For me the word radicals is inappropriate and should have been fundamentalist,
and moderates should have been liberals.
Radicals sounds like is a wild behavior more towards blind/misguided
understanding of issues, where else fundamentalist making sure that this does
not deviate from its original forms/pillars of knowledge.
Most liberals will not hasitate to change/mix fundemantals of Islam.
Being moderate is one of the essence in Islam.
I seek refuge by Allah, from Satan the disgraced.
In the name of Allah, most merciful, most passionate.
[31.19] "Dan sederhanakanlah langkahmu semasa berjalan, juga rendahkanlah
suaramu (semasa berkata-kata), sesungguhnya seburuk-buruk suara ialah suara
keldai".
[25.67] Dan juga mereka (yang diredhai Allah itu ialah) yang apabila
membelanjakan hartanya, tiadalah melampaui batas dan tiada bakhil kedekut; dan
(sebaliknya) perbelanjaan mereka adalah betul sederhana di antara kedua-dua
cara (boros dan bakhil) itu.
[17.110] Katakanlah (wahai Muhammad): "Serulah nama " Allah" atau nama
"Ar-Rahman", yang mana sahaja kamu serukan (dari kedua-dua nama itu adalah baik
belaka); kerana Allah mempunyai banyak nama-nama yang baik serta mulia". Dan
janganlah engkau nyaringkan bacaan doa atau sembahyangmu, juga janganlah engkau
perlahankannya, dan gunakanlah sahaja satu cara yang sederhana antara itu.
[5.89] Kamu tidak dikira salah oleh Allah tentang sumpah-sumpah kamu yang tidak
disengajakan (untuk bersumpah), akan tetapi kamu dikira salah olehNya dengan
sebab sumpah yang sengaja kamu buat dengan bersungguh-sungguh. Maka bayaran
dendanya ialah memberi makan sepuluh orang miskin dari jenis makanan yang
sederhana yang kamu (biasa) berikan kepada keluarga kamu, atau memberi pakaian
untuk mereka, atau memerdekakan seorang hamba. Kemudian sesiapa yang tidak
dapat (menunaikan denda yang tersebut), maka hendaklah ia berpuasa tiga hari.
Yang demikian itu ialah denda penebus sumpah kamu apabila kamu bersumpah. Dan
jagalah - peliharalah sumpah kamu. Demikianlah Allah menerangkan kepada kamu
ayat-ayatNya (hukum-hukum ugamaNya) supaya kamu bersyukur.
[35.32] Kemudian Kami jadikan Al- Quran itu diwarisi oleh orang-orang yang Kami
pilih dari kalangan hamba-hamba Kami; maka di antara mereka ada yang berlaku
zalim kepada dirinya sendiri (dengan tidak mengindahkan ajaran Al-Quran), dan
di antaranya ada yang bersikap sederhana, dan di antaranya pula ada yang
mendahului (orang lain) dalam berbuat kebaikan dengan izin Allah. Yang demikian
itu ialah limpah kurnia yang besar (dari Allah semata-mata).
SodaqAllahul'Adzim
ﻡﻠﻋﺍﷲﺍﻮ
ﻪﺘﺎﻜﺮﺒﻮﷲﺍﺔﻤﺤﺭﻮﻡﻜﻴﻠﻋﻢﻼﺴﻠﺍﻮ
Hizamri
----- Original Message ----- From: umm waheedah
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Sunday, July 02, 2006 3:15 PM
Subject: [al-Falaah] Fwd: Moderates versus the Radicals: Democracy and Freedom
versus Islam?
--- In [EMAIL PROTECTED], "DDN" wrote:
Moderates versus the Radicals: Democracy and Freedom versus
Islam?
By Yamin Zakaria
London, UK
The moderates ask: Is Islam compatible with democracy and freedom?
The radicals ask: Is democracy and freedom compatible with Islam?
