Human Rights and Islam

History of Human Rights

Nuremburg War Crimes Trials 1945-1946
Prosecuted for crimes against humanity

United Nations: The preamble of the charter of the

UN reaffirms faith in fundamental human rights.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights:

December 10, 1948

International Bill of Human Rights: Completed

in 1966 and is composed of Universal Declaration,
Covenant of civil and political rights and Covenant of
economic, social and cultural rights.

International Bill of Human Rights

Problem with IBHR- it is a resolution and not a treaty.

Many
nations signed, but no nation is required to adhere to or enforce these
rights
Equality of rights without discrimination
Life, liberty, security of persons
Protection against cruel and unusual punishment
Recognition as a person before law AND equal protection of law
Freedom of thought, conscience, religion, opinion, expression, press,
assembly and association
Health care and social services
Education
Self determination

Definition of Human Rights

Legal vs. Moral rights
Legal: claims, privileges, powers, immunities- any right protected by law
Moral: any right claimed or justified by reference to some set of moral
rules

Two English definitions of the word right

Right vs. Wrong
Right as an entitlement.

Western Definition: Rights one has simply because one is

human. They are held by all humans- they are universal rights

Cultural Relativism
Normative Hegemony: One standard; makes
distinction between human rights and human dignity

Weak Cultural Relativism: One standard, but

concessions allowed for various interpretations

Strong Cultural Relativism: Cannot have one

standard of rights because cultures and values are too
varied.

Muslim Nations who signed IBHR

Afghanistan- 1946
Iran 1945
Iraq- 1945
Lebanon- 1945
Sudan - 1956

Libya- 1945
Malaysia- 1957
Morocco- 1956
Pakistan- 1947
Syria- 1945

Should Muslim nations be held to Western definitions of Human

Rights, or should interpretations of cultures and values have more
significance when determining human rights?
If these nations signed the IBHR, should they then be held accountable
to same standards of rights as other nations?

Human Rights and Islam

In the Middle East

Human Development
Index of 2001
Country

Life
Adult
Expectancy at Literac
Birth (in years)
y Rate

GDP
per
capita

(% age 15
and
above)

(PPP US
$)

Human
Development
Index (HDI) value

HDI
Rank
(Out of
175
Countries
)

Saudi
Arabia

71.9

77.1

13,300

0.769

73

Lebanon

73.3

86.5

4,170

0.752

83

Jordan

70.6

90.3

3,870

0.743

90

Syria

71.5

75.3

3,280

0.685

110

Egypt

68.3

56.1

3,520

0.648

120

EGYPT
Freedom of Expression:

Authors can be charged for writing books

that are deemed offensive to Islam.
Offensive language has arisen in cases
between Muslims and Christians (articles
160 and 161 in the Penal Code for
insulting Islam).

Prison and Court Sentencing:

Laws and Politics:

People have been suspected and

imprisoned for alleged memberships in
banned groups such as the al-Gamaa alIslamiyya (Islamic Group) and al-Gihad
(Holy Struggle).
Since 1967 emergency laws in Egypt have
given authorities extended powers to
arrest and detain suspects without trial for
prolonged periods.
Civilian defendants can be sent to
court(s) where procedures have been
less than fair according to
international standards.

Security forces mistreated and tortured

prisoners. Some detainees died in custody
due to poor conditions, lack of medical
care, and in few cases due to torture.
Some police officers have been
charged for the beating and deaths of
prisoners. Certain practices of
punishment have been banned from
prisons.
Egyptian courts have sentenced many
people to death. Most death sentences were
imposed for ordinary criminal offences.

Recent Report:
Pleas for Egyptian President Mubarak to stop the deportation
of 645 people scheduled to return to a high death risk in Sudan.
International law forbids the return of refugees to places of
persecution and requires states to ensure children not be
separated from their families.
Demonstrators (refugees) protested for various grounds of
poor living conditions in Egypt and lack of lasting solutions to
their plight.

Saudi Arabia
It is absurd to impose on an individual or a society rights that are alien to its
beliefs or principles
Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz

Freedom of Expression:

There is no independent press.

Newspapers and media are entirely
funded by the royal family.
There is a list of topics banned from
publication. Violations are punished
by prison time and fines.
There are several independent
licensed Internet service providers,
but the government seeks to monitor
and restrict Web access in the
country.

Religious Freedom:

Punishment:

Capital Punishment has been applied

for crimes of murder, rape, armed
robbery, drug smuggling, sodomy and
sorcery.
Decapitation usually takes place
in public squares while
blindfolded, shackled, and
tranquilized.
Courts still impose corporal
punishment, such as amputation for
robbery, and floggings for lesser
crimes such as sexual deviance and
drunkenness.

