Mohamed Abdelaal

Leadership Accountability in Islam: Islamic Standards for Holding the Executive Accountable for Official Misconduct

This paper seeks to refute a common belief that the ruler in Islam is unchecked and that he serves for life regardless of any official misconduct he may commit by providing a religious basis for the concept of political accountability through the investigation of the concept of presidential impeachment in Islam. In doing so, the article first sheds significant light on the Caliphate system of governance, the rights and duties of the Caliph, his legal status, and the inauguration process. Further, the article introduces the conflicting views regarding the issue of removing the ruler in the context of Islamic jurisprudence, examines the role of the Islamic scholars in redressing the ruler and correcting the official misconduct, and sheds light on the Islamic alternatives of impeachment and the extent to which they differ from what is known in modern constitutional doctrines.

Egypt's Constitution: What Went Wrong?

Abstract Egypt is going through the early phases of the throes of democratization. Right after the Revolution in 2011, which ended thirty years of repression and dictatorship under the regime of ex-president Hosni Mubarak, Egyptians found themselves with the serious challenge of electing a new president and building a new Egypt; in particular by drafting a new constitution capable of building lasting stability, maintaining equality, and offering opportunities for betterment. However, the newly drafted constitution has failed Egyptians’ ambitions regarding the establishment of democratic governance and preserving human rights, freedoms, and Egypt’s moderate secular nature.

Separation of Powers Under the American Legal System and Islamic Law

Separation of Powers is well-established principle in all modern-democratic legal systems. In the abstract, this principle is a constitutional principle in which every state is eager to draw its features in its own constitution. The Separation of Powers is a term that invented by the French political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu after being first introduced by the ancient Greeks and developed by the Roman Empire. The principle is a mere attempt to a draft a model of governance that reinforces the democratic aspects in the state by dividing the state into three branches “executive, legislature, and judiciary”. The principle is to arm each branch with some tools whereby each branch can check the powers of the other and guarantee that no branch will intervene in the functions of the other. In this paper, I will expound briefly the borders of this principle in both the American Legal System and Islamic Law, in an attempt to shed light over the emergence of this principle and the mechanism that shapes its working field in the two systems.