Law

Introduction
There are a lot of controversies and debates concerned with freedom of speech and religion across the globe. Should the press be prohibited from publishing illustrations that may offend the Islamic community Can stating that practicing homosexuality is a sin according to the Holy Bible be considered a form of hate speech Should keepers of shops and department stores avoid greeting the shoppers Merry Christmas to avoid offending non-Christians Should there be a law prohibiting the establishment of mosques in Western Europe The list goes on. The central controversies include human rights, freedom of speech, democracy, freedom of religion, blasphemy, etc., but most important thing to consider is that at the very heart of these controversies is the issue of freedom of speech and its religious complications.

The Aspiration
To achieve individual freedom, it is necessary to fully enjoy the right to freedom of speech. This right is also vital in advancing equality and democracy, and crucial in bringing down the core causes of poverty.  It establishes public trust in government and gives meaning to electoral democracy. The ability to retrieve information reinforces systems for holding government officials and agencies liable for their duties, promises, and actions. It can prevent corruption thriving on confidentiality and closed settings since it not only boosts the knowledge base and involvement within a population but also assures outside checks on government answerability. The right to freedom of speech is critical to enjoy the freedom of religion. In the same way, without the freedom of religion, people cannot exercise their freedom of speech.

 Freedom of Speech in Human Rights Law

Freedom of speech, or freedom of expression, is the liberty to speak without limitation or censorship, or both. Sometimes, the second term is used to imply not just liberty of oral speech, but any act of seeking, obtaining, and communication ideas or information, not considering the medium used. In reality, the definition of freedom of speech is not conclusive in any country, and is subject to limitations.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 19, recognizes the entitlement to freedom of speech as a human right. It is also defined as the right to hold opinion without interference by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). It is also acknowledged internationally in African regional, inter-American, and European human rights law.

History of Freedom of Speech
Early documents on human rights already contained concepts of freedom of speech and during the period of Enlightenment in Europe, modern concepts of it developed progressively. The freedom of speech in Parliament was enforced by the England Bill of Rights 1689 the freedom of speech was avowed specifically as an indisputable right during 1789 when the French Revolution was taking place, by the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.

On December 10, 1948, The United Nations General Assembly adopted the declaration called the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. The said declaration is the document with the most number of translations in the world, with translations in 375 languages and dialects.

The UDHR emerged directly from the incident of World War II and it embodies the first internal articulation of rights to which all individuals are entitled.

It is made up of thirty articles, each developed in succeeding national laws, regional human rights mechanisms, and international treaties. According to UDHRs Article 19, Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
The right to freedom of speech is also stated in Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights, Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and Article 19 of the ICCPR.

Founded on the principles argued by John Stuart Mill, freedom of speech does not only refer to the right to convey, or distribute ideas and information, but also the right to seek, the right to receive, and the right to communicate ideas and information.

Because freedom of speech is recognized internationally as synonymous with freedom of expression, any medium by which it is expressed is included, whether verbally, in print, in written, through art forms, or through the internet. This implies that aside from the content, the right to freedom of speech also protects the right to choose the method of expression.

The Restrictions
However, the right to freedom of speech may be subject to some restrictions, according to international human rights law, but these restrictions will only be such as are declared by law and are indispensable (1) to protect the rights and reputations of others, and (2) to protect public order or national security, or public health or morals, in a democratic society9. This rule is stipulated in both the European Convention on Human Rights and in the United Nations Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The religious freedoms of people may fall under the rights and reputations of others that may be protected. The international human rights law enforces restrictions regarding freedom of religion. Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights states that everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion this includes the liberty to change ones belief or religion, and the liberty to express his belief or religion, either alone or in society with other people and in public or private, through preaching, worshipping, and practicing. In the same way that the right to freedom of speech may be restricted, it also states that the freedom to express ones belief or religion may be subject to certain restrictions as prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in order to protect the rights and freedoms of others, public order, health or morals, or public safety.

Controversial Events Involving Freedom of Speech
The idea of freedom of speech has great effects in the area of religious freedom. For instance, in Denmark, the twelve very controversial cartoons depicting Mohammed published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten. The publication of these drawings has been condemned around the Muslim communities across the world and resulted in Muslim nations starting riots and protests. A lot of killings have resulted, embassies were burned, and all Danish products and goods imported from Denmark have been boycotted by the entire Islamic world, implying grave economic effects for Denmark. There were a lot of global diplomatic hard talk and demands that there should be restrictions imposed on freedom of speech and of the press.

