People’s Happiness Becomes Development Index

MUHAMMADIYAH.OR.ID, YOGYAKARTA—A Muslim scholar Prof. M. Amin Abdullah called for the world to improve the quality of human life and create peace through not only having dialog on differences and conflict reduction but also focusing on issues of human security and human happiness index which lead to gross national happiness.  

Prof. M. Amin Abdullah, the Former Chair of the Muhammadiyah Council for Tarjih and Tajdid (1995-2000) mentioned that the gross national happiness is used to measure the collective happiness and well-being of a population. It is an essential indicator to measure the development which was dominated by economic indicators.  

“Variables to  arrange an index vary and are wide, particularly after various studies on the importance of Gross National Happiness (GNH) as standards of development merely using economic factors,” said Prof. M. Amin on Wednesday (21/9) in the inauguration of honoris cause M. Habib Chirzin.  

The GNH consists of good governance, sustainable social-economic development, cultural preservation, and environmental conservation.  

According to Prof. M. Amin Abdullah, Muslims are not familiar with the pillars although the pillars enable Muslims to open dialog and interpret Islamic concepts.  

“The pillars also enable Muslims to formulate maqashid al syari’ah  as society development and need,” Prof. Amin said. 

In the global level, studies on human security has a crucial part to create peace and enhance people’s life quality. Indeed, the human security becomes the concern of the United Nations (UN). The main human security approach is because of the view that the world is not a safe and insecure place and has a lot of threats in many areas.  

Natural disasters, violence, chronic and persistent poverty, pandemics, international terrorism, and economic and financial downturn have created difficulties and undermined prospects for sustainable development, peace, and stability. The crisis on human security is complex involving various human insecurities.