‘Fatwa’ Condemns Killings Of Innocent

‘ISLAMIC terrorism’ is a phrase that has become part of the active vocabulary of mainstream media in the world. But the phrase is an oxymoron, argues Advocate Jafar Samdani, Senior Associate at Kuwait Mediation and International Arbitration Chamber. As the head of a forum that has proclaimed peace and understanding as its core objectives, Jafar is currently actively promoting a book by a world famous scholar to create awareness on the Islamic perspective on terrorism. Armed with a degree in Islamic Studies and International Affairs, Jafar is able to shed light on the book and also courses through history and politics to put the phenomenon of terrorism in perspective. However, he agrees that creating harmony without bringing about dispute resolution is next to impossible.
Question: You have been actively promoting the book Fatwa by the world renowned Islamic scholar Dr Tahir Ul Qadri through your forum, Minhaj Peace and Integration Council (MPIC). Tell us more about it.
Answer: First of all, let me give a small idea about the forum. The MPIC was established pretty recently, although its parent organization, Mihajul Quran International (MQI) has been functioning for 25 years in Kuwait. MQI was established by Sheikhul Islam Dr Tahir Ul Qadri. Our objective is to spread the message of peace and love between peoples of various faiths and nations. MPIC has over 7,500 members in Kuwait. In today’s world, terrorism has become a major issue affecting everyone all over the globe. And we also know that in all these places, people generally associate terrorism with Islam. And as a forum working for the unification of humanity, we feel obliged to clear misconceptions regarding Islam as misconceptions only fuel hatred and puts distances between hearts. It is in this context that the book published in 2010 by Dr Tahir Ul Qadri becomes very relevant.
While there have been Islamic scholars in various parts of the world who have been condemning the phenomenon of religious extremism and terrorism, billing it as antithetical to the fundamental principles of Islam, there has not been an exhaustive discourse on the subject in the light of the scriptural sources of Islam and classical exegesis.
The book Fatwa is the first of its kind, and is a 600-page unequivocal and exhaustive fatwa given by a modern scholar condemning extremism and fanaticism from an Islamic perspective, especially the phenomenon of suicide bombings. This is the first of its kind.
While mainstream Muslims know that terrorism is antithetical to Islam, there has not been much awareness on this outside the Islamic world. This was the first serious effort on that front.

Q: Therefore you are promoting this book because you feel it serves your forum’s objective of establishing peace and harmony through greater understanding. Tell us more about the book and the measures you are adopting to promote its message.
A: Though Dr Tahir Ul Qadri is a scholar of high eminence, in the last 30 years of his scholarly life, he has never ever issued a single Fatwa. This is his first Fatwa.
Usually, Fatwa is understood as a religious injunction to kill someone. Unfortunately media likes to highlight only such a minority of opinions. However, this book Fatwa, is an opinion issued in condemnation of killings.
Before this book, though there were thousands of Fatwas issued by scholars, the only ones that stood out were the Fataw issued against Salman Rushdie by Iran, Taslima Nasreen in Bangladesh and another one against Amina Wadud, the woman in the US who declared herself an Imam.
Islamic terrorism as a term and concept gained currency following the 9/11 attack. Adding force to that was the 7/7 London bombings. With growing media propaganda for this idea, it became imperative for scholars of Islam to come forward and address the issue straight.
Somehow, the events of the last 2 decades became the lens through which the entire history of Islam was being judged. The scientific advancements, cultural renaissance and the establishment of a vast and glorious civilization of the last 14 centuries were being overshadowed by a tumultuous series of events in the last few years.
The book delves deep into the subject of terrorism and extremism drawing from more than 1,000 classical references and the Holy Quran to analyze the topic in great depth and to prove where Islam actually stands on the issue.
The research is not restricted to any one school of thought in Islam. It takes from all the four classical schools of jurisprudence and Shia and Salafi schools as well. The book also takes references from Orientalists.
The book concludes unequivocally that anyone who indulges in terrorism, taking innocent lives, goes outside the fold of Islam. He is not a Muslim. This is not just a modern interpretation of Islam, but this has been the opinion of mainstream scholars since the beginning of Islamic jurisprudence in the last 1400 years.
So far, at least 2000 research references have been made over this book. Not just in London but all across the world. The UNO’s cultural wing, Army Core of USA, Washington University, and many media institutions have used the book for their research references.
A year ago, when the Humanity Peace Conference was organized in the UK, UN General Secretary Ban Ki Moon, officials from US Home Office, UK’s Prime Minister David Cameroon were all on board, appreciating the efforts of Minhajul Quran International (MQI), the organization founded by Dr Tahir Ul Qadri. The scholar was even awarded consultative status for peace efforts by the UN. About 120 television channels had telecasted his interview live from London.
A person reading the book will be able to appreciate that according to Islam those indulging in terrorism and extremism are not Muslims. There is a difference of opinion on whether those indulging in extremism deserve death penalty or not in an Islamic state. Some scholars prescribe life imprisonment, while others call for their death. However, there is no difference of opinion among classical jurists deriving their opinion from the Quran and prophetic traditions that extremism in religion makes the practitioner go out of Islam. Quran terms it ‘Fasad Fil Ard’ which can be loosely translated as ‘mischief in the land.’ There is no forgiveness for this in Islam.
On the question of what efforts we are undertaking to promote this book, we have been liaising with nearly 50 foreign embassies in Kuwait and these embassies have embraced the message of the forum and even advised their foreign ministries to consider the book for their policies.
We believe that love and peace are the fundamental teachings of all religions, including Islam. We are here to promote good ties not only between Muslims but also with people of other faiths, be it Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism and others.
The embassies we have met so far have expressed their appreciation for our efforts and are impressed by it. They have introduced us to their foreign offices, think tanks and other forums in their respective countries to co-opt our ideas in their policies.

