In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Islam is a complete code of life. It cannot be divided into separate spheres. The enforcement of Islamic laws alone does not constitute the implementation of Islam. Rather, it means implementing the entire system of life that Islam has prescribed for us. The enforcement of Islamic law is only one aspect of that comprehensive system. If it is separated from the whole (the Islamic system) and implemented in isolation, it cannot be regarded as the implementation of the Islamic system.
Therefore, if we allow the entire system of life to continue on the path of ignorance (Jahiliyyah) as it currently does, and merely enforce Islamic law through the courts, then the results desired by Islam cannot be achieved.
For example, if a stove is burning, a cooking pot is placed on it, and we continue placing blocks of ice on top in an attempt to cool it, the pot will not become cold. It will only cool down when the fire beneath it is extinguished.
Similarly, if the causes of wrongdoing in society remain unchanged, and we attempt to bring about reform solely through legislation, how can genuine reform possibly be achieved?
Those in authority may announce the enforcement of Islamic law on a pleasant morning or on a bright and auspicious night, but the machinery responsible for implementing it will still be the same machinery that has long enforced non-Islamic laws. Likewise, the people will remain the same people whose majority has, for a long time, been shaped and corrupted by un-Islamic customs and traditions.
A mere declaration cannot fill their hearts with the light of faith, adorn their minds with Islamic thought, or transform their habits and character according to Islamic morals.
A study of history reveals that when the British entered the Indian subcontinent through their calculated and strategic means, Islamic teachings prevailed throughout the region. Muslims possessed their own distinct civilization, culture, traditions, and moral values. Careful reflection shows how the British, after seizing power, transformed this entire situation. They did not merely replace Islamic law with their own legal system; rather, they attacked every aspect of our way of life and undermined it from every direction.
They replaced the Islamic educational system with their own educational system. Economic opportunity and social advancement became the exclusive privilege of those educated under their system. They gave preference to their own language. They dismissed our civilization and culture as obsolete and outdated while promoting their own civilization and culture under the label of modernity.
They economically constrained Muslims so that their natural freedom could not flourish, keeping them constantly preoccupied with the struggle for livelihood. They compelled us to bow before their authority and gradually accustomed us to sacrificing our conscience, faith, honor—in short, everything. They forcibly imposed their own economic system upon us. They restricted lawful means of earning an honest livelihood while opening every avenue for unlawful gain and immorality.
They promoted their own political system and established in such a way that our own concept of governance was virtually erased, leaving us unable even to conceive that we once possessed a distinct political identity.
Along with changing the law, all these transformations took place. As a result, the British never found it necessary to tell us, "Change your religion, change your morals and character, or change your civilization and culture." Why? Because we gradually changed all these things ourselves.
Every forbidden (haram) practice gradually came to be regarded as acceptable (halal), while our inclination toward what was acceptable steadily diminished. British ideas increasingly came to dominate our minds. We not only adopted their language, attire, civilization, culture, and way of life with pride, but we also began to give them precedence within our own society. All the forms of immorality that were characteristic of British culture spread among us like an epidemic. From this, one can understand how an entire nation can be transformed and by what means such a transformation takes place.
Now consider this: from the very first day after the British departed and independence was achieved until today, have we changed even one of these things? Far from changing them, we have continued to move further along the same thorny path upon which the British placed us. The education system remains the same, the way of instruction remains the same, and the philosophy of education remains the same. In fact, its consequences appear even worse than before. Our educational institutions are now filled with teachers who are determined to produce generations that are irreligious and morally corrupt. Poisons such as atheism and Qadianism are being fed to the Muslim generation. The increasing promotion of alcohol, dancing, and co-education has only intensified this condition.