Politiken, another Danish newspaper, reprinted the Mohammed cartoons on the 28th of May 2006, believing that they are immune to attacks from the Islamic community because their sole purpose for reprinting the cartoons was to criticize them11. To date, a total of 143 newspapers worldwide have reprinted the Mohammed cartoons.

A similar incident took place in 2007, when the Swedish newspaper Nerikes Allehanda published a photo of an art piece for an editorial on religious freedom and self-censorship. This was just one drawing from the series of drawings created by artist Lars Vilks that depicted Mohammed as a roundabout dog. He and the papers editor-in-chief received numerous death threats and they even employed a team of security personnel to protect them. The Prime Minister of Sweden had a special conference with ambassadors from Islamic countries in an attempt to pacify them. Despite many other leading Swedish newspapers reprinting the drawings, the Nerikes Allehanda publication in particular brought about riots from the Islamic communities in Sweden, as well as official denunciations from the inter-governmental Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and numerous external governments including Jordan, Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran.

Another incident in Sweden demonstrates the point where freedom of speech and freedom of religion cross. In July of 2003, Pastor ke Green delivered a sermon at his church in Borgholm. In this sermon, he said that sexual perversions (referring to homosexuality) are abnormal that they are like a horrible tumor in the society that causes cancer. He said that it was not possible to be a homosexual and a Christian at the same time. He insisted that that being a homosexual is ones choice, not an inborn trait, and said that everyone can be set free and delivered from it. It is important to note that he ended his sermon by saying that Jesus Christ showed every person He met profound respect for how he was. He never condemned such people (homosexuals) and neither can we.

None of the media invited by Green to attend the sermon showed up, so he wrote down a summary of the things he said in his sermon, which was published in landsbladet, a local newspaper. The controversies started when a representative of an equal rights organization reported Greens sermon to the authorities.

Roughly a year after delivering his sermon, Green was arrested for expressing contempt against homosexuals, and was sentenced to jail for one month. On the 9th of November 2005, he was acquitted in the Supreme Court.

Greens case proved to be of intense significance internationally and it was strongly followed by legislators and lawyers worldwide.

Arthur Pawlowski is a devout Christian who left Poland, a communist country, with his family to move to Canada where everyone is entitled to freedom of speech and religion. He preached to numerous homeless people, prostitutes, and drug addicts and a lot have been restored through his evangelism. In August 2006, however, while he was peacefully praying and reading the Holy Bible on a street corner in Calgary, he was forcefully arrested for publicly manifesting his Christian faith. His lawyer Gerald Chipeur, who specializes in cases involving religious freedom, said that his clients case was not the first time that such incidents have occurred the right to freedom of speech and religion are increasingly being violated. He pointed that out Pawlowski is not ministering to change a specific law, but to change the hearts of people.

Pastor Daniel Scot was forced to flee from Pakistan because of its blasphemy law and he moved to Australia. However, he ended up being arrested and charged for offending the Islamic community. This is surprising considering that Australia is a Christian country with a democratic form of government. In one church seminar, he did a comparative analysis of Christianity and Islam. This was what he was charged for, resulting in fines being imposed and jail time because of his refusal to renounce his religious faith in public.

These are just a few of the tons of controversies involving the issue of freedom of speech. The fact that they are taking place in all parts of the world clearly conveys its international significance.

Freedom of Speech in Islamic Law
The United Nations Organization (UN) and the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) are two major international bodies with their respective definitions and declarations on human rights.
UN was founded after the end of World War II. The UN declaration, represented by the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UHDR), was adopted in 1948 and is based on moral values and ethics of Judaism and Christianity. OIC, on the other hand, was founded in 1969. It has a membership of 57 Islamic countries, representing every fifth person on the planet. Its members provide the supply for majority of the worlds demand for gasoline and oil. OIC, believing that the human rights of Muslims are different, has developed and implemented its own human rights declaration, in form of the Cairo Declaration of Human Rights in Islam (CDHRI)  which was adopted in 1990. The last article of this declaration, Article 25, states that the only source of reference for the amplification of explanation of all the articles in it is the Shariah. Shariah, which literally means the path to a watering hole, refers to the code of ethics and morals based on the Quran that is being followed by the Islamic community. It is the sacred law of Islam.

The said 57 Islamic member countries have all signed up to the UHDR but hardly practice it rather, they abide by the Cairo Declaration.

All 57 Islamic countries must abide by the things stated in the declaration according to the CDHRI, but further makes clear that it concerns the ummah, which refers to all Muslims in the world, regardless of their country. This is a very important thing to note. It is the norm of international conventions and treaties that countries sign up and pledge themselves to follow them. The CDHRI, however, indirectly invalidates national laws and boundaries by declaring that the human rights interpretation based on the Shariah applies to all Muslims, regardless of country of residence and nationality. This implies that as long as Muslims are concerned, the CDHRI, and all Islamic laws for that matter, supersede national laws, in every situation and location.

