We return once again to the early Islamic state, under the leadership of Caliph Umar, and find that these three pillars of justice were clearly understood and explicitly applied. For example, although Umar was the ruler of this Muslim state, and by the standards of his day, equivalent to a modern day leader of a superpower, he was not above the process of legal contestation, and his citizens understood that if they felt wronged by him, they had the right to sue him in Islam’s legal court. Once again, it must be stressed that for its time, in the seventh century, such a notion was nothing less than a human rights revolution, establishing the social contract between the ruler and the ruled a millennium prior to the writings of John Locke.

We find written about Umar the following:

"His insistence on the protection of individual rights and the administration of justice was so great that he would not tolerate even slight deviations in this respect. This is demonstrated by the following incident in his life: Once he had a dispute with Ubbay, who filed suit against the Caliph Umar in court. Umar appeared as a defendant. The judge treated him with honor. ‘This is your first injustice,’ said Umar to the judge, and then sat down next to Ubbay."

The story continues that during that time, it was customary for the defendant to take an oath of honesty, similar to our "I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and noting but the truth, so help me, God." However, in view of the defendant’s position as the leader of state, and his title of Commander of the Faithful, the judge requested to wave this oath. Umar found this act to represent partiality, and addressing the judge, he said, "If Umar and any other man are not equal in your eyes, you are not fit for the post of a judge."12

There is scarcely a clearer example of the concept of equality before the law. While this concept is indeed quite clear in Islamic jurisprudence and in Islamic history, it would be difficult to find in today’s Muslim nations. It is indeed hard to imagine that a citizen who feels injured could take any leader of a Muslim nation to a court where that leader would have to serve as a defendant, entirely equal before the law. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that American Muslims indeed cherish the values of a nation where a President, such as President Bill Clinton, can be taken to court by a citizen alleging wrong, such as Paula Jones.

Another facet of equality before the law is illustrated in the laws of financial disclosure to which public officials are subject. It is felt that the citizenry has a right to know from whom, and how much, politicians receive in campaign contributions, and to have some measures to ascertain that politicians are not for sale, and that they do not use their position or influence as a money-making vehicle. This concept of accountability is once again well-illustrated by the rule of Caliph Umar. In a well-known incident from his life, the government issued to each of its citizens, as a type of rebate, a certain length of cloth. During prayers, one of the citizens noticed that the robe which Umar wore was longer than could be made from this single piece of cloth. The man stood up and demanded to know from whence Umar had obtained the extra cloth, since each citizen should have an equal share.

Umar responded by pointing to his son, who stood up and declared "I gave to my father half of my share, as his was insufficient to make a robe." This is because Umar was a taller than average man, and hence needed more cloth. However, he did not feel at any liberty to issue for himself even a slightly longer length of cloth than was issued to each and every citizen, and relied instead on the charity of his son. 13

This way of running government, and this high standard of financial ac countability, is difficult to find in today’s world. Whether one looks at Third World dictators and the vast wealth which they seem to amass without explanation (who could forget the shoe collection of Imelda Marcos), or the often questionable financial dealings of First World leaders, this standard of behavior is difficult to duplicate.