Biyokulule Online

Conflicting fatwas are good for Muslims
Brian Whitaker
The Guardian
August 17, 2010

A Saudi man looks at a Web site on fatwas in Riyadh December 10, 2007. The number of fatwas, or edicts on belief and behaviour, is ever exploding in Islamic countries as Web sites, television and radio vie to outdo the mosque, but that doesn`t mean believers automatically heed their message. REUTERS

Brian Whitaker: In a blow to Islamic freedom of thought, the Saudi king has ordered that all issued fatwas must be approved by himself

Last week, the king of Saudi Arabia issued a royal order decreeing that the only Islamic scholars allowed to issue fatwas will be those approved by himself.

The move has been welcomed by some as an attempt to impose discipline on the chaotic business of fatwa-issuing and also put a stop to “strange” fatwas, like the recent one on breast-feeding adult men in order to overcome the kingdom`s strict rules on gender segregation.

In a sermon on Friday, the imam of the Grand Mosque in Mecca praised the king`s decree, saying it would protect Sharia law “from infringements of unqualified people who deviate from the path of the Prophet”, adding: “The king is determined to stop any transgression against approved religious establishments.”

The decree applies only to public fatwas, not those issued privately to individuals for personal guidance.

But there are a couple of problems with this. The first is the practical question of enforcing it. “All those who violate this order subject themselves to accountability and punishment, whoever they are, because the interests of the religion and the nation are above anything else,” the king said in his decree. It is unclear how, exactly, they will be punished but in an age when all kinds of “Islamic scholars” – some of them with dubious qualifications – are accustomed to making their views known over the internet or satellite television, there is likely to be stiff resistance from some quarters.

The second problem is one of principle. Why shouldn`t they be allowed to express opinions, no matter how ridiculous, without the king`s approval?

Let`s suppose that instead of tackling fatwas, the king had complained about some “strange” columns appearing in the newspapers and decreed that henceforth all columnists would have to be vetted by him first. That would be seen as an attack on free speech and deservedly condemned. Are fatwas really any different?

One argument in favour of restrictions put forward by a senior (and royally approved) Saudi scholar is that “anomalous” fatwas “cause confusion in the society”. Similarly, the kingdom`s Grand Mufti says the aim is to prevent fatwas that “deviate from the consensus opinion and start forbidding some matters and making others permissible without proof”.

What this really means is that they don`t want real religious debate. But it is only through allowing deviation from the consensus that new ideas can emerge – which is essential for Islam (and any other religion for that matter) to adapt to changing conditions.

Underlying it too is a patronising and over-protective towards ordinary Muslims: they must be shielded from anything that might cause “confusion” in their heads. Again, though, that is not they way forward.

In the same way that the internet is gradually teaching people they shouldn`t believe everything they read on screen or in print, crazy fatwas serve a useful purpose. They demonstrate that there is no such thing as a single “correct” interpretation of scripture, and force people who have never been accustomed to doing so to start sorting the wheat from the chaff.

In Saudi Arabia, though, allowing space for free religious debate is not really possible under the present system. The laws of the state are based on religious law (the Sharia) – or at least the official Wahhabi interpretation of it. This assumes there is a consensus about what religious law says, and a free market for fatwas would undermine the whole edifice.

Saudi imam praises royal decree banning unqualified people from issuing fatwa
BBC Monitoring Middle East
August 16, 2010

[Report by Badea Abu Al-Naja from Mecca: “King`s Decree Protects Shariah”]

Grand Mosque Imam and Khatib Shaykh Saleh bin Abdullah bin Humaid used his first Friday sermon of the holy month of Ramadan to praise the royal decree banning unqualified people from issuing fatwas.

“Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has safeguarded the process of issuing fatwas and protected Shariah law from infringements of unqualified people who deviate from the path of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his true followers,” said the shaykh, who is also chairman of the Supreme Judicial Council.

“The king is determined to stop any transgression against approved religious establishments.”

The imam also called on believers to be true Muslims by worshipping Allah alone and avoid wrongdoings.

He also urged people to fear Allah in such a way that they “do not earn illegally, bear false witnesses, make false promises, nor deceive in their transactions.”

Thousands of Muslims attended the first Friday sermon of Ramadan at the Grand Mosque in an atmosphere of spirituality. Several thousand pilgrims have arrived in the Kingdom to perform Umrah in the fasting month.

According to official figures, up to 3.7 million Muslims from all over the world are expected to perform Umrah this year. Makkah and Madinah have prepared well in advance to receive the visitors from inside and outside the Kingdom and help them perform their rites at ease and in comfort.

