Rights of minorities in Islam

Dated: 26 August 2009

This article was published in Daily The Nation, 26 Aug, 2009

by Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri

Following a flurry of unfortunate incidents that involved mass scale persecution of the Christian community in Gojra and the misrepresentation of the religious teachings, it is high time we initiated intellectual discourse aimed at identifying the factors, which led to this tragedy. The principal purpose behind this exercise should be to fashion a cohesive and comprehensive strategy to educate masses about the real teachings of Islam and preempt any similar untoward incident in future. It is also of equal importance to seek input of the representatives of all schools of thought and other sections of society like journalists, intellectuals, civil society activists, lawyers and professors etc. Ideally, the Islamic Ideology Council is well suited to spearhead this initiative and give it institutionalised base for the production of effective results. The second phase of such an arrangement may be geared to engage the minorities living within Pakistan in a constructive dialogue aimed at allaying their apprehensions and fears.
I am of the considered opinion that the long-term solution to such problems lies in changing the mindset through sustained engagement and projection of real teachings of Islam so that no bigoted mullah, having a limited understanding of Islam, could exploit the religious feelings of people for ulterior motives.
Islam seeks to establish such a society where all citizens of the state enjoy equal rights and religion does not become the basis for any discrimination. Islamic law holds both Muslims and non-Muslims equal and no superiority or privilege is given to the Muslims on any ground. The history of Islam is replete with such examples. Once, a Muslim, who was accused of killing a non-Muslim, was presented in the court of Hazrat Ali (ra). The evidence supported the accusation. When Hazrat Ali ordered the Muslim to be killed by way of qisas, the relatives of the murderer made the brother of the killed forgive by paying him the compensation money. When the Caliph came to know of it, he asked, "Perhaps these people may have coerced you into saying so." To this, he replied in the negative, saying that the killing would not bring his brother back. Since they were paying him blood money, it would help the family financially to some extent. The Caliph agreed to the deal but added that the principle underlying the functioning of his government was "the blood of those of our non-Muslim subjects is equal to our blood and his blood money is like our blood money." (Abu Yusuf, Kitab-ul-Khiraj, p. 187)
Secondly, every member of an Islamic society is entitled to privacy and personal life. No one can be allowed to enter his house or interfere in his matters without his consent. The minorities enjoy similar rights in an Islamic state as the Muslims do. It is the fundamental principle of Islamic law that it enjoins the similar rights and duties on both Muslim and non-Muslim citizens without any discrimination.
Thirdly, Islam ordains people to worship Allah Almighty but it does not coerce followers of other religions to accept Islam and change their creed. Invitation to truth and use of coercion are mutually exclusive realities. The Holy Quran has communicated the Islamic message of truth in these words: "(O Glorious Messenger!) Invite towards the path of your Lord with strategic wisdom and refined exhortation and (also) argue with them in a most decent manner. Surely your Lord knows him well who strayed away from His path and He also knows well the rightly guided." (16:125)
Islam has strictly disallowed the adoption of such method of invitation, which affects the religious independence of the other party. Allah Almighty says at another place: "There is no coercion in religion. Verily, guidance has manifestly been distinguished from error." (2:256)
Fourthly, the non-Muslim minorities are free to undertake any business enterprise or profession in an Islamic state like their Muslim counterparts and no restriction can be imposed upon them in this regard. However, those businesses, which are collectively injurious for the society, would be completely prohibited both for the Muslims as well as the non-Muslims. The minorities are also free to adopt any profession they like. They would also be subject to same trade-related taxation as the Muslims.
Fifthly, as it is the responsibility of the Islamic state to provide for the disabled or the poor or the destitute or the old, in the same way, it is also under obligation to pay for the maintenance of a member of the minority community in case of his disability, old age or poverty. Minorities enjoy equal rights in terms of collective maintenance in an Islamic state. According to a tradition reported by Abu 'Ubaid in Kitab-ul-Amwal, "The Holy Prophet (PBUH) gave a donation to a Jewish family and it continued to be delivered even after (the Holy Prophet's departure from this world)."
Sixthly, Islamic state is responsible for the protection and security of minorities. If it has entered into an agreement with another nation, the protection and security of the latter also falls under its domain of responsibility.
One of the conditions that defined the agreements between Muslims and the conquered non-Muslim minorities was that the Islamic government would be responsible for provision of basic necessities and security of lives of the minorities. The Peace Agreement, which was struck with the residents of the Heera had the following written in it: "A non-Muslim who grows old and cannot work or becomes disabled due to a natural calamity or he was previously rich but has become poor due to some untoward happening, the government would not charge any tax from such calamity-stricken people. Rather these people and their families would be provided with the maintenance allowance out of official treasury." (Ibn Rushd, Badiyat-ul-Mujtahid, vol. 2, p. 310)
The minorities cannot be compelled to render defence services. Rather, it is the responsibility of the Islamic state to defend them. Since the Islamic state is responsible for the protection of lives, honour and property of the minorities and they do not have any other obligation with regard to defence, they are liable to contribute financially to the Islamic state in the form of a tax called Jizya. Even then, Islam has taught about justice and good manners when it comes to the imposition of Jizya on the minorities.
Due to space constraint, I cannot delve deeper into the Islamic history to prove empirically how minorities were treated in an Islamic state. The reprehensible Gojra-style incidents happen because of our society's lack of knowledge of actual teachings of Islam. The vacuum of knowledge so created is bridged by the semi-literate clergy with no exposure to the Islamic historical tradition, demands of contemporary age and challenges of future.

