The latest article from Islam4uk.com is a comparison of sentances under British and islamic law.
“1. Mugging - You have probably suffered this at least once in your life, or know someone who has suffered it.
-The British Legal System: The sentence is discretionary, depending on the crime, but is commonly punished by community service.The Islamic Judicial System: Once guilt is ascertained, the judge will consider the severity of the crime and perform ijtihaad (i.e. extracting the rule from the Qur’aan and the Sunnah). This may range from public humiliation to death, if the mugging led to death.
2. Burglary - Burglary is extremely common in Britain. No doubt, you are afraid that your house may get burgled if you are away for any period of time.
The British Legal System: The sentence is discretionary, depending on the crime, but is commonly punished with imprisonment.
The Islamic Judicial System: Burglars will have their hand cut off, provided they fulfil the seven conditions for this punishment. They are not permitted to have it surgically replaced.
3. Rape – There is a rape in Britain on average every 2.5 hours. Many more go unreported, and in most cases the perpetrator is known to the victim.
The British Legal System: The sentence is discretionary, but the punishment ranges from a fine to life imprisonment. Commonly, the period of imprisonment is below 10 years.
The Islamic Judicial System: The punishment can be death, depending on the circumstances.
4. Drug Abuse - This is extremely common among all ages, particularly the youth. It is often seen as a harmless habit. Perhaps you are worried about a child or relative; if not, you probably should be.
The British Legal System: The punishment depends on the nature of the drug, and the quantity possessed. Alcohol is legal. For ‘soft’ drugs, offenders are usually just cautioned, but ‘hard’ drug abusers (like cocaine, heroin) may be imprisoned.
The Islamic Judicial System: Offenders are publicly flogged 80 lashes.
5. Fornication & Adultery - With the emphasis in our society placed on relationships and sexual freedom, you would be justified in fearing for the conduct of young or indeed older Muslims who are subject to its influence.
The British legal System: Both of these are legal, whether done between members of the opposite sex or the same sex (i.e. homosexuality). In fact, if you were to criticise these you would be blamed for intolerance and discrimination.
The Islamic Judicial System: Fornication is punished by flogging 100 lashes. Adultery and homosexual fornication are both punished by public execution.
The objective behind the administration of justice in Islam is to act as a deterrent, to reform offenders and to secure society. As you can see, the nature of sentences in the Islamic Judicial System ensures that these objectives are achieved. History bears witness to this – only about 200 hands are recorded to have been cut in the entire history of the Islamic State!
In the West, however, up to 70% of convicted prisoners re-offend once they are released, and the rates of crime are hardly indicative of a successful deterrent. One of the fundamental problems in the West is the complete contradiction of the ideology that is pushed upon the people. On the one hand, they are told that freedom is the basic right of the individual. This, however, is an open license to commit crime. When this is combined with the concept of democracy, the contradiction becomes apparent. For democracy is a system of making laws – devices to restrict freedom. The result of this conceptual mish-mash is chaos!
The justice which the Islamic State’s Judicial System proffers will offer you peace of mind, security and confidence that your rights will not be abused. After the checks and balances of personal taqwaa (fear of God) and the effect of public opinion, the last level of regulation – the Islamic Judicial System guarantees that the world will be free from the exploitation and corruption of man-made law, and the rising tide of crime that complements it.”
I’ll let readers draw their own conclusions as to whether shariah law punishments are proportionate. But I believe that their effectiveness has been overstated – to assert that “only 200 hands have been cut off in the entire history of the (which?) Islamic State” is on the face of it ridiculous. A simple Google search for ‘amputations saudi’ reveals this article in which
“Saudi Arabia’s leading executioner Muhammad Saad Al-Beshi will behead up to seven people in a day.
“It doesn’t matter to me: Two, four, 10 — As long as I’m doing God’s will, it doesn’t matter how many people I execute,” he told Okaz newspaper in an interview.
An executioner’s life, of course, is not all killing. Sometimes it can be amputation of hands and legs. “I use a special sharp knife, not a sword,” he explains. “When I cut off a hand I cut it from the joint. If it is a leg the authorities specify where it is to be taken off, so I follow that.””
There have also been recent amputations in Somalia and the Sudan.