Q: Can you name a few of the embassies you met in Kuwait?
A: We have met the US Ambassador to Kuwait, HE Mathew Tueller, and other officials from the US embassy. We also met with envoys or top level officials of the UK, French, Italian, Spanish and German embassies. Also, the embassies of most Arab countries, India, Swaziland, Afghanistan and the list goes on.
Some embassies have expressed interest to translate the book to other languages.
The Iranian embassy has included us in their cultural forum and the Dutch embassy has extended ties with our forum to work together for the noble cause of peace and love. We have to specially mention the support of the Canadian Ambassador for us. The ambassador is looking to invite the author of the book this year or the next for lectures at universities and other places.
We have the support of even the UN office in Kuwait, and the Regional Director for Development in Afghanistan. We are also in touch with Kuwait University and we have the support of GUST.
Tresa Lesher, who works in Kuwait University, and who was the head of AWARE Center for 2 years, has been actively engaged in lecturing about the book at various venues. She stated that after reading this book she has no more questions on the subject of terrorism and Islam. The book covers everything in its entirety.
We are also proud to inform that the former Kuwaiti MP, Sheikh Sayed Yusuf Al Sayed Hashem Al Refai, an eminent scholar, has given his full support for this forum and the book. So, as you can see, we are not leaving any stone unturned to get the message of this book across the various sections of the society. In working towards our basic objective of spreading peace and love, we are seeking to join hands with people from other faiths and countries and all those who can help us make a change, fostering brotherly ties.

