Islam and Human Rights — Page 120
Isl am and Hum an R ights 120 their search for a place of refuge; even so, if their effort was in the cause of righteousness it shall not have been in vain. “Those who migrate from their homes for the sake of Allah, and are then slain or die, Allah will surely pro vide for them a goodly provision. Surely Allah is the Best Provider. He will surely cause them to enter a haven with which they will be well pleased. Allah is indeed All Knowing, Forbearing” (22:59-60). To welcome those who have left their homes for the sake of righteousness is highly meritorious and opens the way to prosperity. “Those who had established their homes in this city before them and had accepted faith, love those who come to them for refuge, and find not in their breasts any desire for that which is bestowed upon the newcomers, but prefer them to their own selves even though they them selves are poor. Whoso is rid of the covetousness of his own soul-it is these who will prosper” (59:10). So much for asylum against persecution of conscience when men may be forced to leave their homes and what - ever they hold dear-lands, properties, occupations, rela tions, associations and a whole set of social and cultural values-in the effort to preserve that which they hold above everything else, namely, their duty to their Maker. But there may be other cases in which asylum can