So what's the difference? The difference is in the ordering of the
words - that determines which notion (Islam or freedom and
democracy) is used as the reference point. That will be taken as the
axiom to evaluate other idea(s). Therefore, the moderates use
democracy and freedom as the yardstick to judge Islam, but the
radicals take, Islam as the reference point to judge democracy and
freedom. Let us first elucidate some of these terms, before
examining the aforementioned questions.
According to the experts, 'democracy' and 'freedom' have a symbiotic
relationship; one cannot function without the other. Indeed, it is
very difficult to visualise free election without adequate level of
freedom. Without this freedom, it would be difficult for the masses
to exercise their voices and votes. Hence, freedom is an essential
prerequisite for democracy. From now on, we will assume that stating
freedom will automatically imply democracy and vice versa.
The label of 'moderate' or 'radical' is attributed to: how liberal
or how strict, one interprets the Islamic texts. Liberal
interpretations are naturally assessed by, how compliant it is to
liberal values. Note, what precedes the method (liberal or strict)
of interpreting Islamic text is the mindset acquired in the first
place. It is this mindset that determines who is a radical and who
is a moderate. Since the moderate-mindset is a recent trend, it
would be fair to assume that the original group was a monolithic
one, without moderates, and they formed the radical camp.
Now the question is: what are the reasons for the development of
this moderate-mindset? The main cause is the intense pressure
emanating from a hostile environment/media, usually coupled with
their ignorance of, Islam and/or the political situation.
Consequentially, a typical moderate-mindset is defeated and
apologetic. It is this defeated mindset that causes the moderates to
scream at the freedom fighters, instead of the aggressors in
Palestine and Iraq. The handicapped moderates call for peace while a
violent armed robber occupies their house! With a defeated mindset,
instead of refuting the hostile criticisms they accept it at face
value. In their naiveté, the moderates attempt to silence the
criticisms by adopting the solution provided by the same critics.
Thus, we see the ubiquitous topic of the 'moderates reforming
Islam', so that it is compatible to democracy and freedom.
Here is the pertinent question on reformation: if Islam is
reinterpreted (reformed) to be compliant with democracy and freedom,
then what reasons do we have to adhere to Islam in the first place.
In that case why not simply adopt the original version of democracy
and freedom? If you are offered with a choice between an original
IBM computer and a Taiwanese IBM compatible clone with a similar
specification, which would you pick? Also, if the two (Islam,
democracy and freedom) are compatible that should be self-evident.
Those undertaking such a mission are testifying by their own action
that the two are incompatible and thus the need to reform one to
make it compatible to the other. Hence, the exercise of reformation
is irrational and dishonest from the onset.
Islamic text is too well narrated for it to be altered, thus the
immediate target is reforming the Muslims, their perception and
ideas of Islam. This attempt to induce reformation within Muslims is
the intellectual onslaught that is part of the 'war on terror
(Islam)'. We see hateful apostates, lesbians, to university
professors with Muslim heritage promoting this common theme
of 'reforming Islam'. These individuals are given inordinate amount
of resources and media publicity to poison the minds of Muslims and
non-Muslims. Accordingly, they argue that the problem is the alleged
misrepresentation of Islam by the radicals that is what makes Islam
look incompatible with democracy and freedom.
Is it simply down to interpretation now? Surely, the basic core
values of any ideology must be permanent and fixed, not subjected to
arbitrary interpretations. Is it a coincidence that the Islamic
topics that are subjected to interpretations are those under attack
from the hostile media? So, no call for reforming the Islamic
rituals like prayers and fasting, but plenty of enthusiasm for
reforming the ideas of, Jihad, Islamic State, Penal Codes etc.
Even the self-appointed foreign leaders are demanding that Muslims
should adopt freedom and democracy. In a recent speech, George Bush
bluntly stated that: freedom will reign from Damascus to Tehran.