We want a secure future for everybody, I speak of the human race. said tahir ul qadri

Ideas are the best' weapons: Islamic scholar
Dated: 12 August 2009
This article is taken from http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/679769

Mohammed Tahir ul-Qadri launches 'intellectual war' on terrorism with sermons on peace and tolerance
Mohammed Tahir ul-Qadri is on the phone, talking about war, but he is not referring to guns.

"I don't know how to use a pistol," admits the Pakistani-born Islamic scholar, who is in Birmingham, England, at the moment, though he spends roughly 10 months a year in Canada, his adopted home for the past several years. "If you put a pistol in my hand, I wouldn't know how to use it."

The 58-year-old spiritual leader does know how to use words and ideas, however, and he is recruiting them both in the cause of peace.

"I have, you can say, announced an intellectual and spiritual war against extremism and terrorism. I believe this is the time to stand up for moderate Islamic scholars who believe in peace."

Forget for now the lurid images of hatred and bloodshed that have dominated Western perceptions of Islam in recent years, and lend an ear to this voluble, bespectacled Canadian grandfather, who is at the forefront of what some might call a renaissance of moderate Islam, preaching a doctrine of inclusion and tolerance.

"He is definitely a scholar who should be highlighted," says Asad Dean, a Muslim community organizer in Toronto. "He has a fantastic relationship with all the communities."

In their struggle for the hearts and minds of the world's 1.4 billion Muslims, Qadri and other like-minded clerics are squaring off against ruthless organizations, such as the Taliban and Al Qaeda, which present a very different facet of Islam, one that celebrates violence while rejecting any prospect of accommodation with the West.

The welfare, livelihood and dreams of tens of millions of people around the globe depend on which side triumphs in this battle of words and ideas, a battle that is also a contest of military might – in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq.

Qadri is far from alone in this fight.

Partly in response to U.S. President Barack Obama's recent opening to the Muslim world, moderate Islamic clerics in many lands have been emboldened to speak out against those who traffic in the weapons of hate.

"Ideas are the best arms," Qadri says. "Societies should be armed with better ideas.

"To me, the ideal society in the world is Canadian society," he says. "We believe in the letter and spirit of multiculturalism."

Qadri has no patience with violent extremists who claim to represent his faith.

Lately, it is Osama bin Laden and his ilk who have transfixed the attention of the West, but Qadri regards them as exceptions – traitors to Islam – who have achieved an influence out of proportion to their numbers.

In large measure, he holds the news media responsible for presenting a distorted picture of Islam, one that depicts its adherents as fist-waving advocates of hate.

"Millions and millions of Muslim people – more than a billion – are living a peaceful life," he says, "but their life does not create news."

Violence, of course, does create news, as do tyranny and intolerance.

"They make women stay in their homes," he says of Muslim extremists. "They destroy girls' schools. This is against Islam, totally wrong. This has created a very bad image."