Government actively restricts religious

freedom and practices (except Wahhabi
interpretation)
Officially, non-Muslims are free to worship
privately, in reality this is not always
adhered to.
Religious minorities are harassed or
arrested for peaceful practice of their
faith.

Women in Saudi Society:

Discrimination is still prevalent in regards

to family, education, employment and the
justice system.
A modesty code of dress is imposed based
on religious law.
Still not allowed to drive/maintain a
license.

Syria
Freedom of Expression

Freedom of expression, association, and assembly are limited in law and practice.
Some minorities (such as Kurds) continue to be denied basic rights.
Local media and Internet access remain state controlled.
However, levels of expressive freedom have begun to grow in small measures.
Private Internet cafes have been allowed to open in Damascus. And the Syrian
Telecommunications Establishment have blocked only Israeli materials and
Syrian opposition Web-sites.

Domestic Laws and Prison

There are long-standing emergency laws that do not allow for any civilian protection
against arbitrary arrest and torture.
Infamous Tadmor prison in Palmyran desert remains off-limits to all independent
observers.
There was a scandal in 1980 when 1100 unarmed prisoners were massacred in
Tadmor.

International Issues

Many Syrians live in political exile abroad. Many of which have been arrested and
forced to leave because they carried forged passports. Syria does not allow Syrian
exiles to obtain a Syrian passport (making them stateless).
Many foreigners have been imprisoned in Syria. Syrian government has purposefully
not allowed their deportation. In the past, Jordan, Lebanon and the Palestinian
Authority have issued a general amnesty for all political prisoners.

How it relates to Islam

The Middle East is a religious center in the World. For Christians, Jews
and Muslims. The city of Jerusalem exemplifies this concentrated and
diverse religious region.
Most Middle Eastern (Islamic) countries derive some of their laws from
religious traditions or Islamic law (Sharia).
Especially regarding:
Laws towards Women (esp. in Saudi Arabia).
Laws enforcing capital punishment (Hudud Crimes)
Some laws are not directly linked to Islamic law, but are established to
defend Islamic religious practices, and or create an absolute Islamic
society.
Governments try and diminish the freedom of expression, so to
impede anti-Islam rhetoric
Most of the other inhumane laws in these countries are due to
despotic regimes.
The Root: much of the law comes from ancient Arabic tradition,
rather than Islamic custom.
Not all of the laws in these nations are agreed upon. There are many
divisions in Islam, some citizens support while others oppose these
laws.

Human Rights Violations in Pakistan

Rights of Children
Children Accused of committing criminal
offenses are routinely tortured by police
Long periods of detention without trials
91% of the 2700 Juvenile in 98 waited for
trials for months
Harsh and overcrowded facilities
Routinely subjected to various forms of
torture or ill-treatment
Lack of recreational opportunities

Contemporary Slavery
Mostly children and
many adults are denied
the right to negotiate
terms of employment
Harsh working
conditions with long
hours of work
Lack of proper tools
and training

Violence against women

Domestic violence towards women
Horrifying conditions of womens
prison, lack of protection from
physical and sexual abuse
Hundreds of Bangladeshi women in
similar situation in Pakistani prisons
About 150 women being smuggled
in to the country for prostitutions of
other domestic servitude each month

Ms Mai was gang raped, allegedly on the orders of a

village council because of a misdemeanor attributed to
her younger brother.

Honor Killings
Honor killings occur when men kill their female relatives for activities in
which the female dishonors the family reputation for perceived misuse of
her sexuality
Islamic leaders and scholars condemn the practice and deny that it is based
on religious doctrine
They explain that it is a pre-Islamic, tribal custom stemming from society's
interest in keeping strict control over familial power structures but many
It has been reported in Bangladesh, Brazil, Ecuador, Egypt, India, Israel,
Italy, Jordan, Morocco, Pakistan, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda and the United
Kingdom
According to the United Nations Population Fund estimates as many as
5000 females being killed each year

Malaysia & Indonesia

Human Rights Perspectives

Indonesia
Demographics
Population ~238,500,000
88% Muslim
Largest Muslim Majority Country

History
Former Dutch Colony / Colonial Legacy
Sukarno (1945-1967) and Suharto (1967-1998)
Democracy?

