as a muslim in south africa i belive it very important that we vote. however the decision on which party to vote for is very important in terms of how we as muslims in this country will be treated going foward. so far the ANC goverment have been good to the muslim community however my question is is the any ruling now on who would be the best party to vote for ? i would respect your opinion.
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
Voting is an integral part in a democratic dispensation and it determines who will be elected and who will be in power. As Muslims, if we desist from voting, we will have no option but to be under the rules of people elected in power. We are living in a non-Muslim country and we will have to abide by the existing system.
As opposed to that, we could be part of the system to minimize harm on our selves and vote for such members that will advance our views and help the course of Islam. We should use the voting system to our advantage to the best of our ability. Voting does not mean that we accept and promote all the evils of the system. If we go by that rationale, then our living in a non-Muslim system will also mean to support the evils of the country as we pay taxes to the Government which in turn uses the money to promote its values. By that rational, we should not be living in a non-Muslim country. In fact, if we oppose the evils of the Government, use the system available to us to combat the evils and prepare suitable candidates for positions and campaign to have them elected.
Many senior Ulama and Muftis have considered the issue of Muslims voting in a non-Muslim country and issued a decree to vote. From a Judicial point of view, voting will be اهون البليتين(lesser of the two evils). The harms of not voting is worse than voting and indirectly supporting the many wrongs that goes within the system.
If one has confidence that a particular political party serves the interest of the muslims and Islam, then that party should be preferred. In the context of present political set up and the balances of party power, there is no doubt that the ANC (African National Congress) is in majority and will be once again the ruling party of South Africa.
And Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Wassalamu Alaykum
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In’aamiyyah