Q: Is your forum more about correcting errant Muslims, because it’s a fact that at least a minority of Muslims is led into extremism and terrorism, or is it more concerned with clearing misconception about Islam among non-Muslims?
A: It is both of that. Each year, we organize a camp called Al Hidaya. This is aimed at educating Muslims. Approximately 15,000 students take part in it every year. These are people from all facets of society. There are lawyers, government employees and students among others who take part in it.
In Pakistan, MQI established a University in 1981. This is a chartered university like Oxford or any other university in the world. There are 1,000 students studying there, coming from all walks of life. It imparts religious and modern secular knowledge. Students also take out the message of peace and love from there.
MQI has also opened 1000 colleges and model schools in Pakistan to educate young minds.
In a conference held in the UK, Dr Tahir Ul Qadri addressed 50,000 audiences. There he clarified the concepts of Jihad in the Quran. He said that wherever Quran takes the word Jihad it was not in the sense of war. The word for war in the scripture is Qital. Jihad is a struggle for divine pleasure. It’s a struggle for piety.
At the Peace Conference held at Wembley Arena, UK, 2011, there were Hindu, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and Jewish scholars along with Muslim scholars taking part in it. There were also atheists. All the members accepted the declaration at the conference and millions across the world endorsed the declaration and the charter of the conference.
John Esposito, world renowned orientalist, had organized a seminar in Washington a few years ago. In this program Dr Tahir Ul Qadri delivered a lecture on extremism and Islam. The scholar is basically a lawyer. Research students, professors and army personnel were invited for the lecture. After the program, the army personnel appreciated the scholar for such a clear exposition. He had also given a lecture at the Institute for Peace, a forum of the UNO.
Q: Why is it that despite such clarity in the scriptures against extremism and terrorism that some Muslims, even if they are a minority, taking that path? 
A: This should be seen in the light of history. There are more geopolitical reasons to it than religious. Until WW I, Muslim Caliphs were the masters of the world. Three continents and five oceans were under their control. It was called Caliph Othmania. Since the time of the first Caliphate, Muslims had ruled the world in an unbroken chain. Of course caliphates changed – be it the Ummayid Caliphate, Abbasid Caliphate or the Ottoman Caliphate-but caliphate as an institution held power, until WW I.
At the end of WW I, the Ottoman Empire was split up into 51 separate states. The subcontinent, which was also under Islamic rule, fell to colonial powers. And Palestine still remains a festering wound.
The plan for the state of Israel was created in 1857 under the leadership of Theodor Herz. Rothschild, the pioneer of modern banking, gave support for this plan. This, as we all now know, eventually led to the occupation of Palestinian lands.
These are some examples of the sense of victimization and persecution that the Islamic world shares by and large. This decline has been happening in the last one hundred years. Now add to it all the recent wars and conflicts, and the grievance gets deeper and more painful.
Under the Universal Declaration of 1948 made in Switzerland, every human being is entitled to fundamental rights. And Muslims have this feeling that those rights are not being given to them fully.
Q: You pointed out some of the long-lasting grievances of Muslims who feel they are under persecution. On the other hand, you are working to build bridges between cultures and civilizations. But do you think it would be possible to bring about any kind of a harmonization of relations without addressing the grievances first? And are these grievances, including the Palestinian issue, easy to redress?
A: You are right. If you are not going to resolve the basic disputes, there can be no harmony. Let me just quote to you the words of Lord Mountbatten’s secretary at the partition of India. He said, “We sowed the seeds of trouble in Kashmir and there are 585 sub-states in India.” That trouble sown is still continuing unresolved.
Therefore, the task is huge. We are starting from the very basics, that of educating the people on all sides to firstly appreciate the problem. Even fighting armies sit at a table at the close of war. But why wait for war? Why can’t we as civilized people come to the table before the war? We have to make sure that we apply the same standard of judgment for everyone. The right of self determination is the right of every people.
And we have to understand that Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) is not a Muslims organization. There are people of Christian and Jewish faith also in it. They are fighting Zionism, not Judaism.
First of all when the vision for a separate state for Jews first came up, they were given a piece of land in Uganda for a state. In some books, it’s said that the land was given near Russia.
But Zionism insisted on Israel. The caliph of Ottoman Empire was approached with the request for a land for Israel, but he rejected it. As a result the empire was torn apart in the first and second world wars, and then divided between the European powers.
But these are huge issues, and will need a lot of political maneuvering to be resolved. But let’s do our bit. Let’s bring as many people to the table as possible to share our views and empathize with each other. Let’s at least start raising a generation that believes that dialogues can solve issues and not guns. And it’s not easy to convince states to compromise on power.
Therefore it is only natural that a climate of conflict exists and it is being dressed up as a war between two civilizations and other apocalyptic imageries. This makes it all the more important that we build bridges between the two sides.

Q: Why hasn’t the book, despite such acclaim, gained much popularity?
A: Two reasons: firstly the habit of reading books is on the wane. Secondly, at least some of the frontline media have an agenda. How else can you explain the popularity of books like Princess, while books that really matter are not heard of much. Princess was among the best sellers that year, and you can find it on the shelves of all the libraries of the world.
Q: You had written a review of the Fatwa. In your opinion what inspired the author to write this book?
A: It would only be surprising if a scholar of his repute and stature does not write a book of this nature. He was the advisor to Supreme Court of Pakistan on religious issues. He was chosen by the Supreme Court and the government of Pakistan to give his legal opinion on the subject of Islamic Law.
He established 1981 Minhajul Quran International in 1981. He established a university, and heads about 40 different departments in his organization to educate Muslims on the true teachings of Islam. This organization is active in more than 100 countries. He has millions of followers all over the world.
He has authored 500 books, and there’s more coming, and has given over 7,000 lectures. He is a member of WHO and World Economic Forum and has been awarded many honors by leading institutions like the American Biographical Institute, which chose him as the man of the century.
An organization called Expatriate Kuwait Experience (EKE) publishes a fortnightly magazine with approximately 70,000 copies issued across the GCC every fortnight. The publisher is one Mr. Michael who hails from South Africa. And it focuses on western expatriates. The magazine had features of our forum, and my review of Fatwa was also on it. It came out in a series of 4 issues.
biography

Advocate Jafar Samdani is a Senior Associate at Kuwait Mediation and International Arbitration Chamber. He was also part of the panel that set the arbitration rules of the chamber. Jafar came to Kuwait in 2009. He hails from Lahore, Pakistan, where he obtained his degrees in political science, international affairs and Islamic studies along with his degree in law. In Kuwait he heads the Minjah Peace and Integration Council (MPIC) dedicated to the spread of peace and love between people of various communities. Jafar is the author of 8 books covering a variety of subjects. One of them was on the jurisprudence of human organ transplantation, approached from the perspective of Islamic law and modern secular law.

By Valiya S. Sajjad
Arab Time Staff

By: Jafar Samdani

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