You would find that in the preamble, in several of the articles, and in the conclusion of the Cairo Declaration that everything stated is to be followed unless as prescribed by Shariah. Therefore, the declaration may indeed talk of human rights and freedom to do certain things, but all of these are subject to restrictions according to the Islamic Law and the Quran.

Article 10 of the Cairo Declaration provides Muslims the right to freedom of religion, asserting that it is not allowed to practice any form of pressure with the intent of forcing someone to change his religion to another religion, or to atheism. However, remember that everything stated in the declaration is subject to Shariah. It is not an unfamiliar fact that Muslims who give up their Islamic religion are at risk and some have even been condemned, others punished by death even. Freedom of religion is asserted in Article 18 of the UN Declaration and centers on three elements the right to have religious faith, the right to express religious faith, and the right to change ones religious faith. However, in countries where the Islamic community is quite powerful, there are certain restrictions concerning expressing your faith and changing your faith the latter particularly for Muslims. In most cases, Christians are not prohibited to convert to Islam, but it is dangerous and almost illegal for Muslims to leave Islam.

Article 22 of the Cairo Declaration provides the right to freedom of speech by stating that
Everyone shall have the right to express his opinion freely in such a manner as would not be contrary to the principles of the Shariah.

It is clear, therefore, that freedom of speech in Islamic Law is not definite the right to it may be subject to a number of restrictions as prescribed by the Shariah and the teachings in the Quran.

Shariah Principles Affecting the Freedom of Speech
The idea of freedom of speech derives from the Capitalist philosophy that is based on the notion of secularism, that is, God and religion should be detached from lifes affairs. The people in this world are the ones who define how they should live their lives, free of the restrictions resulting from religious differences, which accounts for why freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of ownership, and freedom of the individual are vital keystones of Capitalism. Therefore, the right to freedom of speech and its limitations are all defined by human beings themselves.

This concept is a complete contradiction to the Islamic Law. In Islam, Allah, the Creator of human beings and all things, is the one who gave people the right to freedom of speech. He is also the one who specified the restrictions on whether a form of speech is acceptable and unacceptable.

The Cairo Declaration gave the Muslims the right to freedom of speech but remember that everything stated in the said declaration follows from the Shariah and Quran teachings. Therefore, freedom of speech is indeed predisposed to limitations as prescribed by the Shariah and the Quran.

The ultimate goal of all forms of speech, according to the Holy Quran, is to uphold the dignity of human beings and to encourage the discovery of truth. There are ninety-nine names for God in Islam and each name characterizes an attribute of God. Muslims are allowed to use these names when praying to God, as long as they understand that these ninety-nine names represent only one God, not different gods.. One of these names is Al-Haqq, which represents Gods attribute as being the True and Right One. Its root word is haqqa, which means to be right, just or fitting ...a fact

All those who believe in Allah must make an effort to emulate this attribute of God by promoting the cause of truth they are commanded to speak of the truth, even if it be unpleasant. Thus, restricting the right to freedom of speech unavoidably prevent one from discovering the truth and consequently, degrades the dignity of the human being. For example, a passage from the Holy Quran states that

So what would you love after discarding the truth except error

This passage indicates the one major restriction on the right to freedom of speech, that is, when it is inappropriate. Speech is considered inappropriate when it is hurtful, rude, immoral, or obscene. Inappropriate speech desecrates the dignity of human beings by obstructing the discovery of truth. Thus, restricting the freedom of speech when it is inappropriate can be considered justifiable. Another passage from the Quran provides support to this idea

Allah does not like the uttering of unseemly speech in public, except on the part of one who is being wronged

Note, however, that even the most inappropriate and most offensive form of speech, that is, blasphemy, is not unlawfully sanctioned and therefore, not subject to restrictions under the Islamic Law.

In Islam, Muslims are commanded to speak only of things that are good. Otherwise, they should keep their silence. This is based on what the Messenger of Allah 5DI DDG 9DJG H3DE said
 Whosoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, then let him speak good (khair) or remain silent.
Khair is the word used in the original Islamic text of this hadith and this means Islam or what is approved in Islam. Hadith refers to the narration of the Sunnah or lived example of the prophet Mohammed. It includes all reports traditions, utterances, and deeds of Mohammed and his companions.

