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Islam And The Death Penalty
Recently, AMILA was asked to endorse an amicus brief being prepared by Amnesty International for the Supreme Court regarding the execution of juvenile offenders. The brief argues that all religions are unified in finding it objectionable to execute juvenile offenders. When the issue was first presented to the steering committee a couple of months ago, we did not yet have a copy of the brief with the Shariah citations on the juvenile aspect of the death penalty, so the committee tabled the issue for further discussion.Last month however, a statement with sharia citations was created by Dr. Azizah al-Hibri and Karamah, the Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights, and the issue of AMILA signing onto the brief was once again brought up for discussion. At the June steering committee meeting, SC members unanimously voted to sign onto the brief, following a lively discussion which acknowledged that the American definition of "juvenile" as an individual under the age of 18 was one defined by cultural context, not classical fiqh. Here are some excerpts from the statement: Muslim scholars developed many schools of thought that differed drastically at times on various matters, including those relating to murder. The Quran specifies that in the case of intentional killing, the penalty is based on the concept of qisas (retributive justice); but that it would be better if the family of the victim forgave the murderer. (Qur'an 2: 178) The same verse concludes: "This is a concession and a mercy from your Lord." Thus in Islam, forgiveness and mercy is better than retaliation, even when justified...Based on this verse, Islamic jurisprudence was developed so that the Quranic concept of restorative justice supplemented the notion of qisas by permitting the death penalty to be set aside if any member of the victim's family forgave the murderer. Jurists also permitted the family of the victim to waive the death penalty in favor of reconciliation with the murderer and monetary compensation for the harm that befell the family. All these options: death penalty, compensation, and forgiveness are available under American criminal and civil law, but American law uses a different system of checks and balances that appears to produce harsher results from an Islamic point of view...All Islamic schools of thought have agreed that no qisas is due from a minor. This position is based on the shared premise that an important prerequisite for qisas itself is physical and mental maturity. In other words, guilt for a grave action such as murder may not attach if the perpetrator in unable to properly and fully comprehend the consequences of his or her actions. We are extremely excited to be part of this action. Insh'allah, the message of the brief will resonate with those on the Supreme Court. - By Sylvia Chan Previous story: AMILA Condemns Murder In Saudi Arabia Next story: Muslims and Oil
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