate and they hate you; the ones you curse and they curse you.” Some people asked: “messenger of God, shall we fight them with arms?” He said: “No, as long as they yo u”.86 This had ith is not meant merely as a point of attend regularly to prayers with you”. admonition or a factual report. It refers to a constant social pattern. A whole system of the relation between a ruler and his people may be based on it. It suggests a mutual relation between right and duty. It cannot be imagined that people will do their duties if they they are de nied nied t heir heir rights. Thi Thi s is endorsed by b y an authentic had ith in which the Prophet said: “This clan of the Quraysh will bring my community to ruin”. People asked him: “What do you advise us to do?” He said: “If people will only stay away from them”.87 We commented commented o n this had ith under ‘Revolutio n: peacef peaceful ul or violent”. th under the heading ‘Revolution:
The seco nd point p oint stressed stress ed in the quoted texts is obedience. o bedience. It goes g oes hand ha nd in hand with the t he pledge of loyalty when the ruler is chosen c hosen by general agreement among amo ng the people. It also takes place in the absence of the condition of choice by general agreement, as in the case of a ruler taking power by force. This means that obedience may be transferred from one ruler to another who again takes power by force. This is what scholars have stated. The pledge of loyalty is different. The Prophet says: “Whoever gives a pledge of loyalty to a ruler, giving giving him a promise with his hand and heart heart must obey ob ey him as long as he can...”88 Sound approach requires taking all different statements together, studying the views of earlier and and contemporary scholars and considering the likely results and outcome. This This is different different from looking at t he apparent appare nt meanings of texts in iso lation from their objectives and points of focus. Hence scholars differ in their rulings on rebellion against repressive or wrongdoing rulers. Some prohibit it; some permit it and some say it is obligatory. The 85 Al-Mawardi, Al-A Al- Ah ka m
ta niyyah , pp. 22-24. 22-24. Also, Ibn Khaldun, Al-Muqaddimah al-Sul ta Al-Muq addimah , p. 26. 86 Related Related b y Muslim nu mber 1855. 1855. 87 Related Related b y al-Bukhari al-Bukhari num ber 2604 2604 and Muslim num ber 2917 2917.. 88 Related Related b y Muslim nu mber 1844. 1844.
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basis of their different rulings is the importance they attach to the situation, the balance of power power and a nd the likely outcome. A host of statements stat ements i n our Isl Isl amic heritage have contributed co ntributed to the formatio n of a n imbalanced understanding of the relation between the ruler and the people. Such understanding has continued to be generally upheld and often repeated on official occasions and in government functions. Such statements have at times contributed to an attitude that puts the ruler in the position of God. Ibn H ani’, an Andalusian poet, describes the Fatimid ruler, Al-Mu [izz , in terms that apply only to God, before saying that his position is that of Prophet Muhammad and that his soldiers are the Prophet’s Ansar. What happens happe ns when objectio n to a regime r egime or a person p erson is condemned condem ned as being b eing a rebellion rebellio n against the faith or against God Himself? Sometimes when I listen to those who attack Islamic political organizations, in order to win favour with a certain ruler, citing texts speaking of obedience or rebellion, I wonder what attitude will they take when such organizations organizations become beco me the rulers! r ulers! Some people quote a statement in a had ith saying: th saying: “Even if you are beaten on your back and your property is taken away, listen and obey”. Both al-Bukhari and Muslim relate the original had ith on the authority of Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, a co co mpanio mpanion n of the Prophet, Pro phet, but they do not include this added statement. The had ith mentions that Hudhayfah asked the Prophet: “What do you order me to do if it happens when whe n I am alive?” aliv e?” 89 He said: “You stay with the community of the Muslims and their ruler.” Hudhayfah asked: “What if they do not have a community and a ruler?” The Prophet said: “Then stay away from all those factions, even if that is extremely hard, until you meet your death in that condition.” 90 The The added add ed statement, “even “eve n if you are beate n...”, is mentioned only by Muslim on the authority of Mamtur Ab u Sall am who mentions: ‘Hudhayfah said...’ The chai n of transmission transmis sion i s broken bro ken b etween Abu Sall am and Hudhayfah. Hence, alDaraqut ni says in his book Al-Tatabbu Al-Tatabbu [ “To me, this statement is graded as mursal .91 Abu Sallam did not hear directly from Hudhayfah or from other companions of the Prophet
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Hudhayfah was asking the Prophet about the future and whether it would bring a change of situation so that the great transformation brought about by Islam would be replaced by something different. The Prophet told him of changes and that there would be situations where good may be mixed with evil and periods when evil would be widespread. – Editor’s – Editor’s note. 90 Related Related b y al-Bukha ri numbers 3606 & 7084, and Muslim numbers 1847 1847 & 51. 51. 91 A hadith is classified as mursal if there is a break in its chain of transmission, with a later transmitter quoting an – Editor’s earlier earlier one without having h eard it from h im d irectly. irectly. A mursal h ad i th is classified as lacking in authenticity. – Editor’s note.
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who who settled i n Iraq. H udhayfah udhayfa h died a few days after [Uthman’s murder. Abu Sall am mentions mentions t hat ‘Hudha ‘H udhayfa yfah h said’, and this co nfirms nfirms it as a s mursal .” .” 92 In his biographical note on Abu Sallam, al-Mazzi says: “He reported from Hudhayfah, but his reporting is said to be mursal . Ibn Hajar says: “He reported from Hudhayfah, Ab u Dharr Dharr and a nd others without having heard from them.” Al-Nawaw i agrees with al-D araqutni that it is mursal , but he considers the text as authentic on the basis of the first chain of transmission. The report by that first chain of transmission does not include the addition in dispute. disp ute. Muqbil al-W adi [i says in his edition of Al-Tatabbu “This addition is lacking lacking in Al -Tatabbu [: “This authenticity authenticity because it comes through t hese hese broken c hains”. hains”. The seco nd had ith is reported by [Ubadah da h ibn al-Walid through his father who quotes his grandfather [Ub adah ibn al-Samit who says: “We have given pledges to God’s messenger to listen and obey in times of hardship a nd ease, when we we are active or slackeni slackeni ng, giving priority to others over ourselves. We further pledged not to engage in dispute to gain power, and also to say the truth wherever we are, fearing no blame for fulfilling our duty towards God.” It is entered in the two authentic anthologies of al-Bukhari and Muslim in this this wording. 93 Ib n Hibb an and others relate this h ad ith with a different chain of transmission, reporting through Hayy an Ab u al-Na dr from Jun adah ibn Ab i Umayyah from [Ubadah. This version adds add s t he wording, word ing, “even “eve n if t hey devo ur your yo ur property pro perty a nd beat you on your back”.94 It appears that t hat this thi s addition is not co co nfirmed as authenti authenti c. As a reporter of o f had ith , Hayy an Ab u al-Na dr is classified as ‘reliable’ by Ibn Ma [in, while Ab u Hatim describes him as ‘acceptable’ and Ibn Hibb an includes him among the reliable reporters. However, a number of reliable reporters have reported this had ith through Junadah ibn Abi Umayyah from [Ubad ah but without this addition. These reports of theirs are included in the two authentic anthologies of al-Bukhari and Muslim and in other anthologies as well. 95 A number of contemporary researchers, such as Dr Misfir al-Dumayni and Dr Saud alFanisan have discussed this addition, concluding that the had ith is poor in authenticity and that the addition is ‘odd’. Yet citi ng this had ith and its addition about being beaten on the back with one’s property taken away in the forefront, as if it is the keynote of this subject, betrays a kind of 92 Al-Daraqu t n i, Al -Ilz a mat
.182. wal-Tatabbu [, p .182. b y al-Bukha ri num ber 7199 7199;; and Muslim num ber 1709 1709.. 94 Related by Ibn Ab i [As im in Al-Sun nah , number 1026, Ibn Zanjaweih in Al-Amw Al-A mw a l , number 24, Ibn Hibb an numbers 4562 4562 & 4566, 4566, and al- Shashi numbers 1221 & 1225. 95 Vis. al-Bukh a ri num bers bers 7055 7055 & 7056 and Muslim nu mber 1709. 93 Related Related
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selectivity. A better and more authentic had ith states: “Whoever is killed defending his property is a martyr.” This had ith is entered in a large number of anthologies including the two most authentic ones. 96 It is attributed to no less than 16 of the Prophet’s companions, such as [ Abdull Abd ullah ibn [Umar, Ab u Hurayrah, al-Husayn ibn [ Al Al i, Ibn Abb as, Sa [d ibn Abi Waqq as Al i ibn Abu Talib, Buraydah B uraydah,, [ Abb as, Ibn al-Zubayr, Ibn Mas[ud, [ Al Abd ullah ibn [ Amr Amr and Sa [id ibn Zayd. A number of scholars, such as al-Muna w i and [ Abdull al-Kattani classify it as mutaw atir , which w hich is the t he hig highes hestt grade gr ade of authenticity. authenticity.97 The majority o f commentator com mentatorss have not mentioned men tioned a ny difference di fference between bet ween a ruler rul er and others. On the contrary, Ibn Hazm says: “Here, God’s messenger (peace be upon him) orders anyone who is wrongfully asked to part with his money not to give it. He is ordered to fight for it. He may kill without blame or be killed and become an innocent martyr. The Prophet did not specify any type of property. Indeed Abu Bakr and Abd ullah ibn [ Amr Amr consider a ruler r uler and a nd an ordi o rdinary nary person per son to be in the same positio n in [ Abdull this regard.”98 In the history of a number of the Prophet’s companions, such as al-Zubayr, Ab u Dharr and Sa [id ibn Zayd, we read that they acted on this had ith , threatening anyone who tried to take away their property that they would fight. There are several instances of this and they they are ar e all authentic. a uthentic. Muslim relates in his S a Abd ullah ibn [ Amr Amr and a hih hih that when the dispute between [ Abdull Anba sah ibn Ab i Sufy an was prolonged, they prepared to fight. Khalid ibn al-[As [ Anbasah [As went up to [ Abdull Abd ullah ibn [ Amr Amr a nd counselled couns elled him agai nst fighting. fig hting. [ Abdull Abd ullah said to him: “Are you not aware that the Prophet said: ‘Whoever is killed defending his property is a martyr’?”99 Further details of this story are given in Al-Mu Al -Mu sannaf and other books. It tells us that Mu[a wiyah ordered ord ered his gover nor, [ Anbasah, A nbasah, to take over al-Wa al- Wah ht, which was a plot of land that belonged to [ Abdull Abd ullah ibn [ Amr. Amr. [ Abdull Abd ull ah and his servants and others working for him took up arm s to defend de fend it. 100 The view t hat the ruling ruli ng is different for a ruler is advocated advo cated by Ibn al-Mu al -Mundhir ndhir and others.
