Islam discriminates against non-Muslims by terming them as 'Dhimmi' and imposing 'Jizya' on them? Start / Non-Muslims: Introduction to Islam Islam has five fundamentals, as many are aware of, including Faith (Eeman), Prayer (Salat/Namaz), Fast (Sawm/Roza), Charity (Zakat) and Pilgrimage (Hajj). Zakat is an obligatory charity which is evaluated at the rate of 2.5% on the valuables and belongings excluding the basic necessities. In an Islamic Sharia, Zakat is collected by the Ruler or Caliph as tax and used for welfare of people etc. However, Zakat is only obligatory upon Muslims and by paying it, they are protected by the Government. Since non-Muslims are not obliged to pay Zakat, they are required to pay jizya in lieu of Zakat paid by Muslims. By paying Jizya, non-Muslims become equal citizen of of the country and are protected by the Government. Comparable to today's scenarios, while every citizen must pay tax if eligible, the same is the scenario in Islamic sharia though only the name of the tax differs for different community. This article is from Domain of Islam   http://www.darulislam.info/ The URL for this story is:   http://www.darulislam.info/index.php?module=dpDocs&func=display&mid=91