Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain
The Liberation Party
Dr Abdul Wahid Chairman of UK Executive Committee Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain www.hizb.org,uk info@hizb.org.uk
4 Dhu al-Qi'dah 1433 20 September 2012
Dear Respected Brothers – Imams, Khateebs, Community Leaders and Activists Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh We have all become aware of the horrific disgraceful insults towards Allah’s beloved Messenger salallahu alaihi wasallam. In the United States a film was made insulting his honour and in France they drew cartoons mocking Rasool Allah, salallahu alaihi wasallam. In the aftermath of this there have been protests across the Muslim world, where embassies have been attacked, buildings burned, and lives lost. We do not welcome what the Shari’ah does not allow, but nor do we wish to focus on these matters at the expense of the greater munkar of these insults. The reaction to such insults and disrespect has caused alarm amongst people in the West. Those people need understand that the love and respect Muslims have for the Prophet, salallahu alaihi wasallam far exceeds the love and respect they have for themselves, their own parents and all of mankind. We should also remind people that the countries where these insults originated from, which permit the freedom to insult Prophets, have a very bad history of abuse towards Islam and Muslims. Insults and ridicule is hurled at our beliefs, under the guise of free speech. If we examine the true notion of free speech we can see there is no greater double standard when it is applied to Muslims. Recently, a 19-year old call Azhar Ahmed was arrested when he posted some comments on Facebook regarding the deaths of British soldiers in Afghanistan which people found offensive. However when someone offends Muslims and Islam it is respected in the name of “free speech." Allah’s beloved Messenger, salallahu alaihi wasallam, faced abuse in his lifetime; and he salallahu alaihi wasallam faced it patiently, persisting with his call to Islam in the face of adversity. Allah harshly cursed those abusers in the Quran al Kareem, so defending his honour, salallahu alaihi wasallam. Ulema, such as Qadi Iyad in his magnificent work Kitab Ash-shifa bi Ta'rif Huquq al-Mustafa (Healing by the Recognition of the Rights of or News of the Chosen One) explains the rights of Allah’s Messenger, salallahu alaihi wasallam: to be believed in, to be loved, not to be insulted or abused. This last right, not to be insulted or abused, is the right that has been violated – and it is really the duty of a Muslim government to uphold that right. Sadly, not one Muslim government has fulfilled this right – so it is not surprising we see the frustration and anger of sincere believers who demand the honour the Messenger, salallahu alaihi wasallam, be upheld. The last occasion when this right was upheld, was by the Dawlah Islamiyya of the Uthmani Khilafah. Sultan Abdul Hameed took a firm stand against the government of France for permitting the production of a play insulting the Prophet, alaihi salatu wasalam – and the French government stopped the play from being shown.
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At this sad time, we would offer the following humble advice as a way forward for Muslims in Britain. 1. The insult of our Prophet salallahu alaihi wasallam is a red line that the Muslim community will never allow to be crossed. 2. Such attacks on our Prophet salallahu alaihi wasallam will not be met with muted voices. Rather, a strong non-violent voice must be raised in order to counter the lies and deceit. No argument regarding free speech should ever silence us, for that is not the speech of civilised people. He, salallahu alaihi wasallam, taught us to forbid the munkar. What could be a greater munkar than insults to Rasool Allah, salallahu alaihi wasallam? 3. The true nature of Rasool Allah, salallahu alaihi wasallam needs to be projected to the people of the West. We should tell non-Muslims about Rasool Allah, salallahu alaihi wasallam, and the message he brought for humanity. Allah sent Rasool Allah as ‘Rahmata lil ‘alamin’ – so let the ‘alamin know his status and his message, salallahu alaihi wasallam. 4. We should harshly account the governments in the Muslim world for their cowardly stance and failure to act where they could act. Why did the Saudis not halt oil supplies? Why did Zardari and Kiyani not block the NATO supply route to Afghanistan? Why does the new President of Egypt seem to care more about his relations with America than defending the honour of Allah’s Messenger? 5. We should call our community to support the call for the Islamic Khilafah state, which is the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah salallahu alaihi wasallam. Muslim reported on the authority of Abu Hazim that he said- I accompanied Abu Hurayrah for five years and he said that the Prophet salallahu alaihi wasallam, said: ‘Bani Israel were ruled by their Prophets. When one died, there would follow another. There will be noProphet after me, only Khulafaa.’ They asked Rasool Allah, ‘What should we do?’ He said, ‘Give them bayah, one after the other.’ This will be a state that will defend the Islamic Aqeedah and honour of the Prophet salallahu alaihi wasallam. It will make its foreign policy the spreading of the beauty of Islam to the world. Only when we have a just, Islamic state that is independent of the colonial states that wish to impose their kufr standard of freedom – which permits insults such as these – will we see a ruler take seriously the role to protect the honour of the Messenger salallahu alaihi wasallam and halt such abuses. These important messages need to be raised in the Muslim community by all responsible leaders and groups. By our combined effort we can build a strong community on these lines and prevent the danger of silencing the Muslims that some would like to see. “They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah will perfect His light, although the disbelievers dislike it” (Sura Saff - 8) Wasalamu alaikum Your brother Abdul Wahid
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