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b y al-Bukha ri num ber 2480 2480 and Mus lim nu mber 141. 141. r i ff f i Asb a b Wur u d al- h ad ith al-Shar i f f , number 1568, and su l , Vol. 2, pp. 742-746, Al-Bay a n wal-Ta [ [r Vis. J a mi [ al-U Al-[ All Alla’i, Al-Ar aba [in al-Mughniyah , p. 293-294. 98 Ibn Hazm, Al-Mu h all a , Vol. 12, p. 285. 99 Related Related b y Muslim, nu mber 141. 100 Vis. Al-Tay alis i, Al-Musn ad , number 2408; [ Abd Abd al-Razzaq, Al-Mu sannaf , number 18566; Ahmad, Al-Musn ad , number 6913; and al-B ayhaqi, ayhaqi, Sunan , Vol. 8, p. 335. 97
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The statement sta tement t hat orders ord ers submissio n even ev en i n t he case of being bei ng beaten beate n or deprived depr ived of one’s property is strange indeed. We wonder how can some people make it the basis of the theory of Islamic government. It has been circulated far and wide as if it were the total sum of this theory. We note that [Umar used to teach people what is totally different. He used to say: “By God, I do not send you governors to beat you up or to take away your property. I only send them to teach you your religion and the practice of the Prophet.”101 Yet even eve n if t he had ith were considered authentic, it remains an advice to individuals in an Arab environment which whic h is c haracterised by disdain disda in for submissive ness and rebellion rebelli on against injustice. Such characteristics may encourage disobedience, even in reasonable cases, cases, or preparation prepar ation for escalation into rebellion and a nd fighting. Moreover, actions such as beating people on their backs or taking away their property may be justified on grounds of right, or suspected right, or some other explanation. Justice may m ay not be satisfactory satis factory to all people. peop le. Indeed some som e people p eople are unhappy un happy with what w hat is right. Some get angry easily and make excessive reactions. The important thing is what the Qur'an terms ‘the balance’: “[God] has set the balance, so that you may not exceed the balance. Weigh, therefore, with justice and do not fall short in the balance.” (55: 7-9) God also says: “Weigh with even eve n scales.” scales.” (26: 182) This is the message given give n to prophets and they have urged those who succeeded them to uphold it. Some of the disputes over money and property cannot justify making any threats. They should be looked into by fair judges judges and their judgment s hould hould apply to all. Nothing in this had ith , including the addition, justifies the ruler in doing or allowing such practices. How could it be justified when the Qur'an mentions that God said to Abraham: Abr aham: “‘I “‘ I have appointed appo inted you yo u a leader lead er of o f mankind.’ ma nkind.’ Abraham A braham asked, a sked, ‘And ‘A nd what w hat of my descendants?’ descendants?’ God said, s aid, ‘My covenant does do es not apply to t he wrongdoers.’” wrongdoers.’” (2: 124) When wrongdoing a nd injustice become normal practice pr actices, s, their perpetrator perp etrator cannot be a leader of ma ma nkind. Indeed, such leadership cannot exist side by side with injustice. The Qur'a n refers refer s to t he great da nger t hat attends atte nds taking taki ng people’s peop le’s property pro perty without proper justification. God says: “He does not a sk you to give up all your possessions. If He were to ask you all and press you hard, you would grow tight-fisted, and He would w hen God asks people bring your malice to light.” (47: 36-37) If malice and hatred result when to part with their possessions, what would be the result if the request comes from the Prophet or his rightly guided successors, let alo ne ordinary mortals? mortals ?
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Related by Ibn Sad, Vol. 3, p. 261; Ibn Abi Shaybah number 32921; Ahmad number 286, Abu Dawood number 4537; 4537; al-Hakim, Vol. 4, p. 4 39; al-Bayhaqi, Vol. 8, p. 48 & V ol. 9, p. 29.
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Besides, is it possible that such words might have been said by God’s messenger who is described in the Qur'an in the t he following terms: “It is by God’s grace that you deal gently with t hem. Had you been bee n harsh a nd hard-hearted hard -hearted,, t hey would surely have broken brok en a way from you.” (3: 159) What is harsher than taking away people’s possessions and beating them them up? This Thi s is indeed what God has forbidd en His messenger messenger to do, telling telling him that it results results in disunit d isunityy and the decline of o f the state. Moreover, we must believe in the had ith reported by [Ub adah in total. Part of it requires us to to state the truth in all situatio ns, ns, fearing fearing no blame b lame whatsoever. There will always al ways be i n the t he Musli m community comm unity t hose who will restrai restr ain n their t heir anger i f they t hey are beaten up or their possessions taken away, but they will not hesitate to speak up, stating the truth, denouncing injustice and supporting the deprived. Their voices are heard loud in calling for the implementation of the values of justice, equality and reform in order to protect their society against malice and hatred. They realize that such ills threaten threaten the str ucture ucture of o f society with collapse. A symbolic story tells tell s of a farmer who used to sell his butter to a shopkeeper, shopkeep er, divided divid ed into portions of one kilogram each. The shopkeeper weighed one portion and found out that it was only 900 grams. He said to the farmer: “I will never buy my butter from you, because you cheat and give me less than the right weight.” The farmer shook his head and said: “I beg your pardon, sir. I do not have the right weight, as I am poor. I use the one-kilo sack of sugar which I buy from you and put in the other scale the same weight of butter.” The same argument argum ent applies appli es to the had ith that th that says: “The ruler is God’s shadow and His spear on earth”. It imparts holiness to rulers and makes their rule divine. It gives them more than they hope for. It is true that Ibn Taymiyyah cited this had ith and commented on it, but it is clearly false. It is reported by al-Bayhaq i on Anas’s authority, Ibn al-Najjar through Abu Hurayrah and al-Bazzar through Ibn [Umar. In Majma [ al-Zaw a’id , AlHaythami says of it: “One of its transmitters is Sa [id ibn Sinan, Ab u Mahdi, and he is discarded.” Al-Daraqutni and others accuse him of false fabrication, and al-Bukhari classifies classifies him as unacceptable.102 The same may be said about the statement: state ment: “One “O ne day under a repressive ruler is better than 70 years without a ruler”. This statement is attributed to Sufy an al-Thawri, a scholar of the first first century ce ntury of Islam. In a nother version: version: “Seve nty nty years under u nder a repressive ruler is better than a community in chaos for one hour”. It is mentioned by Justice [Iy ad ad i n 102
Vis. Al-Bayhaq i, Sunan , Vol. 8, p. 162; Taby in Kadhib al-Muftar i, p. 101; Al-Haytham i, Majma [ al-Zaw a ’id , Vol. 5, p. Al- Faw a’id al -Majm -Majm u[ ah f i al-a ha al-Maw du[ ah , p. 210; Al-M aq a sid al- H asanah asanah , p. 207; Silsilat al-a ha u[ ah ha d i th al-Maw du[ ah ha d i th 196; Also, Al-Faw D a [i [i fah du [ ah bers 475, 1465, 1661, 1664, 1664, 2504, 5474. al- f ah wal-Maw du[ ah , num bers
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Abb as attributing it to Malik and alTart ib al-Mad arik as a report by Qir [aws ibn al- [ Abb Thawri. 103 Such statements are cited by some orators and self-styled warners against strife, suggesting that the choice is between tyranny on the one hand and chaos and civil war on the other. They thus remind us of what a number of tyrants used to say in their final days when they faced t he moment o f truth. trut h. In mo mo st context s they are tr ue statements, stateme nts, but t hey are made to endorse falsehood. They are not religious texts, but they originated from early scholars who were known to have stood firmly in opposition to injustice by governors, disassociating themselves from them. Some indeed rebelled against such unjust rulers. They were often subjected to persecution for their attitudes, as is well known known in t heir heir history. history. Malik was beaten up so badly b adly that his shoulder was dislocated as a result. Qir[aws ibn al- [ Abb Abb as was already in prison when he said what is attributed to him. Sufy an al-Thawri spent much of his life on the run because of his opposition to rulers, as detailed in his history. history. Some people cite the had ith that th that says: “Remain patient. Whatever you may encounter in your time will be better than t han whatever comes co mes next, until you meet your Lord...” This is an authentic had ith related related by al-Bukh al-Bukhari, number 7068, but it is understood to be an address to the Prophet’s companions only, because of the last phrase, ‘until you meet your Lord’. They were i n the best situation situatio n with t he Prophet Pro phet living livi ng among amo ng them. This situation situatio n continued to dwindle after that. Those who came after them might witness movements of modernization, reform or renewal. It is well known that Islam undergoes periods of progress as well as setbacks. History tells us of several transformations of these types. This idea is endorsed by the well k nown had ith that says: “The best of people are my generation”.104 It is said that the had ith is meant as a reference to the death of scholars, as mentioned by Ibn Mas [ud and Ibn [ Abb Abb as.105 This meaning is reiterated in the h ad ith that th that says: “God does not remove knowledge away from people. He removes knowledge through the death of sch s cholars.” olars.” Alongside Alongsid e this h ad ith we may quote others t hat do not co co ntradict it; rather, they explain explai n it. One of these states: “God sends to this community every one hundred years a man to
103 Justice
[Iy ad ad , Tart i b al-Mad a rik, Vol. 3, p. 326. b y al-Bukhari num ber 2652 2652,, and Muslim num ber 2533 2533.. 105 Vis. Al-Darim i, Al-Musn ad number 249; Al- T abara n i, Al-Mu [ jam jam al-Kab i r number 8991; Al-Bayhaq i, Al-M adkhal 859; and Al-Faq ila al-Sunan al-Kubr al-Kubr a num ber 859; Al- Faq ih wal-Mutafaqqih , Vol. 1, p. 154. 104 Related Related
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it is renew its faith.”106 Another Anot her says: “My commu nity is i s lik e rai r ain: n: it is not k nown when it best: at the beginning or at the t he end.”107 It is absolutely wrong to use this had ith to justify injustice and corruption. God condemned those who claimed that whatever they did was their fate, as they said: “Had God so willed, neither we nor our forefathers would have worshipped any other than Him, nor would we have declared anything forbidden without a commandment from Him.” (16: 35) Some people often repeat the statement: “A despotic ruler is better than lasting chaos”.
