International Law Based on Religious CodesIslam as a Case StudyUnlocking the ConundrumThursday, May 9th 2013

By: Mr. Zouhair El Aouni

Literature Review

Islam embodies, it is claimed, a “world in which human life doesn’t have the same value as it does in the West, in which freedom, democracy, openness and creativity are alien”, Benny Morris.

“Islam is the only cultural system that regularly seems to produce people like Osama bin Laden or the Taliban who reject modernity lock, stock and barrel”, Francis Fukuyama.

“Islam's borders are bloody and so are its innards. The fundamental problem for the West is not Islamic fundamentalism. It is Islam, a different civilization whose people are convinced of the superiority of their culture and are obsessed with the inferiority of their power.”, Samuel P. Huntington

Harvard recognizes the Quranic Verse as Harvard recognizes the Quranic Verse as one of the greatest expressions of justiceone of the greatest expressions of justice

Sources of the Islamic Law

The Holy Quran: accepted universally by all Musilims The Sunna/Hadith: It consists of the religious actions

and quotations of the Islamic Prophett Muhammad and narrated through his Companions.

Consensus:The ijma‘ amongst Muslim jurists on a particular legal issue,

Analogical Reason: Qiyas is the process of legal deduction according to which the jurist, confronted with an unprecedented case, bases his or her argument on the logic used in the Qur'an and Sunnah.

Understanding Human Rights (1)Understanding Human Rights (1)

The concept of human rights emerged only in the modern era. The idea of human dignity has prominent roots as early as the third century before the Common Era in Stoic

philosophy; and the principle of the "rule of law" became binding in various medieval documents, namely the

Magna Carta of 1215.

Islam as Opposed to Muslim Practices

Those skeptical about the compatibility of Islam with universal

human rights often point to conditions in Islamic countries as evidence that the religion itself is partly responsible for

human rights violations.

Understanding Human Rights (2)Understanding Human Rights (2)

A historic breakthrough was achieved in the late eighteenth century in the "Virginia Declaration of Rights" of 1776 and the "declaration des droits de l'homme et du citoyen" of 1789. The adoption of human rights in international law gelled even later, after the Second World War. Hence, it is fair to say that human rights are a genuinely modern phenomenon. The turning point was undoubtedly the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a declaration adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 1948.

The Universal Islamic Declaration of Human Rights

• The Universal Islamic Declaration of Human Rights is a document created by Islamic Councils in Paris and London. It restates basic human rights using the language of Islamic jurisprudence. The difference between the original Arabic version and the official English translation has been described as "very problematic.“

Areas of Conflicts

Universal human rights are based on a secular philosophy while the rights in Islam, like other religions, are divine-based. Therefore, while the source of legitimization is different, the theme is the same.

While the roots of Islam go back to the sixth century, the concept of human rights surfaced in 18th-century Western Europe and has only been an issue in world politics for around 50 years. Thus no one can expect Islamic law, formulated centuries ago to protect human rights in the terms of present day instruments. Moreover, human rights standards change with time according to human needs and interests. The conceptualization and wording might be different but the target is the same: to protect human honor and dignity.

Common Denominators

As the modern human rights movement is based on the notion that all human beings are equal in worth, regardless of gender, religion or race, numerous verses of the Quran speak of honor and dignity for 'humankind' and 'the children of Adam also without any distinction. Allah states in the Holy Quran:

“ O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted”Chapter (49) sūrat l-ḥujurāt (The Dwellings)

General Rights in Islam (1)

Right to Life: The Qur'an upholds the sanctity and absolute value of human life and points out that, in essence, the life of each individual is comparable to that of an entire community and, therefore, should be treated with the utmost care.

• Right to Respect: The Qur'an deems all human beings to be worthy of respect. Human beings can exercise freedom of the will because they possess the rational faculty, which is what distinguishes them from all other creatures. The Qur'an declares that they have been made "in the best of moulds", having the ability to think, to have knowledge of right and wrong, to do the good and to avoid the evil.

General Rights in Islam (2)

Right to Freedom: In the context of the human right to exercise religious freedom, it is important to mention that the Qur'anic dictum, "Let there be no compulsion in religion" [37] applies not only to non- Muslims but also to Muslims. While those who renounced Islam after professing it and then engaged in "acts of war" against Muslims were to be treated as enemies and aggressors, the Qur'an does not prescribe any punishment for non-profession or renunciation of faith. The decision regarding a person's ultimate destiny in the hereafter rests with God.

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