Qadri, who has served for a time as a member of Pakistan's National Assembly, has spent years promoting interfaith dialogue, largely through Minhaj-ul-Quran International, a non-governmental organization he founded in 1980 and still heads.

Qadri, who will return to Canada early next month, lives near Hamilton, where he devotes himself to writing about Islam. He says he is determined to change the negative images now associated with his faith, while also stopping radical Islam in its tracks.

It's a tall order but an urgent one.

"We want a secure future for everybody," he says. "I speak of the human race."

'Muslim Camp' draws teens to combat extremism

Dated: 10 August 2009
This article is taken from http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5792AL20090810?sp=true


COVENTRY, England (Reuters) - Like any rousing Islamic preacher, Muhammed Tahir ul-Qadri's voice rises to a shout and his index finger jabs as he hammers home a point.



But rather than angry calls for jihad (holy war) or a vitriolic denunciation of the West and its aggressions against Islam, Qadri's message, equally forcefully delivered, is about moderation, peace, inclusion and understanding.

Addressing a packed auditorium from a raised platform, his words beamed on to large screen behind him, more than 1,000 young followers hang on his every word, even as his lecture moves into its fourth uninterrupted hour.

"Islam is not a religion of seclusion, it is not a religion of detachment," he thunders from the dais, occasionally pausing to wipe the sweat from his brow or adjust his spectacles.

"Any killer of a non-Muslim citizen, he will go to hell. Those who are committing terroristic acts from Pakistan and Afghanistan and claiming it is jihad -- they do not know what jihad is. It is forbidden. There will not be janna (paradise) for them," he hollers, to shouts of approval from his listeners.

Qadri, 58, who was born in Pakistan but now lives in Canada, is a renowned scholar of Sufism, a long tradition within Islam that focuses on spirituality, emphasizing peace and moderation.

The author of more than 400 books on Islamic scholarship and law, Qadri travels the world delivering sermons to Sufis, while his organization, called Minhaj ul-Quran, has spread to 80 countries, from Greece to Fiji, since its founding in 1981.

In Britain, he is the main draw at a three-day retreat for young Muslims called "Al Hidayah" (Guidance), which over the past five years has grown into the biggest spiritual camp of its kind, with more than 1,200 attendees from a dozen countries.

Qadri believes camps like his, which attract teenagers -- girls and boys wearing traditional dress who sit separately in the auditorium -- as well as their parents and children as young as six, can play a part in combating extremism within Islam.

For Britain, that has been particularly important since 2003, when the country joined the invasion of Iraq, and 2005, when four young British Muslims carried out suicide bombings on the London transport network, killing 52 people.

"I feel it is my duty to save the younger generation from radicalization," Qadri said quietly over lunch on Sunday, shortly after finishing the second of several lectures and question-and-answer sessions, which concluded on Monday.

"We need to prepare them mentally and academically, intellectually and spiritually, against extremist tendencies and radical and terrorist attitudes. We need to provide them with an awakening of the true picture of Islam," he said.

TACKLING EXTREMISM

Around the world, and particularly in the United States, there has been a steady increase in adherence to Sufism in the past decade. Governments keen to tackle the spread of more radical branches of Islam in their countries have worked with Sufi scholars and tried to emphasize their teachings.



In Britain, home to around 1.7 million Muslims, the bulk from Pakistan, the government at first worked to promote Sufism, supporting the creation in 2006 of the Sufi Muslim Council, a group that took a strong stand against Islamist extremism.

But since then, it has moved away from explicit support, saying that working via the Sufi community -- whose exact number in Britain is not known -- is just one element of a wider approach to countering Islamic radicalism.

"It's part of a broader engagement. We don't want to isolate any one group over another," a government spokeswoman said.

Supporters of Qadri, though, are adamant about the benefits of his teachings, with students coming from as far as Denmark and Canada to hear him speak during the three-day retreat. Women in particular like his emphasis on female equality within Islam, an element not always touched on by other Islamic scholars.

"What he says is mind-opening, it makes you feel good as a woman," said Sofia Saeed, 27, a legal assistant who traveled from Manchester to attend the retreat with a friend.



"There's no discrimination here. It makes you feel like a stronger believer, a stronger person," she said, comfortably mixing designer sunglasses with her full hijab head covering.

