Muslim Leader Urges Lawyers To Defend Justice Over Self-Interest

Ahmadiyya Muslim leader, Mirza Masroor Ahmad, has urged lawyers to put justice above self-interest, warning that compromised courts and failing international institutions are leaving the world most vulnerable without protection.

Ahmad, at the inaugural national symposium of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Lawyers Association (AMLAN), held in Lagos under the theme “International Law on Trial: Justice in a Divided World,” in a speech delivered on his behalf, reminded legal experts that law and order at every level were “on trial” as self‑interest increasingly overtook principle.

He warned that the integrity of global bodies and local courts has been eroded to the point where power, not truth, now decides outcomes.

“Too many lawyers prioritised money, prestige, or fame over serving justice. “Words alone, no matter how grand or lofty, are meaningless,” he told the gathering. “Until genuine action is taken, nothing shall be achieved.”

Ahmad pointed to the UN’s failure to maintain peace since World War II as evidence of systemic decline. “It was for this reason that the League of Nations collapsed, and it is for this reason that the United Nations is now crumbling before our eyes,” he said. He referenced remarks by a government head at the World Economic Forum that a new world order was emerging in which multilateral bodies were being ignored and rendered irrelevant.

He identified a structural flaw that the UN Security Council has flagged for more than two decades. Ahmad also said lawyers and UN staff were constrained by funders and paymasters, leading to decisions that “align with the interests of their paymasters” rather than justice.

“Victory lies not with the truthful but with the party with deeper pockets,” he said. He warned that senior lawyers and judges who pursued justice had faced “threats, sanctions, and career destruction” simply for refusing to follow the powerful.

Ahmad urged Ahmadi Muslim lawyers to uphold integrity and fairness, citing Sir Chaudhry Zafrullah Khan, the 20th-century Ahmadi lawyer who served as President of the UN General Assembly and the International Court of Justice. “His example ought to serve as a model for all lawyers,” he said.

Drawing on the Holy Quran, he said true justice required testifying “even against themselves and their loved ones” and that nations should unite to stop violations of peace agreements “by whatever pressure or force is necessary.”

He closed with a stark warning about global conflict: “All signs point to increased warfare and destruction. We are heading rapidly towards a cataclysmic world war in which conventional weapons shall be sidelined in favour of utterly inhumane and destructive weapons.”

Ahmad asked delegates to pledge “whatever sacrifices are required to defend justice,” saying collective resolve could still make “a real and positive difference globally.” Otherwise, he said, “All signs point only towards unimaginable destruction.”

National President, AMLAN, Salam-Alada Sirajuddin Kofo, stated that the quest for wealth should not override the need for lawyers to ensure justice is done.

“And that is why, when you are aspiring to be a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), they look at what pro bono cases you have handled. So that should tell you that offering services to the less privileged is something the profession considers very important,” he said.

The association emphasised that lawyers have a duty to guide their clients truthfully, stating, “The primary duty is to ensure that their clients are well advised; protect your clients and let them know where there is nothing to be pursued and do not pursue it.”