Islam for Muslims
- THE FAITH OF MUSLIMS
- GOOD DEEDS IN PERSONAL LIFE
- GOOD DEEDS IN SOCIAL LIFE
Islamic Governance: Legality, Potentials & Problems
45: ISLAMIC GOVERNANCE: LEGALITY, POTENTIALS & PROBLEMS
Introduction: The issue of Islamic governance tends to be controversial among people both inside and outside of Islam. An independent and factual approach to addressing this issue is now attempted below:
(A) Legality: In order to examine the legality of Islamic politics, the following 3 methods need to be applied: (1) searching for documentary evidences (2) looking into the practices of the Prophet (pbuh) and (3) applying common sense or logical method.
(1) Documentary Evidences: If you go through the pages of the Quran or the six most reliable Hadith, you will not find any sentence or even word which clearly or obscurely, directly or indirectly condemns or bans Islamic politics. On the other hand, these original documents record some written evidences which are clear enough as approval for Islamic government. God affirmed to have sent the Quran as the “judgment of authority in Arabic” so you can “(accordingly) judge between people” and warned “if anyone fails to judge (between them) by what God has revealed (therein), they are the unbelievers" (13:37; 4:105; 5:44). These verses obviously do not lack any clarity in the meaning that Islamic politics is not only allowed but is also mandated. Thus by searching through original documents, you can be 100% doubtless on the legality of Islamic governance.
(2) Practical Traditions: Not only by means of theoretical provisions, but also through practical application, Islam provides a strong legal basis for Islamic governance. Historically, God had never been out of favor with religious basis of benevolent government as He “strengthened the kingdom of (David)” (38:20) and also bestowed legendary kingdom to his son Solomon. You cannot come across any historian or Islamic critic who can deny or dispute the historical fact that the Prophet founded an Islamic State at Medina and governed it as top executive until his death in 632 A.D. Likewise, there is none who knew of him saying that Islamic politics was legal only for him and illegal for those who come after him. Instead, he wanted his followers to continue his tradition of Islamic government or Caliphate and this was exactly what his four immediate pious successors (Caliphs) did. If Islamic politics were ever illegal or haram, he would have never practiced that and anything that he did practice arguably is not only legal but also an act of piety as ‘sunnah’.
(3) Logical Method: Now we turn to the common sense or logical method to further confirm the above findings. In political science, a government is a body that governs people within a state. In view of its pivotal role for keeping society from sliding into lawlessness, the importance of government as an institution can never be overstated. What may cause a particular government look bad is not for its being a government but the lower quality of its ruling or dealing with its people. If a party takes over power lawfully and as long it governs fairly, then there is no point for labeling it illegal.
Since Islam does not support anyone or any party taking over government through illegal means and it requires any party in position to govern in a manner the Prophet did, an Islamic government cannot be legally called illegal by reading only its title, without judging its potential merits. In fact, integration between pure religion and clean politics is deeply rooted in Islamic tradition.
(B) Potentials: The high end potentials of a government in promoting any particular religion can be seen from an external example of 15th century Spanish Catholic queen Isabella. In short life of 53 years, she succeeded in sending Columbus to discover South America and fashion it as a largest Catholic continent. By contrast, historically many anti-Islamic governments bulldozed Islamic movement by shuttering mosques, arresting Muslim activists, curbing religious rights etc. These contrasting examples point to the fact that an ideal Islamic state is not only a legal entity, but it also does have enormous potentials to promote Islam and help the Muslims. In fact, the true model of such state, which is hard to find in the modern world, was the one run by the Prophet in compliance with the Quranic ideals. Now we try to figure out the potential roles that such a model state can play toward goodness of humanity and service of Islam.
(1) Welfare of People: An Islamic state can make its impacts felt in every aspect of public life through its numerous benevolent provisions. Economically, for example, if your income falls short of your spending for basic needs, that budget gap will be covered through an extensive social safety net mainly paid out of state run ‘zakat’ fund. Socially and politically, justice and order will take hold under effect of fair judicial (legal) system coupled with compliance with rigorous Islamic penal code. Needless to say, such exemplary punishment might seem cruel to a few offenders but that will fill the majority of people with such a sense of security that they, as for example, can safely go to mosque leaving behind their shops open, like in Saudi Arabia. Internationally, an Islamic state is supposed to provide humanitarian assistance to worldwide suffering people in general and Muslims in particular and work for just causes on any global issues like global warming, relief for disaster victims etc.
Thus, an Islamic state aims to advance the cause of humanity in compliance with the theories of the Quran and Hadith as well as the practices of the early Islamic leaders. For example, the Prophet and his 4 following Caliphs used to live a very simple life (like eating simple and sleeping humbly on mat of date leaves etc.) with intention of taking less as salary (if they had to) from treasury in order to save and spend more on public services. Second Caliph Umar set historic examples of a welfare government by (a) claiming that he would be accountable on the Day of Judgment if any residents of his country die of hunger due to his negligence; (b) spying undercover on the financial condition of his people and carrying food on his own shoulder for his hungry residents; (b) sharing rides on camel back with his own servant on desert journey.
(2) Service to Islam: Service to Islam through both promotion of virtues and prevention of vices ultimately helps the causes of both morality and humanity. Compared to individual or local community efforts, these twin goals can be better achieved by an Islamic government, with all the law enforcing men and materials at its disposal.
Examples: Now we provide an account of some possible ways an Islamic government can make positive contributions. For example, such government can:
(i) introduce benevolent institutions like Islamic court of justice, zakat charity fund, fair inheritance law etc.