Qadri, a former minister in Pakistan and close associate of Benazir Bhutto, the assassinated former prime minister, does not believe his teachings can change radical minds overnight, but he is a believer that intellect can ultimately defeat extremism.

"If the terrorists are 10 people and the peaceful are 1,000, then they are more powerful than us with their arms, even if we are 5,000," he said. "But the point is that we have to make the 5,000 more powerful not with arms, but by the communication of the right message of Islam."

(Reporting by Luke Baker; Editing by Jon Boyle)

Islam and Minorities

Dated: 09 August 2009
By Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri

Words fail to express the feelings of horror and grief one experienced while watching the scenes of mayhem, destruction of homes and the burning of seven people alive on TV channels in the Gojra city of Punjab. What made it all the more poignant was the fact that people, inspired by religious fervour and egged on by the so-called religious clerics having half-baked understanding of Islam, were doing everything our great religion condemned and ordained its followers against. Thus through their actions, these people brought a bad name not only to Pakistan but also Islam. Displaying sheer ignorance of Islamic teachings, they handed down a justification to those elements who are, otherwise, bent on demonizing Islam by invoking such incidents as the representation of what Islam stands for. It is high time we introspected ourselves and went back to the teachings of Islam vis-à-vis minorities.

Islam espouses values of universal brotherhood, tolerance and mutually peaceful coexistence ordaining its followers to be the source of peace for people around them. It aims at the establishment of such an ideal state and society where all citizens, irrespective of their association, religious identity, race, colour and creed, enjoy the similar rights and equality in the eyes of law. The Qur’anic injunction “There is no compulsion in Din (Religion)” (2:256) negates the element of coercion and oppression in religious matters and forms the basis for protection of rights of minorities. At another place, Allah Almighty says in the Holy Qur’an: “(So) you have your Din (Religion) and I have my Din (Religion)” (109:6).

The importance and sanctity of rights Islam gives to minorities can be further gauged by the saying of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him): “Beware! If anyone dared oppress a member of minority community or usurped his right or tortured him more than his endurance or took something away forcibly without his consent, I would fight (against such Muslim) on his behalf on the Day of Judgment.” (Sunan Abi Dawud)

This is not merely a warning but has the sanctity of a law, which was promulgated in the Islamic state during the blessed period of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) but which also continued to be implemented in the later period and is still a part of constitution of Islamic state. The Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) would always forewarn Muslims about the rights of the minorities. While talking of minorities one day, he said: “Whosoever killed a member of a minority community, he would not smell the fragrance of paradise though fragrance of paradise would cover the distance of forty years.” (Bidiyat-ul-Mujtahid)

Whenever the non-Muslim delegations would come to the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him), he would extend them hospitality himself. Once a Christian delegation from Abyssinia came over to meet the Prophet of Islam (blessings and peace be upon him) in the blessed city of Madina, he took it upon himself to play host to the guests and made them stay in the Prophet’s Mosque. He said: “These people occupy distinguished and privileged status for our companions, therefore, I chose to extend them respect and hospitality myself.” (Ibn Kathir, al-Bidaya wa an-Nihaya)

Likewise, another 14-member Christian delegation from Nijran came to the holy city of Madina. The Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) made the delegation stay in the Prophet’s Mosque and allowed the Christians of the delegation to worship according to their religion in the Prophet’s Mosque. (Ibn Sad, at-Tabqat al-Kubra)

Such was the deep and penetrating impact of the Holy Prophet’s good treatment of the minorities that their interaction with him was also based on respect and reverence. When an ally Jew was about to die during a battle, people asked him about the possible heir to his huge property, he said that the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) would be guardian of his property. This speaks volumes of the reverence the Prophet of Islam (blessings and peace be upon him) had in the eyes of the non-Muslims.

Imam Abu Yusuf writes in his magnum opus Kitab al-Khiraj that both Muslims and non-Muslim minorities were treated equally in respect of civil law and law of punishments during the Prophetic period and that of the rightly guided caliphs. Once a Muslim killed a non-Muslim during the period of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him). He ordered the killing of that Muslim by way of qisas and said: “The protection of rights of non-Muslims is my most important duty.” (Musnad ash-Shafi‘i)

In the like manner, the status of a Muslim and a non-Muslim is equal in civil law in an Islamic state. The non-Muslim would also deserve the same punishment which would be meted out to a Muslim in case of committal of crimes. Whether a non-Muslim steals things of a Muslim or otherwise, both would deserve the equal amount of punishment. No discrimination can be allowed in their treatment in the eyes of law.