This is related by Ibn [ As Asakir who attributes it to [ Amr Amr ibn alal -[As [As and its full text runs as follows: “A just ruler is better than abundant rain; a wild lion is better than an unjust Abd ala lruler, and a despotic ruler is better than lasting chaos.”108 It is also related by Ib n [ Abd Barr, al-Tha [alib i, al-Ya [q ubi, Ibn Mufli [h and others.109 This had ith is understood to mean that it is better that a repressive ruler stays in power than that the country slips into total and lasting chaos. It does not, however, abrogate the had ith that says: “The best type of jihad is to assert the word of truth in front of a despotic ruler.” This had ith is related by Abu Da w ud on the authority of Ab u Sa [id alKhudri, and by al-Tirmidhi who classifies it as authentic. It is also related by Ibn Majah ja h and al-Bayhaq i in his Al-Shu Al-Sh u [a b . Al-Bayhaq i comments that it is endorsed by another had ith , which is mursal , but its chain of transmission is sound. He mentions it on the authority authority of Tariq ibn Shihab. This la st had ith is Abd alsimilar to the one t hat hat says: says: “T he best martyr martyr is i s Hamzah ibn [ Abd th is similar Muttalib and a man who stands up to a despotic ruler, bidding him to do certain things and to refrain from others, but the ruler kills him.” This had ith is related by al-Hakim on Jabir’s authority. It is also reported by Ibn [ Abb Abb as and classified as authentic by al-Siy uti uti in his Al-J a mi [ [ al- S S agh agh ir , and graded as authentic by al-Albani.110 It is not right to limit people’s options to two evils, one greater than the other. Islam encourages people to expect what is good and to seek it. It further encourages them not to submit to existing corruption. Even if a person is unable to change an evil by hand or 106 Related Related
S a h b y Abu Da w u d nu mber 4291. 4291. Vis also Al -Silsilah al- S 599. ahih ih ah num ber 599. Related on Anas’s authority by al -T ay alis i number 2135, Ahmad numbers 12327 & 12461, al-Tirmidhi number 2869. It is also relate related d on [ Amm Amm ar’s authority by al -Tay alisi number 682, Ahmad number 18881, Ibn Hibb an number 7226. Vis also Shar h [Ilal al-Tirmidh i, Vol. 2, pp. 501-502, Al- [ All Alla’ i, Ta h q i q Mun i f f al-Rutbah , pp. 84-90, and Ibn Qud amah, Al-Munt akhab min [Ilal al-Khall a l num ber 12. 12. 108 Ibn [ As Asakir, T a r i kh Dimashq , Vol. 46, p. 184. 109 Vis. T a r i kh al-Ya [ [ q [ j a z wal- I Abd al-Barr, Bahjat al-Maj a lis , Vol. 1, p. qu b i, p. 197; Al-Tha[alib i, Al-I Al- I [ j a z , p.62; Ibn [ Abd Dimashq , Vol. 46, p. 184; Ibn Mufli h , Al- -Shar [ iyyah , Vol.1, p. 176. Ad a b al -Shar [ iyyah 71; Ibn [ As Asakir, T ar i kh Dimashq 110 Al-Hakim, Al -Must adrak, Vol. 3, p. 195; Al-Albani, Al -Silsilah al- S S a hih hih ah , number 374. 107
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by word, then he denounces it in private. The had ith that says, “According to your conditions, you have your rulers,” is also cited. It is related by al-Daylami i n Musnad al- Firdaws on the authority of Ab u Bakrah. It is also related by al-Bayhaq i with a broken chain of transmission on the authority of Abu Isha q al-Sabi[i. Several eminent scholars, such as Ibn Hajar and al-Alba ni, grade it as lacking in authe nticity. nticity.111 Yet this had ith has a valid sense concerning the law of change and the relation between the the selfishness of o f the ruler and the acceptability by the ruled. God says in the Qur'an: “In this manner do We cause the wrongdoers to be close allies of one another.” (6: 129) It is a call to ensure change to the better. A ruler changes and leans towards goodness and reform when there is a strong desire and a firm will among the people to ensure such a change. change. Firm, lasting and a nd far-reaching transformati tra nsformatio o n begins with them. An often quoted statement is attributed attrib uted to Ima Ima m Malik, permitting the killing of onethird of the population in order to ensure the reform of the remaining two-thirds. This is mentioned by al-Juwayni in Ghiy a th al-Umam , al-Burhan in U su l al-Fiqh and by Ibn Qudamah in Al-Raw d ah Al-Ra w d ah , without mentioning a chain of transmission. Al-Shih ab al-Qar afi says that what al-Juwayni has attributed to M alik has been strongly denied by the Malik i scholars and is not found in their books. Ibn Hajar mentions in Inb a ’ al -Ghamr -Ghamr a story about disobedience by a group of people. The ruler called a meeting of the judges and consulted them. Something on these lines was said to the Malik i judge, but he denied it and said that it was totally unknown in the Malik i school of thought. 112 In Irsh ad al-Fu hu hu l , al-Shawk ani says: “Imam al- Haramayn al-Juwayni has gone too far in wha wha t he attrib uted to Malik of bein b eingg excessive exces sive i n this respect. What he stated is not found in Malik’s books or in i n any book by his disciples.”113 Al-Shanq iti iti says: “Their claim that M alik permits killing one-third of the population to ensure the reform of the other two-thirds is false. Malik has not said this. None of his disciples quoted it. It is not found in any Malik i book, as clearly stated by al-Qaraf i, Muhammad ibn al-Hasan al-Bannani and others. We have spent a very long time in studying the Malik i school of thought and we know that this claim is false. Those who attributed it to Malik aimed it as criticism and to extend the area of al-ma sa li h al-mursalah . In short, short, no scholar says this t his,, neither neither Malik is nor belongin belo ngingg to othe ot herr schools.”
111 Al-Albani,
ha d i th al- Da [i [i fah Silsilat al-a ha f ah , number 320. 112 Ibn Hajar, Inb a ’ al -Ghamr -Ghamr , Vol. 4, pp. 143-144. 113 Al-Shawk a n i, Irsh a d al-Fu hu hu l , Vol. 2, p. 184.
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Chapter Four
After the Revolution.. Revolutio n.. What Relation Relation with Others? Ot hers?
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One The Islamists Islamist s and Relation with wit h non-Islamists
An interesting questio n seems to have a telling effect i n shaping the future: When t he Islamists are i n power, will t heir heir view of ‘listen and obey’ change? The answer is probably pro bably in the a ffirmative, unless t he political politi cal atmosp here has become healthy, allowing smooth transfer of power and precluding the re-emergence of dictatorial tende tendenc ncies ies under an a n Islamic banner. Islamic movements are often called ‘political Islam’. There is no problem with w hat terms we may use, provided pro vided that such terms are ar e not used in i n a derog d erogator atoryy manner, or as a means to target the Islamists, or to imply that they do not deserve to have the full rights and privileges of citizenship, citizenship, in i n the same way as all ot her her parties. partie s. The Islami Islamists sts do d o not represe rep resent nt Isla Islam. m. They T hey represen repr esentt the programme pro gramme t hey put before b efore t he people. It is a programme that is based on Islam, but does not claim that its premises are infallible. infallible. These may inc i nclude lude some suspec s uspectt or mistaken views, or indeed correct ones but are unsuitable for the present period. Their actual performance in gover nment is no more than a human experience that must rely on knowledge and expertise. They also need to tap all national talent. tale nt. The Islami Islamists sts are now undertaki underta king ng a great responsibility. It is very easy ea sy for religious religio us advocacy to become a divisive force instead of being a uniting one. The despotism that reigned for long in most of our countries in recent years, causing a great deal of material and psychological suffering, is one of the main reasons that make people look to the Islamists as saviours. This is what gives them a clear majority in most countries. The results of elections in Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt have reflected that. The same will be the the case in Libya, L ibya, Yemen and ot her her countries. Politics will put them to the test before their supporters. They will also be the target of accusations and attacks by their traditional opponents and those with a totally different outlook.
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Decorating the political picture with selected personnel of different trends in order to prove that we as Islamists are open to all is not our main task. Our task is to put in place a political vision that is clearly based on reality, and to work for the achievement of the general objectives that will benefit all people, such as political justice, economic development, protection of people’s rights, separation of authorities, observance of the rules o f politics and and the t he peaceful change cha nge of government. It is just not possible to remove people’s differences. Variety is part of God’s design for human life. We must not ignore or suppress it. Nor can we look at it with contempt, because because t hat will lead lead to confrontation confrontation and explosion. It is extremely important in this regard to put the sublime Islamic ethics in front of our eyes. We must remember that Madinah, the Prophet’s capital, was a city of religious and ethnic variety. There lived in Madinah Arabs and Jews, the Aws and the Khazraj, the Muhajiri n and the Ans ar. Islam and Judaism Judaism were side by side. In addition, the hypocrites hypocrites were active t here for a long time. Idolaters lived i n Madinah Madina h and a nd i n the surrounding surrou nding area. ar ea. The Prop P rophet’s het’s wisdom ensured ens ured that Islam could sail t hrough hroug h suc h heavy waters i n peace. The Prophet Prop het did not need any solutio n other than t han to advoca a dvocate te his message messag e patie p atiently, ntly, until u ntil the idolaters and hypocrites disappeared. An authentic had ith quotes Hudhayfah, a companion of the Prophet, speaking about the Qur’anic verse t hat says: “fight “fig ht these archetypes of faithlessness.” (9: 12) He said: “Of those people referred to in this verse only three remain. Of the hypocrites, only four remain. One of them is an old man. If he were to dri nk chilled water, he would not feel fe el it cold.”114 Dreams that do not take causes and historical contexts into account, try to precipitate events, stir conflicts with other nations and ignore the fact that every step must be carefully carefully planned pla nned are more more like delusions. The Islami Islamists sts have every ev ery right to regain t heir presenc pr esencee and fre edom. They are part of t he nation’s present and future. This, however, does not mean that they must behave as if they were the only actors on the stage. Nor should they express themselves as if they were the only o nly o nes who represent repr esent t he nation’s natio n’s conscie nce, hopes and aspirations. The great gr eat hopes of t he nation will not be fulfilled fulfill ed by one sectio n of t he populatio pop ulation. n. They will be ac hieved by t he entire e ntire natio n, the t he Islami Islamists sts a nd the no n-Islamists, n-Islamist s, the t he people peop le of o f all trends, intellectual orientations and sects, and the non-Muslims who are part of the Arab people and who in the past pa st had their own o wn historical roles.
114 Related Related
b y al-Bukhari num ber 4658. 4658.
