The Qur'anic Foundations of Good Governance: The Rights of Opponents from the Perspective of the Qur'an
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ. وَصَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَآلِهِ الطَّيِّبِينَ الطَّاهِرِينَ، وَلَعْنَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ. Esteemed professors and scholars, the subject I intend to share with you is "The Qur'anic Foundations of Good Governance, with an Emphasis on the Rights of Opponents from the Perspective of the Qur'an". I have, of course, abridged the discussion somewhat, and the main focus of my remarks will be the weighty question of "the rights of opponents" in good governance; for today, in the world's political literature, one of the principal indicators of good governance is the degree to which the ruling authority is committed to respecting the rights of its opponents.