Contrary to the teachings of Islam and the sayings of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him), our actual conduct is shameful to put it mildly, which is responsible for bringing Islam into disrepute. No sane Muslim can approve and condone such reprehensible acts as witnessed in Gojra. It is a matter of immense concern as to how a small minority of bigoted and radical Mullahs can hold sway over ignorant people and make them dance to their tune without any fear of reprisal from state and its law enforcement agencies.

While the administrative failure to nip evil in the bud may be blamed for the outbreak of riots in the short-run, colossal havoc these happenings caused is a reflection of how extremism has penetrated our attitudes and social behaviours. The state cannot allow this situation to worsen by adopting passive and reactive response. It needs to initiate action to undo the damage it did when it promoted and co-opted a particular religious mindset at the cost of social equilibrium, religious tolerance and sectarian harmony. At a time when we need to reach out to other faiths in a bid to engage them in constructive dialogue aimed at finding solutions to the contemporary problems, such acts prove only counterproductive. In the next article, I would discuss the peculiar nature of rights minorities enjoy in an Islamic state.

This article was published in Daily The Nation, 09 Aug, 2009

ISSUE OF FORCED MARRIAGES

Sahibzada Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri speaks on issue of forced marriages

The important and central program of Sahibzada Hussan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri’s visit to Norway took place in Red Cross Hall on December 2, 2008. Since the topic was of immense interest to people and it was the first ever program of its kind in Norway, the zeal and zest of audience was quite noticeable. The team of the Minhaj Reconciliation Council, which had been busy for the successful conduct of the programme, was rolling out red carpet welcome for the incoming guests. The majority of audience composed of young men and women for the topic was such as concerned the youth. The chief guests of the programme included Sahibzada Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, Norwegian Education Minister Bard Vegard Solhjell, Fabian Stang, the Mayor of Oslo, Monica Berge of Red Cross, and Gerd Fleischer, president of Organization for Help of the Expat Community in addition to a large number of representatives of various local organizations.

The proceedings of the program got under way with the recitation of the Holy Quran by Hafiz Imran Ali followed by Naat which was recited by a team of Minhaj Sisters that included Iqra Mushtaq, Amina Zafar, Zunaira Mushtaq, Fatima Zafar, and Ayesha Noor. Mr. Atif Rauf read out the translation of recitation. Mayor of Oslo, Fabian Stang, felicitated the Minhaj Reconciliation Council on the successful arrangement of the program and appreciated its overall efforts. He said Minhaj Reconciliation Council has won Oslo Award due to its efforts and hoped that the organization would continue working much more vigorously and will be recipients of all awards.

Representative of Oslo Red Cross, Monica Berge, presented facts and figures of forced marriages and mentioned the services the Red Cross was making in the field. She appreciated the efforts of Minhaj Reconciliation Council. Gerd Fleischer made a detailed speech on the topic of forced marriages. He said no religion recommended forced marriage. It is a social issue, which is present everywhere in the world. He expressed the need for making joint efforts in this regard.

Sahibzada Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri, who is has completed his education at Minhaj University, the University of Punjab, London University and Arab University in addition to benefiting from great scholars of the Arab world, has become a man of scholarly stature in his own right. He started off his speech with verses from the Sura Bakara of the Holy Quran. Quoting the Quranic verses and Hadiths, he said no religion of the world, leave alone Islam, approved of the idea of forced marriages. The presence of this phenomenon in the society today was because of ignorance of Islamic teachings. He said Islam gave right to adult man and woman to enter into marital relationship out of their free will. He said it was also rationally justifiable to allow people to choose with whom they would like to spend their life.

Citing a Hadith from Sahih Bukhari, Nisai, Ibne Majja, whereby a woman came to the Holy Prophet (saw) with a request for him that her parents had married her off with a person with whom she was not agreed. He (saw) asked her to marry out of her own volition where she was happy. Sahibzada Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri established by quoting various Books on Hadith that even a divorced woman should also be consulted before being married off by the parents and her opinion should also be sought if she was a virgin.

