Essay On Islamic Democracy

The Western world, used to its democratic systems, is constantly telling Muslims in general and Arabs in particular, to build democratic governments. This would appear to be a reasonable request. So why is it so apparently difficult to do? Can Islamic state politicians build such societies?

Let me start with a brief definition of the concept of democracy. Various amount of literature is devoted discussing about this topic, however, that the "state of the game" in contemporary political science allows us to speak with a reasonable degree of certainty about democracy. According to Robert A. Dahl -- the American political scientist-- modern democracy is a system of governance with specific practices, strategies and rules. The members of that system

As is often said, Islam is a way of life. Islam's precepts are not based on personal choice. Even with the Islamic disunity of Sunnis, Shi'as, Alawites, Wahhabis, and so many others, all have one quality in common: They dictate in very clear rules about what they can do and what they cannot do. Indeed, the expectation of how Muslims should live is not only religious (with the ultimate punishment of Hell fire) but it is also worldly (with the ultimate punishment of being ignored, exiled and, in extremis, executed). No you cannot drink or gamble or deny God's existence, etc. These activities have been denied by the Word of God. Period. In other words, the concept of choice as we know it in the West is cursed in the Muslim world.

Islamic law is absolutely incompatible with democracy. It is a theocratic system with Allah alone at its head as ruled in the Qur'an and the Sunnah, which are set and fixed. According to Muslims, there is no need for addition or correction. Neither is there any room for the law of unreliable man, particularly non-Muslims. Muslims think that nothing should take the place of Allah's perfect law, which supposedly tells a man everything he needs to know about daily life. The law of one man, one vote is heretical to