To the surprise of many, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has shown a new commitment to advancing human rights by establishing an Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission within the organization. In the Commission\u2019s first meeting in Jakarta, Secretary General Ekmeleddin \u0130hsano\u011flu asked the 18-member Commission in his opening address to \u201creview and update OIC instruments, including the Cairo Declaration [of Human Rights in Islam]\u2026\u201d If the Commission intends to indeed advance human rights, then the Cairo Declaration is the first among these instruments in need of serious revision.<\/p>\n
In 1990, the OIC approved a document that is now referred to as the Cairo Declaration in an attempt reconcile the concept of human rights and Islam.\u00a0The Declaration protects many of the universal human rights:\u00a0it forbids discrimination; supports the preservation of human life, supports the protection of one\u2019s honor, family, and property; and affirms the human right to education, medical and social care, and a clean environment.<\/p>\n
From an international human rights perspective, the controversial nature of the Cairo Declaration lies in its claim of adherence to Shari\u2019ah. Its preamble affirms that\u201cfundamental rights and universal freedoms are an integral part of [Islam]\u201d and these rights and freedoms are \u201cbinding divine commandments\u201d revealed to the Prophet Muhammad in the Quran. The central role of Shari\u2019ah can be clearly seen in the Declaration\u2019s articles. Article 22 states that \u201cEveryone shall have the right to express his opinion freely in such manner as would not be contrary to principles of Shari\u2019ah.\u201d Article 12, affirms that \u201cevery man shall have the right, within the framework of Shari\u2019ah, to free movement\u201d (nothing is said\u00a0 about every woman). Articles 24 and 25 further makes Shari\u2019ah supreme by asserting that Shari\u2019ah is the Declaration\u2019s \u201conly source of reference.\u201d<\/p>\n
Such shorthand and cursory use of Shari\u2019ah gives rise to four important shortcomings. The first is that it renders the document\u00a0<\/strong>too restrictive<\/strong>. Shari\u2019ah represents an extensive moral and legal code, and limiting rights such as free speech to a Shari\u2019ah compatible framework of values would essentially render free-speech meaningless. Furthermore, the document is rendered\u00a0<\/strong>ambiguous<\/strong>., as it does not specify what constitutes Shari\u2019ah. Given the diversity of opinions on the subject across time and between and within madhabs (schools of Islamic law), it is impossible to know what rights are protected.<\/p>\n Interestingly, the declaration\u00a0empowers states, not individuals<\/strong>. In the modern world, Shari\u2019ah has increasingly become integrated in states\u2019 domestic legal systems. In the absence of any international authority to decide on Shari\u2019ah, the Cairo Declaration effectively\u00a0diminishes<\/em>\u00a0the universality of human rights by\u00a0 relegating them to the discretion of governments.<\/p>\n Finally, the declaration\u00a0<\/strong>conflicts with international human rights<\/strong>. The document provides only a subordinated status to religious minorities and also prohibits conversion from Islam. It also presents glaring evidence of discrimination against women, as it provides the right to freedom of movement or marriage only to men.<\/p>\n These shortcomings render the Declaration useless at best and at worst harmful for human rights. Not surprisingly, the only people who take the document seriously are critics of Islam who invoke it to argue the religion\u2019s incompatibility with human rights. Muslim advocacy groups, scholars on Islam and human rights, and even the OIC Secretary General \u0130hsano\u011flu have either ignored the declaration or have avoided defending it publicly.<\/p>\n As part of OIC\u2019s new reform agenda, the\u00a0 Human Rights Commission presents a unique opportunity for genuine revision of the Cairo Declaration. Such revision will not only signal the OIC\u2019s commitment to human rights, but could also increase theits legitimacy and prestige among Muslims and in the international community, adding much-needed credibility to the new Commission. For the revision process is off to a good start as it has already mobilized the relatively strong NGO community in the Muslim world. Under the leadership of MAZLUMDER, a Turkish-Islamic human rights NGO,\u00a0more than 230 such organizations from 24 OIC members appealed to the OIC to \u201censure space for civil society participation in the Commission and follow a process that is consultative and inclusive of civil society at all levels.\u201d<\/p>\n Efforts at revision should aim to usher in a period of genuine dialogue about how Islam can enhance modern international human rights and not necessarily conflict with it. The Islamic legal and intellectual heritage provides a much stronger basis from which to engage with the liberal-secular precepts of modern international human rights.\u00a0 Drawing on that tradition and discarding the Cairo Declaration could deliver an Islamic Declaration on Human Rights that Muslims deserve,\u00a0where its \u201cIslamic\u201d character can be invoked to protect more rights than those provided by similar human rights instruments, not fewer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","class_list":["post-16906","opinion","type-opinion","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mecouncil-afkar.fuegodigitalmedia.qa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/opinion\/16906","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mecouncil-afkar.fuegodigitalmedia.qa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/opinion"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mecouncil-afkar.fuegodigitalmedia.qa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/opinion"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mecouncil-afkar.fuegodigitalmedia.qa\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16906"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}