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ISLAM & HUMAN RIGHTS.
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Examines historical relationship among Islamic extremism, traditional Islamic thought & practice (based on Koran) & threat to human rights.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Examines historical relationship among Islamic extremism, traditional Islamic thought & practice (based on Koran) & threat to human rights.
Paper Introduction:
ISLAM AND HUMAN RIGHTS
This research paper discusses the relationship among modern Islamic militancy, or fundamentalist movements, traditional Islamic thought and practice and the preservation of basic human rights in Islamic nations. In the second half of the 20th century, and particularly since the 1970s, a broad revival of Islamic traditions, which encompasses many disparate groups, has gathered momentum in the Middle East, North Africa and other Muslim lands, overthrowing some Muslim governments and threatening many others. Its more radical elements have advocated and engaged in practices such as airplane hijackings, car bombings, kidnapping and torture of hostages, political assassinations and other forms of terrorism.
In the Muslim nations in which they have come to power, Iran
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Sidahmed and Anoushiravan Ehteshami. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985.----------------------- 13 Ed. a religious duty because of the universalismof the Muslim mission and (the obligation) to convert everybody to Islameither by persuasion or force" (Dawood 183). According to Sidahmed and Ehteshami, Sayyd Qutb (19 6-1966), one ofthe most extreme of the Egyptian fundamentalists, who was hung after aseries of political assassinations, said that modern Arab nations were"living through an epoch of jahillyya (godlessness and perplexity) and trueMuslims have a duty to withdraw from this society, establish their ownrighteous one, and reconquer the jahili order" (1 ). Abdel S. Little quarter was given to armedopponents in the heat of battle by their Muslim adversaries. Boulder: Westview, 1996. Ed. The movement is anti-democratic. Its more radical elements have advocated and engaged in practicessuch as airplane hijackings, car bombings, kidnapping and torture ofhostages, political assassinations and other forms of terrorism. In commenting on the relative toleration of non-Muslims, Lewis saysthat these minorities were discriminated against in respect to politicaland economic rights and were subjected to heavier taxes than Muslims. Taji-Farouki saysthat "Al-Nabhani condemned democracy as a man-made system of unbelief thatis incompatible with Islam, which considers the sharia [Islamic law], andnot the people, to be sovereign" (41). Abdel S. It, however, represents only oneof many important strains in Islam, and in its most extreme manifestations,represents a serious threat to the best of those traditions and to basicconcepts of human rights. "Islamic State Theories and Contemporary Realities." Islamic Fundamentalism. . They expect a better world to come, which they believe can be reached through armed struggle. "Introduction." Islamic Fundamentalism. The Crusades Through Arab Eyes. Traditional Muslim treatment of ethnic and religious minorities.During the Arab conquest of the Umayyad period, the Arab conquerors wererelatively small in number. "Islam's New Battle Cry." Foreign Affairs, Spring 1993, 43- 56.Sidahmed, Abdel S., and Anoushiravan Ehteshami. Works CitedAhmad, Hazrat. . According to Jansen, Qutb characterized"the Jews as being behind all evil" (123). [for] a religion based on scripture, but [one] which must be adapted to new or changing circumstances by the agreement of the community and by human judgment as to how the scripture should be applied" (1 5). These new elites were in most Muslimcountries allied with and at times repressed by more traditional rulingelites, such as monarchies in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Jordan, theofficer class in countries such as Syria, Egypt, Algeria and Pakistan, andwith various nationalist political parties, such as the Baathists in Syriaand Iraq. . Boulder: Westview, 1996. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 1997.Lapidus, Ira M. Islamicreligion and culture were spread throughout a large part of the world bythe Arab conquests carried out by Muhammad's successors, especially duringthe Caliphates of the Umayyads (66 -749) and the Abbasids (75 -1258). Consequently, they are at war with the world and may well die wagering wars against it and its unbelief. In the Muslim nations in which they have come to power, Iran and theSudan, ethnic and religious minorities have been persecuted, religiousorthodoxy has been imposed, primitive forms of punishment such as stoning,flogging and amputation have been restored and women have been relegated tothe human and the veil. The fundamentalistsbelieve in the literal reading and application of the word of God, as foundin the Koran, the hadith (reports of Muhammad's activities and teachings)and the sharia. This meant that the Arab-Muslims did not, contrary to reputation, attempt to convert people to Islam. It has threatened the stability ofmore