The Shariah Debate : A Muslim Intervention
By
SANUSI LAMIDO SANUSI
The Shariah Debate: A Muslim Intervention
The announcement by Zamfara state governor of his intention to broaden the
scope of application of shariah law in his state has provided once more all
those who thrive on controversy with the opportunity to bare their fangs.
Arguments have been put up, for or against the decision, ranging from the
sublime to the ridiculous. Commentators, pretending to be knowledgeable,
have continued to unleash invectives and slander on fellow citizens with
little effort at understanding not only the content of the shariah but also
the explicit statements and clarifications given by the governor himself.
The Guardian Newspaper, in particular, seems committed to waging a "holy
war" against Zamfara state. A column, called "Shariah Debate" and sometimes
even "Shariah Debacle" is designed to sensitize Nigerians on the threat
posed by shariah to our corporate existence as a unity. Having strongly
questioned the constitutionality of the Governor’s moves and endorsed
Obasanjo’s dismissal of the state’s action as "unconstitutional," a recent
Guardian Editorial then urged the nation to ignore the "attempt to elevate
the Zamfara state government action to the status of a great constitutional
issue requiring adjudication by the courts ….. as the relevant
constitutional provisions appear sufficiently clear." In other words the
constitution should be interpreted by the executive, by the press, by CAN
and by Shiites and the Zamfara government should be obligated to adhere to
this interpretation rather than insist in the legality of its action unless
overruled by a court of competent jurisdiction.
In a similar vein, Christian leaders have continuously asserted that the
Shariah will lead to oppression of non – Muslims. Islamic society has never
been known to oppress members of other faiths in the manner that the
Christian church, for instance, oppressed Jews and those considered as
belonging to heterodox sects. The destruction of Jewish synagogues by
Christians with the full support of St. Ambrose of Milan during the reign of
the emperor Theodosius, the exploitative claims of Catholic popes like
Boniface VIII, the repressive content of papal encyclicals like Quanta Cura
and Syllabus of Errors promulgated by Pius IX, the persecution of Aryans and
Protestants, the oppression of scientists like Galileo and Copernicus, the
crusades launched by the church against Islam which ended in scandalous
defeat, all of these have left Christian leaders with a sense of fear and
paranoia when it comes to other faiths, and a feeling that others will treat
them using their own methods.
It is the paradox of our times that the greatest defenders of the rights of
religious minorities and secularism today in Nigeria are the fathers of the
Catholic church. Secularism as an ideology is antithetical to Christian
teachings and papal encyclicals. It grew as a reaction to the ignorance and
tyranny of the Catholic church and is a direct product of the revolution
called "enlightenment". That a Catholic archbishop should now be the
ideologue for secularism is indeed remarkable.
The fear of Christians is understandable. They have not read the Quran and
Hadith, the sources of Islamic law and seen where Allah and His prophet
explicitly enjoined Muslims to ensure that they respect the religious rights
of others and to treat adherents of other faiths with kindness and justice
unless they commit an aggression against Muslims on account of their faith.
Christians have not been allowed to read the history of Islamic states, to
know the position of Jews and Christians in the Abbasid and Ottoman Empires,
for instance, and to compare this with the position of even "non – orthodox"
Christians under the system run by the Fathers. In his classic historical
text Bosnia : A Short History, for example, the Christian writer Noel
Malcolm had this to say:
"Although Bosnia was ruled by Muslims … It was not state policy to convert
people to Islam or make them behave like Muslims; … The Christian and Jewish
religions were still allowed to function … and they were also permitted to
apply their own religious law to their people in their own courts at least
in civil matters" (P.49).
No historian has ever recorded such a level of tolerance in church history.
It is significant that this treatment was given by Islam to a conquered
people. How can anyone expect Zamfara State which is only implementing
shariah in a democratic setting to be seeking the oppression of Christians.
This policy of letting non – Muslims go to their own courts in civil matters
did not start with the Ottoman State. It is also not being complied with
because of the Nigerian Constitution. It is an explicit injunction in the
Qur’an, that only when non – Muslims voluntarily seek Muslim law in civil
and personal matters should they be subjected to that law. And even then
justice and fairness must be the guiding principle. We read in the Quran:
"They listen to falsehood, and devour anything forbidden. If they come to
you ( O Muhammad) either judge between them or turn away from them. If you
turn away from them, they can not hurt you in the least. But if you judge,
judge with justice between them. Verily, Allah loves those who act justly.
But how do they come to you for decision while they have the Torah, in which
is the plain decision of Allah? Yet even then, they turn away for they are
not true believers" (ch. 5 : 42 & 43).
How can government that seeks shariah, oppress Christians on account of
their faith with the following clear verses in the Qur’an:
"Let there be no compulsion in religion. Verily the right path has become
distinct from the wrong path.." (ch. 2 : 256)
"And say: the truth is from your lord: Then whosoever wills, let him
believe; and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve…"(ch. 18 : 29)
"Say O mankind! Now truth has come to you from your lord. So whosoever
receives guidance, he does so for the good of his own self; and whosoever
goes astray does so to his own loss. I am not set over you as a disposer of
affairs to obligate you" (ch. 10 : 108)
"And had your lord willed, those on earth would have believed, all of them
together. So will you (O Muhammad) then compel mankind, until they become
believers?" (ch. 10 : 99).
"Allah does not forbid you to deal justly and kindly with those who fought
not against you on account of your religion nor drove you out of your homes.
Verily, Allah loves those who deal with equity."Allah only forbids you as
regards those who fought against you on account of your religion, and have
driven you out of your homes, and helped to drive you out to befriend them
and give them assistance. It is those who befriend and assist such who are
the wrong-doers" (ch. 60 : 8 & 9)
There are many verses in a similar vein such as ch. 11 : 121-2; ch. 88 :
21-24; ch. 29 : 46; ch. 5 : 6; and ch. 3 : 64.
