The first thing to note is that “the people” has never included all the people in a particular society – children for example are generally excluded. The question is how to define the limit of who has the right of participation in the ruling, and who is to be excluded.
Voting: A Brief Look
Democracy is fundamentally “rule by the people”, and is based upon total and complete sovereignty residing in “the people”.....Representative democracy is when representatives are chosen by the people in order to exercise that sovereignty on their behalf.... Voting for a candidate in a representative democracy is therefore the process of selection to choose someone to exercise the sovereignty of the people on your behalf.
Caliphate Contentions (4): It is permitted to have multiple Caliphs or rulers and multiple Islamic states
Historical precedence is not an evidence for permissibility. That it is not a source of Islamic ruling should be clear – if taken to its conclusion that would mean that we can point to the actions of some of the leaders historically to align themselves with groups hostile to the Muslims such as the crusaders or Mongols, or enforced hereditary rule, or other indiscretions of specific rulers which went unchecked, whether personal or otherwise – and suggest that they were also permitted since they took place. Such an argument is irresponsible, incorrect and contrary to Islamic thought.
A Brief Response to Dr. Ovamir Anjum’s “Who Wants the Caliphate?”
Dr. Ovamir Anjum's recent piece for the Yaqeen Institute entitled "Who wants the Caliphate?" is certainly worth a read. It is a fairly substantial long-read for an internet article, so to summarise just a few of the points I found interesting; please note there is much more in the article than what I mention below, … Continue reading A Brief Response to Dr. Ovamir Anjum’s “Who Wants the Caliphate?”
Democratic Theory (1): What makes a democracy ‘democratic’?
Given the many varieties and claims to democracy today and throughout history, it is important to have a clearly defined understanding of what the core differentiating characteristic of democracy is, if the word is to have any meaning - i.e. what defines it distinctively from other potential forms of government. Our objective here is to … Continue reading Democratic Theory (1): What makes a democracy ‘democratic’?
Caliphate Contentions (3): There is nothing in the Prophetic example (sunna) to suggest that establishing a Caliphate is an obligation upon the Muslims.
[TL:DR 1. There are several Prophetic narrations which indicate the obligation of both establishing an Imam, and of obeying an Imam 2. Any narration which talks about the necessity to obey the Imam of the Muslims is also a proof of the necessity to establish such an Imam if it isabsent 3. These narrations link … Continue reading Caliphate Contentions (3): There is nothing in the Prophetic example (sunna) to suggest that establishing a Caliphate is an obligation upon the Muslims.
Caliphate Contentions (2): The obligation to establish a Caliphate is not mentioned in the Quran, and therefore is not an obligation.
[TL:DR1. The obligation can be derived from the Quran directly 2. Every verse that mentions a law that must be implemented is an evidence for the obligation to establish an authority to implement that law 3. Ali Abdul Raziq was the first contemporary scholar to make the claim there was no evidence in the quran … Continue reading Caliphate Contentions (2): The obligation to establish a Caliphate is not mentioned in the Quran, and therefore is not an obligation.
Caliphate Contentions (1): There was no consensus among the companions that appointing a Caliph is obligatory upon the Muslims.
[TL:DR] 1. There is a clear consensus of companions upon the necessity to appoint an Imam2. Their consensus also shows that they considered appointing the Khalifa to be an utmost priority, which was prioritised over both the burial of the Prophet – peace be upon him – and the sanctity of life.3. The companions differed … Continue reading Caliphate Contentions (1): There was no consensus among the companions that appointing a Caliph is obligatory upon the Muslims.
Betrayal of the Inheritance – Contemporary Muslim Scholars and the Jurisprudence of Capitulation
Numerous well known scholars have become interlocutors for the current regimes across the Middle East and Muslim countries, forsaking leadership of the oppressed in the name of a wisdom they claim monopoly over, promoting a perversion of normative Islamic thought under the guise of a traditional Islam that they have ceased to represent, if they ever did.