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Perhaps the time is not ripe yet to fulfil the dream of forming a single nation that unites all Arabs or all Muslims. Let us, then, concentrate on the great universal values we all enshrine: enshrine: justice, freedom, human huma n dignity, protection of rights, involvement in the efforts of building and development, fighting falsehood with right morally, politically and intellectually, making good use of scientific and technological advances and promoting economic, economic, political po litical and civilizational coordination. Our aim is to build, not to destroy. For building is the ultimate. Without faith and belief in God’s oneness, people will not benefit much by discarding their ido ls. The truth works with two e ngines: one to build a nd o ne to destroy. destro y. The T he destruction destru ction is necessary in order ord er to build anew. an ew. Many people know what they do not want, but they do not know what they want. They are addicted to fighting. They hardly finish a fight before they are ready for another. The mother of all battles is not the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah; it is the battle within ourselves, trying always to remain on the right track, fair and God-fearing, steering away from injustice, injustice, aggression, denying people peop le their rights or treating tr eating them with contempt. The new struct ure s hould be b e a state for all a ll citizens citizen s without ex ception, goodly goo dly and not so goodly, believers and non-believers. We must remember that we judge people only by wha wha t they profess pro fess to be. We are not required req uired to examine exami ne t heir hearts or what t hey harbour inside inside themselves, as clearly stated in more than one authenti aut henticc hadi th .115 Freedom of action is a great gain that we must retain intact. We must also abide by its conditions and avoid what co co uld disturb its atmosphere at mosphere for the country as a whole, or for a section of the t he population.
115 Vis. al-Bukh ar i,
ahih ih , number 4351, and Muslim, S a ahih i h, number 1064. S a h h
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Two The Islamists Islamist s and the Relation with wit h the West West
Do we see now a historic opportunity to develop our relation with our Western neighbour who is close to us in Morocco, Libya and Egypt. This neighbour of ours is always pushing us around within our homes, and often fights us either through Israel, its representative, representative, or i n some blind bli nd adventure adventure as in i n A fghani fghanistan stan and Iraq? Can we imagine that the period of 9/11 and al-Qaeda, 2001-2011, with all its mutual harshness is paving the way to a new, long lo ng or short, stage of tran quillity quillity and a nd review of the pattern of relatio ns? ns? Can we see a different face of the West? It is not the Crusader West, but a West with a fair, human, institutional or even pragmatic face? Will the West have a new look at the map, have have a positive attitude to the new sit uation, uation, re-discover r e-discover t he Islamists Islamists and the t heir ir wide spectrum? Will it understand that their participation in government will change much of their their views a nd that the mutual scare of o f them was no more t han a false false alarm? A number number of promine pro minent nt politicians politi cians in t he United States Stat es a nd Europe have expressed something of the kind. Western politicians have been aware of the falsity of the so-called ‘Islamic ‘Islamic threat’, but t hey hey dealt d ealt with with it as true. The direct Western Wester n objectives objecti ves are ar e based o n a strategy str ategy of five points: point s: 1. 2. 3. 4.
Security Security of energy resources and raw ra w materials, materials, particularly oil; Fighting Fighting ‘terrorism’; Stopping immigration to the West; We st; Opening consumer markets, investments and cultural exchange for Western products; 5. The essential esse ntial presence pre sence of o f Israel a nd its military militar y superiority. superi ority. Numerous studies have been undertaken by institutes and research centres in the West, hypothesizing waves of democratic changes in the Arab world that come after a long and hard struggle and going through ups and downs. When we look carefully at these studies we realize t hat the t he West We st can read r ead t he situation situa tion well and can ca n deal with it. it . It also al so ca n go on confrontation when necessary.
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The W est’s est’s suspicions of t he Islamists, Islamists, whether they are of the violent or political variety, is based primarily on the phenomenon of al-Qaeda and its strikes in Africa, Asia, the United States and Europe since the mid-nineties of the last century. It is also based on the earlier conflicts between the Islamists and the ruling regimes in the Arab countries. These started much earlier a nd aimed at earnin ear ningg recog nition a nd acceptance acc eptance as a player on the political stage. Moreover, in the Western intellectual imagination appears the spectre of Otto Ottoman man Islam as a military threat. threat. However, a host of economic variables, changes in the balance of power and mutual technological and cultural breakthroughs combine to make it possible to start a stage of tranquillity, tranquillity, revision, listenin li steningg and rediscovery. In this context, Turkey, even under the rule of the Justice and Development Party, appears to be an advance example in the way it conducts its relations with the United States, States, the t he European European Union U nion and Israel. Despite the i ncreased ncreased objections to its joining t he European Union, the West clearly deals with it i n a positive manner. The Libya n welcome of i nterventio n by NATO was clearly at odds odd s with traditional trad itional popular and Isl Isl amic thinking. It is very interesting interesti ng to see the NA TO military commander commander meeting with leaders of the revolution, including Abd al-Hakeem Balhaj, who used to be branded as terrorist. Indeed, one European country collaborated with the former regime in Libya in arresting arresti ng him. Some political statements stateme nts appear to give Israel more t han it expects, expects, at no cost to it. T hey hey are meant as proof of pragmatic realism. Political relations require broad experience and careful study. Spontaneously quick decisions and romantic speeches are not particularly useful in this field. What is certain, however, however, is that t hat nothing is i nsoluble nsoluble when the internal situation is sound. The West appears appear s to be ready to deal with a difficult stage t hat tries to fulfil national natio nal interests before looking at the interests of others. We need to understand this. The Turkish example shows t hat it i t is i s possib po ssible le to retai n good goo d relations relatio ns despite much muc h critici sm and tension. The Zio nist state realizes realize s that t hat it s real strength stre ngth lies li es i n the t he weak ness of o f its neighbours neighbour s and the the fact t hat it is the t he stronger party i n any agreement agree ment or equation.
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Three National Reconciliation and the Relation with Prominent Figures of Old Regimes
Sweeping the Past People speak of Bouazizi as a symbol, providing the inspiration for the Tunisian revolution. They speak of Hamzah al-Khateeb as a child who inspired the Syrian revolution. They mention Khaled Saeed as the soul of the Egyptian revolution. Other names names are mentioned in Libya and Yemen. Yemen. The old regimes have tried to give t hese figures fig ures bad names, both a t t he security securit y and moral levels, accusing them of being drug addicts, or having promiscuous affairs, or committing crimes. Only the children were immune to this because such accusations could not stand i n their cases. Let us assume that what the notorious security forces of those regimes tried to spread about those those people was correct. Can they tell us about their own ow n leaders and and top figures? Can they show us some so me of their personal, fi nancial nancial and official practices? Let it all be true, are those notorious forces responsible for the morality of society? Do they hold all people to account on this basis? Or is it an exercise in selectivity, and for ulterior motives? Suppose it is all true, does a fault committed by any person deprive that person of the right to protest, demand reform or participate in a public event? Does it deprive him of the the right rig ht to to be b e in the leaders hip of positive popular action? Clear statements in our culture give preference in managing a confrontation to one who is a strong sinner over one who is God-fearing but weak. Committing sins and being God-fearing are personal matters, while strength and weakness are the qualities that determine determine success s uccess or failure in managing managi ng situations situations of respo nsibility. nsibility. Those symbolic p ersonalities, ersonaliti es, a nd many ma ny others, ot hers, a s well a s what we see o n t he ground, gro und, reflect some aspects of the spontaneity and broadness of the revolutionary action. They show that it is part of the destiny of our nation. When God wills something to happen, nothing nothing will stop it. 97
Whoever assumes assum es t he leadership leader ship must not deny de ny such suc h people peopl e t heir rights. He must not exploit the success achieved for personal gains. It is very important that the revolution remains faithful to its ideals and to steer away from the causes ca uses that led to it. The gains ga ins of t he revolutio re volutio n must mu st not be b e mo nopolized by leaders who who were able ab le to make capital of the events or by parties that were quick to support the revolution. Indeed, the gains of the revolution must not be exclusively for the revolutionaries. Such gains belong to all the people, without exception, including those who have not supported the revolution. revolution. When W hen the revolution believes in this pri nciple, nciple, it starts on its way to historical historical success. success. It will ac hieve hieve muc h more more than tha n transitory or superficial changes. c hanges. Everyone must gain by the revolution. Old opponents of the dictatorship might have spent most of their lives in foreign countries, unable to return to their homeland. Many of them lost their ties with their families and communities. They lived through much danger, long sufferings and fear of the dictator who could send his men to kill and assassinate in broad daylight. Other opponents of the dictatorship might have tried to exploit some chances to introduce some reforms from within the regime. They might have tried to protect some rights, spread knowledge, get some prisoners released. They might have judged that it was unwise to stick to one option. Others might have worked with t he regime a nd joined t he revolutio n when t he bloodshed bloo dshed was at its greates t. They might have helped the regime in the past, but we must remember that many a minister or official official works withi within n the existing circumstances, trying tryi ng to stop evil and bring about some good. There are others who kept silent and awaited the outcome o f the struggle. They did not want to take any risks. They never thought of doing anything heroic, offering any sacrifice, or seeking glory. All they hoped for was to live in peace and security, enjoying wha wha t God has permitted t hem. I will go even further and speak of those who have supported the regime and then withheld support suppor t when it was clear to them t hat it no longer had any hope of survival. Wisdom requires require s that we try to make t hem see t hat t heir own i nterests lie with abandoning the regime and joining the revolution, which belongs to the whole nation. This is more likely lik ely to reduce redu ce blood b loodshed shed a nd to ensure ens ure future stabilit y. It will also red uce the likelihood of a continuous cycle of violence which often engulfs communities after such events. It will help reduce and remove grudges that might otherwise continue to be nursed.