conservative and secularized regimes throughout the Muslim world eversince. The Dual Nature of Islamic Fundamentalism. Conclusion One can trace powerful connections between important strains in Islamand the ideology and political program of the Islamic fundamentalists. "What Green Peril?" Foreign Affairs, Spring 1993, 27-41.Hitti, Philip K. Islam and the West. Background Islam is the religion preached by the Prophet Muhammad (571-632 A.D.)and established in the Arabian towns of Mecca and Medina in the 62 s. Consequently, Lapidus says, the second CaliphUmar (634-644) decreed the following: Conquered populations should be as little disturbed as possible. Teachings of Islam. Sidahmed & Anoushiravan Ethteshami. and the proponents of consensus of the community and individual judgment as the basis . . Lewis says that, during the 19thcentury, "the most important new ideas came from Europe, especiallypatriotism and liberalism" (39). a heavenly reward for martyrdom (1 ). Maalouf saysthat, "when Saladin wanted to avoid being burdened with prisoners, hereleased them, whereas Richard preferred to have them killed" (21 ). Inthe second half of the 2 th century, and particularly since the 197 s, abroad revival of Islamic traditions, which encompasses many disparategroups, has gathered momentum in the Middle East, North Africa and otherMuslim lands, overthrowing some Muslim governments and threatening manyothers. Jews were active in tax andbanking activities" (Lapidus 69). There is an almost total disregard for minority rights" (5 -51). Atrocities of all kinds were committed by conqueringarmies in ancient times. A central tenet of Islam is that "there is one God, Allah, andMuhammad is his Prophet": Traditional Christianity and Islam differed from Judaism and agreed with each other in that both claimed to possess not only universal but exclusive truths. . The resulting post-independence regimes were often authoritarianbut nevertheless adopted outward political structures and institutions,including constitutions, legislatures and, in a few countries, democraticelections. As the post-colonial elite began to pass from the scene, pan-Islamism, in the form of the Islamic revival or Muslim fundamentalism,burst on the scene in the 197 s, especially after the triumph of AyatollahKhomeini's revolution in Iran in 1979. . J. to most Islamists, . According to Lapidus,"conversion by force, while not unknown in Muslim countries, was, in fact,rare" (144). . And since the ruler derives his power from God and the holy law, and not from the people, defying authority has been tantamount to defying God . Traditional Islamic Practice. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1967.Hadar, Leon T. During the latterpart of the Abbasid period, the unity of the Arab world disintegrated.Islam, however, continued to spread, and its influence deepened in theMiddle East, North Africa, Eastern Europe, South and Southeast Asia as wellas other areas under the Ottoman Empire, the power of which peaked in the16th century and finally collapsed in 1918. However, Ibn Khaldun makes adistinction between just and unjust wars. Each claimed to be the sole custodian of God's final revelation to mankind . Jansen (1997) says the following: Islamic fundamentalism wants to . Their political program is one of violent oppositionand terrorism toward their internal and external enemies. Thoseelements, such as the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, the Muslim Brethren inJordan and the Algerian Front Islamique du Salut (FIS), when afforded thechance to participate in the political process, have sometimes showedsurprising strength at the polls. "Only doth God forbid you to make friends of those who, on account of your religion, have warred against you, and have driven you from your homes, and have aided those who drove you forth; and whoever makes friends of them are wrongdoers" (6 :1). Radical Muslim fundamentalists, such as the ShiiteHezbollah (Party of God) in Lebanon and Palestinian organizations such asthe Islamic Resistance (Hamas) and Islamic Jihad, favor the totalextinction of the state of Israel. Columbus: Ahmadiyya Anjiman Isha At Islam Lahore USA, 1976.Choueri, Yousef. "retaliation for bloodshedding is prescribed to you: thefreedman for the freedman, the slave for the slave and the woman for thewoman" (Sura 2:18). 19-34.Dawood, N. democracy translates as majority rule. Society was to a significant degree secularized,but Islam remained the state religion of all nations in which Muslims werein a majority. . However, Maalouf contrasts the magnanimity oftenshowed by the great Saladin during the time of the Crusades toward hiscaptured foes and innocent combatants which he compares unfavorably withthe actions of the Crusaders. To respond to the challenge of Westerndominance, Arab and other Muslim cultures sought in the late 19th and early2 th centuries to borrow ideas, institutions and technology from the West.Nationalist movements were often dominated by Western-educated elites,which, in some countries such as Syria and Lebanon in the immediate post-war period, included Christians. The fate of the Jews ofJerusalem was no less atrocious" (xiv). . If they do, they will be compensated by being blessed in paradise . However, as Sidahmed and Ehteshaimi point out, "the text ofthe Qur'an is formulated in a way that is far from self-explanatory.Accordingly, there is no way of taking the entire text of the Qur'anliterally" (2). The Koran contains many reference to Islam's proselytizing missionand of intolerance toward infidels or unbelievers: "O believers, take not intimates outside yourselves; such men spare nothing to ruin you" (III: 114). On infidels: "wherever you find them, fight them" (9:5) and "strike off their heads, and . Choueiri quotesKhomeini for the proposition that "'the age of ignorance' (i.e 'theadoption of Arab nationalism') set in with the advent of the Umayyaddynasty in 861" (27). Ahmad saysthat a central tenet of Islam is "the believers should not take up ahostile attitude [toward non-believers] so long as no material injury iscaused to them" (73). Martin's, 1968.Jansen, Johannes J. It isone of the three great monotheistic religions which originated in the NearEast in ancient times, the others being Judaism and Christianity. from them every fingertip" (8:1 ). The Arabs a Short History. 35-5 .Wright, Robin. . New York: Oxford UP, 1993.Maalouf, Amin. In contrast, when Saladinreconquered that city in 1187, he ordered, after the surrender, that "noChristian was to be touched, [forbade] massacre and plunder [and]strengthened the guard at Christian places of worship" (198-199). Lewis maintains that Islamic fundamentalists who advocateunrestrained violence (acts of terrorism) against Muslim political leadersthey abhor and against non-Muslims "are in violation of Islamic moralityand law" (182). During the interwar period, most but not all Muslim nations remainedunder the control of Western colonial powers. Today, Muslim fundamentalists, which cover a broad gamut ofpolitical, social and economic views, have come to power in Iran and in theSudan and possess considerable appeal in many other Muslim nations. Ibn Khaldun's The Muqaddimah. Jansen says, however, that, since "the medieval classicalperiod, Muslims, Christians and Jews co-existed on the basis ofJudeo-Christian surrender to Islamic superiority" (117). Where "NestorianChristians were powerfully represented . Anti-semitism. The Koran also contains many references to the Mercifulness,Forgiving Nature and Generosity of Allah and urges Muslims not to engage inaimless acts of violence. According to Hadar, "the Islamic resurgence is a response to theconfusion and anxiety of modernity and a challenge to repressive andcorrupt regimes . Lapidus says that considerable latitude and divergence ofview has emerged over the centuries among Muslims. During the capture of Jerusalem by Frankishknights in 1 99, he says that, "when the killing stopped, not a singleMuslim was left alive within the city walls . Hittisays that "within 1 years after the death of Muhammad his followers werethe masters of an empire greater than that of Rome" (1). Abdel S. (When the FIS garnered a plurality in the1992 national elections in Algeria, the military government annulled theelections). . New York: Schocken, 1985.Miller, Judith. . They represent a powerful force for destabilizing the politics of theregion and have largely succeeded in intimidating or cowing most of theircritics into silence. . Such groups have generally opposed, oftenviolently, largely secularized regimes in the Arab and Muslim world. Many different strainsof faith have emerged, the most important being the split between Sunni andShiite Muslims, but also a variety of other sects. . Their more radical elements have assassinated moderate Arableaders such as King Abdullah of Transjordan in 1948 and Sadat in 1981 andmany other moderate officials and critics. . The political program of theMuslim Brotherhood in Egypt includes such retrograde features as killingall Copts, razing the pyramids, assaulting foreign tourists and banning alltelevision broadcasts (Jansen 173). Thathas, of course, changed in recent decades when Christian, andespecially Jewish, communities have been in what Lewis calls "anexposed position" because they "were suspected with somejustification of sympathizing and even collaborating withEuropean imperialists [and later the State of Israel]" (183). considered [them] "People of the Book," the adherents of earlier written revelations (43). Lapidus points out that Baghdadduring the Abbasid period was particularly cosmopolitan. At Acrein 1191, Richard Lionheart massacred 2,7 women and children. . they are enemies of whatIslam stands for" (173). A History of Islamic Societies. Doctrinal basis for Islamic fundamentalism. Jansen quotes former Egyptian Minister of the Interior ZakiBadr: "The Muslim Brothers are no Muslims . Lewis says that, during the interwar period (192 -1939), "politicalPan-Islamism . New York: St. . Fundamentalistspoint to Muhammad's battles with the Jewish community in Medina and to thefollowing passage in the Koran: "Assuredly thou [Muhammad] wilt find thatthe most violent of the people in enmity against those who have believedand the Jews and those who practice idolatry" (5:82(85). . . theirs was the sole universal truth and it was their sacred mission to bring it to all mankind" (Lewis 175). . . . bring politics and religion together in the way that things were