Our economic and political systems are also essentially the same as those left behind by the British. Indeed, we have become even more deeply entangled in their defects, and those who operate these systems are not even willing to consider implementing an alternative system. Our language, civilization, culture, intellectual outlook, and ideology still bear the imprint of British influence. In fact, that influence appears stronger today than it did during the colonial period itself. Added to this is the widespread moral decline that has spread into every aspect of our lives and continues to grow. (Contemporary media bear witness to this. What else is the phenomenon of collective sexual assault?)
A large portion of our administrative machinery is plagued by bribery, corruption, dishonesty, and negligence in the performance of duty. Among the business community, only a few refrain from taking every possible opportunity to accumulate wealth through unlawful means. A clear example of this today is that the poor continue to become poorer while the rich grow increasingly wealthy. Our media are widely engaged in spreading obscenity, indecency, immorality, and crime among the people. (This can easily be observed through contemporary newspapers, magazines, and periodicals.)
In short, throughout our society, within our economic and political systems, and in the administration of the country, the causes and opportunities for wrongdoing continue to increase. The question, therefore, is this: if these conditions remain unchanged, is it possible to achieve the objectives for which Islam prescribed its laws merely by enforcing Islamic legislation?
You may enforce the criminal law of the Shariah in a single day, but who will apprehend the offenders under that law? Will it be this same administrative machinery that is hostile to justice, protects criminals, and is remarkably fearless in oppressing the innocent?
Furthermore, where will the courts obtain truthful and sincere witnesses upon whose testimony they must determine whether a person is guilty or innocent? Will these witnesses come from a society where false testimony is abundant, and where a small payment is enough to purchase someone's evidence? More importantly, would the true objectives of Islam be fulfilled in such circumstances? Certainly not.
Should the country's economic system remain unchanged—a system that is full of incentives for theft and robbery—and should the machinery responsible for enforcing the law remain the same machinery that provides every opportunity for crime, while the courts merely impose the prescribed punishments of the Shariah upon those who commit theft or robbery?
Likewise, does Islam desire that obscenity be openly promoted, that indecent images continue to be displayed, and that material capable of arousing base desires remain widely available? Does it approve of women adorning themselves and appearing in public in this manner, or of unrestricted interaction between men and women in colleges, universities, offices, clubs, and recreational places? And under such circumstances, should those who commit adultery merely be flogged, and those guilty of drinking alcohol simply be subjected to corporal punishment?
If the answer to these questions is in the negative—and it inevitably is—then there is no alternative but to acknowledge the reality that Islam does not seek merely the enforcement of laws. Rather, it seeks the implementation of the complete system of life that it has prescribed for humanity and desires the transformation of the entire social structure that presently exists in our country.
What has been stated here does not mean that the idea of replacing non-Islamic laws with Islamic laws should be abandoned. Rather, what I wish to convey is that the implementation of Islamic law and the comprehensive transformation of the entire system of life should proceed simultaneously and side by side.
Just as the British attacked our entire way of life all at once, surrounding it from every direction and reshaping it according to their own model, in the same way we must now challenge the entire legacy they left behind from every angle and in every sphere of life. We should eradicate it completely and establish the full Islamic system in practice.
For this purpose, alongside changing the law, the following measures are considered necessary:
(1) The educational system should be changed immediately, and the curriculum of every field of knowledge and discipline should be reorganized in accordance with the Islamic point of view. No ideological state allows any stage of its educational system—from nursery to higher education—to promote knowledge, ideas, or intellectual training that contradict its foundational ideology. For example, one may observe this in the educational systems of China and other socialist. Likewise, Western countries do not maintain educational systems that encourage their younger generations to abandon their own basic principles and beliefs. Readers should remember that Pakistan is also an ideological state, established solely on the basis of the Islamic ideology.
(2) When appointing teachers to educational institutions, the foremost consideration should be that every teacher possesses an Islamic mindset, has a sound understanding of Islamic teachings, is firmly committed to Islamic beliefs, observes Islamic injunctions in practice, and is adorned with Islamic moral character. No teacher who holds views contrary to Islam or whose moral conduct is unacceptable should be tolerated in any educational institution.
