The Ruling on Countries Governed by Man-Made Laws

Question:
May Allah reward you. The Honorable Shaykh says: Al-Shawkani mentioned in his book *Al-Sayr al-Jarar* regarding the abode of Islam and the abode of disbelief that the criterion is the manifestation of the word. If the commands and prohibitions in the land are for the people of Islam, such that no disbeliever within it can manifest his disbelief except because he is permitted to do so by the people of Islam, then this is an abode of Islam. If the situation is the opposite, then the land is the opposite. The question is: Is a state governed by man-made laws called a Muslim country, or a disbeliever state, regardless of its people?

Answer:
There is no doubt that the position of the scholars of da'wah (calling to Islam) is that the criterion is the ruling. If the ruling is by the Shari'ah, the country is Islamic. If the ruling is by other than the Shari'ah, the country is not Islamic, even if there is a surah (chapter) [in the Qur'an]. The criterion is the ruling in the country, as Al-Shawkani himself stated in *Al-Zahir* with this, because enjoining good and forbidding evil, suppressing falsehood, and the manifestation of truth do not occur unless the ruling is for Islam. If the ruling is for the law, the law is equal for people, whether the atheist or the Muslim. In fact, the atheist may be better off there than the atheist if the ruling is for the law. Then what Imam Al-Shawkani mentioned will not be realized. However, if the ruling is for the Shari'ah, yes, it will be realized. So the criterion is the ruling in the country: if it is by the Shari'ah, it is Muslim; and if the ruling is