Property Perception in Islamic Socialism

Many movements of thought emerged in the world of the 19th and 20th centuries. One of these movements is socialism. Socialism was recognized in the Islamic world through publications such as journal. Later, in the geography where Muslims live, the word “iştirâkiyye” started to be used in response to the concept of socialism. In this geography, the concept of “İştirâkiyyetü’l-İslâm” has correspond to the Islamic Socialism. An important concept related to the socialism movement is property. Property is the right that gives its owner the most comprehensive powers over the object. There are many issues related to property in classical fiqh books. Perspective on the concept of property has also changed in the changing world of the past century. Socialism is one of the factors affecting the perspective on property in this period. Mustafa es-Sibai, who lived in Syria in the 20th century and was also a lecturer at Damascus University Faculty of Law, taking advantage of the concept of socialism that emerged in the West, he formed the theory of Islamic socialism different from the Western approach and he wrote his work “İştirâkiyyetü’l-İslâm”. Mustafa es-Sibai, who stated in the work that the foundations of Islamic socialism already exist in Islam and he made evaluations on issues such as equality, justice, workers’ rights and property in his book. His claim to form the theory of Islamic socialism and his approach to the concept of property are what distinguishes Mustafa es-Sibai. In this study, firstly, information will be given about socialism and the development process of Islamic socialism. Later, the position and classification of the concept of property in classical fiqh books will be given and Mustafa es-Sibai’s approach to this concept will be studied.