General Pardon After 21 years of struggle, str uggle, the Prophet Pro phet a nd his compa nions entered Makkah Makka h which whic h had fallen to Islam with little fighting. It was a case of unconditional surrender by enemies 98
who who had fought him hard, tried tr ied several times ti mes to as sassinate sassinat e him a nd raised armi es to fig ht him with with a declared ai m of exterminati exterminati ng all Muslims. After their surrender, the t he people of Makkah gathered around the Prophet who w ho asked asked them: “What “W hat do you think I will do with you?” They said: “Only what is good. You are a noble brother and the son of a noble brother of ours”. He said: “You may all go free. You are all pardoned”.116 That was a great decisio n of exceptio nal magnanimity. mag nanimity. We may appreciat appr eciatee part of its significance if we can visualize the situation when it was said and the people to whom it was said. They were t he o nes who tortured and killed Muslims, drove dro ve them a way and took over their houses. They never showed them any leniency. Until very recently, their swords swords were dripping drip ping with the t he blood of o f vulnerable Muslims. Such unparalleled magnanimity; such ability to issue a most extensive pardon meant the past was totally and finally forgotten. It meant that Makkah in particular and Arabia in general were spared any possibility of civil war. It allowed the rise of the state of the rightly guided Caliphate. That state is a unique model that cannot be repeated, but it may be emulated emulated when w hen its great ideals of justice, mercy and freedom are assured for all. The first o ne who used t he term ‘ freedom’ in its it s compre comp rehensive hensive sense was [Umar ibn alKhattab, when he said to his governor of Egypt: “Since when do you enslave people who who se mother motherss have brought them into the world free.”117
Killing people, liquidation of opponents and revenge will only increase enmity and prepare the way to further rounds of struggle and counter revenge. Wise is he who tries to stop the cycle of violence and counter-violence. This can only be achieved by adhering to high moral principles, principles, giving them more weight than tha n the personal desire of revenge. r evenge. What revolutio n should s hould yield is totally different differ ent from the state stat e of o f depressio depr ession, n, despotism, d espotism, heavy-handedness, selfishness and personal aggrandizement which were characteristic of the previous repressive regimes. The revolution takes place with the aim of changing situations, situations, not changing cha nging personnel. perso nnel. Letting passions loose in order to take revenge is not a good revolutionary act. It is wrong to start a new rou r ound nd of random ra ndom arrests a nd unlawful unla wful killings i n t he name of t he revolution.
A Share of the Gains Gains 116 Ibn
Hish am , Al-S irah al-Nabawiyyah , Vol. 2, p. 411; Ibn Zanjaweih, Al-A mw al , Vol. 1, p. 214; Al-Tabar i, T ar i kh al- [a d , Vol. 3, pp. 307-309; Ibn Kath ir, Al -Bid a yah wal- Umam wal-Mul u k, Vol. 2, p. 161; Ibn al-Qayyim, Z a d al-Ma [a Nih a yah , Vol. 6, pp. 567-568 117 Ibn [ Abd uh Mi sr , p. 195. Abd al- Hakam, Fut uh
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Everyone is entitled to feel that he or she has a share in the gains made by the revolution, regardless of their intellectual orientation, political party, tribe, the geographical area to whi whi ch they belo ng, or indeed t heir history. I always al ways like to repeat t hat the revolutio n sweeps sweeps away ev erything erything b efore it. No one should suffer any injustice in this land of ours, whatever his or her religion, sect or affiliation affiliation happen happe n to to be. b e. The future must belo ng to all. It is true tr ue t hat not e veryo ne will be happy. It i s never possible to please everyone. What is necessary is to put in place a constitution agreed by all. Islamic law should be its reference point, because it is the constitution of a Muslim country. Everything in life goes through change. When a revolution succeeds and establishes a new regime, it moves into a totally different situation which may not be fully understood by some of those who sacrificed much for the success of the revolution. Questions may be asked and problems may remain without answer or solution. Sometimes, the situation leaves hard hard feelings feelings that may take long to dispel. We must m ust fully understand under stand that this present prese nt life li fe represent repr esentss a test. te st. God Go d says i n the t he Qur'an: Qur'a n: “It is His will that He tests you all by means of one another.” (47: 4) Imperfection is part of the nature of this present world. Even when they were with their prophets, people were not in absolute absol ute harmony. harmo ny. Later, Later , the t he prophets’ prop hets’ follower s went we nt through throug h whatever t hey had to face. God tests all people, believers and unbelievers. He may test a person by means of his foe at one stage, and by means of his friend at another. He may even test a person by himself.
Fearing Revolutionary Conflicts I had my worries about al-Qaeda and its violence. Now I think I understand part of the divine wisdom behind its existence. It has largely dissipated the uncompromising violent aspect that tends towards total rigidity. I can see it now as a process of releasing some pressures pressures whic whic h may have proper motivations and may influence some gr oups of people, but it can neither construct nor initiate. It ultimately disappears, leaving the field for peaceful action action that t hat remains calm and open to coexistence with wit h others. others. A Bedouin Bedoui n was once asked whether he would be prepared prep ared to abandon his pursuit pursui t of revenge if that would guarantee his admittance into heaven. He answered that he would rather get his revenge and go to hell. We need to patiently exert every effort to ensure that that we do not succumb to t he logic of o f that Bedouin. 100
It is revenge that makes a hell of this life with all that it breeds of raging conflicts, setbacks and failures. The Arabs have a massive cultural and psychological store in this respect. When cases of forgiveness and reconciliation are told to an Arab, he considers them special cases that may not be taken as a model to emulate. Revenge may be given the colour of spite or regaining one’s rights. My worst fear is to see the tribal pluralism that has old roots in the Arab psychology replace the goal of democratic pluralism. This may lead lead to chaos and a sort of internal wars.
No Justification for Revenge Indeed there can be no excuse for revenge or for summary or field trials which return death sentences and carry them out without looking carefully into the case. Yet t here are people peopl e with real grievances. grieva nces. They might have their rights violat ed, their property taken away, and thei t heirr honou ho nourr and a nd integrity integrity compromised. co mpromised. They have every right to file their claims and recover their losses. If that is possible in an amicable way that achieves achieves reconc re conciliation, iliation, well and good . If not, then t hrough the process of law. Embezzlement of public funds, abuse of authority and other offences against the state and the nation are very serious and must not be overlooked. However, all should be dealt with accordi acco rdi ng to t he proper pro per process pro cess of the law la w so as to ensure ens ure t hat t he accused a ccused will be fairly treated, no matter how grave his offences may be. b e. Should the conflict be prolonged and far-stretching, an air of social serenity may be regained by putting an end to the past and its wrongs. People will thus be encouraged to look forward to a new stage that t hat should be characterised by frie ndliness, ndliness, peace and a nd unity u nity.. When dispute s a nd conflicts co nflicts start at a n early stage, t hey may lead to t he failure of t he revolution. In this case, all the parties to such conflicts will be like hunters who quarrel over who takes the lion’s lio n’s hide hide before b efore they have caught it. The M alik i school of thought, which is followed in Libya and North Africa, opens the gates for reconciliation between warring factions wider than any other school of Islamic jurisprudence. This is stated by scholars like Ibn al-[ Arab Arab i, al-Qurtubi and al- Tahir ibn Qur’anic versee that th at say s: “If “ If two groups gro ups o f believers believer s fall [Ashur as they comment on the Qur’anic vers to fighting, fighting, make peace between them.” 118 (49: 9)
118
Ibn al-[ Arab Arab i, Ahka m al-Qur'an , Vol. 4, p. 152. Al-Qurtub i, Tafs i r , Vol. 16, pp. 318-321. Vis. also Al-Ta hr i r wal- Tanw ir , Vol. 26, p. 242.
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It Shall Not Be Said “People shall not say that Muhammad kills his companions.” 119 Thi Thi s was the Prophet’ Pro phet’ss decision concerning the hypocrites who were a fifth column working to undermine the Muslim Muslim community.
Preserving the reputation of the revolution is very important. A person listening to the news from afar cannot be aware of all the details and the different viewpoints. He will have a negative view when the media speaks at length about splits, unlawful killings and ignoring ignoring the t he legal provisions that t hat ensure justice. The Prop P rophet’s het’s met m ethod hod aimed to absorb absor b the hypocrites within t he commu nity and a nd its aim to ensure progress. As time passed, their role considerably weakened. Ultimately, Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman, a companion of the Prophet, said: “Only four of the hypocrites hypocrites remain.”120
The hypocrites i n Madinah Mad inah were a large larg e a nd i nfl nfl uential section sectio n o f t he popula pop ulation. tion. However, due to the Prophet’s wisdom, their influence began to diminish. The Prophet did not hasten action and a nd did not act on suggestions based on angry angry feelings. feelings. He allowed time to have its effect and left things to settle down in accordance with the divine rules that work within human life. He maintained a far-sighted policy that allowed illusory opportunities opportunities to pass and watched things patie ntly. ntly. Ultimately, he ac hieved hieved total success. Wise, sincere sinc ere actio n will e nsure t hat extremi sm, o f a ny colour, will in time be isolat ed. Some people imagine that extremism is always Islamic. The fact is that there is secular extremism extremism t hat allows no room for dissent. Such extremism must be kept i n check. Those who dream of replacing replaci ng existing dictators dictato rship hip with a dictatorship dictato rship of t heir own are not loyal to the revolution. They will be greatly disappointed when circumstances ensure that that their dream d ream shall not be fulfilled. fulfilled. Everyone who takes part in the struggle must be given their dues. However, no one may think that he is the cornerstone of the revolution while the others are no more than footnotes. The future i s built by wise people peop le who plan pla n carefully care fully a nd do not act ac t i n response re sponse to feelings feelings of jealousy or a nger. Nor is the future built by one who is deluded by his sense sense of
119 Related Related
b y al-Bukhari num bers bers 3518 & 4905, and Muslim nu mber 2584. 2584. This h ad ith was was the Prophet’s reaction to a suggestion that he should sentence the chief hypocrite in Madinah to death, after the man had caused much – Editor’s note. trouble within the Muslim comm unity. unity. – Editor’s 120 Related Related b y al-Bukhari number 4658.
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power and rushes into ill-considered actions without carefully studying their likely results in the s hort or long term. We must be fully a ware of t he importa impor tance nce of t he post -revolutio -re volutio n stage, which is very delicate and may be slippery. Success will only come to those who plan with care and patience to build a firm institutional structure in which few differences, splits and quarrels occur. We must not lose sight of the Qur’anic verse Qur’anic verse t hat says: sa ys: “do “ do not dispute d ispute with o ne another, lest you lose heart and your moral strength. Be patient in adversity, for God is with those t hose who are pati p atient ent in i n adversity.” (8: 46) We also need to look at events event s in a broader bro ader geographical geog raphical context. contex t. Open or secret actio a ctio ns are taking place in more than one Arab country. Undoubtedly, the cases of Libya, Egypt and Tunisia Tunisia have strong beari bearing ng on such actions, leading leading people to be eithe eit herr convinced or unconvinced of their usefulness. People may fear that the outcome will bring unforeseen problems, or they may fear that there might not be enough support for revolutionary action at t he regional regio nal or international levels. levels. The political e ntity that comes co mes after a fter the revolutio r evolutio n will not b e a new n ew model of o f the t he state of o f the Muhajir in and the Ans ar. Some people imagine that, but they do not seem to fully understand how God’s laws operate. Nor are they well aware of the laws of struggle and the the consequenc conseque nces es o f different events. Patience, self restraint, exerting efforts to bring people together, bridging the gaps between them, extending the hand of friendship to those who stand aloof and restraining anger are among the wisest human practices. As stated in the Qur'an, the qualities of the believers i nclude: nclude: “w hen angered, they will forgive.” (42:37) It is very dangerous to let things break out of control, or weaken the central authority. According Accord ing to the laws God has set in operation, oper ation, such sit uations uatio ns pave the way to a second seco nd revolution. In the wake of the rapid and sudden changes there seems to be an urgent need for a new type of Fiqh which addresses revolution and its consequences. Like most people, I dream that these rapid changes will usher a new stage that is much better than what we have seen and suffered so far. This does not mean that we expect anything miraculous or supernatural. Let us enjoy this stage and celebrate it, and let our enjoyment remain untampered untampered by fears of what the t he future might might bring. br ing. A newborn cries as it comes i nto the world to annou announce nce its arrival. ar rival. Its cries crie s mean mea n t hat it is well, and all al l t hanks are ar e due d ue to God. It might be a girl, just as, in Arabic, freedom is feminine. You must not be like those Arabs Arab s of old who who would hide away when t hey were told that their new c hild was a girl.