He asked how our religion, which does not recommend any forced conversion, could permit forced marriage. People gave a standing ovation to Sahibzada Hassan Mohi-ud-Din for clarity of content, lucidity of style and vigour of presentation. Norwegian participants compromising professors and doctors expressed their extreme happiness over the speech of Sahibzada sahib. They said they were amazed to see this face of Islam, which is very rare to find in today’s world.

In the end, Education Minister, Bard Vegard Solhjell, was invited to speak. Appreciating the speech of Sahibzada Hassan Mohi-ud-Din Qadri and the work of Minhaj Reconciliation Council, he said there was need of working on similar pattern as MRC was doing. He said we had appointed our representatives in the colleges for help of the people. He said we would have to fight jointly against this evil custom. “We would continue to extend our cooperation with organizations like Minhaj Reconciliation Council to get rid of these problems,” he concluded.

President Minhaj Reconciliation Council, Ijaz Ahmad Warriach, thanked the guests and participants for their support and keen interest. The guests were entertained with food. This was, no doubt, the successful program which would be remembered for times to come.

Islamic concept of Jihad

From www.minhaj.org

By Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri

The killing of innocent people is terrorism irrespective of the fact whether they are Muslims or not. It is also terrorism to murder the peaceful people regardless of their being in state of war even if they are not fighting a war with you directly. Victimizing the children, the old, the women and also targeting the worship-places and hospitals fall in the domain of terrorism. It also includes the efforts aimed at spreading harassment, creating disturbance, staging sit-ins, forcing people to go on strikes and targeting the worship-places of other religions. Attacking human, religious, political, social and cultural rights is also terrorism.

Jihad and terrorism have no relation with each other nor is there anything in common between them. On the other hand Jihad stands for the eradication of terrorism. Jihad-bil-qital is characterized by ending terrorism. But if ! threats are posed to human life, property and honor, fighting for defending these areas is called Jihad.

It is not meant for grabbing wealth. Expansionist designs have nothing to do with the Islamic concept of Jihad. Every Charter of Human Rights terms taking up of arms against injustice and unwanted blood-letting, crushing down of rebellion and revolt, uprooting of conspiracies, violence and mischief-mongering as not only being legal but also making it binding. All that is done with a view to making the earth safe. When any individual or party transgresses its limits and encroaches upon others' rights, only in that case the Holy Quran enjoins upon believers to wage Jihad, so that mischief-mongering is halted and peace comes to our planet, earth.

The concept of Jihad is one of the highly misunderstood Islamic concepts. Unfortunately the West sees it as mere fighting against disbelief and the West. While some extremist religious groups who declare their activities as Jihad, are presenting Islam in a fanatic and emotional way giving a distorted picture of Islam. So the West has wrongly conceived terrorist activities as Islamic Jihad. Islamic concept of Jihad has absolutely no link with terrorism, extremism or barbarism. Jihad means struggle for good and elimination of evil. The spiritual struggle for self-purification of the soul is the greatest Jihad declared by Prophet Mohammed (PBUH). This is known as Jihad-e-Akbar. According to the Prophet's tradition this is an exclusive struggle for moral excellence, ethical perfection and spiritual purification of mankind.

Another form of Jihad is for the promotion of knowledge. Similarly spending wealth for the poor is "jihad bill maal". Providing jobs, economic stability and prosperity falls in the same category. Humanitarian activities are also fighting for "Haq". Haq means truth and lawful rights.

The armed Jihad doesn't allow killing of the innocent, women, aged, children and patients. Moreover Jihad does not allow destruction of property and inhuman acts of cruelty. Jihad is not allowed without the permission of Islamic government. And if there is no Islamic government at least there should be consensus of Ummah. So there should be a Shoora or a national meeting.

If Ulema and religious organizations, without adopting proper legal and juristic way, start declaring Jihad on their own this would just create "Fitna", disintegration and disruption. Then there will be no limits and the followers of various scholars and r! religious leaders can start fighting against one another on any point. This undisciplined and unorganized way is neither recognized by Islam nor accepted and supported by any authentic Islamic source.