All government departments and private establishments concerned have completed their necessary arrangements. Deputy chairman of the Presidency of Affairs of the Grand Mosque Muhammad Al-Khuzaim said his organization`s plan this Umrah season is to educate pilgrims and enlighten them about Islam.

He said several scholars have been deployed in the Grand Mosque to answer queries from pilgrims. “They are instructing pilgrims inside the Haram in various languages,” he added.

Director of Makkah`s health affairs department Dr Khaled Zafar said five health centres would provide services to pilgrims inside the Grand Mosque round the clock. This is in addition to five other centres in the Haram courtyards.

“There are 29 health centres in Makkah which provide health care to pilgrims round the clock. The pilgrims can also use the general hospitals in Makkah, Jedda and Taif,” he added.

Makkah Mayor Osama bin Fadl Al-Bar said much emphasis would be given on cleaning the holy city to make it comfortable for residents and visitors.

He said more than 8,500 workers with over 810 pieces of cleaning equipment are involved in ensuring the city and the Grand Mosque are spotless.

Director of Makkah`s traffic department Col. Ahmad Nashi Al-Otaibi said 1,900 students and 600 support workers would help the city`s traffic police manage traffic flow during the fasting month.

He said cars would not be allowed to enter the central area around the Grand Mosque.

The Civil Defence has equipped itself with helicopters to deal with any emergency situation. Its director, Brig. Jameel Arbaeen, said their firefighting brigades and rescue teams are on call any time of the day and night.

Source: Arab News website, Jedda, in English 16 Aug 10

Text of report in English by Saudi newspaper Arab News website on 16 August

Saudi Judge, Writer, official Slam Al-Barrak`s Fatwa on Veil, Journalists
Al-Hayah Online
Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Report by Iman al-Qahtani, from Riyadh: “Al-Barrak Calls for Covering Women`s Faces and Necks at Women Forums, and Describes Journalists as `Soldiers of the Devil`”

Shaykh Abd-al-Rahman al-Barrak has described the Saudi journalists as “the soldiers of the devil.” This came within his reply to a question during one of his Shari`ah lessons in Riyadh four days ago about a woman showing her hair, neck, and face in front of other women.

Shaykh Al-Barrak, former professor of creed at Imam Muhammad Bin-Sa`ud Islamic University in Riyadh, said that the journalists would not be satisfied with the tendency to “cover,” and would rebel against it. He advised the woman questioner to cover the face and neck “in the gatherings of other women, such as weddings and schools, because uncovering them opens the door for the devil,” according to his expression. He added: “Had not the regulations and uniform at schools imposed the veil, women would have become dissolute.” Shaykh Al-Barrak did not object to revealing the face and hair “in front of female relatives, and during brief sessions.”

Judge Shaykh Isa al-Ghayth of the Penal Court in Riyadh has denounced the pronouncement of Al-Barrak, and his description of the journalists as “soldiers of the devil.” Judge Al-Ghayth has said to Al-Hayah: “It is inadmissible to cast accusations among ourselves, and to incite the common people against each other. We ought to think well of the others, even if they disagree with our opinions, as long as these opinions are open for disagreement and for diversity of jurisprudent opinions.” Al-Ghayth considers that many of the media people undertake a great Shari`ah duty, “and in many of their efforts they indeed are considered Muhtasibs (individuals undertaking the responsibility of enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong).” Shaykh Al-Ghayth explains that Ihtisab (enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong) is not restricted to a specific typical image that leaves aside the other types of Ihtisab.

Shaykh Al-Barrak`s lesson included his saying: “I advise the good sisters to resist this habit, to go against it, and to return to wearing the veil on their heads, even at weddings and schools. If they do this, the soldiers of the devil among the journalists inevitably will rebel against this tendency, because they are not satisfied with the tendency to cover.”

Shaykh Al-Ghayth points out that the recent period has witnessed some people finding it easy to level accusations and classifications of all levels. “You will find someone who finds it easy to accuse those who disagree with him of hypocrisy, heresy, lust, suspicion, wantonness, and perhaps also infidelity; and there are others who attack the intentions, which no one knows except God. The attack of individuals, dignitaries, and others uses terminology that is repeated in more that one place, especially on the Internet.” Shaykh Al-Ghayth stresses the need for “the scholars to guide, direct, and warn these people that such behavior is dangerous, and prohibited, and that it is not admissible to use this sort of words, as such behavior has its consequences in life and in the afterlife.”

