Human Rights in an Islamic State

Posted by islamic web  |  at  9:23 PM

The Security of life and Property: In the address which the Prophet delivered on the occasion of the Farewell Hajj, he said; "Your lives and properties are forbidden to one another till you meet your Lord on the day of Resurrection." The Prophet has also said about the zimmis (the non-Muslim citizens of the Muslim state): "One who kills a man under covenant (i.e., zimmi) will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise."

The Protection of Honor: The Holy Quran lays down:

i). "You, who believe, do not let one (set of) people make fun of another set."

ii). "Do not defame one another."

iii). "Do not insult by using nicknames."

"Do not backbite or speak of one another." (49:11-12)

Sanctity and Security of Private Life:

The Qur'an has laid down the injunction.

i). "Do not spy on one another." (49:12)

ii). "Do not enter any houses unless you are sure of their occupant's consent."

(24:27)

The Security of Personal Freedom: Islam has laid down the principle that no citizen can be imprisoned unless his guilt has been proved in an open court. To arrest a man only on the basis of suspicion and to throw him into a prison without proper court proceedings and without providing him a reasonable opportunity to produce his defense is not permissible in Islam.

The Right to Protest Against Tyranny:

Amongst the rights that Islam has conferred on human beings is the right to protest against government's tyranny. Referring to it the Quran says: "God does not love evil talk in public unless it is by some one who has been injured thereby."

In Islam, as has been argued earlier, all power and authority belongs to God, and with man there is only delegated power which becomes a trust; everyone who becomes a recipient or a donee of such a power has to stand in awful reverence before his people towards whom and for whose sake he will be called upon to use these powers.