In the first chapter of his book The Justice of Islam, Lawrence Rosen focuses on explaining the role of the qadi under an Islamic justice system in Morocco. He explains that the qadi essentially acts as a mediator between both parties of a dispute and attempts to establish a momentary peace before an agreement can be reached. Although this description could be applied to a judge or an arbitrator in the American judicial system, the qadi’s role differs in that they must take into consideration the divine law as laid out in the quran, the value system of the society they live in, what is in the best interest of the community, in addition to applying his or her judgment and discretion in coming to a decision. In Rosen’s example, people in Morocco …show more content…
As a result of the emphasis placed upon the character of those involved in a dispute, one universal task performed by qadis is consultation with “notables” to determine a person’s reputation and standing within their community. This allows the qadi to gain knowledge as to the individual’s previous actions and distinguish between upstanding citizens and unscrupulous scoundrels. It is important to make such a distinction because the qadi uses their judgment to either support or go against the divine law of the quran and a career criminal may not get the benefit of the doubt that a well-regarded member of society might. In addition, a qadi can also utilize a person’s origins or background to imply other characteristics about them. For example, Rosen notes that a Moroccan qadi may imply a person’s motivation, knowledge, and social position simply based on a person’s gender. While such blatant stereotyping on behalf of the qadi may appear unjust, one should consider how historically, different characteristics of a person were closely intertwined and that often a person’s background did control many other aspects of their …show more content…
Unlike western judges, qadis do not look at precedent when deciding the outcome of a dispute. While it is entirely possible that a qadi may come to the same decision that was reached in a similar previous case, it is highly dependent on the character and backgrounds of the individuals in the case. The same set of facts when applied to different people may lead a qadi to come to different decisions. Something that is not taken into consideration by qadis in formulating their verdict is the intent of the defendant’s actions. Whether or not the defendant meant to commit the act or its consequences is unimportant in the eyes of the qadi. Rather, only the effects of a person’s actions actually matter and are taken into consideration by the
Ibn Munqidh, Usama. "From Memoirs." McNeill, William and Marilyn Robinson Waldman. The Islamic World. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1973. 184-206.
In addition to this, the analysis of law was not considered thoroughly during judicial decisions. Therefore, the court uses backward reasoning where it uses the expected results it wants to deduce to make decisions. Such activities in the justice department have a lot of impediments to the impartiality of judicial system. The rights of the criminal in many instances are affected by the use of such methods to deliver justice. According to Marshall, the legal analysis used to determine the outcome of the courts has reduced since the changes in the judicial system. The rights of the individuals have significantly reduced with the changes in the court system because only the nine judges are privy to the outcome of the court proceedings; they are also not liable to the questions that may be raised about the legality of their
Saudi Arabia justice system is based on Sharia and Islamic law from the Quran and the Sunnah, which are the Muslim traditions formed from Islamic prophet Muhammad. Sharia has been adopted by Saudi Arabia in an unmodified method. The Saudi court system was created by King Abdul Aziz who founded the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia back in 1932, the kingdom was introduced to the country between 1927 and 1960. The Saudi Arabia first criminal method was issued in 2001, decisions are made without juries and usually by a single judge. Some of the punishments that are still practiced in Saudi Arabia are, stoning, beheading, amputation and lashing. Serious criminal behavior include murder, rape, theft, robbery, adultery, which craft, sorcery and apostasy.
The Islamic tradition, as reflected in Naguib Mahfouz’s Zaabalawi, has over the course of history had an incredible impact on Arab culture. In Mahfouz’s time, Islamic practices combined with their political relevance proved a source of both great power and woe in Middle Eastern countries. As alluded to in Zaabalawi, Mahfouz asserts the fact that not all Muslims attain religious fulfillment through this common tradition, and other methods outside the scope of Islam may be necessary in true spiritual understanding.
...t them differently, both negatively and positively. Until Muslim women start being accurately represented in the media, they will continue to be excluded. Thus, the West needs to be more educated regarding Muslim cultures and discontinue portraying them in such a negative and narrow way. These Muslim women are negatively impacted by this negative representation as it alienates them from the rest of the Canadian nation. These women feel that there is a frequent inaccuracy in how they are portrayed which is problematic because these negative connotations make people believe that all Muslim people are homogenous. Another strategy is for Muslim women themselves to increase their Islamic knowledge and to actively assert their identity. This paper expanded my knowledge of the structures and institutions, and the power they have on our understanding of different cultures.
The structure of pre-British Sharia during the Mughal reign was characterized by a relationship of relative distance between the state government and legal proceedings in the courtroom. (Giunchi 2010, 1121) Though, quadis (judges) were appointed and dismissed by the emperor, they often based their decisions on non-binding opinions; fatwas, of learned Muftis, who sanctioned a particular course of action in reference to textual evidence from the sources of law. Though fatwas were requested in response to real social situations, the muftis used a hypothetical template to document their decisions, not bearing any details about the identity of the plaintiff and thus allowing for the document to serve as a reference for later occasions. (Hallaq 1994, 32-33) Fatwas did not bear a...