(ii) ensure a comprehensive package of rights for everyone (Muslims and non-Muslims) and provide worship facilities in public buildings.
(iii) circulate scholars nationwide to explain Islam properly and pervasively;
(iv) engage the state head (Caliph) in religious sermons (at mass prayers or elsewhere) as an easy means of reaching out to people through mass media, with strong appeal under weight of his personality.
(v) fight social crimes with minimum risk of resistance from vested interests.
(vi) protest brutal massacre of innocent people anywhere and provide refuges to them.
Obviously, these are great helps for Islam, which the Muslims hardly can provide at personal level. Thus an Islamic State is known as the 'powerful vehicle’ of Islam.
(3) Divine Blessings: An Islamic government is likely to be a magnet for divine blessings by bringing Islamic principles into full play and enabling the Muslims to "enter into Islam whole-heartedly"(2:208). This is why, when the Prophet reached the height of his mission through founding an Islamic State at Medina, it is only then God addressed him, "This day I have perfected your religion for you and completed my favor upon you and chosen for you Islam as your religion" (5:3). This means that the Muslims will have easier access to divine blessings if they can achieve perfection by setting up Islam at the national level.
Built-in Factors: Now let us have a look at how some factors built in Islamic governance can contribute to the prosperity of Muslims.
(i) Strict legal code will drive crime rate down and establish social peace and order as a necessary condition for economic growth.
(ii) The economy will benefit from application of the ruling “God permitted business and forbidden usury” (2:275). Accordingly, the present success of the interest-free Islamic banking is likely to pick up speed in a more favorable environment of Islamic finance.
(iii) The anti-poverty program of compulsory charity (zakat) aims to put in more cash in the pocket of the poor who will then rush to buy more of consumer goods produced by big business. Such high demand will solve the problem of unsold goods as the root cause of slow business problems (like recession and depression) typical in a capitalist economy.
(iv) The policy of Islamic governance to replace vices with virtues is likely to “open out to people (all kinds of) blessings from heaven and earth” (7:96). In reality this means God may “pour down from the sky abundant (measured) rain” necessary for farm produce (11:52). Simultaneously, He also can keep the earth productive of bumper crops through provisions of natural fertility and safety from calamities like drought, locusts etc. You may remember how the Prophet’s prayer for rainwater through special prayer (Isteska) met with instant divine response through downpour from the sky.
(C) Problems from False Propaganda:
In spite of its vast potentials and bottomless merits, an Islamic State often shies away from implementation due to its lower measure of popularity and higher level of political opposition. It faces widespread criticisms such as fundamentalism, extremism etc. Obviously, such criticisms are applicable to the distorted variety of so-called Islamic State(s) and not the genuine one set up by the Prophet.
(1) Distorted Examples: Some governments belonging to Muslim nations are sometimes labeled as Islamic government but they do not follow Islam properly or completely. These governments deviate from a true model of Islamic government not only by (i) gaining access to powers illegally (e.g. using force, violence, coup d’etat, corrupting elections etc.) but also by (ii) exercising powers in un-Islamic manner (e.g. applying favoritism, terrorism, minority repression etc.). They violate the Quranic mandate of “judging between people under (fair) guidance of God” (4:105). Such governments are not worth the title of an Islamic state, because a Muslim by violating Islam does not remain truly Islamic any more. These examples are, however, showcasing a false notion about how an Islamic State could be, overshadowing the identity of a true Islamic State. Such distortion provides ammunition to those who are engaged in propaganda campaign against Islam. In order to step back from harming Islam in this way, the so-called Muslim states should either adopt full character of an ideal Islamic state or drop their misguiding title 'Islam' or ‘Muslim’.
(2) Political Propaganda: Ordinarily, anti-Islamic leaders tend to do everything possible to keep the Islamic leaders from taking over power even if that means arresting, torturing or even killing them. Side by side, they also grease their propaganda machine to paint the Islamic govt. black and keep their people in the dark about its merits. Metaphorically, they are like some night birds (e.g. bat) who are scared about the daylight, in this case the light of truth and justice embedded in Islamic politics. Accordingly, they spread all negatives about government in general that only applies to their own distorted brand of politics and have nothing to do with perfect version of Islamic government. They promote the idea of separating religion from government, which they make impure by their own corrupt rules, sharply different from Islamic politics. However, God warned you “not to be an advocate for those who breach trust” like the modern governments (4:105). Despite propaganda from the dealers of modern politics, there is no reasonable justification for launching opposition to an Islamic party so long it aims to participate in a peaceful process of democratic transition to power through popular verdict and is committed to ruling fairly after gaining power.
(3) Adverse Public Opinion: Influenced by the propaganda of their leaders, common people can also develop a bad notion about Islamic government. This is because they probably never read the relevant pages from Islamic history in order to factually know about how the Islamic rule of the Prophet compares with the administration they now live under. In fact, the governed people have nothing to worry about from an Islamic government. For example, an average Muslim will not meet any force in respect of prayer, since the command of God "Let there be no compulsion in religion" (2:256) stands supreme over any other rulings. The difference will only be made through provisions of incentives and facilities for practicing religion. When it comes to abstinence from sinful actions, they will make some lighter sacrifices in exchange for rare but huge benefits from crime-free society. The non-Muslims will be left completely alone in their religious observance, and their other rights will also remain untouched.
Conclusion: Obviously, a true model of Islamic governance has nothing to make you worry about; instead it has potentials to bring a world of benefits to the society.