Shaykh Al-Ghayth adds: “Indeed we need to hold to account according to Shari`ah anyone who finds it easy to level such accusations at others.” Shaykh Al-Ghayth stresses: “It is admissible for a woman to reveal her face, head, and neck in front of other women, and there is no evidence that this is prohibited.” He says: “Anyone who says otherwise has to introduce the evidence. Nevertheless, whatever happens, such opinion is binding only to the one who pronounces it, and those who accept it among his followers, without compelling others to do so. It is inadmissible to bound others with such opinion, not to mention using defamation, incitement, and calling for rebellion. Any woman who wants to follow this opinion is free to do so, but it is inadmissible to compel the others to follow it, or denounce them for not doing so.”

Al-Barrak`s talk has aroused different reactions in the media circles. Writer Muhammad Abd-al-Latif Al al-Shaykh says that describing the journalists as “soldiers of the devil” comes under the heading of making it difficult and restricting the people, “as if Islam and tolerance contradict each other.”

Al al-Shaykh adds to Al-Hayah: “Al-Barrak has not become famous and acquired a status worth mentioning until the hardliners installed him as their imam, and hence he started pronouncing what the early predecessors did not pronounce. Perhaps his description of the writers and journalists who disagree with him as devils indicates his narrow-minded attitude, and his lack of Islamic tolerance.”

Al al-Shaykh adds to Al-Hayah: “This is a highly extremist and severely hard-line fatwa of the kind we have become accustomed to from this man on many occasions.” He explains: “In the past, women at weddings used to dance among themselves, let their hair loose on their shoulders, and sway at the play of the tambourines. I have never heard anyone denounce them for doing so.”

In his turn, Ministry of Information and Culture Spokesman Abd-al-Rahman al-Hazza has considered the talk of Al-Barrak as “slander,” and has said that his ministry “is concerned with following up and implementing the publications law and the press institutions law, but this issue does not come under these laws.” Within the context of his reply with regard to the legal aspects of Shaykh Al-Barrak`s pronouncements, Al-Hazza adds: “We deal with the published or written material, whether in a newspaper, a magazine, or a book; anything else is beyond our capacity. Whatever slander is published in any other form is not within our capacity.”

Shaykh Abd-al-Rahman al-Barrak, 78, earlier this year issued a fatwa “judging as infidel anyone who allows gender mixing even if does not lead to committing anything prohibited.” Also earlier in 2008, Shaykh Al-Barrak judged as infidels the two Saudi writers Abdallah Bin-Bijad al-Utaybi and Yusuf Abu-al-Khayl, and called for putting them on trial on charges of apostasy.

(Description of Source: London Al-Hayah Online in Arabic -- Website of influential Saudi-owned London pan-Arab daily. URL: http://www.daralhayat.com)

Muslim scholar calls for halt to Ramadan construction work
Shane McGinley
ArabianBusiness.com
August 18, 2010

Earlier this month, the UAE`s religious authority issued a fatwa allowing workers, especially construction workers, who have to contend with extreme heat, to break their Ramadan fast to avoid health problems.

A leading Muslim scholar has called for a halt to work on construction sites during Ramadan, to help workers fasting during the holy month, it was reported on Wednesday.

“Work should be stopped in such circumstances. But in case it is not possible, Muslim workers are then permitted to break their fast, especially if they feel very, very thirsty,” Sheikh Qaradawi, who is chairman of the International Union for Muslim Scholars, said during a lecture organised by the Al Qaradawi Centre For Islamic Moderation and Renewal in Qatar.

However, while Qaradawi said workers should be allowed to break the fast to avoid dehydration, “they have to make up for the missed days later,” according to a report by the Gulf Times newspaper.

His comments are in contrast to those made by Doha-based Muslim scholar Sheikh Ahmed Al Buainain, a scholar at the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, who said the hot weather was not enough of an excuse for workers to break their fast.

“I do not believe that there is a good reason for workers not to observe fasting during the days of Ramadan because of the high temperature as long as they are healthy,” Sheikh Al Buainian told Gulf Times.

Sheikh Qaradawi also said that some scholars were being too severe in the restrictions they were demanding during the holy month, especially those who prohibited the use of toothpaste or inhalers.

In relation to sports athletes who have to compete in games during Ramadan, he recommended that the games be held after the breaking of the fast, “but if the venue of the game is outside the country, then they are permitted to break their fast since they would be exempted from fasting because of travel.”

Earlier this month, the UAE`s religious authority issued a fatwa allowing workers, especially construction workers, who have to contend with extreme heat, to break their Ramadan fast to avoid health problems.

“It is permissible for workers in certain professions to break the fast because of severe hardship,” said the fatwa, or Islamic religious edict, issued by the General Authority for Islamic Affairs and Endowments, according to AFP.