in the exemplary days of the Prophet (13) . Even the strongest nationalists and advocates ofmodernization, such as Kemal Ataturk in Turkey in the interwar period,Gamal Nasser of Egypt in the 195 s and 196 s and the Shah of Iran and AnwarSadat of Egypt in the 196 s and 197 s, respected the hold of traditionalIslam on the masses and sought to portray their reforms as advancing thecause of pan-Islamism or, at least in the case of Nasser and Sadat, pan-Arabism. . . They stand forturning the clock back to practices which are antithetical to mainstreamIslamic traditions, as, for example, Iran's restoration of polygamy andchild marriage, the relegation of women to the home and the veil and theuse of barbaric forms of criminal punishment. Thus began the tradition of dhimmi, protection of religious andethnic minorities by the Muslim state: The Ottomans, like previous Muslim regimes, considered the non-Muslim subjects autonomous but dependent peoples whose internal social, religious and communal life was regulated by their own religious organizations, but whose leaders were appointed by, and responsible to, a Muslim state (323). The rest achievedindependence after World War II and commanded the allegiance of a verylarge number of Muslims in North Africa, the Middle East, Iran, Pakistan,Indonesia and elsewhere. "The Political Discourse of Contemporary Islamist Movements." Islamic Fundamentalism. ISLAM AND HUMAN RIGHTS This research paper discusses the relationship among modern Islamicmilitancy, or fundamentalist movements, traditional Islamic thought andpractice and the preservation of basic human rights in Islamic nations. Lapidus says a central theme has been differences between purists whoregard Islam "as a completely revealed faith, a religion of submission to the word of God and literal acceptance of the words of Muhammad . . . Prisoners ofwar and innocent combatants were sometimes slain, ransomed, released orconverted to Islam at the point of the sword. Boulder: Westview, 1996. . (Ed.). . Thethesis of this paper is that Islamic fundamentalism has deep roots inIslamic culture, religion and traditions. Hesays that "the severity with which these restrictions, were, in fact,applied varied enormously from place to place and time to time" (182-183).He adds, "Persecution was rare and atypical, and there were few, if anyequivalents in Muslim history to the massacres, the forced conversions, theexpulsions and burnings that were so common in the history of Christendombefore the rise of secularism" (182). . Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1988.Lewis, Bernard. Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saeb Salamdescribed succinctly the power of the movement: "the growth of Islamicfundamentalism is an earthquake" (Wright 15). Ed. Sacred Rage. . . Anti-Semitism is really aWestern export to the Middle East and the product of the protracted Arab-Israeli dispute, which dates back to the Zionist-sponsored immigration ofJews into Palestine in the 192 s and 193 s and the Arabs' bitterfrustration over their defeats by Israel in three wars. During the colonial period, the primary force behind independencemovements was secular nationalism. was a hopeless cause" (146) supressed by colonial andconservative Muslim regimes alike, a process which continued after WorldWar II and into the 197 s. they reproach mainstream Muslims for underestimating the importance of gihad, the armed struggle against unbelief, and for not attaching great value to waging war against the enemies of God. Islamic Fundamentalism in Historical Context Lapidus summarizes the viewpoint of some of the mainstream foundersof Islamic fundamentalists, such as Muhammed Rida (1865-1935) and Taqi al-Nabhani (19 9-1977) and other ideologues, and its leading radicaltheoretician, Hasan al-Banna (19 6-1949), the founder of the MuslimBrotherhood in Egypt in the 192 s: "committed to the fundamentalscriptures of Islam, to the assertion of an Islamic social and politicalidentity, and to the adaptation of Islamic principles to the needs of amodern society" (626). Sidahmed and Anoushiravan Ehteshami. . One of Islam's central tenets is the concept ofjihad, or ghijad, which 13th century Islamic historian Ibn Khaldundescribed as "holy war . [and to] the perceived failures of Western models ofpolitical and economic order, including nationalism and socialism, to solvethe Middle East's problems" (32). 1-18.Taji-Farouki, Suha. Itis difficult, however, to conclude that Islamic fundamentalism isconsistent with the more enlightened facets of the Islamic tradition, norwith any viable concept of political democracy and the protection of humanrights. Muhammad had set the precedent of permitting Jews and Christians in Arabia to keep their religions, if they paid tribute; the Caliphate . Miller regards the fundamentalists' beliefs as antithetical to theconcept of political democracy: Devout Muslims believe that legitimate authority comes from God alone. He says that Islam condemnsneedless violence which is inherent in the nature of man and quotes theKoran: "We [God] led him [man] along two paths and "inspired the soul withwickedness as well as the fear of God" (9 :1 (1 ) & 91:8(8).
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