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How could they tell: a girl could be “of greater purity than [a boy], and closer in loving tenderness.” (18: 81)
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Four Revolution as a Prelude to Progress
I was always greatly interested in the affairs of the Muslim world. I followed events through the media: press, radio, television and, more recently, through the new media. We are ar e now able to follow a n event shortly short ly aft er it has taken take n place t hrough hroug h the cameras ca meras of eyewitnesses. It is natural to be inquisitive. Added to that is the strong attachment we feel feel to communit commu nities ies with which we have the bonds of faith, language, race and destiny desti ny.. Such interest is an expression of belonging: “Whoever does not care about the Muslim community does not belong to it.” From the point of view of its chain of transmission,
this had ith is judged as unauthentic. 121 However, the message it conveys is included in scores of Qur’anic and Sunnah texts that establish the bond of brotherhood between all Muslims on solid basis, explaining what it entails. These include the following had iths : “In their mutual compassion, love and sympathy the believers are like a single body: when any organ has a complaint, the whole body bod y shares its sleepless sleepl ess ness and fever.”122 “To one another, believers are like a building: each part strengthens the others.” 123 “A true believer is not one who eats his full while his next door neighbour is hungry and he is aware of that t hat.” .”124 The scope for influencing influen cing events eve nts is much less. In many ma ny situatio sit uations ns we find find ourselves ourselv es unable unable to help. help. Followin F ollowingg events eve nts becomes a strong cause of depression d epression,, partic par ticularly ularly when one sees bloodshed and how people are killed or tortured. Wars sometimes have a tragic end end with the powerful tyrant gaining victory. The laws God Go d has set in operatio oper atio n will certainly cer tainly produce pr oduce their t heir results. r esults. Ho wever, t here will be tragedies before the picture is complete. A whole generation may pass before the conditions necessary for change are in place. Yet a believer remains happy, realizing that divine wisdom will take its course. He does not overlook the fact that after hardship comes ease, and that this present life will be b e followed by another life.
121 Vis. Al-Silsilah Al-Silsil ah
[i f al- al D - a [i f ah , pp. 309-311. b y al-Bukhari num ber 6011 6011 and Muslim num ber 2586 2586.. 123 Related Related b y al-Bukhari num bers bers 481 & 6026, and Muslim n um ber 2585. 2585. 124 Related by Ibn Ab i Shaybah number 30359, and al-Bukh ar i in Al-A dab al-Muf al -Muf rad number 112. Vis. also AlS a h Dhahabi, H aqq 149. aqq al-J a r , p. 5, and Al-Silsilah Al-Sils ilah al- S ahih i h ah num ber 149. 122 Related Related
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Heart-felt sorrow brings tears to the eyes and invites passionate prayers. This old and new method remains effective. The Prophet is quoted to have said: “When the end of time draws near, a Musl im’s dream is hardly ever false. The one who is foremost in speaking speaking the th e truth is the one whose dreams are most likely to come true.”125 Most of my dreams and those of other people are reflections of what we feel. They reflect hopes, fears and worries. Every time I go to sleep after a news bulletin I find myself in the midst of the events. In my dreams some of my hopes are fulfilled. When I wake up, I find myself rememberi re membering ng the thoughts thoug hts of a n old poet who who says t hat the worst of his fears have been fulfilled. When will his hopes become reality? God is certainly able to bring about all our hopes. hopes. Many a time I found myself in my dreams in Jerusalem, Baghdad, Aden, Benghazi, Gaza, Cairo... I talked to their people and lived their events. I was a witness, who saw nothing, of some historical successes or cases of d estructio estruction n of homes, bridges a nd cemeteries. cemeteries. The names o f towns to wns a nd village s are no longer k nown o nly to a n excellent excelle nt student stude nt of geography. The villages of Libya, Syria, Yemen and Tunisia, as well as Palestine, are now well engraved i n our minds. mi nds. Like many people, I follow the events of the revolution against tyranny hour by hour. I carefully study distances, times, sacrifices, international attitudes and possible gains and losses. These re volutio ns were started start ed agai nst authoritarian author itarian r ule a nd to ensure ens ure i ndependence ndepende nce for both individual and community. I, therefore, feel that these people who have chosen their their way and offered o ffered sacrifices do not need need much advice from outside. outside. I a m only giving a reminder reminder o f the little that is i s necessary. Firstly, some nations, such as the US, Europe, Japan, China, Finland, Singapore and Korea, have had their own national programmes of development. In the Muslim world Malaysia, Malaysia, Turkey and a nd Iran have had theirs. theirs. Next door doo r to us is a Zio nist nist project. Secondly, it was from the Arab nation that God chose His last messenger, and His book, the the Qur'an, is in their language. Today, the Arabs hold massive reso urces. God would not have placed them in such a situation unless they have enough potentials and also excellence excellence in some, not all, aspects. This raises a very importa nt a nd urgent questio n: Where is t he Arab developme develo pment nt programme? Do we find it in our oft-repeated talk about history? Or is it reflected in 125 Related Related
b y mu n umber 2263. 2263.
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those those loud voices voice s that continue to glorify g lorify the present, claim every success and ignore ig nore our chronic condition of backwardness? Is it confined to some intellectual debates in closed circles? I firmly believe that the emergence of such a development programme is an essential historical need. It is not yet there. It is the sun that is about to rise, the fruit about to ripen. Can I say that it is part of God’s will that shall be done? Nowadays I feel I can better appreciate what our scholars often repeated: “When God wills something to be done, He gets its causes i n place.” place.” The Arab Ar ab Spring was more like a sudden sud den earthquake ear thquake that levelled levell ed down massive massiv e buildings b uildings who who se ow ners never t hought that God’s law w ould ould ever touch touc h them. It never never occurred to them that they would become a lesson, because they did not heed the lessons of the past. They t hought t hat t hey were wer e t he exception, ex ception, a nd t hat “their “t heir fortificatio ns would prote pro tect them against God.” The Arab Spring has laid solid foundations for a brighter future for all Muslims. That spo ntaneous popular pop ular movement move ment was great i ndeed, because becau se it expres sed a spirit sp irit t hat transcends all parties, organizations and traditional frameworks. This is an important condition for the success of any programme. Let us remember that when the Prophet settled settled in i n Madinah, he did not exclude any a nyo o ne of its population. No ne o f the followers of other other divine divi ne religions religio ns,, hypocrites and a nd those who had just turne tur ned d Muslims was left left out. His programme was neither exclusive nor violent. It absorbed all on the basis of complementarity complementarity and rea ssura ssurance. nce. Those popular pop ular movements move ments charted a new course co urse of a ction t hat sought soug ht to achieve t he following following es sential demands: 1. Political freedom; 2. Justice and equal oppor op portunity tunity for all; 3. Putting an end to financial and administrative corruption and ensuring full transpare transparency ncy according to international standards; 4. Total and sustai ned development develop ment i n its latest late st a nd widest concepts, co ncepts, including includi ng human rights, the environment, health, education, the media and the family, for the the prese nt gene ge neratio ration n and future ones; 5. Ensuring the moral and legislative distinction of Arab societies which have inherited a good measure of Islamic values and are able to consolidate these as motivation for for action, excellence ex cellence,, ach a chievem ievement ent and co-existence. co -existence. The popular pop ular action relied on peaceful peac eful means. It made great sacrifices sacrifi ces a nd refused to be dragged into civil war.
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Contemporary Arab intellectuals of different Islamic and national orientations, starting with Shakib Arsalan a nd Malik Mali k ibn Nabi, have worked out a variety of plans pla ns and programmes for development, but all these have been shelved. Today, we may dream that these will be revived so as to become subject of debate in the light of the present needs needs a nd circumstances.
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Chapter Five
Worries Wo rries after the Revolution.. Some Questions and Problems
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One Stolen Revolutions
When we speak of t he outcome out come of revolutio n we remember t he Egyptia n revolutio n of independence and the comment of Shaykh Muhammad [ Abd Abd u: “The blond British have gone, leaving leaving the t he dark British behind.” We also remember Frantz Fra ntz Fanon, Fano n, the author aut hor of Les damnes de la terre , translated as The Wretched of the Earth, who was a Martinique-born French psychiatrist and revolutionary. He treated patients in occupied areas, then joined the Algerian revolution and fought with t he Algeria Alger ian n liberation liberati on army before be fore becomi be coming ng a contributor co ntributor to t he Algerian Alger ian paper Al-Mujahid . He travelled in several African countries calling on their peoples to rise against colonialism. He feared that the Algerian revolution might be hijacked by a group whi whi ch was never party to it or to t he Algeria Alger ian n people. peop le. Such Suc h a group gro up repre sented t he interests of the colonialists. He spoke of people of pale faces who drew close to the steering wheel and always tried to eavesdrop on the command room. They were the ones who led what he termed ‘the false i ndependence’. ndepe ndence’. He repeatedly repeated ly warned against ‘Arab ‘Ar ab colonization’, pilfering the state resources, authoritarian rule and neglect of poverty and deprivation. Fanon was only 36 when he died. He was buried in a martyrs’ graveyard in Ain Kerma in eastern east ern Algeria. With Wit h him were buried b uried his dream d reams, s, theories theor ies and warnings. Some people oppose colonization so that they ca n replace it, and and some look at the fall of a repressive regime as an opportunity to gain power. The motives of individuals and groups may differ, but the results are often alike. The new regime becomes more repressive and and despotic than the t he one it replaced. Therefore, Therefore, the people must be careful in their choice of to whom to give legitimacy. Leading lawyers, judges, thinkers and intellectuals intellectuals bear a greater responsibility in this regard. A return to dictatorship dictato rship is an extremely terrible terrib le prospect, p rospect, but it i t happens, happen s, as a s in the th e case of Napoleon in France, the Bolsheviks in Russia and many other cases. According to alKaw akibi, tyranny is not merely a regime; it is a political and social culture produced by the the people p eople in power and distributed distrib uted to the nation. ‘Stolen revolution’ is an often used term that reflects a permanent fear of revolutionary comrades. It is often the case that the ‘thief’ is one party to the revolution or a party that joined joined it at a later stage.
