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What kind of government do we need?
Those of us who were born during the Zia era or afterwards have heard one demand/pledge/rhetoric depending on who is...
The writer is a development consultant (tazeen.javed@tribune.com.pk)
Those of us who were born during the Zia era or afterwards have heard one demand/pledge/rhetoric depending on who is uttering it, and that is we need an Islamic government. The question is: what is an Islamic government? Is it the Islamic caliphate where one caliph will rule over the entire ummah (global Muslim population)? Is it a government of the Muslims, for the Muslims, by the Muslims? Or is it a government where Shariah law would be implemented?
Have we ever wondered why we have this hankering for something which never existed? Yes, the reality is that there is no precedence of one big caliphate where the entire ummah lived peacefully ever after. It is a myth based on the memory of Islam’s Golden Age and it is carved out of selective memory by certain 19th century political theorists and historians.
The Golden Age is remembered as the period when Islam was practised in its truest form and that’s why Muslims were blessed with material wealth, military power, political clout and cultural dominance.
Ask supporters of a theocratic state to define what constituted the Golden Age of Islam and without fail they will express hostility towards a hegemonic west, Communism, and Israel. A hegemonic and colonial west is 250 years old, communism is a little younger and Israel came into being just 60 odd years ago. Nothing in this timeline coincides with Islam’s glorious past which dates back to the seventh and eighth centuries. Some of them would also say that excessive wealth, extravagance, severe poverty and exploitation were shunned in those truly Muslim societies but even that is factually incorrect.
The reality is that the Muslims were economically and militarily ascendant between the 8th and the 12th centuries but that is because of investment of time, money and energy in scientific research and because individual thought was encouraged. This is in turn led to more scientific breakthroughs and the golden age had little to do with how religion was practiced. If anything, it was a period of extravagance — lavish palaces were built, adventurous military endeavours were undertaken. In fact, much of this wealth was the fruit of the application of scientific methods in production, military, medicine and maritime trading.
The Golden Age of Islam is also remembered as a period of unity among the ummah but that too is not exactly correct. For instance take the case of South Asia where apart from Mohammed Bin Qasim all the invaders came from the northwest. All were Muslim and many fought with local Muslim rulers in what is now Punjab. Later these battles took place in northern India and a good example of that is the Mughals who wrestled for power from the Muslim Kings of the Delhi Sultanate. Similarly, the Fatimids of Egypt were overthrown by the Ayyubids in the 12th century.
Why do we aim for the formation of a theocratic government? Why do we not call for an effective government that actually delivers the essentials like security, employment opportunity and access to health and education? Why can’t we leave it to the individuals to determine the belief and the level of religiosity they want to follow in their personal lives? If we are living in a democracy, we trust the same individuals to participate in representative democracy and form the government by casting their votes and choosing their representatives.
If we can trust people with that, why can’t we trust them to determine their own religious fervour or the level of censorship we want to live with? Why would we want to live in a society with moral policing where one would be told what one can do, see, eat and hear?
Published in The Express Tribune, July 16th, 2010.
Reader Comments (25)
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The golden era had a selection of the caliph in different ways ,but now how will you select ONE.
HAZARAT ABU BAKAR (RA) was selected by the elite in Saqeefa.
HAZARAT UMAR(RA) was nominated by HAZARAT ABU BAKAR(RA)
HAZRAT USMAN (RA) was seleted by a committee of six promiment person
HAZARAT ALI (KAHW) was selected by massesRecommend
Great stuff… I don’t know why people in Pakistan do not understand this basic philosophy. Thanks for writing this. =)Recommend
Its been sixty three years since Pakistan came in to being and we as a nation and a country haven’t been able to decide what our priorities are ,what we are comfortable with. We haven’t been sovereign at any point.
It would continue to be as it is now , until or unless we take charge of what is ours.Recommend
The era between 8th and 12th century includes brutal civil wars, wars over dynastic politics, military coups, peasant revolts, sectarian killings and ethnic voilence.
