1- Islam was the first religion to call for Human Rights emphasizing the
necessity of safeguarding them. Any scholar of Islamic Legislation learns that
it declares the fundamental Rights of Man which include man's life ,belief, his
opinions, his wealth and his family, all of which are safeguarded by Islam. The
history of Islam records 'Omar ben Khattab's decisive stand against the
violation of human rights when he aid: "Why do you enslave people after
their mothers gave birth to them as free individuals".
2- The Human Rights in Islam are based upon two fundamental principles:
(a)Equality among all human beings.
(b)Freedom which is the right of every human being.
Islam
bases equality on two foundations namely that all human beings originated from
the same Human origin, and human dignity which is granted to all mankind. As
for the common origin of all mankind, Islam declares that God created mankind
from one soul so all human beings are brothers and sisters in one large family
in which there is no scope for privileges on account of wealth or status. The
difference that exists between human beings does not affect their origin and
essence, which are one and the same. The differences that exist between human
beings in the world should urge them to become acquainted with each other and
to cooperate with each other in various walks of life:"O mankind! We
created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into
nations and tribes, that you may know each other'' (49/13).
The second foundation is that equality is based on the honour and dignity with
which God Almighty graced all mankind:"We have honoured the sons of Adam''
(17/70).
God
made man a vicegerent on earth and orderedthe angels to prostrate themselves
before Adam and made him a master in this universe. God also rendered all that
is in the heavens and the earth subservient to man. These privileges honoured
and elevated him above other created beings. God conferred this honour and
dignity in principle on all human beings without exception so that it would
immune and protect every single human being, or rich or poor, rulers or
subjects are all equal in the sight of God and in the eyes of the law
.The second principle upon which the Human Rights are founded in Islam is
freedom. God created man as a responsible human being for populating the earth
and establishing civilization. Naturally responsibility cannot exist without
freedom even in the matter of the choice of believing in God or rejecting to
believe in Him, which is left to man's free will:''Let him who will, believe,
and let him who will reject (it).'' (18/29)
Freedom
includes all aspects of human freedom whether religious, political,
intellectual or concerning civil matters.
3- Passing judgement in Islam is based upon justice and consultation as is
declared in the Quran:"And when you judge between man and man, judge with
justice" (4/58).God Almighty ordered justice and benevolence in dealing
with others:"God commands justice, the doing of good and liberality...
" (16/90)
There
are also many other verses in the Quran which illustrate this point.
As
for consultation, it is a fundamental and obligatory principle in Islam. When
the prophet was not inspired by Divine Inspiration in any matter, he consulted
his companions and acted according to the opinion of the majority, even if it
were contrary to his own opinion . An example of this was the consultation
concerning the Battle
of Uhud. The Prophet was of the opinion that the Muslims should not set out to fight
yet he submitted to the opinion of the majority who advocated fighting and the
result was defeat. Despite this the Quran emphasized the necessity of
consultation and addressed the prophet in the following Quranic verse:" So
pass over (their faults) and ask for(God's) forgiveness for them; and consult
them in affairs"(3/159).
Accordingly
we must not be misled by the opinion held by a minority of jurists who maintain
that consultation is not obligatory, since their opinion is inconsistent with
the religious texts of the Quran and the Traditions of the Prophet.
Islam
left to the judgement of the Muslims, the method of consultation in keeping
with the interests of the community. If the welfare of a Muslim nation should
require that consultation should follow the acknowledged system currently
practised by modern nations, Islam does not object to that system, the
application of which must necessarily take into account the circumstances of
every era on the national and international level. The aforementioned facts
illustrate the extent of Islam's concern for safeguarding the Human Rights and
the application of the principle of consultation or democracy as it is
understood today.
4- Islam permitted people to have different opinions and allowed interpretative
judgement in religious matters providing that these people fulfilled the
necessary qualifications to do so. Islam declares that the person who uses his
judgement in the matter and errs is rewarded by God, whereas he who uses his
judgement and arrives at the correct result is doubly rewarded by God. The
scholars of the doctrines of jurisprudence will come across many different
opinions concerning many matters and nobody has ever claimed that a difference
of opinion is prohibited by Islam. Islam therefore allows the expression of
differing opinions without any limitations,provided that they are sincerely
concerned with the welfare, security and peace of their community.