The fact is that prejudice is always built on a foundation of ignorance.
Those who seek to criticize shariah should at least understand what it is
they are criticizing. Unfortunately, too many "experts" know nothing about
the topics they approach. A classic example is one M. C. Thompson, president
of the "International Federation of Conscience" who wrote an article in the
Guardian of 5th November, 1999 entitled "Sharia: matters arising". In the
article, Thompson who cloaks his ignorance with half-understood concepts,
declares that "most Muslims of northern Nigeria are Shiites of the
aggressive type who even consider Sunni Muslims as nominal for not being
fundamentalist enough". the display of total ignorance by the writer (and
the editors) is indeed baffling. Nigeria is a bastion of Sunni Islam.
Nigerian Muslims in their history have never been Shiites. A small group of
young Muslims, inspired by Khomeini’s revolution in Iran, (some of whom
spent some years studying Islam in Iran) adopted Shiite ideology but these
are generally considered a noisy and half – educated fringe group. Mr.
Thomas also asserts that because the Saudi government ban on women from
driving is an example of Islamic law. The clear position of jurists is that
the sharia makes no such provision and indeed women rode horses and camels
in the time of the prophet so the law has no Islamic basis. This much is
common knowledge. The suggestion that women are "bottled up" is also
reflective of ignorance not only of shariah but of Muslim history in
Nigeria. It is common knowledge that Shehu Dan Fodio’s islamic movement
liberated women from the so – called purdah and this was one of the areas of
misunderstanding between him and scholars of his generation. Also, the
guidelines issued by the Qur’an on how Muslim women should dress when coming
out is a clear enough indicator that they are not supposed to be
"bottled-up". M. C. Thomas also claims without any reference to sources that
Saudi women were executed for demanding the right to drive cars.
It is this attribute of injustice, this tendency to give a dog a bad name in
order to hang it that will destabilize Nigeria, and not introduction of
sharia. When archbishops hold press conferences and spread unsubstantiated
rumours of amputations it is they, not the Zamfara state government, who
threaten the peace. Christians should judge shariah by what the shariah is.
The historical church is no yardstick for measuring Islam.
Muslims understand why Christians associate religion with tyranny. That has
been the experience with the church. It is also what they read in their own
Holy Book, the Bible.
How can they not fear, when they read the following, for example, as divine
revelation:
"I will drive out the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the
perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites as you advance. Do not make any
treaties with the people of the country into which you are going… instead,
tear down their altars, I, the lord tolerate no rivals" (Exodus 34 : 10-14)
When you capture cities in the land that the lord has given you, kill
everyone" (Deut. 20:16)
Before going into battle with Canaanites, the Israelites vowed to their God
"if you will let us conquer these people, we will unconditionally dedicate
them and their cities to you and will destroy them". And the lord heard them
"so the Israelites completely destroyed them and their cities and named the
place Hormah" (Numbers 21 : 2-3) {Hormah means destruction in Hebrew}.
When the Israelites killed Midianite men, they plundered their lands but
allowed the women and children to live. Moses thundered "why have you kept
all the women alive? Kill every boy and kill every woman who has had sexual
intercourse, but keep alive for yourselves all the girls and all the women
who are virgins" (Numbers 31 : 15-18)
"Now listen to what the Almighty says … Go and attack the Amalekites and
completely destroy every thing they have. Don’t leave a thing: kill all the
men, women, children and babies, the cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys" ( I
Samuel 15 : 1-3)
These words provided the inspiration for the catholic state in its dealings
with non – catholics. When Christians fear intolerance from shariah, or
accuse Islamic law of being barbaric, therefore, it is because their
knowledge of shariah is limited to the bible and their experience under
catholic popes which led to rebellion and secularism.
It is time for the Guardian to listen to the Zamfara state government. It is
time to know that the Quar’an and sunnah enjoin the creation of a just and
honest society, and protect freedom of religion and conscience. It is time
to ask those who feel there are legal problems to go to a court of competent
jurisdiction. Alhaji Ahmed Sani has repeatedly said his priority is good
government, education, poverty alleviation and moral rebirth. He has assured
non –Muslims of the full protection of their rights. He has never declared
Zamfara an Islamic state.
Many people, including Muslims, have apprehensions about the shariah
project. With the best of intentions, practice is always flawed and
imperfect. There is a need for caution, for enlightenment and for
sensitivity. Those charged with the responsibility for interpretation and
implementation of the shariah themselves need time to be fully trained. They
need to be sensitive and to recognize economic and other conditions which
should serve as extenuating circumstances when applying the penal code.
The government must resist the temptation to exploit the potential
propaganda value of religion for political gains. But by far the greatest
problem facing the country is prejudice and ignorance, and the inordinate
desire to cry wolf where there is none. Of this, the Guardian is guilty.
With the very best of good wishes,
Musa Amadu Pembo
Glasgow,
Scotland
UK.
[log in to unmask]
Da’wah is to convey the message with wisdom and with good words. We should
give the noble and positive message of Islam. We should try to emphasize
more commonalities and explain the difference without getting into
theological arguments and without claiming the superiority of one position
over the other. There is a great interest among the people to know about
Islam and we should do our best to give the right message.
May Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,guide us all to His Sirat Al-Mustaqim (Righteous
Path).May He protect us from the evils of this life and the hereafter.May
Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,grant us entrance to paradise .
We ask Allaah the Most High, the All-Powerful, to teach us that which will
benefit us, and to benefit us by that which we learn. May Allaah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala grant blessings and peace to our Prophet Muhammad and his family
and
companions..Amen.
_________________________________________________________________
Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com
<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>
To view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]
<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>
|
