The Islam vs. Democracy Debate

If we collectively fail democracy as a system in Pakistan, we have collectively failed Islam as a religion. A Muslims believes that Islam is a complete deen. That Islam has the guidance to everything, from personal matters to the way a nation should be governed. If that is true; looking at the state of democracy in Pakistan, it seems that the people are really bad at practicing their faith.

There is also a “religious” segment of Pakistani society which believes that democracy is not a system acceptable in Islam but an idea of the West. Little do they know, by making this assertion they are questioning the judgment of Muslims who would vote in the elections. When they question the judgment of a Muslim to be able to decide a leader for him / herself, they are questioning their ability of judgment in all matters, including religion.

So those who are preaching anti-democracy propaganda, are actually declaring that Islam has taught nothing to its believers. That its believers are ignorant, childish, and brainless enough to distinguish between right and wrong. And so this is their first argument against democracy.

Their other argument is, that the leaders – the people – chosen by the masses, do not possess the abilities and knowledge required to run a nation. These people do not consider the fact that those “Muslim” who are chosen to run the nation, should have the same Islam governing their lives that these people do. As all Muslims believe that Islam has taught us how to run all affairs, personal and/or state. So these anti-democracy preachers must be advising that Islam does not teach a Muslim how to be a good leader.

So why the hypocrisy by these anti-democracy so called religious preachers. Is it because democracy actually is a system based on a collective decision making and collective wisdom. And so they believe that their argument, which might stand a chance in a tiny group of people who follow these people, but will fail in a collective judgment of intelligent Muslims. They know that rhetoric and propaganda stands no chance in a truly democratic system, and political Islam has no space in it.

These anti-democracy preachers are not sincere with Islam or Pakistan for that matter. The only thing in their minds is not how they can make better Muslims, but how they can control the weak Muslims. Their Idea of a truly Islamic system of government is an authoritarian system in which they themselves will be hand picked for being an authority on religion and in-tern on all state matters.

Learning from the events around the Middle-East, where collective intelligence of people of nations with the similar autocracies have decided to turn against that system, we Pakistanis should also completely scrap this mindless idea that Islam and democracy is incompatible. The fact of the matter is that Islam complements democracy and vice versa.

Published @ Daily Lahore Post