Human Rights
Aceh and Papua
Indigenous Minorities
Muslim on Muslim Abuses

Freedom of Religion
Sharia Law
Recently instituted in Aceh
Only applies to Muslims

Malaysia
Demographics
Population ~23,500,000
58% Malaysian, 24% Chinese

History
Former British Colony / Colonial Legacy
Federal Constitutional Monarchy

Human Rights
Ethno-Religious Discrimination
Must be Muslim to be Malay
Malay / Chinese Tensions

Freedom of Religion
Conversion of Minors
Apostasy

Sharia Law

Comparisons & Contrasts

Postcolonial Legacy
Sharia vs. Civil Law
Inherent Contradictions of Rights

The West & Islam

A human rights perspective

Human Rights Abuses

Specifically looking at abuses against
Muslims in non-Islamic states
For the sake of argument, we accept any
denial of religious or civil freedom as an
abuse of HR.
Questions to ask:
At what points do security concerns override ones individual rights?
At what point should religion of any type take a backseat to secular
national interests or freedoms.

United States
Special interest detainees

1,200 non-citizens held on suspicion of Al Qaeda connection.

Held under immigration laws
Secret court proceedings
Unnecessarily restrictive conditions

Guantanamo Bay detainees

Geneva does not apply
Hold as long as the U.S. wishes
2002 ruling: courts do not have jurisdiction to hear complaints
from aliens held by the U.S. outside of sovereign territory

Enemy Combatants
No more designation of Prisoner of War

United States
The U.S. has taken a hardened approach in dealing with
Muslims suspected of international terror.
Questions:
Is the secretive approach necessary?
What of the anti-Geneva arguments? Are any of them
valid?
Torture and aggressive interrogation techniques is
there a difference?
Culturally, can we differentiate between our treatment of
Muslims living in our country versus those with enemy
combatant status?

France
Headscarf legislation
containing the forces of Islamic theocracy by
outlawing the most innocuous manifestation of
Islamic anti-secularism
Ban of all public religious symbols in state schools
ex: large crosses, Sikh turbans, Muslim headscarves
Effective Sept. 2004: In five months, 39 Muslim girls
and 3 Sikh boys were expelled

France
France is obviously suffering blowback from its
colonial escapades in the early late 19th century.
Questions:
Is supporting across the board secularism is French
public schools really a bad thing?
Racial tensions between French nationals and Arab
immigrants are rising what agency do immigrants have
in assimilating into their new homes?
Can we consider this a human rights abuse?

The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad

cartoons controversy began after
editorial cartoons depicting the Islamic
prophet Muhammad were published in
the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten
on September 30, 2005. Danish Muslim
organizations staged protests in
response. As the controversy has grown,
some or all of the cartoons have been
reprinted in newspapers in more than fifty
other countries, leading to violent
protests, particularly in the Islamic world.

Denmark

Critics claim that the cartoons are culturally insulting, Islamophobic,

blasphemous, and intended to humiliate a marginalized Danish minority.
Supporters of the cartoons claim they illustrate an important issue and
their publication exercises the right of free speech. They also claim that
there are similar cartoons about other religions, arguing that Islam and its
followers have not been targeted in a discriminatory way.
Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen has described the
controversy as Denmark's worst international crisis since World War II.

Denmark
Again we have a clash of civilizations in which one
group finds its right to religion being harassed, if
not abused, by anothers right to free speech.
Is being offended a violation of your human rights?
Should the U.N. pass a resolution banning attacks on religious beliefs?
What is more important, freedom of religion or freedom of speech?
Do publishers of the cartoons in Jordan and Yemen deserve to be
arrested?
Is Malaysia correct in declaring it a legal offense to publish, product,
import, circulate, or possess the cartoons?

The cartoon controversy as well as human rights abuses against

Muslims in France and the United States, should be, understood
against the backdrop of rising Western prejudice and suspicion
against Muslims, and an associated sense of persecution among
Muslims in many parts of the world.

The United States needs to temper its treatment of international

prisoners, ensuring all necessary accommodations are made for
proper religious worship.
Additionally, the U.S. should move along tribunals, commissions,
and trials of detainees that should have been held long ago. For
lack of a better term, its time to put up or shut up.
For all of our perceived misdeeds, the U.S. possesses a much
more egalitarian mindset than that of France and Denmark. Our
history as a melting pot helps us avert many of the violent
cultural clashes that have occurred in Europe.

Frances problems are complex and result

from a French and Arab populace that
refuses to assimilate with each other.

France

Racism and xenophobia abound.

The country must find ways to solve

these deep cultural rifts, and simply
banning religious headgear will not do
it.
The country must decide whether
modernity and secularism will reign
in public society, or will religion be
allowed a place as well.

Denmarks tribulations are, like Frances,

symptoms of a larger cultural
problem in the country.
However, as Human Rights Watch points
out, we can reject the disrespectful
and prejudiced attitudes reflected in
the cartoons, but affirm that, under the
right of freedom of expression,
governments are not entitled to
suppress speech simply because it is
offensive or disrespectful of religion.

Denmark

The much larger human rights

abuse would be to censor the
cartoons or anything else that
might offend Muslims.