Abstract:
This paper addresses the issue of "universality" in the human rights discourse by engaging in two basic tasks: linking the UNDHR to a specific political evolution and juxtaposing this evolution With a different distinct Islamic tradition. The paper argues that, while the liberal tradition maintains "rights" as a construct that has evolved to be considered inalienable by virtue of an individual's humanity, the Islamic tradition asserts its own values and guidelines on human behavior as an outgrowth of an individual's duty to God and community. Yet, despite basic differences, the issue is not one of achieving universalism in the discourse of rights, but rather in realizing that despite conceptual and ideological differences, the social and political destinations that each tradition arrives at are so consistent, that the conceptual differences are not in and of themselves sources of divisiveness or compromise in the quest to achieve universal standards.
Machine summary:
As Billings notes, Christian beliefs - "The existence of God as Creator - human beings created in the image of God - our value coming from I-Iis likeness - God's nature as loving, free, and just - God's purpose to liberate human life from inhuman conditions which existed because humans with free will have chosen behavior that disturbs the intended harmony - God's justice as the guide for human relationships - the Kingdomof Cod wherein free men and women will live in peace, justice, and freedom" - shaped the emerging concept of natural rights.
While this list is by no way inclusive, it illustrates the basic thrust of the rights discourse that has emerged from the liberal tradition - that the individual is the possessor of these rights and it is the responsibility of both particular states and the international community to uphold them and subsequently defend them.
It should be stressed here that Maududi uses the term 'human rights' to refer to the injunc1tions he uncovers in the Islamic sources of knowledge that are similar to the basic rights attributed in both the UN Declaration and the Charters of various liberal democratic states.
Thus, while in the Islamic context, the verdict of the Qur'an is unequivocal: "Those who do not judge by what God has sent down are disbelievers," (5:44) the verdict of the liberal discourse is similarly unequivocal: "Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized (Article 28 UND HR).