The islamic empire vastly expanded under the cruel Hajjaj Bin Yusuf who sent Mohammad Bin Qasim ( his nephew and son in law), Kutaiba and Musa Bin Nusayr to conquer Sindh, Turkestan and North Africa respectively. Hajjaj killed over 100,000 men and when he died, 80,000 men were released from his prisons. He even demolished Mecca to suppress Al-zubayr revolt; that year the people couldnt even perform their Haj.
There was no organized education system as such. The few scientists that emerged was a result of their individual effort. They belonged to the rational school of thought which was quickly suppressed by traditional clerics. Most of them were declared heretics and they died in exile e.g Ibn Rushd.Recommend
To the question “What kind of government do we need? The answer is simple ‘Meritocracy‘Recommend
Tazeen has aptly concluded that what we need is an effective government which actually delivers essentials of a comfortable and decent life to citizens based on equity and justice.People must have the right to reject and replace a government which cannot deliver.Democracy may not be a perfect system but it is the best available to mankind to establish a workable contract between the governments and the citizens.I do not see any clash between Islam’s broad principles of social justice and effectiveness of democracy.True,soverignity on earth belongs to Allah but He has to have a viceroy to attend to everyday affairs of mankind.It ultimately ends up with mankind managing their own affairs.Tazeen has rightly pointed out that the record of muslim rulers has been very erratic and inconsistent in providing good governance.Aurangzeb did not miss a single prayer in his life but also did not spare a single brother to occupy the Mughal throne.It is time that we separate affairs of state from our religeous beliefs and rituals.This is what Quaid-e-Azam wanted when he struggled for the creation of Pakistan.We have to save this nation from the Mullahs.Recommend
Tazeen Javed pointed out the flaming questions of generation of her era, in this 20th century, geographical globelization under the UN charter , each country by its population have the sole right to make his political system under a constitution. It is so enough as constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan , it fulfil all basic requirements of a welfare state for its people if the people awaken.All the issues raised in this article highly argued. Its a time now to open eyes and see the ground realities and not the dreams.
SHAFQAT HUSSAIN KHADIM
Associate Prof Islamic Studies
Govt Degree Arts & Commerce
College Korangi-6, KarachiRecommend
Number one: Your conclusions are based on the fact that since this did not work earlier(Islamic theocracy) it is bound to fail again…well that argument can be employed for everything and you make a very bad point…you ideas are an epitomy of a classic fallacy
Number two: you are absloutely right about people having slective memory and you yourself demonstrate that…Who ever said the “golden era” was perfect, flawless….atleast the muslims tried and stood for something
Last but not the least its beautiful how you corelate theocracy with failures of the government of the day…
I suggest you read a little on the object of religion…There’s a deeper meaning attached to it…any religion was the first law of the land and morality is nurtured it doesnt come on its own…Recommend
This article raises important questions. Not all of them can be answered and not all answers can be agreed upon, but some of the questions can be clarified by greater clarity on some of the key words used–to take two, “theocracy” and “caliphate” for example.
Theocracy: government of a state by immediate divine guidance; or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided. (Merriam-Webster; see also the Catholic Encyclopedia.) In mediaeval Christianity, the Universe was seen as a single Realm, with God as its Monarch, ruling over all Mankind (not just Christians), by His two representatives: the Pope, as the ecclesiastical Lord (of all Mankind), and the King, as the temporal Lord (of his earthly domains). This is what immediate Divine guidance means; it was claimed by the Pope, and subsequently by Christian monarchs who contested the Pope by asserting their own their Divine rights (e.g. like Queen Elizabeth II continues to do in modern England). Hence, a theocracy is impossible among (at least sunni) Muslims today–obviously, anyone who claims “immediate divine guidance” would be in deep trouble in the Muslim world!
Caliph: meaning successor, or representative; refering, in the context of this article, to the political successors to the messenger of God (pbuh) — most definitely not the representative of God on earth, as in the Christian tradition (even Wikipedia has this right). The Caliphate refers ideally to the system of governance established by the first four Caliphs in Islam (again, see Wikipedia); hence, obviously, not a theocracy.
