Human Rights in Islam-Part One

Introduction

Allah distinguished humans with many qualities. “Indeed, we have honored the descendants of Adam, transporting them on lands and sea, given them good things as sustenance and made them superior over many of our creation.” (Holy Quran; 17:70)

Among these honors is to make man a vicegerent on Earth and endow him with the freedom to enjoy its good things and invest it for his life's benefit in the Hereafter, provided that he builds it and establishes justice on it. God Almighty created all humans from a single source: dust and made them multiply from a single male and female. Therefore, the Prophet said there is no superiority of an Arab over a non-Arab or vice versa and no superiority of a red person over a black or vice versa except with piety. This concept, however, differs from the exaggerated concept of absolute equality.

Among the favors conferred on man is to create him in the best mold and commending his parents to give him a good name, and to celebrate his birth. Islam also made it compulsory for his parents to educate him well to prepare him to attain felicity in the temporary life and the Eternal one. Islam also conferred on him many rights from his community.

What is the Islamic Concept of Justice and Equality?

Islam differentiates between justice and equality because it considers justice as an absolute concept, but equality could be relative or absolute. Only when it is relative it can be equivalent to justice.

God created human beings and distinguished some of them with better natural gifts such as intelligence and better chances to acquire gifts such as wealth dedication or sincerity. This distinction is to facilitate the contemporary and competitive relations between the different groups. In the light of the Divine system of accountability, this does not mean the exclusion of justice. Absolute equality is different from justice. Sometimes it contradicts justice.

An example of this is the equality between the diligent and the lazy, the sincere and the insincere, the intelligent and the dull, the father and the son, the teacher and the student, or the citizen and the non-citizen. This is why we have tests and contests, the legal ways of distinction between people. For the same reason, some needed to obey others. Without this arrangement, communities, countries, and the universe cannot survive, regardless of whose perspective it is, secular or religious.

On the other hand, the opportunity for improvement in the innate gifts is limited, but the opportunity for improvement in the acquired gifts is wide open. Nevertheless, in both areas, the more gifts one has, the greater one’s responsibility towards himself and the community at large. Only relative equality can be equivalent to justice because justice means to give everyone what he/she deserves or is suitable for. Just or fair equality is also to judge a person according to his accomplishment or his effort in the light of his innate gifts.

Justice in Islam also means that there should be a sufficient reward and punishment, and a just settlement of the rights between the creatures. Therefore, in Islam, this life is not the whole story, but it is completed by the life in the Hereafter. In this world, the lucky enjoys his luck which he did not create himself; and the diligent would die without receiving his fair reward. The oppressor may not only escape the punishment but enjoy the injustice, and the oppressed may perish without fair compensation.

From this springs the need to devise a fair and comprehensive accounting mechanism where each will receive his deserved punishment unless God forgives him and the diligent receives his rewards multiplied endlessly. In the Hereafter, also the final settlement of the rights between the creatures takes place.

What is the Islamic Concept of Freedom?

Freedom in Islam does not mean absolute freedom of the secular cry. Islam is a realistic religion with a comprehensive perspective. Therefore, freedom in Islam is a relative thing because humans relate to a perfect and gigantic system of natural laws that run the universe with the permission of Allah. God Almighty created the universe and runs it by His direct command (‘be and it will be’) and by the natural laws that He has created. Furthermore, nothing can occur without His permission for He has full control over His creation, and everything that will happen is prerecorded.

Certainly, this does not mean that God destined people to live the way they will live, as some of us like to perceive the concept of fate. Alqadar is a prerecording of what will occur, based on the absolute knowledge of the Creator, which is not limited by time or space nor by the limited senses, as it is in the case of people or other beings.

The freedom of a man is also limited by his responsibility toward his Creator who made him a vicegerent on earth and made many creatures available for him to enjoy and invest for eternal life. This responsibility is based on three special gifts: the gift of thinking, guidance (holy books), and the relative freedom to choose between the causes of imminent results (natural laws).

Man cannot normally free himself from the effect of natural laws. However, he has the choice of neglecting Divine guidance and commands, with the knowledge of God. But then, he must face the consequences of his disobedience. In addition to that, man is chained to his frame of reference: his family, his community, his country, and so on. What applies to the individual applies to the minority, and what applies to any group within a country applies to any country in the international community.

