Pars Today

Every year the 5th of August is marked as Islamic Human Rights and Human Dignity Day ever since its inception in 1990 at the foreign ministerial conference of the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation in Cairo, Egypt.

The so-called International Human Rights Declarations, including those issued by the United Nations, are mostly flawed because they do not take into account the sensibilities of spiritual values and religious beliefs, and are based on the dubious values espoused by the West. In other words, some of their clauses may be in harmony with human nature, while most are actually violation of the innate nature and dignity of mankind. In order to resolve this issue, thinkers from the Muslim world drew up a better document of human rights in harmony with innate human nature and human dignity, on which the holy Qur’an has laid emphasis, saying any person – irrespective of his/her beliefs – has been endowed with dignity in the transient life of the mortal world, as a sign of God’s Grace in order to enable them to discover the path of truth that holds the key to salvation in afterlife.

The Islamic Republic of Iran as one of the main victims of terrorism while condemning any terrorist act, always strives to serve as the excellent model for Muslim states, as the symbol of Islamic government with respect for human dignity, based on the practicability of the dynamism of the Shar’ah laws in the society that guarantee the rights of all sections, including women, children, and the elders, as well as religious minorities.

Human rights have been elaborated by all Prophets in different parts of the world, and are advocated by all those who are truly concerned about human rights and the freedom of societies. Unfortunately, the modern world has ignored these guidelines and as a result embroiled itself in the flawed secular concept that is a Godless interpretation of human rights, which is fundamentally opposed to religious values of monotheist religions, especially Islam. This was the reason that Islamic scholars got tighter draft the Islamic Human Rights Declaration and succeeded in approving it at the international level. Although after approval of the said declaration, Muslim states pledged to adhere to its contents and apply them in their societies, in practice most regimes ruling Muslim lands have practically done nothing in this regard, and at times have violated the letter and spirit of Islamic laws by trespassing the liberties of human rights. The situation has worsened by the active sponsoring by certain Muslim states of terrorist outfits, masquerading as puritanical Muslims, and tarnishing the image of Islam, as is evident by their senseless slaughter of Muslim men, women, and even children, who differ with their retarded ideology. These groups are part of the Islamophobia project of the West, since they are secretly supported by the Zionists and certain western countries in their acts of violence, and destruction of the culture heritage of humanity, including libraries, museums, mosques, shrines, churches, and all other vestiges of civilization.

Thus, in order to counter such tendencies, it is vital for Muslim countries, especially those which really care about human rights to get together and support the liberties and dignity God Almighty has granted mankind. The Islamic Republic of Iran, even before approval of Islamic Human Rights Declaration, by placing the principles of dignity of mankind in the constitution and in its code of civil and criminal laws, has taken commendable steps to promote human rights, through dialogue at regional and international levels, and holding of conferences and seminars. The Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, has laid special emphasis on Islamic human rights and the dignity of mankind. In one of his speeches he said: Today Global Arrogance, under cover of defending human rights is committing all these crimes and subjecting world countries to oppression under the pretext of human rights. This means that Islamic human rights should be properly and seriously elaborated at the international level to show what value Islam attaches to human and his rights, so that the false claimants of human rights know who are the real defenders of the rights of all human being, whether women, children, and the elderly, as well as minorities living in Muslim countries.

This year too as usual, various meetings have been held regarding Islamic human rights and the dignity of mankind. In the International Seminar of Islamic Human Rights which was held on August 2 in the holy city of Qom, issues such as “duties and rights from the viewpoint of Islam”, “right of life from Islam’s viewpoint”, “rights of minorities in Islam”, “rights of women and children in Islam” and “differences between Islamic human rights and western human rights” were discussed. At this seminar, the Director of Islamic Seminaries, Ayatollah A’rafi said one of the most important duties of theological schools is to expand the borders of philosophy, jurisprudence and other branches of Islamic sciences, in order to explore new arenas. This requires proper reference to God’s Revealed Word, the holy Qur’an, the behaviour and practice of Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny), and the narrations of the School of the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt. This rich literature of hadith includes not just the physical health of persons but the building of morally upright and psychologically healthy societies, including security of all human beings, dignity of mankind, the rights of minorities, economic welfare, access to housing, the right of comment and criticism, and even protection of animals and plants, in order to safeguard the ecology and the natural environment.

AS/MG