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The revolutio revo lutionaries naries are united i n their t heir r ejection ejectio n of o f a tyra nnical regime r egime that denies people peop le their rights. Changing such a situation is the aim of the revolution. In most cases, the beginnings raise general slogans such as the downfall of the regime, end of dictatorship, establishment of good government, justice, freedom, transparency, separation of authorities, independence of the judicial authority, etc. These are general objectives to whi whi ch all subscribe. subscr ibe. The revolutio naries do d o well to confine co nfine t hemselves to t hese common co mmon objectives. However, the people then differ on the alternative system according to their leanings and ideologies. These differences may remain confined to the media or lead to some squabbles. squabbles. They ma y, however, escalate to phy p hysical sical fights fights a nd assassi assassi natio nations ns.. It is not uncommon that the fallen dictatorship is replaced by a new dictator or by an ideological dictatorsh d ictatorship. ip. When t his happens, happe ns, much is said about t he revolutio n bei ng stolen. s tolen. Accusations Accusati ons may ma y be be thrown at several parties. One group may be well organized and may have good relations and a proper understanding of the practical situation. It may be adept in presenting itself and in the way it pictures its vision. It can ca n thus th us win a broad base and public support. On the other side there may be other groups, which have greater numbers and make greater sacrifices, but they do not form a coherent mixture or a well moulded group. They are, therefore, unable to press their visio n. Nations revolt, but cannot rule. If t hey were to be left to choose wha wha t they want, t hey may not be fully aware of t he options optio ns available and and which of them t hem is best. Things may m ay develop d evelop into a struggle, with every ever y party p arty mobilizing its forces for ces and bringi b ringing ng in its weapons, some of which are out in the open and others are kept hidden. That is the making of what the others call ‘conspiracy’. In the wake of the success of the revolution there may be some confusion. In the transitory stage, vacuums are left and mistakes are made. Every party will accuse the others others of o f grave errors and putti ng up up impediments a nd obstacles. obstacles. It is impossible that all who take part in the revolution will have the same vision and perspective. However, it is possible to agree on certain stages. The stage that follows the success success of the revolutio n should be that of building the state and establishing establis hing its institutions, institutions, drafting its cons co nstitution titution and ensuring its security.
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The t hird stage is t hat of proper pro per competition comp etition for office. Partie Part iess are formed to adva nce diverse viewpoints and programmes. They should represent the whole nation and abide by the agreed co nstitution. nstitution. Thus, difference dif ferencess are well defined de fined and t he ultimate reference re ference i s clear. Things are determined through the ballot box and the specialized courts. The outcome is not decided by arms or de famation famation or slander. slander. Mutual use of the media is part of the process. It must remain subject to an honorary agreement and specific specific rules to ensure e nsure that it does do es not degenerate into a slanging match. matc h. A broad bro ad section of t hose who take part i n t he revolutio n are ordinary ord inary citizens citizen s wit wi t h no particular allegiance or specific political views. One party may exaggerate their role and give them prominence while the other tries to neutralize them, play down their role or incl incl ude them among amo ng its supporters. In Arab countries there are nationalists, Islamists, secularists and people of other colours and orientatio orientations ns.. All of them suffer, in varying degrees, under u nder the dictatorship. None has suffered as much as the Islamists. It is not surprising, therefore, that they should fear a repeat of the old scenario when they were denied their right to participate in shaping the future. future. It is only o nly wise wise that t hat they shou s hould ld have proper reassurances that t hat do not stop stop at verbal promises. They They shou s hould ld be b e well represented represented in any any provisional set up duri ng the transition. This is what actually actuall y appeared to be t he case in Tunisia, Egypt, Egyp t, Libya a nd Yemen. Yeme n. At the same time, the others, of all creeds and colours, co lours, have the t he right rig ht to be reassured that there will not be a monopoly of power under any pretext. The agreed constitutional principles must be upheld. They must not be overturned under any social, religious, political or ideological id eological pretence. pretence. A believer dedicates ded icates his work to God and looks lo oks up to Him for reward. This reduces reduce s t he agony people normally feel when they realize that their efforts have been taken away by others who ride above their shoulders to grab power. We have the famous story of Abd ullah ibn [Umar, a companion of the Prophet, who answered Mu[a wiyah, the first [ Abdull Umayyad Caliph. Mu [a wiyah said in his speech: “Whoever thinks that he has a better claim to be the Caliph should come forward”. Ibn [Umar said: “I was about to say that anyone who had fought you and your father for the sake of Islam has a better claim. I then then remembered the t he reward God has prepared for the believers, a nd I held held my to ngue.” ngue.” However, this should not make people prefer to withdraw into a corner. To work for the stability of the natio nation n and to protect it from dangerous t urmoil is part of jihad.
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A country belo ngs to all its citizens. citi zens. It is i s not in t he interest i nterest of a ny country cou ntry or any section sectio n of its population that another section is marginalized. A revolution is not a process of settling settling accounts, except with corruption and t hose who want it to persist. The first prior p riority ity is to i nstil a nd co nsolidate t he pri nciples of p eaceful eace ful tra nsfer o f power. po wer. After that, t hat, every group g roup ca n prese nt their vision. vi sion. Drawing closer to others may often lead to a modification of views. It may dispel fears and suspicions. It can make us feel that we are closer to each other than we might have thought. Some objectives are common to all. They are great objectives, worthy of great sacrifices. The overthro w of despotism despo tism and replaci ng it with a governme gover nment nt that represents repr esents t he people, guarantees their rights and works for the common good is the highest of these objectives. People living under repressive regimes always dream of these. “He passed on to you their land, their houses and their goods, as well as a land on which you had never yet set foot. God has power over all things.” (33: 27) “ You never t hought they would go; whil whilee they tho ught that t hat their fortifica for tifications tions would wo uld protect pro tect them the m against agai nst God.” (59: 2) On the other hand, every group has its own special objective. To achieve it, it uses the legitimate means available to it, such as political action, use of the media and scientific research. Competition and rivalry in these fields are healthy. Different perspectives are presented and seen for what they are. The arena is open to clear and honest action that may go a long way and achieve real gains. It becomes like a tree that establishes firm roots while itit grows high into the sky. In the story of Prophet Joseph, as related in the Qur'an, a verse mentions: “Then an announcer called out: ‘You people of the caravan! You are surely thieves.’” (12: 70) This announcement was credible and it publicized something, even though it was not factual. Therefore, Joseph’s brothers bro thers replied: replied : “ By God, you know t hat we have not come com e to commit any evil d eed in this land, and that we are no thieves.” (12: 73) What a great exchange between brothers! The revolution is an uprising against evil and corruption. A person who has suffered the agony of injustice and exclusion should rise above personal desire and greed. Yet those people’s history provides a testimony for them. Hence, they cited it: “You know... that we are not thieves.” It is as if they were saying: “Theft is not something something we ever do.” In the surah which relates Joseph’s story and carries his name there are lessons of test, patience in adversity, empowerment, victory for the victim of injustice over his oppressor, as well as lessons of planning and dealing with political, economic and family problems. The story ends with Joseph’s acknowledgement of God’s of God’s favours: “My Lord,
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You have given give n me po wer a nd imparted imp arted to me some understanding understa nding of t he real re al m eaning of statements. statements. Origi Originator nator of the heavens and and the earth! You are my g uardian in this world and in t he life li fe to come. Let me die as o ne who who has surrend surre ndered ered himself himsel f to You, and admit me among the righteous.” (12: 101)
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Two International Intervention The world powers often oft en pres ent themselves thems elves as saviours, but at t he same time ti me t hey give help and support to dictatorships in order to protect their interests. They appear willing to sell out whole nations in order to achieve a particular objective. They use monetary regulations and human rights as means of pressure and blackmail. However, when a dictatorship dictatorship begins begi ns to cru mble and the world becomes aware awar e of its repressive nature, the t hey y begin to take action. Nevertheless, efforts can be exerted to mobilize world public opinion against repressive regimes on humanitarian and moral basis. It is also possible to call for diplomatic, political and economic sanctions, such as an embargo on arms sales, reduction of diplomatic missions, severance of relations, an embargo on external investments, expulsion from international organizations and giving aid as well as financial and media support to the forces opposed to repression and injustice. International observers may be sent sent to protect p rotect civilians and submit field reports which are far more credible. It may appear that the world has become more consistent and better aware that supporting oppressed peoples to regain their rights will make the world a safer place and will at the sam e time secure s ecure for t he world powers p owers t heir economic a nd security interests. i nterests. International agencies are not truly neutral. However, they take the right attitude in cases where popular pop ular actio n is over whelming, organized org anized and ratio nal. Rational civil forces force s can ca n make their presence prese nce felt felt and put p ut the world in a positio position n where it has no no optio n othe ot herr than to support t hem. hem. It seems that many of us do not have a clear attitude towards the West, international agencies such as the United Nations and its Security Council or human rights organizations. When we are fully confident of our ability and the correctness of our position, we sho sho uld realize realize that t hat there th ere is nothing nothing in Islam or in practice to prevent us from seeki seeki ng such agencies’ support and appealing appeali ng to them to adopt t he right rig ht attitude. People’s differences differences about t he motives of o f such agencies s hould hould not affect affect that t hat.. Even when there are ulterior motives dictating attitudes to a certain cause which is genuinely just, its being just is sufficient to win it support. However, it is better all round that world interests should be seen in rendering support to justice and popular institutional forces. Should such interests be felt to lie with a despotic regime, such 115
regime may resort to blackmailing the world, stressing that it protects such interests and that that despotism de spotism i s the world’s eternal partne part ner. r.