No sensible nation entrusts the education of its children to those who may imprint upon their innocent minds whatever they wish—even if those ideas ultimately lead to their destruction.
Such a situation can already be observed in many colleges today, where, instead of nurturing a love of learning, the educational environment is fostering a dislike for knowledge itself.
(3) Abolition of Co-Education :
Regardless of how highly co-education may be regarded in non-Muslim societies, from the Islamic point of view it is destructive for society and a deadly poison for the younger generation. No Muslim possessing even the slightest sense of moral responsibility can bear its harmful consequences, regardless of his own personal shortcomings.
To those who support and promote it, I humbly appeal: for the sake of Allah, do not cast your own children into the Fire with your own hands. Parents naturally desire the best possible education and upbringing for their children. How, then, can parents knowingly allow the poison of co-education to spread among their children when they are aware of the consequences it may have for their identity and character?
If one studies history, one will find that the Jews and Christians did not always seek to weaken Muslims through direct warfare. Rather, they often attempted to undermine them by arousing base desires and by using women as a means of temptation. For God's sake, come to your senses.
(4) There is an abundance of law colleges in the country. Therefore, legal education should immediately be reformed by incorporating the study of the Arabic language, the Qur'an, Hadith, and Islamic jurisprudence (Fiqh) into the curriculum in a comprehensive manner. Lawyers should also receive training in piety and God-consciousness so that the courts may be served by sincere judges, justices, and advocates.
(5) Every institution responsible for training government officials should provide comprehensive instruction in Islamic teachings together with systematic moral training. The objective should not merely be to produce government servants but to develop officials who are honest, God-fearing, conscientious, knowledgeable about their religion, and distinguished by fear of Allah, trust in Him, self-confidence, and steadfastness.
(6) The character and conduct of current government employees should be thoroughly examined. Those who are incorrigibly dishonest, corrupt, given to bribery, or habitual liars should be removed from service and replaced with individuals of sound moral character and integrity.
(7) Those employees who are capable of reform should be provided with Islamic refresher courses under the supervision of the relevant religious authorities.
(8) With the exception of the criminal investigation branch, the entire Criminal Investigation Department (CID) should be separated from the police and assigned the responsibility of monitoring the conduct of all government departments, officers, and employees. Its purpose should be to provide the government with accurate information regarding every form of corruption and misconduct. At the same time, the government's other intelligence agencies should also be employed for this purpose so that no single channel of reporting is able to mislead the government by supplying false or fabricated information.
(9) Every avenue through which ideas contrary to Islam, obscenity, or criminal behavior are being propagated should be blocked. Those responsible for promoting such indecency should be held accountable. No ideological state tolerates propaganda directed against its fundamental beliefs or moral principles.
(10) All forms of media and publishing should be employed as part of a comprehensive movement to educate the public about Islamic beliefs and teachings, instill in them the fear of Allah and a sense of accountability on the Day of Judgment, encourage virtuous moral conduct, and cultivate an aversion to wrongdoing. Through reasonable and effective manners, people should be made to understand how transgressing the commands of Allah and His Messenger and violating moral boundaries lead to harmful consequences in both this world and the Hereafter.
(11) The country's economic system should be reformed in accordance with Islamic injunctions so that wealth and property are distributed justly, unlawful means of earning and spending wealth are eliminated, and all centers of vice are brought to an end. Cinemas should either be closed entirely or prohibited from screening films that stimulate base desires.
The bank accounts of landlords and capitalists should be properly scrutinized, and Zakat should be collected in its true spirit and meaning. Opportunities for earning a lawful livelihood should be created so that ordinary people are not deprived of their basic necessities. The unlawful means through which certain individuals have accumulated immense wealth should be abolished.
If all of these measures are implemented, there will be no need to pass legislation in the assembly in order to establish Islam. Rather, Islam will become established naturally on its own.
وما علينا إلا البلاغ
And upon us is only the duty of conveying the message.
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