Absolute Justice

During his Friday Sermon on December 11th, 2015, His Holiness Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad ^{(may Allah be his helper)}, the fifth Khalifa of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, said that injustice is the “root cause” of so much of today’s unrest. So, at various public gatherings, His Holiness has expounded upon how to establish justice in today’s world.

On one occasion, His Holiness noted that while the Holy Qur’an (42:41) calls for punishing injustice, it forbids transgression and urges forgiveness if forgiveness fosters reformation. In this regard, His Holiness presented the exemplary justice of early Muslims, despite facing bitter persecution. During Islam’s early days, slaves who had converted to Islam were forcibly laid on hot sand and burning coals, corpses were mutilated (and sometimes consumed), Muslims died from famine brought on by a 2.5 year economic boycott, women had had their legs tied to different camels that were made to run in opposing directions – ripping their bodies in two. After 12 years of persecution, instead of fighting, the Muslims migrated from Mecca to Medina. Even after migration, the Meccans constantly declared war on the Muslims. Yet after more than two decades of such persecution, when Prophet Muhammad ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} conquered Mecca, the Meccans were forgiven. In contrast, these days, there are reports of soldiers on foreign land mutilating corpses, extremists then exploiting local sentiment to fan the flames of hatred.

Forgiveness aside, His Holiness cited the governance of Prophet Muhammad ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} as ruler of Medina to validate the potency of Islam in establishing justice. Prophet Muhammad ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} and many of the Muslims were themselves immigrants to Medina. Following the migration, Medina’s citizens unanimously appointed Prophet Muhammad ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} as their ruler. During Prophet Muhammad’s ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} rule, His Holiness mentioned that Muslims and non-Muslims enjoyed equal treatment under the law, religious liberty and the right of mutual defense. This, in contrast to a society that, before Islam, considered fighting the only means of settling a dispute. Demonstrating how equality under the law was practiced, once, when an affluent woman committed a crime, many suggested that, given her high standing, her crime should be ignored. His Holiness remarked that Prophet Muhammad’s ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} commitment to justice was so lofty that he openly condemned this thinking and declared that no one was above the law, even his own daughter (Bukhari).

His Holiness believes that these principles should also be adhered to at an international level. He explained that the League of Nations unjust policies helped spur WWII. Regrettably, the United Nations, with its permanent member nation status and selective veto power that absolves some nations of accountability, is also sowing the seeds of distrust; blocs are forming once again. The UN turning a blind eye to major powers preference for regime change has created power vacuums. Extremists have exploited the pain of the innocent, who have seen their homes destroyed and families killed, to fill this power vacuum. Even if these extremists are defeated, His Holiness explained that their ideology can spread, especially if their members scatter. Compounding this effect, far-right parties are increasingly polarizing the West. And as globalization has made the world economy increasingly integrated, no unrest should be deemed to have an isolated effect.

In contrast to major powers peacekeeping efforts, His Holiness stated that the Holy Qur’an (49:10) explains that intervention requires impartial parties to negotiate between warring sides. Afterwards, if any party violates an agreement, unified force should be used against the belligerent. He further cited the Holy Qur’an (16:127) to advise that the coalition cannot transgress – only using force to the extent necessary to stop the belligerent. Otherwise, enmity will replace trust and such instability will only benefits extremists. He further cited numerous Qur’anic verses to outline model rules of war: as every innocent life is sacrosanct (5:33), wars should only be defensive in nature (2:191) and waged to end persecution (2:194), prisoners of war should be freed if at all possible (8:68, 47:5), every avenue should be pursued if a belligerent party inclines towards peace (8:62) and any covenant should be honored if the enemy is peaceful and has honored past terms (9:4).

Lastly, justice can also be established at a grassroots level. His Holiness grounded his position in the hadith of Prophet Muhammad ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} to help both the oppressed and the oppressor. When asked how one can help the oppressor, Prophet Muhammad ^{(peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)} replied that you should prevent the oppressor from acting unjustly (Bukhari). Thus, the public should hold their leaders accountable, not allowing vested interests and lobbies to sway legislation. And while each nation is justified in pursuing what is best for themselves, the public should peacefully criticize any nationalistic policies that create unrest or any political party injuring someone’s feelings; for similar reasons, the Holy Qur’an (6:109) instructs Muslims to not even insult the gods of other faiths. Moreover, the public should not vote solely on party lines, but objectively assess who will better their nation. If societies adopt these ideals, corruption will vanish, as will the potential for rebellion. His Holiness also encouraged people of different backgrounds to meet with one another as these interactions help remove suspicions and, in turn, people are more likely to ignore minor issues and exhibit more generosity.

His Holiness stated that as injustice deteriorates trust, peace requires absolute justice (Holy Qur’an 4:59, 60:9), even to one’s enemy (5:3, 5:9), whereby an individual is willing to bear witness against oneself or loved ones (4:136). But such justice will only be established when the most insignificant person realizes that for him to earn God’s love requires him to establish peace in every aspect of his life.