Freedom of Expression in Islaam
By:
Shahid Bin Waheed شاهد
بن وحيد
بسم الله الرحمن
الرحيم
الحمدلله
رب العالمين والصلوة
والسلام على اشرف
الانبياء وسيدالمرسلين
نبينا محمد صل
ا لله عليه وعلى
آله واصحابه وازواجه
اجمعين - امابعد
Thanks to be Allaah, Sustainer of the Universe, and blessing and salutation to be the most distinguish of the Messengers and foremost among the Prophets, our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allaah be on him and on his wives, children and Companions.
Despite the fact this is very detailed and lengthy subject, but I will try to be brief here. Freedom of expression is, broadly speaking subject to the same general restrictions, which apply, to other rights and liberties. The most important to these is avoiding harm to others; therefore freedom of speech must not be hurtful to others nor encroach on their rights or dignity. Similarly, it falls beyond the scope of the valid exercise of this freedom for it to be used as a means to promote chaos, violence or social strife. Furthermore, freedom of speech, like other liberties, is subservient to the 'essential interests' {masalih daruriyyah} and values which are needed to maintain a stable socio-political order. Therefore, the exercise of this freedom must not jeopardize the five essential values of LIFE, FAITH, INTELLECT, LINEAGE & PROPERTY. As a general rule, the underlying intention of an utterance, the purpose that motivates it, plays a significant role in determining its legality.
Under that Islaamic Shariah, violations of freedom of speech occur either in the form of particular offenses- such as slanderous accusations (Qadhf), blasphemy, sedition (Fitnah), insult (Sabb), and cursing (La'n), attribution of lies or calumny (Iftira), and the labeling of others as disbelievers (Takfir)- or they may take the form of a contempt for, or a denial of, the accepted norms and principles of Islaam, which may fall under the general heading of infidelity or disbelief (Kufr), and heresy (Bid'ah). Some of these are criminal offenses and carry specific penalties, whereas others are not so well defined and tend to evoke moral condemnation only. Muslims must examine each of these violations in the light of evidence found in the valid sources and the juristic formulations of the fuqaha.
Saturday,
November 20, 2004