As for “hankering for something which never existed”–isn’t this a good thing? A world free of murder–and other evils–has never existed; yet I hope we will be allowed to hanker after a world without these evils? As Oscar Wilde said: “We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” Or as Ghalib wrote in the midst of colonial mayhem:
Recommend
MS. Tazeen, I agree with most of your views. Particularly when you say: “why can’t we trust them to determine their own religious fervour or the level of censorship we want to live with? Why would we want to live in a society with moral policing where one would be told what one can do, see, eat and hear?”
Simply put and very relevant. In this day and age, we should not revert to laws of centuries ago, however good they might have been then. Look around in the world. Nobody is claiming for Christian state, or Hindu state. Even the laws of the single ‘jewish ‘ state are secular. You can even eat pork in Israel, if you so desire. Only Muslims are obsessed with Islamic laws and ‘Islamic’ republics. WE need laws which are relevant today. We need democracy based on economic benefits. We need laws which allow everybody to decide whatever they want in life. As Plato said: we should be free to do everything. Our freedom, however, ends when it interference with other people’s freedom.
When I see other nations who have discarded the role of religion and how they have progressed economically and socially, i feel angry for Pakistan.
In the west you see people freely going to temples, mosques or churches and they all are free and the government treats them equally. All live happily here. This does not make Muslims living here any less pious.Recommend
Caliphate was a manmade system made by the Arab tribals after the Prophet(SAW), it is not mentioned in Quran, it served it’s purpose at the time and now it’s no more as society and people have naturally evovled and chosen other forms of governance to suit their needs. That’s how the world works. It’s time to move forward….reverse gear is not going to make life any easier for Muslims.Recommend
We have seen Democracy, Controlled Democracy, Martial Law, Dictatorship of the Elected etc; however we have not yet tested the concept given by Plato. Which gives the concept of the Utopian Aristocrats managing the government.
Since we do not have the time to go through the defined process of selecting and grooming such aristocrats [required to be regimented since birth.], we should innovate the process by selecting them.
I sure that our nation is not so bankrupt, that it cannot list down a hundred names who are sincere, intellectually honest and are health wise fit to give five years of their time for the exalted goal.
If we cannot make the list to 100, the possibilities to import expatriate Pakistanis and foreigners can also be considered.Recommend
@arshad zaman.sir,You have done well to clarify the two important terms(theocracy and caliph) used in this discussion.But your mention of Queen Elizbeth 11 of England in this context is a bit misleading.Whatever her ceremonial and technical status she is neither the ecclesiastical nor the temporal lord of England in actual fact.As you know British Parliment is the ultimate authority in matters of state.The clergy have no say in political matters.
Another point which needs to be emphasised is :what should be the basis and source of morality? I fail to understand why do I need directions from a supernatural authority to be a good person?Recommend
…….Sorry ,Islam is not just a religion ..its a way to live a life . your articles is baseless ……Islam is our ideology …Before giving statement or writing an article , a person must study Quran and Hadith …….
Your most sincere
AliRecommend
@ali.True Islam is a way of life,an ideology.But where is the consensus about this ideology? Why is it emerging,all over the world,in all shapes of dictatorships?Why is there decline and misery in the Muslim world? Ali might say because we are not acting on this ideology?Are,then,there some problems of practicability? And how does democracy contradict the ideology of Islam?
The Quran and Hadith emphasise social justice,care for the common man,accountability and a system of government conforming to the great precedents established by the Holy Prophet(PBUH) in his day-to-day life.How many rulers like Umar bin Abdul Aziz did we have in Muslim history?And how many of them we have now?
Let’s be good Muslims but let’s run our affairs under a political system which delivers.Recommend
We won’t get the kind of government for ever we need.
What we need is a person whose actions should be similar to Tun Dr. Mahatir Bin Mohamad, who served Malaysia for almost 40 years from 1964 to 2003 in different capacities.
Between 1981 to 2003 Mr. Mahatir served as Prime Minister of Malaysia and took Malaysia to the heights where a progressing country can reach under the true leadership of a sincere person.