This is not a prediction or a prophecy but a veiled threat. What
Bush really means - freedom will reign from Tehran to Damascus
whether you like it or not! Of course, he cannot state that openly;
because freedom and democracy is suppose to emanate from within and
not through war, invasions and external imposition. If the
propaganda, diplomacy, sanctions fails to achieve the result of
bringing a US friendly democracy into the region, US firepower will
be the next option. Now we understand why they say Iraq is the test
case.
Let us now examine the view of the radical camp. For them Islam is
the yard-stick to judge, democracy and freedom. They are going to
pose the question: is democracy and freedom compatible to Islam. We
can gauge the compatibility, by examining some of the similar
elements between Islam and democracy. If these similar elements fail
to make the case, then we do not need to examine the distinguishing
elements between the two ideological adversaries.
a) There are aspects of democracy like election that are not
alien to Islam. However, elections held in the capitalist democracy
are usually farcical, where the choices have already been made for
the masses. Theoretically anyone can compete, but in reality, only
those that have the backing of the big businesses can seriously
enter the election race. In the Islamic state, elections would be
driven by the ability of the individual where anyone can compete
subjected to fulfilling the Sharia rules (Islamic laws); the role of
business in the way of 'donation' would be kept out of the equation,
enabling the ordinary individuals to contest the elections. Hence,
election has a totally different meaning in Islam in comparison to
democracy.
b) Another element that is allegedly similar that
exists in Islam and democracy is the 'rule of law'. However divine
legislations cannot be changed but man made rules can! The head of
Islamic State (Khalif) cannot suddenly dispense with the Sharia
codes in dealing with its non-Islamic populations. The Khalif cannot
suddenly put the non-Muslims subjects (Dhimmis) into concentration
camps, like the American-Japanese were subjected to after Perl
Harbour. Nor can the Khalif suddenly decide to dispense with the due
process of law by rounding up non-Muslims and hold them indefinitely
without charge. The only possible way to do such things is for the
Khalif to not apply Islam.
c) The final example is the issue of freedom. Freedom
is shaped by the laws and values of a particular nation and it will
vary from nation to nation. Therefore, the claim that Islam provides
freedom like the type found in a liberal paradigm is baseless. Take
the issue of marriage, a Muslim male may be free to engage in
polygamy in an Islamic state but not in most liberal democracies. No
Muslim can legally engage in extra-marital relationships that are
permitted in liberal democracy. There are numerous other examples to
illustrate the fundamental differences in the notion of freedom.
In fact the notion of freedom is dishonest and misleading. Once you
curtail freedom by imposing laws, freedom no longer exists. Indeed,
where is the freedom when one is asked to obey certain laws, and
punishments are prescribed for breaking those laws? The essential
message of Islam is submission to the creator in every aspect of
your life by curtailing ones freedom. This submission is not left to
the wishes of the individuals, but for the entire collective society
to enforce via a political system (The Khilafah).
Some of the moderates confuse freewill with freedom. The former is
about physical ability, and the latter is about legal permit. We
have the freewill, i.e. the physical capability to accept or reject
any message. In contrast freedom is referring to the legal limits in
terms of rights and responsibilities, within a society,
where 'freedom' only exists within those boundaries. Any citizen of
any country is physically bound to obey the laws of that country or
face the consequences. For them, 'freedom' exists within the
parameters of the laws in place, where as they have the freewill to
disobey and face the consequences.
It should suffice that even elements that are supposed to be
identical between Islam and democracy/freedom are not. Do I really
need to state the differences to make my case? Anyone with an
impartial mind should see that: freedom and democracy is the chalk
and Islam in comparison is the cheese!
June 29, 2006
Copyright © 2006 by Yamin Zakaria
Yamin Zakaria (www.iiop.org) is an IT professional and writes
in his spare time. The IIOP is a UK based, online think-tank and
research organization that undertakes timely and critical analyses
of major economic, political, and social issues that affect the
Muslim world.
----------------------------------------------------------
-----------
The opinions expressed herein contain positions and viewpoints that
are not necessarily those of the disseminator of the information.
These are offered as a means to stimulate dialogue and discussion.
.
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