Response on Dr. Tariq Ramadan’s Call

for Moratorium on the Hudud Law of Islam

Dr. Muzzamil Siddiqi

• Munakahat (marriage-related issues) dealing with nikah (marriage), talaq (divorce), `iddah (waiting period after divorce or Husband's death), nasab (lineage), wilayah (guardianship), wasiyah (will), wirathah (inheritance), etc.

• Ahkam madaniyah (social and economic issues) such as business transactions, rental, rahn (mortgage), borrowing, trusts, guarantees.

• Ahkam jina’iyah (criminal laws) dealing with murder, theft, accusation, zina (adultery), qisas (retaliation), punishments, diyah (blood money), etc.

• Murafa`at (court matters) dealing with the principles of justice, shahadah (testimony), qada’ (judiciary), oaths, etc.

• Ahkam dusturiyah (constitutional matters) dealing with the rights of citizens and their duties.

• Dawliyah (national and international laws) dealing with war, peace, diplomatic relations, covenants and treaties, etc.

• Maliyah and iqtisadiyah (financial and economic issues) such as zakah, sadaqah (charity), taxation, etc.

The purpose of the Shari`ah is to obey God in all aspects of life; to establish justice, freedom, equality, dignity, and human cooperation; to protect public interest; and to promote and protect religion, life, mind, honor, and property.

The criminal law of Islam (at-tashri` al-jina’i) is very vast, and its purpose is to establish justice and to protect the rights of individuals, family, and society. Corporal punishments (hudud) on certain crimes and violations are only one aspect of the Shari`ah. Their purposes are to discipline the violators, to deter other offenders, and to keep the society safe for all people.

Today the Muslim societies in general are lacking general application of the Shari`ah. Muslim scholars and masses want the Shari`ah to be applied and implemented. However, what we see is that instead of applying the Shari`ah in its totality, very often governments use the punishment laws of Islam. Before taking care of the huquq (rights) of the people, they go to implement the hudud (punishments) on the people.

Dr. Ramadan’s call should be taken in this context. He is right that in many places the hudud are applied without proper care and without full implementation of justice. Most of the times the poor and weak segments of the society are punished while the rich and powerful remain free to violate as many laws as they wish.

Dr. Ramadan should have called for better and comprehensive application of the Shari`ah. He should have called for more justice and democracy in the Muslim world. He should have criticized more openly and clearly the misapplications of the hudud in some Muslim countries. He could have asked for more ijtihad (jurisprudential discernment) on the subject of hudud and if he has done some ijtihad on this subject, he should have shared his scholarly findings in open or specialized forums. But a public call for a moratorium on any aspect of Shari`ah is a very serious matter. When this call comes from a respectable scholar like Dr. Tariq Ramadan, it may encourage others also to disrespect the laws of Allah. Some may start calling for a moratorium on the family law of Islam also, and some others on the business and finance laws of Islam, and some may ask for a moratorium on the whole Shari`ah.

We deeply appreciate Dr. Tariq Ramadan’s scholarly work and his sincere efforts to reform Muslims and to respond to many modern challenges. We encourage him to continue this struggle in effective but more humble ways as has been the tradition of those who have the taqwa (fear) of Allah in their hearts. May Allah keep us all on the right path. Ameen.

Dr. Muzammil H. Siddiqi is President of the Fiqh Council of North America.