I do not think that there is any one capable in the country in the present lot of politicians who can change the fate of Pakistan.
To make Pakistan similar to Malaysia, we need a major operation clean up in every walk of life. Then only Pakistan can prosper, otherwise it will go down with each passing day.Recommend
democracy is the idea given by Quran . but what democracy is …..democracy is not a system it’s an attitude of ruler ……if you call current dictatorship ( in Pakistan ) as democracy …then its against the spirit of democracy ….There was no senate or Parliament in the rein of Hazrat umer bin abdul aziz …there was a majlis-e-shora………and that was democracy…………and BTW Islam has given a concept of theo-democracy ( theocracy and democracy )
Nizam-e-padshai ho k jamhoori tamasha ho
juda ho deen siasat sai tu reh jaati hai changezi ( BAL-e-Gabriel ) Allama iqbal …
hope i have answered your questionRecommend
@ali.No you have not answered my question.In fact,you have muddled up the situation further.And when you quote Iqbal it shows you are short of a reasonable argument.Deen combined with siasat have been responsible for a lot of changezi in our history.
When I was talking about democracy I was not talking about Zardari/Gilani /Nawaz Sharif democracy.We all know what democracy really is.Don’t please say that democracy is the attitude of a ruler.In a true democracy the system takes precedence over a particular ruler.The rulers come and go but the system stays.A legend like Margret Thathcer could be replaced by an average politician like John Major.Nehrus can be replaced by Shastris and Manmohan Singhs.
Theo-democracy is a new concept and you get the credit for this great invention.I really do not know whether they can merge and mix well.Please do tell me one thing:Why can’t I be a good person without dirctions from a supernatural authority?Recommend
tazeen:
without any scientific basis i would say the following:
the masses would not care two hoots which system guarantees and delivers the following:
clean drinking water
law and order
education opportunities
employment
freedom to worship, or not to worship
access to health care
etc. etc.Recommend
Tazeen! Not democratic indeed!Recommend
Very Nice Article Tazeen , The Reality when it come to any Political or Governing Structure it all has to be of Public’s Beneficial as we are confused about the Khilafat as well , I dont care if People like this or not but no one knows what was Political Structure Khilafat wa,s but one thing is Clear its Governing Authorities had the motive of Positive Public and social contribution , As far as Today is Concerned I wont say we need a Marxist Ideology that might Turn Leninism but we need to adopt some constructive subjects of Marxism or i should say Marxism in a Positive Manner ….
ThanksRecommend
Assalam-o-Allaikum Warahmatullah.American interference in the key issues of Pakistan is the most burning question has been now-a-days and every time our present leadership claims that our external policies are purely and truly independent and we are sovereign in our decisions but whenever our leadership starts peace talks with Taliban or any Jihadi group USA rejects these peace talks and our leaders set strong terms and conditions for peace talks with them.Brook one day said that sanctions against Iran will not affect Pakistan-Iran Gas Pipeline project but on the second day He said that Pakistan-Iran Gas Pipeline project may be effected after the sanctions on Iran and our leaders bowed down their knees before USA orders.Pakistani government must be free from any fear in her decisions either external or internal of any kind especially like Iran.Our leadership must sincere and honest for the country and for the nation as well.Our leaders shouldn’t use Article 248 for their protection and must follow the Articles 62 and 63.Recommend
Separating religion from politics could be the biggest favour to our religion. When people talk of Islam and politics going together it was the golden era of islam where the caliph considered himself responsible for a starving dog. Now in the mosques religious parties ask vote in the name of Islam and when given a chance (MMA case) they pursue their selfish ends making a mockery of religious principles. The biggest service to Islam today would be to ban the name of Islam in politics and ban political speeches in the mosques.Recommend
I would always bet my money on a democratic setup which believes in liberal and secular values.Recommend
i think now we will end up no where because Islam, tell you the right way which is controlled democracy and “NOT ONE MAN ONE VOTE” rather it is the people of the opinion (AHLULRAAIE).Recommend