Islam is a religion of human rights. In religion, all the religious and legal rights of individuals are observed, and the Holy Koran as the heavenly book of the Moslems puts value on all human beings since God, after the creation of man as the noblest of all creation, admires Himself: “So blessed is Allah, the best of creators.” In this sense of admiration, the concepts of race, religion, nationality, and geography are of no consequence. My own understanding of Islam, too, is based on the conformity of religion to the rights of man.

In the culture of Shiism, when the concept of man is used, it is meant human beings in general. For example, in our prayers we recite, “O God! Make all the poor rich, feed the starving, and free all the slaves.” In this prayer, our religious outlook takes account of all human beings of different beliefs and
religions. Is not such a perspective itself the height of the observance of the rights of man everywhere?

In Islam, the observance of democracy and human rights is, in fact, even greater than that the supporters of human rights define. Islam has even called for the observance of the rights of animals. The basis of democracy in Islam is based upon people’s behavior towards the government; to the effect that people should be in favor of those in power and like them, and those in power, too, must act in a manner which reciprocates that fondness. That way, there will be no place for any kind of oppression and dictatorship since their relationship will be humane.

The charter of human rights was drawn up after world war two, but the rights of man in Islam were written fourteen centuries ago, and in days that man still had a primitive culture. The charter of Islamic human rights was drawn up at a time when men buried their daughters alive. At such times you can see that the foundation of human rights in Islam is based on the greatness of man’s soul and his generosity towards others, and therefore, race, religion, nationality, and geography played no part in it. Human rights in Islam place no prejudice on race, sex, or geography and men of all religions and beliefs are granted certain rights.