“No fixed prescription in Quran for Islamic state”

The Islamic Renaissance Front argued that governing a state is a human endeavor, and thus democratic values are essential.

SUBANG JAYA: The argument that the Islamic state is a system of governance based on definitions in the Quran is a fallacy, said Islamic Renaissance Front director Ahmad Farouk Musa.

He said this is because the Quran does not have fixed prescriptions of matters of a changing nature such as governing a country. What the Quran does offer are guidelines and foundations to governance.

Speaking at a forum on “Islamic state: Which Version, Whose responsibility?” today, Ahmad Farouk hit out at PAS Youth and its scholars for their insistence on replicating the Medinan city-state model of the seventh century.

“As the erudite Muhammad Asad said, every generation faces different circumstances and thus many laws and ways for society cannot be fixed for all time. This is also why the Quran fixes timeless laws, ethics and restrictions that are universal in its appreciation.

“The companions of the Prophet (Muhammad) were not left with a set of rules as to how to settle disputes or lead their worldly lives. However they were compelled to perform ijtihad or independent reasoning,” he said in the opening speech.

He said Muslims should be able to exercise their independent reasoning to devise suitable solutions for emerging problems, and only by doing that will Islam be suitable for all time and all places.

“Islam is not a panacea that provides ready-made answers to all human problems. Muslim scholars have not solved all the problems of humanity in history and for all times.

“Rather, Islam provides a moral and just perspective within which Muslims can find answer to all human problems,” he told some 500-odd audiences.

The three-hour forum, which was organised by Islamic Renaissance Front and Oriental Hearts and Minds Study Institute, also featured respondents such as PAS parliamentarian for Parit Buntar Mujahid Yusof Rawa, independent analyst Wong Chin Huat, lawyer Malik Imtiaz, Kenny Ng, PKR’s Nurul Izzah Anwar and Baru Bian.

Ahmad Farouk opined that since governing a state is a human endeavour, democracy would be essential to guide Muslim societies towards Islam.

Mutual consultation vital

He said this is because democracy would allow operation of the community and the demands of Islam to be freely debated and refashioned.

He said the governance has to be as democratic as possible so that all adults can participate in it.

“Thus the mutual affairs – those pertaining to governance- should be conducted only by mutual consultation which in contemporary (times is) construed as democratic governance,” he said.

He went on to criticise PAS-led Kedah government for enacting a ruling earlier this year that barred religious verdict (fatwa) from being challenged in court, saying that it was a clear breach of democracy.

“When such an institution declares that god is the sovereign, then they have the legitimacy to impose their own rule or whims in the name of sovereign,” he said.

Mujahid when responding to this later, said that the Islamic party rejected authoritarian leadership as it was discouraged in the Quran.

He said it was up to the people to judge whether the fatwa ruling was suitable.

“Whatever they have done (in Kedah) went through a democratic process. If people want us (to do things this way), it’s good. If not, we must adjust ourselves so we give people what they want,” he said.

When asked about his party colleague’s bashing of recent Halloween celebrations, Mujahid said such remark was personal opinion and not party stance.

“For me Halloween is a party, just go and enjoy it. If I don’t want to go, then don’t say I’m banning it, just don’t go,” he said.

Secularism should be upheld

Meanwhile, Wong in his speech argued that since religious competition is inevitable in this multi-religion country, it’s better for the competition to be geared towards the way a religion treats non-believers.

Citing Islamic banking where non-Muslim make up the largest depositor as an example, he said a non-believer does not mind subscribing to a certain religious idea should the person be treated equally.

“If Islam can do that, I would have no problem with Islamic state,” he said.

Baru, when expressing his views from East Malaysia standpoint, said Sabah and Sarawak were looking for a secular state when they joined Malaysia in 1963.

Reading out the Cobbold Commission report, he said the secularism foundation was assured in the report and should be upheld forever.