Among the other constraints is that when a person willingly joins a group, to benefit from the membership advantages, he will certainly have to commit himself to their rules, including doing his duties as a member, until the membership expires; otherwise, he will be subject to punishment. Nevertheless, with all these constraints man has a wide range of freedom in many affairs. In addition to the relative freedom to choose between good and evil according to the Divine teachings, he has numerous types of freedom incorporated under the different grades of acceptable or rejected multiplicity.

In Islam, equality means equality of the efforts exerted in the investment of God’s gifts. Multiplicity and diversity are essential factors for human happiness. Without it, there will be no competition that motivates people to exploit nature to its utmost to secure their needs and welfare.

What about Freedom of Speech?

Many Muslims believe that only the political system that is successful in the Western environment is the one that secures happiness for human beings because it guarantees the freedom of speech. However, if we ask a Muslim: Do you want the kind of freedom the West has even though it is likely to be at the expense of happiness in the life hereafter? Most probably, the answer will be No.

But if we mean by freedom of speech the duty of a guided criticism of the misconduct of any member of the community as well as to encourage good conduct, then we can assure that Muslims do not need to export systems that are successful in some alien environments. For in Islam, encouragement of good conduct and discouragement of bad conduct is a religious duty, not a right that a person can give away.

This duty is to be fulfilled and guided by the Islamic teachings which are approved of by most Muslim scholars. It should be performed in a way that makes it an indispensable tool for human welfare to realize its goals. Among the basics of this is to be kind and give a tender reminder. It is also important that the community is steadfast in doing it, encouraging it by providing the required facility for training, securing the right environment for it to flourish, and protecting it from becoming a monopoly.

Taking an example of a family situation, there are no means that better prevent deviation of its members than parents permitting the other family members to express their opinions in the family affairs or expressing their feelings, without the fear of being rebuked or punished.

Even though sometimes, the opinions are not ripe, or the expression is harsh. This is better for the whole family than the parents living in a false world where everything is going properly on the surface and is boiling in darkness. It is better because discrepancies of the open conduct can easily be detected and repaired as opposed to cancer growing unnoticed. 

In other words, the welfare of the whole family should tolerate some evils that are under their eyes than tolerate the danger of hiding greater evils. Anyway, there is no good thing without a proper price.

What about Slavery in Islam?

Slavery was a practice imposed by the international norms at the advent of Islam. This common norm lasted for a long time. Islam had no choice but to act upon it to avoid being weak before its enemies. What confirms this fact I that there are other sources of slavery, such as parents selling their children and hunting free people to sell them, but Islam limited it to prisoners of war only.

Not only that, but Islam also gave the Muslim ruler the choice of freeing captives for nothing or for a ransom for exchanging prisoners. The Holy Quran did not even mention enslaving as a choice. This is because in Islam all people are servants of God Almighty. The only eternally valid criterion in the sight of Allah is piety, sincere love, and fear of the Creator. Therefore, Islam encourages Muslims to treat their slaves well and describes the slaves as the brothers of their masters.

After all, Islam does not consider slavery a natural phenomenon but as an exceptional case, which should be dealt with, carefully balancing between the basic rule and reality. Once a captain is enslaved, he becomes the property of someone. Therefore, he cannot be freed automatically by becoming a Muslim because Islam respects personal property. Even the Prophet (PBUH) had to obtain the permission of the owners to release a captive once he became the property of someone.

Emerging from the above principle, Islam took the necessary steps to eliminate slavery, once the legal source is abolished. It made freeing slaves the first alternative of atonement for many sins. Similarly, it made helping free the slaves a highly recommended act, even by using public funds, and encouraged freeing slaves as a form of charity that brought a great reward in the Hereafter.

Islam also made the emancipation of the slave girl obligatory after the death of her master if she bore him a child. It is worth noting that Islam did not make the emancipation of a slave the only form of atonement for certain sins in anticipation of a day when there would be no slaves. Thus, if Muslims commit themselves to the current principles of the United Nations in this respect, they are not adopting something new but are reverting to the original ruling of Islam on this matter.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Islam emphasizes justice over absolute equality, recognizing that people have different talents and abilities. It grants everyone the opportunity to improve and contribute, but rewards and punishments are based on effort and deeds. Islamic freedom is relative, constrained by natural laws, responsibility to God, and societal roles. Free speech is encouraged for the betterment of the community, guided by Islamic teachings and kindness. While slavery existed when Islam emerged, Islam aimed to eventually eliminate it through various methods like encouraging manumission and treating slaves well. By following these principles, Muslims can ensure a just and balanced society.