In Islam teachings, there are two angels for every human being in the world. These angels are called the Kiraman Katibeen. They stay with the individual throughout his entire life. One angel sits on his right shoulder, while the other sits on the left. Their only job is to record in their book of deeds every single word uttered, emotion felt, and action done by the individual. The angel on the right records the good ones, and the angel on the left records the bad ones. On the Day of Judgment, after the individuals death, he will be confronted with this book of deeds. Kiraman Katibeen literally means Noble Writers. Know that speaking even just one bad word may condemn somebody to hell.

According also to the Messenger of Allah 5DI DDG 9DJG H3DE, an individual who speaks a word that meets the approval of Allah may think that it has not been heard, yet for this good utterance, Allah will lift him to a  higher level of Paradise . In the same way, an individual who speaks a word that rouses the wrath of Allah may give no thought to what he said,  only to have Allah cast him in Hell for seventy years .

This is the reason why the Prophet 5DI DDG 9DJG H3DE stressed how important it is for a human being to control his tongue.

In one of his travels, Muaz ibn Jabal asked the Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam what he must do in order to enter Paradise and be protected from the Fire of Hell. The Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam answered and asked Muaz ibn Jabal Shall I not tell you about what all of this depends on He then held his tongue and spoke, Restrain this. Muaz ibn Jabal asked another question, Shall our utterances be held against us Upon asking this, the Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam answered, Most individuals will be cast to the Fire of Hellon their facesbecause of the lapses of their tongues.

The gift of verbal communication and expression distinguishes humans from being animals. The correct and fitting use of this wonderful abilityor its absencedistinguishes the upright individuals who are successful in life, from the wicked individuals who fail at their undertakings.

Muaz inb Jabal asked a question on how to achieve eternal life. Ultimately, the Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam responsed by reminding that the ultimate result of all these would depend on how the individuals guards his tongue. In other words, lack of caution in speaking about something can send one to hell.

Another hadith draws attention to the same topic in a different way. This hadith states that
Each morning, all the limbs of an individual plead with his tongue Fear Allah for our sake, for our fate is tied to your fate. If you follow the straight path, we shall follow it as well. And if you go astray, we shall too.

The Islamic Law, however, obliges Muslims in certain situations to speak out against Munkar. Furthermore, Muslims are commanded to enjoin Maroof.  Munkar means evil and Maroof means good. The Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam said that

By Allah, you have to enjoin good (Maroof) and prohibit evil (Munkar), and resist the hand of the unjust ruler (Zalim), and compel him strongly to speak the truth, or you have to restrict him to the truth.

By this passage, Allah prohibits every Muslim from keeping his silence against the evil (Munkar) rather, He commands every Muslim to get rid of it. According to the Prophet 5DI DDG 9DJG H3DE, one who sees a Munkar must change it by his hand if he fails, then by his tongue, and if he still cannot change it, use his heart, and that is the weakest of Imaan. Imaan means to be peaceful in ones heart and to feel strong and unafraid of worries.

Shariah and the Holy Quran teach Muslims on how to practice their right to freedom of speech. The manner in which this liberty is implemented is through the Islamic concepts of hisbah and naseehah.
The second Khalifa of Islam, Hadhrat Umar coined the term hisbah to refer to the duty of a Muslim to encourage good (Maroof) and speak out against evil (Munkar) which, as was previously mentioned, a command from Allah himself.

Naseehah, on the other hand, refers to the approach in which hisbah must be carried out, namely, naseehah is the obligation of all Muslims to perform hisbah by offering genuine and pleasant guidance and opinion.

Hisbah, or the encouragement of what is good, takes as fact the right to freedom of speech, since an individual cannot encourage and advocate good if he does not have the right to do so in the first place.
It is stated in the Quran

And let there be among you a group of men who should invite to goodness, and enjoin good and prohibit evil...

The Arabic translation for Let there be is waltakun. Note that this expresses a command, thus by the aforementioned verse, the Muslims are commanded to advocate good and forbid evil. The Quran also states that

And those who believe in Allah, men and women, are friends of one another. They enjoin good and prohibit evil and abide by Prayer and provide for Zakat and obey Allah and His Prophet. It is they who Allah will have mercy on...

Zakat refers to the alms given by Muslims for the poor people.
As mentioned earlier, naseesah involves providing genuine and pleasant reminder, guidance or opinion, and can best be understood by differentiating it from the concept of tawbikh which means to reprimand.

Unlike naseehah, tawbikh is done in public. It is insensitive, tactless and is usually combined with destructive criticism, defamation, and scorn. Naseehah, on the other hand, is done within private surroundings to prevent the person involved from being embarrassed. It also makes use of polite language, and words that will encourage, not belittle. It is founded on one of the passages in the Quran
And speak to men gently...

