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The Qur’an clearly states that the
aim and purpose of the Islamic state is the establishment, maintenance and development of those
virtues which the Creator wishes human life to be enriched by and the prevention and eradication of
those evils in human life which He finds abhorrent. The Islamic state is intended neither solely as
an instrument of political administration nor for the fulfillment of the collective will of any
particular set of people. Rather, Islam places a high ideal before the state, which it must use all
the means at its disposal to achieve.
This ideal is that the qualities of
purity, beauty, goodness, virtue, success and prosperity which Allah wants to flourish in the life
of humankind should be engendered and developed and that all kinds of exploitation, injustice and
disorder which, in the sight of Allah, are ruinous for the world and detrimental to the life of His
creatures, should be suppressed and prevented. Islam gives us a clear outline of its moral system by
stating positively the desired virtues and the undesired evils. Keeping this outline in view, the
Islamic state can plan its welfare policies in every era and in any context.
The constant demand made by Islam is
that the principles of morality must be observed at all costs and in all walks of life. Hence, it
lays down as an unalterable policy that the state should base its policies on justice, truth and
honesty. It is not prepared, under any circumstances, to tolerate fraud, falsehood and injustice for
the sake of political, administrative or so-called national interest. Whether it is domestic
relations within the state, or international relations with other nations, precedence must always be
given to truth, honesty and justice.
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Islam
has laid down universal fundamental rights for humanity
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Islam imposes similar obligations on
the state and the individual: to fulfill all contracts and obligations; to have uniform standards in
all interactions and transactions; to remember obligations along with rights and not to forget the
rights of others when expecting them to fulfill their obligations; to use power and authority for
the establishment of justice and not for the perpetration of injustice; to look upon duty as a
sacred obligation and to fulfill it scrupulously; and to regard power as a trust from Allah to be
used in the belief that one has to render an account of one’s actions in this world but also, most
importantly, to Him in the life hereafter.
Fundamental Rights
Although an Islamic state may be set
up anywhere on earth, Islam does not seek to restrict human rights or privileges to the boundaries
of such a state. Islam has laid down universal fundamental rights for humanity which are to be
observed and respected in all circumstances. For example, human blood is sacred and may not be
spilled without strong justification such as criminal punishment after a fair trial or in a just
war; it is not permissible to oppress women, children, old people, the sick or the wounded; women’s
honor and chastity must be respected. These rights are for all people, irrespective of whether they
belong to the Islamic community — Muslims and non-Muslims alike — or are from amongst its
enemies. These and other provisions have been laid down by Islam as fundamental rights for every
human being by virtue of his status as a creation of Allah.
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The
Islamic state may not interfere with the personal rights of non-Muslims
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Nor, in Islam, are the rights of
citizenship confined to people born in a particular state. A Muslim ipso facto becomes the citizen
of an Islamic state as soon as he sets foot on its territory with the intention of living there and
thus enjoys equal rights along with those who acquire its citizenship by birth. And every Muslim is
to be regarded as eligible for positions of the highest responsibility in an Islamic state without
distinction of race, sex, color or class. These rights have been challenged, of course, by the
division of the Muslim nation into nation states in the modern era after independence from
colonialism. Many attempts have been made to unite these states but in vain, due to numerous reasons
that can be discussed at length separately.
Islam has also laid down rights for
non-Muslims who may be living within the boundaries of an Islamic state, and these rights
necessarily form part of the Islamic constitution. The life, property and honor of non-Muslim
citizens is to be respected and protected in exactly the same way as that of Muslim citizens. Nor is
there difference between a Muslim and a non-Muslim citizen in respect of civil or criminal law,
though there are differences in family law in respect of the diversity of religious practices and
family codes.
The Islamic state may not interfere
with the personal rights of non-Muslims, who have full freedom of conscience and belief and are at
liberty to perform their religious rites and ceremonies in their own way.
Even if a non-Muslim state oppresses
its Muslim citizens, it is not permissible for an Islamic state to retaliate against its own
non-Muslim citizens. It may not unjustly shed the blood of a single non-Muslim citizen living within
its boundaries. |
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