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Three Revolution and Sectarian Strife It must be clear that true religious ness ness is a factor fa ctor of unit u nity, y, not division. What opposes o pposes it is fanaticism fanaticism a nd prejudice. Most Arab and Muslim countries have a broad or narrow measure of ethnic and religious diversity. It may be within the Islamic circle, with the presence of Sunnis, Shia, Ibadis, etc. or may go further afield, having Muslims, Christians, Jews and followers of other religions. It is interesting to note that the Muslim countries continued to have all these sects over many generations. Their presence is not new. However, some of them developed an inward inward looki ng attitude, attitude, while w hile others developed positively, sheddi ng some aspects of their orientation orientation in order to be more ope n and inte i ntegrate grate within society. This is one disti nctive point o f Arab societies after the formation of Arab states subsequent subsequent to t he collapse collapse of the t he Ottoman Ottoman Caliphat Calip hate. e. We, the t herefore, refore, need need to avoid trying to apply a single model to all countries. We must realize that there are certain basic principles that are common to all Arab countries, but there are also some wide differences. Hence, the model applicable to the Gulf states, for example, is unsuitable for Egypt, and and the t he one suitable for Egypt may not be good enough for Leba non. Citizenship is the right of all people. A basic principle makes them all equal before the law, as also i n the right to have the t heir ir cha cha nces in life. Serious and frank discussion should be conducted within each country to arrive at the most suitable solutions. The issues issue s t hat are i mportant mporta nt to the minorities minor ities must be very carefully care fully considered. consid ered. Sectarian grievances could often provide the flashpoint, and the resulting fire engulfs all. Alternatively, t he issue is sue could be made a pretext for foreign i nterventio n. It is wise to realize that taking pictures in a joint effort, such as people of one sect standing guard to protect those of another sect, or a demonstration joined by Muslims and Copts, does not mean that the problem is finally solved. Yet we must always encourage proper mutual understandi understanding ng and amicable coexistence.
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The presence pr esence o f minorities mi norities does d oes not mea n that we should s hould adopt ad opt secularism seculari sm as a sol so l ution. Secularism may be suitable for one country, but not for another. As a slogan, secularism invites confusion and misunderstanding. It began in Europe as the antithesis of a creed that made the priest an intermediary between man and God. Such was his career. In the West, the Churc C hurch h held people’s peopl e’s souls so uls a nd a portion portio n of their th eir property. pro perty. In Islam, the relation between man and God is direct, with no intermediary. No one holds any spiritual aut hority. The first to raise rais e t he secular sloga n i n Arab a nd Muslim countries cou ntries were some Syrian Syria n Christian Christian intellectuals who ad vocated liberation from Turkish rule. ‘government’ and a nd ‘state’. Islamic Islamic government existed We may draw a dist d istinction betwee n ‘government’ right from the early days of Islam, while the state as we understand it today was not in existence. ‘Government’ in this sense refers to the constitution and questions of t hat regulate matters of sovereignty, sovereignty, while the ‘state’ includes a host of details that o f daily life.
Nor is it right to say that religion is merely a matter for the individual. What belongs to the sphere of the individual often moves into the social sphere. As such, it is relevant to the the political sphere. Moreover, sometimes sometimes we need need to protect religion r eligion from the a uthority uthority of o f the state. In othe ot herr words, we cannot make ma ke Islamic slami c law subject subj ect to political politi cal interests, particularly particular ly because becau se politics is often undefined.126 The rights right s o f minorities minori ties are properly pro perly respected respect ed in Islami Islamicc law. la w. State constitutions co nstitutions must ensure that these rights are protected within a fair democratic framework and proper natio national nal dialogue that moves away from prejudice, prejudice, fanaticism and negation negatio n of the o ther.
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[a lim Na z ariyyah ariyyah [Ammah For more clarification reference may be made to Lu’ayy Safi, Al- [ Aq idah wal-Siy a sah: Ma [a liddawlah liddawlah al-Islamiyyah al-Islamiyyah , Nazih Naseef al-A Mush kilat al-Dawl al -Dawl ah , Saad al-Din al-Uthmani, Al -D in wal- al-A yyoobi, Al-Arab wa Mushkilat sl . Siy a sah: Tamiyiz l a Fa
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Conclusion What the Future Holds for the Revolution? Revolutio n? The fall of o f a dictators dicta tors hip is not enough enoug h on its o wn to create cr eate a virt vir t uous system sy stem i n its place. However, it opens the way for laying the foundations of a sound political, social and economic structure. This despite the fact that the cultural and structural legacy of the dictatorship dictatorship will continue to work in people’s subco nscious nscious for a long lo ng while. while. Sometimes we allow the fallen despot to rule us from his place of exile, or from his prison cell, or even his grave by allowing ourselves to remain hostage to the disputes and issues issues he imposed o n us during his reign. We must work wor k hard to prev ent the t he emerge nce of a new dictatorship. dictator ship. It is well known know n that the people and the institutions of civil society remain weak under dictatorial regimes. Unless we bring about a change in the balance of power of these forces, the new rulers can easily become as dictatorial as their predecessors. Ever since the days of Muhammad Ali in Egypt in the early nineteenth century, state intervention has gradually increased in the Arab world. With the development of new systems, trade unions have been either disbanded or marginalized, land has been nationalized, while education, industry, the economy and almost everything else have become state-run in a system of state capitalism. In Islamic history, the state was never totalitarian. It was only concerned with sovereignty. It was the society which took care of all information, economic, educational and industrial aspects. Needless to say, society predates the state state a nd provides its foundation fou ndation.. Much of the importance of the presence of civil institutions is due to t he need to respect the pluralism of society. They help to put in place civilian checks to stop the emergence of dictatorship and permanent barriers to a ret urn to despotism. When the t he society societ y and its institutio in stitutions ns are stro nger, the initiatives initiati ves of its citi zens e nable it to regain the initiative and assume greater responsibility without going into conflict with more official ins i nstitutio titutions ns.. Western Wester n exp erience shows t hat despite desp ite t he fact t hat the t he central authority auth ority i s powerful, po werful, its relation with the people is well organized. The balance between the people and the government is maintained through clear machinery, laws, political organizations and intermediate intermediate functionaries. 119
Civil society is not the opposite of the state. Indeed the civil activity strengthens it and takes over some of its burde ns. ns. W hen the state opens the t he field field for social social action, under u nder the umbrella of public freedom, or under what is called privatization, it gives more importance importance to t he p ublic and reduces tension te nsion within society. When t he concept of power is added add ed to Islami Islamicc legitimacy, the combi nation must not mean an easy, new begi nning nning for dictatorship. Many activists and researchers express the hope that all political trends should agree to the option of establishing a civil democratic state, based on citizenship and the supremacy supremacy of the people. This mea m eans ns that t hat de mocracy i s based ba sed o n general ge neral agree ag reement ment a nd co ntractual arrange ments that endorse Arab identity and Islam, ensures justice and equal opportunities for all, guarantees the separation of authorities, enshrines general freedoms and adopts the choices of the people through their civil institutions and independent channels of expression. What society soci ety c hooses may not move far away from its identit y and its religious relig ious and cultural cultural v alues. It is very important not to make religion a political tool. However, respect must be afforded afforded to t he majority which always always votes in favour of Islam being bei ng the ultimate ultimate point of reference. The religious address must also be respected as an expression of the people’s will. [Reference [Refere nce may ma y be made mad e to what w hat we have ha ve said on the t he questio n of minorities]. minoriti es]. On the other hand, the Islamists must clearly and unhesitatingly adopt the option of partnership in government, not monopolizing it. They must opt for pluralism rather than one-party government. Partnership means coalitions and consensus. These are not without their faults and weaknesses. Such Suc h weaknesses weakne sses i nclude the exchange exc hange of blame i n t he case of failure. Moreover, the chronic fear of conspiracy prevents full-hearted cooperation. However, going through the experience provides a long training course of democratic practices for all parties in the coalition. They are thus better equipped for a later stage when a party with an electoral ele ctoral majority majo rity forms the th e gover nment. The new ope o pen n horizons horizo ns of freedom may not be well appreciat app reciat ed by t he political politi cal parti p arties, es, particularly when one party wins a n absolute majority and forms the new government.
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The tra nsfer from fro m revol revo l ution to state ma y not provid pr ovidee good g ood training for o nly the t he Islamic sla mic parties, but also for societies and individuals who are raising great demands and nurturing expectations that conti conti nue to increase with the momentum of the revolution. r evolution. There is a pressing pr essing need to help people to ge ntly come down do wn from t he high hig h tree of radical radica l revolution and to smoothly place them in the field of work and action. They need to develop the realistic and rational awareness that the post-revolution government cannot transform the country into a rose garden overnight. When such awareness is in place, the people will move from repeating slogans of the maximum demands to participation in public affairs and discussion of what can realistically be achieved. They will debate what is feasible feasible in i n the political and social fields. They will discuss gai ns and and losses. lo sses. In the case of Turkey, it was this question that caused the breakup between the new generation of the Islamists, such as Erdogan, Gul and Dawood Oglu, and the older generatio generation n of Erbakan. The Islamists Islamist s bear a great and historical hi storical respo r espo nsibility i n ensuri ng the success suc cess of t he post revolution stage. This is a four-pro nged questio question: n: 1. The rig ht o f the t he Islami Islamists sts to regain t heir plac pl acee t hat was denied de nied t hem over o ver several decades and to play their role in the political arena, receive media coverage and form political parties, etc. 2. Ensure that these countries of the Arab Spring do not fall back into a new form of dictatorship with an Islamic cover. They must not emulate the Iranian model after giving it a Sunni flavour. flavour. 3. Ensure that these countries do not sink into chaos and instability as a result of their struggle with other forces. This will only strengthen the argument for dictatorship dictatorship which which remains r emains in the backgroun backgr ound. d. 4. Put in place a comprehensive national programme of development and mobilize all forces and potentials to carry it through. All groups should be involved in such a programme progr amme..
We must prove p rove that the t he equatio n that dictator d ictatorship ship is necessary to achieve stability is false. We must also prove pro ve t hat stability, progress pro gress a nd economic eco nomic prosperity pro sperity are possible i n a pluralist democracy that t hat accepts divergent d ivergent views. This is the case in many countries of the t he world.
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To achieve ac hieve t his, keeping keepi ng extre mism i n c heck i s a prerequi site, partic ularly when such suc h extremism extremism begins to prepare prepar e for a campaign of violence. It may be useful to have a third group that belongs neither to the government nor to the opposition and remains outside the political field. Its role is to monitor the action of both. All those who have shared, shared , i n a large or small way, i n the t he burden burd en of t he post -revolutio n stage should endeavour to moderate the hopes and dreams of the revolutionaries. This is needed in order to avoid a repeat of past tragedies, disasters, setbacks and civilizational, economic economic a nd political backwardness. In conclusion we say that the general picture makes us more optimistic, looking for a better future. future. May God help our peoples to achieve t heir heir aims.
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