Muslims are also obliged to isolate a person from the company of others when giving him counsel.
The Quran further instructs Muslims concerning the approach in which to participate in hisbah and naseehah as stated in the following passages

Call unto the way of thy God with knowledge and goodly encouragement, and reason with them in a manner that is best.

Do not quarrel with the People of the Book except with what is best but do not quarrel at all with such of them as are undeserved. And say, We believe in the things that have been made known to us, and that have been made known to you and our Lord and your Lord is one and to Him we surrender...
The term People of the Book includes all individuals who have received a revelation earlier than the Quran, including the Christians, Jews Hindus, Zoroastrians, and any others.

In Islamic Law, the right to freedom of speech is restricted only when the failure to do so would result in the foundation of truth being harmed. According to a number of scholars in Islam, the principal offense which validates such a restriction on the right to freedom of speech is blasphemy. However, even blasphemy is not restricted criminally in Islamic countries.

The most widely-used definition of blasphemy in Islam, nowadays, is a scornful statement or series of statements against either Allah, against the essentials of Islam, against the personality of Allahs Holy Prophet, or any other prophet or anything deemed holy in Islam, uttered or expressed for the purpose of offending the susceptibilities of the Islamic communities.

Blasphemy, in Arabic, is sabb which means to insult. Even though it is regarded as a grave offense in Islam, whether committed by a Muslim or a non-Muslim, there is not a single passage in the Quran that prescribes a punishment for it. Rather, blasphemy is to be punished by Allah alone, to be dealt with by Him either in this life, or in the afterlife. Thus, based on the passages from the Quran referencing it, and the reaction of the Holy Prophet to it, blasphemy cannot be deemed a form of speech for which official restriction is validated. Despite being an offense according to the Quran, it is not an offense for the purposes of criminal directive as it is an issue that Allah alone has the right to handle. According to the Quran,

Verily those who angerAllah and His ProphetAllah has cursed them in this world and in the afterlife, and has set up for them a humiliating retribution. And those who criticize believers, men and women, for what they have not earned shall suffer the guilt of defamation and a manifest sin.

...and you shall certainly hear many hurtful words from those were given the Book before you and from those who established equals to the Lord. But if you show courage and act honorably, that indeed is a matter of intense resolve.

Notice how these passages mention no earthly punishment for blasphemy. The last passage also signifies the importance of acting righteously even in the face of blasphemy. The controversy regarding the Mohammed cartoons published in a Danish newspaper was already mentioned earlier. It was also mentioned that a lot of Muslims from various Islamic countries have staged protests, boycotts, and even killings took place. There is, however, one group of Muslims who did otherwise.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim community maintained their awareness of their duties concerning hisbah and naseehah, instead of promoting violence and participating in riots. After the cartoons were published, a representative of the Ahmadis went to visit Denmark, and addressed the officials and member of the press of Denmark during a hotel reception. The representative clarified why the Muslim community was offended by the cartoons, and he did so in a polite and calm manner. He did not give any violent statement. This is one good example of hisbah and naseehah being practiced.

Nowadays, a lot of Muslims are becoming drawn towards the notions of freedom of speech and human rights because of the medieval cruelty waged against them by the corrupt rulers in the Islamic countries. In most of the Islamic countries today, the leaders and officials have made it illegal to speak out against the evil (munkar) and oppression of the administration. They restrain all political resistance brutally and attempt to silence the Muslims by torturing them or sentencing them to jail. Even in the west, governments are also moving towards keeping the Muslims from protesting or criticizing foreign policies. They want to silence those who hold what they consider radical political opinions under the pretext of anti-terror policies.

Despite all these restrictions that governments are trying to enforce on the Muslim communities that want to speak out, the fact remains that for Muslims, Allah is the one who defined what form is speech is acceptable and what is not. Thus, if it is in the favor of Allah, and it follows from the Quran and Shariah that a Muslim must speak out against evil (munkar) and oppression, then there is nothing that governments, international declarations, whether in the western world or Islamic world, can do to take away this right from them.

The Prophet 5DI DDG 9DJG H3DE narrated that the master of martyrs is Hamza bin Abdul-Muttalib, who stood to a tyrant leader  ...where he ordered him and forbade him so the leader killed him.  This is one of the passages that support the fact that Muslims who speak out against oppression or protest against unjust governments are doing it not because they have the right to freedom of speech, or because the western world gives them the right to express themselves. Rather, they are doing it because Allah commanded them to do so. They would perform their obligation to Islam to the best of their ability even if it means they have to face death.