Date: 28/07/2022
DEMOCRACY?
- By Khalid Umar
Do you know that the largest body of MUSLIMS living in a functioning democracy is INDIA, which is almost 11% of the total Muslims in the world.
None of the 57 OIC countries is truly a secular democracy. The reason is that Islam’s ethos is not democratic. Islam originated from tribal background. Since its inception, all the decision making relied on brute power, exercised through powerful warlords. Historically, succession in Islamic rule has been through treachery, poison, sword, gallows, assassinations or coups.
Therefore the society which Islam creates is not fit for democracy, socially and intellectually. If you look at their history, all their Islam’s heroes were dictators and warriors; The barbarian invaders like Khalid Ibn Walid, Tariq Bin Ziyad, Salahuddin Ayubi, Ghauri, Mahmud Ghaznavi, Mohamad Bin Qasim, Allauddin Khilji, Tamerlene (Taimur). They name their children on these medieval barbarians.
In Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Political parties are banned. Indonesia with 231 Million Muslims (13% of the world’s Muslims) has been a dictatorship till 1998. Although on paper a democracy it’s a ‘Demagoguery With a Mix of Theocracy’ and its democratic indicators are in recession. Pakistan has been under military rule since partition. Bangladesh has been vitiating between martial law, theocracy, Mullahs and never been fully and truly functional secular democracy.
WHY DEMOCRACY IS INCOMPATIBLE WITH ISLAM
There is no other faith in which the prophet wields so much of power that obedience to Muhammad supersedes even that of Allah. Islamic societies need aeons of evolution and paradigm shift before they are ready to embrace the concept of one man-one vote. They are less troublesome when ruled by despotic rulers. Democracy does not fit them. Qaddafi, Hafizul Asad, Shah of Iran, Gemal Nasser, Anwar Sadat, Idi Emin, Ayub Khan, Yahya, Houari Boumediene, King Zahir Shah, Saleh of Yemen, Sadam, all are examples of dictators in the last 50 years in Libya, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Algiers, Uganda, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen etc. These countries were controlled, generally peaceful and no proliferation of jihad as long as despots ruled them. They are worse off now after US/Western intervention to introduce Democracy.
Islam is a political regime which establishes autocracy in the name of Allah who is the sovereign and the right to rule (as per Quran) rests with those who are powerful among the populace. Today we call it as Martial Law where heads are not to be counted (but chopped). Muslims vie for a central authority in their civil structure; an assembly of oligarchs, a military junta, few powerful lords, etc. Majority of Muslims tend to live ‘happily’ in despotic and non-democratic countries or monarchies.
MUSLIMS is India will always be unhappy and dissatisfied with India’s Democracy as they can’t value freedom of speech, liberty of expression and equality as a citizens as this has never been the ethos of Islam’s 14 centuries.
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