Human rights in ancient civilizations
Introduction :-
It is known that the history books began long after the emergence of civilizations, so it is difficult to
The researcher should see the human rights factor in the primitive societies that were represented
Historically, with the emergence of the village and then the city, many researchers have built theories about life
Primitive societies based on the intuition of the life of savage tribes and primitive groups that do not
Some of them still live in Africa, assuming that they represent the first human society
Human rights in some ancient civilizations
1- Mesopotamia Civilization:
Mesopotamia witnessed the oldest civilizations in the world, such as the Babylonian and Assyrian civilizations
Sumer and some scholarly archaeological inscriptions refer to the laws and legislation that
It was known in that civilization that human rights and public duties were not
Unknown to the civilized Arab peoples who inhabited the country of Iraq, freedom and justice
Equality was one of the basic ideas embodied in many laws and rulings
Such as
1750 BC - A - Code of Hammurabi (King of Babylon) between (1792 .)
Which was discovered by an archaeological mission in the plateaus located to the east of the city of Babylon
Al-Iraqiya, which is engraved on a stone monument, and Hamu Rabi himself is known in the introduction to the law
Baneh: His name is Hamu Rabi, meaning the prince who fears God, and that heaven called him for
the people and their satisfaction, and that he establishes justice in the land and uproots the roots of evil and wickedness, so that there is no
It oppresses the strong and the weak, and this law noted respect for some basic rights
Especially the sanctity of individual property, and it is inferred from some texts that it was adopted in trials
The rule (original acquittal) states: If someone is accused of another crime, it shall be judged
Then he was unable to prove his claim, so he is sentenced to death
b - Eshnun's law
Which was discovered in 1945 AD and its translation was published in 1948 AD and the distinction between
Foreign slaves and Babylonian slaves If the slavery of the Babylonians was temporary, it is more like it is
As for the slavery of foreigners, it is permanent, unless his master frees him. These laws indicate that
The people in Babylon are equal, there is no difference between them, and the classes referred to are among the free
The fairness of the free and the slaves results from the discrimination between the Babylonian and the foreigner, as well as between the Babylonian and the Babylonian
Convicted of temporary and free Babylonian enslavement
C- Judgment of the Sumerian Nefer City Court:
The city of Nafar is located 4 km south of the city of Diwaniyah in a case related to her husband from
Three men before, so she kept the secret of the murder and did not tell the authorities about it while she was so
You have covered up the criminals, and when the king learns the news of the crime, the wife will cover it up
He referred the case to a court for adjudication, and when the trial began, the judges stated that
The crime is not limited to the three murderers, but rather includes the wife for concealing bread and making it
She is an accomplice in the crime and two of the judges countered this opinion and said that secrecy is not an effect
Whatever the crime, it is not permissible to prosecute her in the crime as an accomplice, so the court ruled innocence
The woman from participating in the crime, and the minutes of this case were found in 1950 AD
The excavations of the American mission in the city of Nefer, and a comparison was made between this Sumerian rule and what
Courts can rule it at the present time, so they sent a translation of the document to the Dean of the College
Law at the University of Pennsylvania at the time, he replied that the contemporary court will rule
The same, in this document, is evidence of the protection of human life and of the duties placed upon him
It is the responsibility of the citizen to take the measures following the commission of the crime and not to disregard the body
The court, the jury system, and the right to defend the accused
2- Nile Valley Civilization
Egypt is a country with one of the most ancient civilizations of the ancient world
Different ruling systems differed according to time and beliefs, and the people of their rulers varied
And their methods, during which Egypt lived with justice at times and suffered from injustice and tyranny at times
Egypt was ruled by the pharaohs, the Hyksos, the Romans and Greece until the Muslims conquered it
During the era of the Rightly-Guided Caliph Omar Al-Khattab (may God be pleased with him) and the following is a brief overview of
Basic human rights and personal freedoms during those eras:
A - The era of the pharaohs
It passed through three phases: the ancient pharaonic state and the middle pharaonic state
And the stage of the modern Pharaonic state, and scholars of the history of Egyptian law go to the fact that the state
The ancient pharaohs were established in 3200 BC, and the rule in that country began as an absolute monarchy
It is based on the idea of the divinity of the king, who is called the pharaoh and is considered the master of the earth and whoever is on it
The people have no right to participate in any way in managing the affairs of government
All the people must listen and obey, and the biggest evidence of the loss of freedoms and waste
The rights of the people at this stage are the presence of the pyramids in Egypt, even if they were counted in
Many people viewed a civilized appearance of the Egyptian people, which indicates the extent of the injustice inflicted
On the classes of the people, whether they were slaves or half-free people who were forced to
Cut rocks from dragging them to a high hill that hardly ascends to a person who does not carry anything
Except for all this painstakingly, in order to build a pyramid (tomb) to bury the king
In the year 2134 BC, the Middle Pharaonic state was established as a result of the popular revolution against
Injustice, and the kings of this state have set their eyes on justice as a basis for governance, and a rule has emerged
Justice is the basis of the king, and the king is no longer that goddess who relies on his fathers the gods in his rule
For human beings, whom humans were not able to hold accountable or perform their actions and behaviors
As for the modern Pharaonic state, its era began in 1570 BC. In that state, the regime returned
Ruling back to his first life as it was in the old state, when the ruler was called the pharaoh
And he became his absolute king, and all religious and temporal authorities gathered in his hand, and he did not make him
The Egyptians were an absolute monarchy who only financed it, but he himself claimed that he was a god, so he said, as mentioned in the Qur’an
The Holy Prophet said (He said, “I am your Lord, the Most High.”)
Al-Hakim has mentioned this in long detail in the Holy Qur’an and in Surat through
Explanation of the story of our master Moses (peace be upon him), and the Qur’an expressed it with the wording of Pharaoh and described it as tyrants
And brutality and corruption, the Almighty said: (Verily, Pharaoh exalted himself in the earth and made its people