These judges are to judge the people righteously. Justice should be ultimate and should not be changed or distorted. The judges are also to not take bribes from anyone or be partial. This they should do because bribing shows perversion of the righteousness, which should not be something that characterizes the judges. The main objective of these judges should be to only pursue justice in order to be able to “live and possess the land which the Lord” is giving them (NASB Deut.
There are four main schools of law that we discussed over the course of the semester. The first one is called Hanafi. This school is the oldest one and most was most influenced by a man named Abu Hanifah, who believed in personal liberty and the right to equality. Unlike most other legal schools Hanafi’s believe in gender equality and support a woman’s right to make her own decisions. For instance, they believe a woman has a right to make her own financial decisions. As one of the most widely supported groups, Hanafi’s have greatly influenced the establishment of other legal schools. The Maliki School named after Malik Ibn Anas, took a more conservative view in regards to the rights of women, and was highly influenced by the Hadith. Similar to the Hanafi School, the Maliki School relies a lot of personal reasoning and rationality. What really distinguishes the Maliki School is the appraisal of religious practices by people of medina, largely due to the fact that Imam Malik lived there. Al Shafi’i established the Shafi’i School of law, which focused on solving issues with the Quran and Sunnah before resorting to Ijma or Qiyas. Similar to the Shafi’i School, the Hanbali School, founded by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, gives greatest importance to the Quran and prophetic traditions. Oppositely, this school does not approve of Ijma or Qiyas at all, enforcing strict adherence to scriptures and information that is uncreated. Finally, the Zahiri School takes principles from the Shafi’I and Hanbali schools and affirms that rulings should be based on the Quran and not speculation. For this reason they do not accept analogical or human reasoning. Not all people agree on a single means for how to establish rules in society, so the creation of multiple s...
In Habeeb Mohammad v. State of Hyderabad, it has been held that in criminal proceedings a man's character is often a matter of importance in explaining his conduct and in judging his innocence or criminality. Many acts of an accused person would be suspicious or free from all suspicions when the character of the person by whom they are done is known. Even on the question of punishment, an accused is allowed to prove general good
There are certain Rules Which Create Prohibition, Approvals or Disapprovals in Islam. We Will see in the following discussion that how these rules are Categorized. As Muslim Jurits have use the word Hukum-ul-Shari for these rules we will also see that how the jurists have defined it. These rules have been given in form of Wajib Makrooh Mustahaab Haram Mandub and etc. We Will try to differentiate them from each other by the views of Classical Jurists. These rules are there to control the life style of the human beings specially Muslims. And these commands have been given through a communication and this communication between Allah and the Mankind has been defined by Immam Shafi.
Religious identity has become a part of a socially constructed hierarchy that identifies human beings based on the superiority, or lack thereof, of their religion. Religion has been a relevant topic throughout history, and religious tensions still exist in the modern world. Islam, a major world religion, is misinterpreted due to its history and the actions of its followers. Judgements based on religious identity create prejudice and bigotry. The misinterpretations of Islam continue to affect the lives of Muslims; moreover, creating hostile environments for these religious followers. In order to fully understand the impact the misinterpretations and predispositions have had on Islam, the following question must be addressed: How has history altered the way Islam is perceived? For the purpose of this argument, history will be defined as yesterday and beyond.
Hitherto the coming of Islam, the Shari’ah law was not always in existence. In the early years, the first Muslim societies used the Quran revelations as a basis for setting standards of conduct for the people. The communities were under the leadership of Prophet Mohammed during this period in the year 622. The Quran, with some of its verses which dealt strictly with legal matters, as well as the prophet’s Sunnah were the sources of the law in the Muslim community. The sunnah were the precedents established by tribal ancestors, accepted as normative, and practiced by the entire c...
In this book , Esposito provides a succinct, up-to-date survey of the Islamic experience, an introduction to the faith, belief, and practice of Islam from its origins to its contemporary resurgence. He traces the emergence and development of this dynamic faith and its impact on world history and politics. He discusses the formation of Islamic belief and practice (law, theology, philosophy, and mysticism), chronicling the struggle of Muslims to define and adhere to their Islamic way of life. Equally important is the essential information Esposito provides on the contemporary world of Islam, from Muslim responses to the challenges of colonialism and modernization to the reassertion of Islam in politics and society.
...ing a new law or by amending the current law to clarify its intention with regards to whether the civil courts have can review the decisions made by the Syariah Court. Thirdly, we may unify the civil and the Syariah Courts at all levels – in effect, federalizing the Syariah Courts. In a case raising civil and Islamic law issues, two judges should sit , one from each discipline. The civil law judge decides civil law issues while the Syariah judge decides on Islamic law issues. The final judgment of the court is to be given by both jointly.
Kenneth Jost. 2005. “Understanding Islam.” Annual Editions: Anthropology 11/12, 34th Edition. Elvio Angeloni. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.