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Concept
Islamic socialism
Summary
Islamic socialism is a political philosophy that incorporates Islamic principles into socialism. As a term, it was coined by various Muslim leaders to describe a more spiritual form of socialism. Islamic socialists believe that the teachings of the Qur'an and Muhammad—especially the zakat—are not only compatible with principles of socialism, but also very supportive of them. They draw inspiration from the early Medinan welfare state established by Muhammad. Muslim socialists found their roots in anti-imperialism. This can especially be seen in the writings of Salama Moussa, who wrote extensively both about socialism, and about Egyptian nationalism against British rule.
Muslim socialist leaders believe in the derivation of legitimacy from the public, and wish to implement a government based on social welfare and the concept of zakat. In practice, this has been seen through guaranteed incomes, pensions, and welfare. These practical applications of the idea of Islamic socialism have a history going back to Muhammad and the first few Caliphates, to modern political parties founded in the 1970s.
Islamic socialists often use the Qur'an to defend their positions. For instance, in Pakistan, the verses "Man is entitled only to what is due to his effort" and "the land belongs to God" have been used to in argument for Islamic Socialism, as an argument against the accretion of wealth through the manipulation of capital. A Turkish Islamic socialist organisation, Anti-Capitalist Muslims, openly challenged right-wing Muslims to read the Qur'an and "try to disprove the fact that it is leftist".
Abū Dharr al-Ghifārī, a companion of Muhammad, is credited by some scholars, such as Muhammad Sharqawi and Sami Ayad Hanna, as a principal antecedent of Islamic socialism. He protested against the accumulation of wealth by the ruling class during Uthman's caliphate and urged the equitable redistribution of wealth. The first Muslim Caliph Abu Bakr introduced a guaranteed minimum standard of income, granting each man, woman and child ten dirhams annually—this was later increased to twenty dirhams.
Official source
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