Theres no reason for Muslims to get over-worked-up about this. Her record speaks for itself -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benazir_Bhutto#Charges_of_corruption

We have no need to speak in vain of the dead.

and only Allah knows the state of all of us when we die! so who are we to question the hearts of the people?

May Allah have mercy upon her, for she has reached the consequences of her actions.

And May He let us die in a state that is pleasing to Him ameen.

Wa billahi tawfiq

Best wishes and salaams. Omar

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I was listening to Haseeb’s Islam in Focus yesterday (Sundays, 4:30 at Near 90 FM) and was struck by a comment his guest made.

In this century of mass politics, it is wiser to view our politics in terms of Democracy/Dictatorship rather than Islam/Secularism. The latter is often sloganized (din wa dawla! God’s law not Man’s law!) to delegitimate governments. The former brushed aside. Here’s why I think it’s a mistake.

We live in the era of centralized governments, where a lot of power is invested in a minority of people. In their hands is the military, the judiciary, the media, and the rest of the nation’s resources. The potential to commit mass injustice and oppression is possible at a scale premodern people would’ve found unimaginable. World War I and II, fascism, and genocides are the reality of our last century. The wars and dictatorships of premodern times simply doesn’t match up in comparison.

In fact, much of the tolerance exhibited today (where there is tolerance) is due to the lessons accrued from all the senseless blood spilled last century. Liberals side with Muslims in the face of Islamophobia since its sister, Anti-Semitism, ended up in the Holocaust. The U.N. was established as an international security organization after the reality of international warfare reared its ugly head.

Yet, the tipping balance from justice to mass injustice, from freedom to oppression, is still delicate, and will probably perpetually be so. Hitler, it shouldn’t be forgotten, worked within the Weimer Republic (a liberal democracy) and transformed it into a Nazi dictatorship. Subsequently, World War II began and millions perished.

Compare with the centuries of empires. Governments back then simply lacked the resources to enforce its will on the people. Often, empires were comprised of multiple communities which self-regulated themselves. Usually, only a tariff was owed to the ruler, as a symbolic gesture of allegiance.

There are a number of examples to choose from, but Malaysia is a classic example. Life was simple when it was composed of multiple Sultanates. In comes modernity — with the formation of political identities and the Nation State — and now it’s really complex.

The Islam/Secularism is a real dichotomy, but not in the area of government; Islam offers no complete political system. And the entire political history of Islam, and its relationship with religion, is one too complex to write down in this blog much less a slogan.

In the modern threat of fascism and mass injustice, the Islam/Secularism dichotomy doesn’t create the needed vigilance against it. The democracy/dictatorship dichotomy, however, is defined by it. (Case-in-point, if an “Islamic Dictatorship” was ever established, the Islam/Secularism paradigm would end up legitimating it.)

We, as global citizens, need to be vigilant of the misuse and abuse of power. Modern governance yields new problems. And with new problems is needed pragmatic solutions. We need to be pragmatic and sensible. Or else disasters may occur from which recovery will be difficult.

I found out when she returned to Pakistan in October. When she got off the plane, she had all these bands tied around her arms (the footage has been shown widely). My mom said they’re called “Imam Zamay”, a type of talisman with name of their imams or something.

(As I alluded to earlier, the takfir crowd could have a field day with her)

Let’s give her the benefit of the doubt. Call her what you like, but she was one courageous lady. men should be ashamed of themselves when you look at her himma and dedication for her work………and by the way i wasn’t a fan of hers during her life.

she definately made problematic comments during her life, perhaps the shooting was her purification on thie earth! Lets all go back and try hard to iprove ourselves and the communities around us. ameen

leave her alone man!

It WAS a tragedy. Not because I liked her or her policies (actually I hated her and thought she was a great fitnah, even ‘adhaab, for that country), but because ANY event like this will almost inevitably result in the further death and destruction of muslims in Pakistan. This is evident already.

And of course we all as muslims must condemn terrorism, bombings, etc., and we should continue to do so. But unfortunately, in Pakistan this type of evil is nothing new. It even happens in times of peace, subhanAllah. Obviously it’s completely motivated by politics, and no reasonable person would try to use Islam to justify that kind of killing. (no REASONABLE person, that is.) People in that country are willing to kill and be killed for political parties. Corruption is rampant, and always has been. There is no unity whatsoever. People in the street have no respect for each other; If I were to give salaams, they would almost be caught off-guard. (There are, alhamdulillah, tens of millions of good people too, who actually fear Allah) But I don’t want to turn this into a rant about what’s wrong with Pakistan…

But all that being said, in no way whatsoever am I happy that she died. I experienced the exact same cycle of emotions when Saddam was hanged. I knew he was a bad guy, I knew he hurt people, and I even wished he was dead. But when it actually happened…I wasn’t happy at all. I just felt sad. The death of a muslim should not make other muslims happy, it SHOULD make them sad.

Almost the exact same thing happened when Benazir died. I knew she was a horrible, corrupt (that’s a whole ‘nother discussion - the evidence is out there), power-hungry person, who was intent on destroying Islam in that country and replacing it with western-approved-pseudo-islam. (Many people would call her a kafir outright, and although they do have some evidence for that, I’m not going to get involved in that) If she called herself a muslim, and died while calling herself a muslim, no matter how screwed-up she was, I have to at least give her the benifit of the doubt. Maybe she was just extreeemely ignorant about Islam. Allahu A’lam. But my point being, after knowing all this, when I heard the news of her death…I wasn’t happy or glad at all. I just felt sorry for her and her kids.

May Allah Guide this Ummah back to practicing Islam, and Protect us from kufr and destruction, ameen.

I think most of us would agree that a secular democracy is better than a secular dictatorship. Islam would obviously flourish more in the former.

The fact remains, as was pointed out by abu ubaida, that when choosing between western democracy, which is by nature secular, and real shari’ee government (which could have some aspects in common with democracy), it should be an easy choice. I mean real, merciful, govt. according to Quran and Sunnah modeled after the sahaba, not the kind we’ve seen with some opium-smoking bandits in certain countries.

Democracy by definition is rule by the people. Islam by definition is being ruled by Allah. We all know this. Why should we try to mold the definition of one to appear similar to the other?