That is one of the reasons why majority of the Muslims around the globe have not accepted this form of call for Jihad by religious extremists and fanatics. They understand that they cannot be caught away with the Mulla's emotional speeches and that it is more a political game rather than saving faith and faithful.

http://www.mediamonitors.net/qadri4.html

Interview Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri gave to international channel ARY OneWorld

Islam is all about peace, harmony, interfaith dialogue and human rights: Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri (Interview with ARY OneWorld)

(Following is English translation of interview Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri gave to international channel ARY OneWorld. He spoke elaborately on the burning issues of the day, allaying confusions and misunderstandings about Islamic perspectives on them in the process.)

Host (Question 3)

Dr sahib! I can infer from whatever you are saying that Islam is an accommodating religion. Then why is there so much extremism around us? What is your view about extremism?

Shaykh-ul-Islam

You have raised an important and interesting question. It is highly relevant to the present-day circumstances. I would first answer in a categorical manner in one sentence and then would delve into details. Islam has no space for extremism, fundamentalism or obscurantism and those who happen to be extremists are in fact unaware of the real spirit of Islam. You see, there are four steps and when you talk of extremism, there is a need to understand this phenomenon within the ambit of these four steps. There is a step in human psychology, personality and approach that precedes extremism. You see, many people are conservative in their approach. Their vision of Islam happens to be conservatism-based. They tend to look at every thing with short-sightedness and closed mind. Allah Almighty has not created any contraction in religion.

The Holy Prophet (saw) said that Islam creates ease and does not pave way for difficulties. The Prophet (saw) said in Sahih Bukhari, “When you preach religion, create easiness and do not create difficulties and contraction. Convey the message and invitation to people in such a manner that they get glad tidings, feel openness within themselves lest they should adopt hatred and run away from Islam.” Islam not only condemns conservative approach but also ordains us to root it out. The approach of the Holy Prophet (saw) was open, frank and accommodating.

It should also be kept in mind that conservatism is not merely found among Muslims but in the British, American, Jewish, Christian and Hindu communities etc. It is sociological and human phenomenon. It has nothing to do with any religion. You will find extremists in politics and other fields too. People here do politics on basis of language and kill others having different languages. There are also people who do politics on the basis of region etc and brand people living in other areas as traitors or hate them. This is trait of human psychology and approach. Whether it is religion or issues of life, these things operate in the similar manner. If there is conservatism in religion, it begets extremism. So when such a person will pass out religious edict, a tinge of extremism will be reflected in his rulings. He will hold others infidels, banishing them from the ambit of Islam. His emphasis will be placed on conservatism and extremism.

Then the third stage is that of radicalism. If extremism is not stemmed, radicalism cannot be controlled too. This is also anti-Islam. When radical people emerge from extremism, radicalism is born. People take up arms and attack one another on the basis of religious edicts.

They want to impose their doctrines upon others through armed struggle. It is as a result of this effort that terrorism comes into being. Those who are waging a war against terrorism want to eradicate plant of terrorism without taking into account the process by which the sampling of conservatism grew into terrorism gradually. They do not want to eradicate the root. They water and provide air to the root, bring it up, give funds both internationally and through local agencies. The first thing is that there is no space for terrorism in Islam nor has it anything to do with Islam. I do not merely talk of Islam. No other religion be it Judaism, Christianity or Buddhism recommend or encourage terrorism.

The fact is that every religion, be it Islam or any other, aims at teaching people love and brotherhood. It eradicates hatreds among people by bringing them together. This is wrong interpretation of Islam. People who have taken up arms and adorned the mantle of Muftis have done an irreparable damage to Islam. This also deserves to be seen where have these people emerged from? Has Islam produced them or other bigger powers created and brought them up for their own political and war agendas? They gave them weapons, sponsored their ventures, prepared them fully and planted them in a particular setting. They played them off against others and armed them to teeth in such a measure that they have become Frankenstein.

So Islam has nothing to do with terrorism. It is a political phenomenon and a global issue. It will be most unfortunate if it is seen through the prism of Pakistan or Islam. It deserves to be seen from global and historical perspectives as to where it has emanated from? Why has it been created and why is it not ending? Is it not so that those wanting to eliminate it want it to survive and those fighting against it are actually providing arms and weapons? Is it not so that double standards are being practised? I have serious doubts about it. I have clarified Islamic concept about it. It has nothing to do with Islam. Rather Islam condemns it regarding it infidelity and anti-humanity. Both extremism and terrorism are against religion.