Subject: Death for Apostacy (Murtad)

I have read with great interest the discussions following the recent case
of a Malaysian Malay Muslim woman named Nor Aishah recanting her faith in
Islam and embracing another religion. I have put down below my 5 "sen"
worth here as food for thought for all Muslims and the non-Muslims who have
to co-exist in harmony with them.

1. The Quran forbids the use of force to make one belief in Islam.

Let there be no compulsion in religion. (Quran 2:256)

If it had been thy Lord's Will, they would all have believed, - all who are
on earth! Wilt thou then compel mankind against their will, to believe!
(Quran 10:99)

These Quranic verses are usually interpreted (tafsir) as meaning you should
not force a non-Muslim to convert to Islam if he does not wish to do so.
But why is it limited to only this situation? Why is it not applicable to
forcing a Muslim to remain in Islam when he does not wish to anymore. In
both situations the result of using force would be the same - you would
have a reluctant Muslim or worse a hypocrite (Munafiq) Muslim. They may
seem to be Muslims outwardly but due to their resentment at having been
forced to convert or remain in Islam they would undermine the religion from
within the ranks of the believers. There are many verses in the Quran
warning Muslims to beware of hypocrites among them - compulsion to remain
in Islam itself could produce such hypocrites. Muslims should reconsider
the limitation imposed on the interpretation of this verse.

2. The Quran takes precedence over the Hadith

The decapitation of apostates ruling is basically derived from the Hadith
and not from the Quran. If we accept that the above-mentioned Quranic verse
could be interpreted as applying to conversion to Islam as well as
conversion out of Islam, then the Quran and Hadith would appear to
contradict each other. As far as I know, in the science of the hadith, one
of the rules applied to determine the authenticity of a hadith is that it
cannot contradict the Quran. The Quran is always right in any apparent
contradiction. Should Muslims follow God's clear instruction in the Quran
that there be no compulsion in religion or the hadith which seem to
contradict God's directive. I am not advocating an anti-hadith approach
here, but as all students of hadith know that hadith are classified into
various degrees of authenticity whereas the complete authenticity of the
whole Quran is unquestionable. The Quran is the first source of law in
Islam, only then followed by the deeds and words of the Prophet (Sunnah
Nabi as contained in the Hadith), etc

In most instances in the Hadith where the Prophet orders the execution of
an apostate a careful study of each case will show that the apostates had
committed other heinous crimes (like murder) which warranted the death
penalty - they were not executed for their apostacy but for other crimes.

3. The Prophet himself forgave an apostate.

Abdullah b Sad (or Abdullah b Abi Sarah) was one of the Prophet's scribes
in Medina. He recanted and defected to the Meccan unbelievers. Since he
wrote down the revelation (i.e., the Quranic verses), dictated by the
Prophet, and enjoyed a position of trust, his defection was bound to create
confusion among the Quraish of Mecca about the authenticity of the
revelation (the Quran) itself. If anyone ever needed to be punished
severely it would have been this man whose action had the potential of
causing much confusion among Muslims. After the fall of Mecca, he was one
of those sentenced to death by the Prophet. His foster brother, Uthman b
Affan, gave him shelter in his house and interceded with the Prophet on his
behalf and the Prophet pardoned Abdullah b Sad.

Had there been a Quranic death penalty for apostacy, the Prophet could not
have pardoned Abdullah b Sad - the Prophet would have been duty-bound to
carry out the death penalty. The Prophet's policy on intercession in
respect of hudud punishment is well illustrated by the incident of a woman
who was found guilty of theft. When Usamah b Zayd pleaded for her, the
Prophet rebuked him and said, "Do you intercede in respect of a punishment
prescribed by Allah? Witness this: that if Fatima (the Prophet's beloved
daughter), daughter of Muhammad, were guilty of theft, I would certainly
cut off her hand."

4. Apostates went free under the treaty of Hudaibiyyah.

In the treaty of Hudaibiyyah, the Prophet agreed with the pagan Meccans
that if anyone of the Meccans became a Muslim and came to Medina, he would
be returned to the Meccans, but if a Muslim abjured Islam and departed from
Medina to join Meccans, they would be under no obligation to return him to
the Prophet. The Prophet would not have agreed to such terms if apostacy
had to be punished at all, let alone be punished by death.

5. Born Muslims never had a choice.

If a man converts to Islam knowing fully well the implications of his
action, including the penalty of decapitation for apostacy, then it may be
argued that if he ever did wish to recant he deserves to receive the
punishment he was fully aware of when he converted to Islam. But born
Muslims never had that choice. Is it just to impose such a rule on someone
who never had a say - never gave his full "informed" consent to it? I say
informed because new converts to Islam are never told that according to the
four great Imams of Islam (Shafii, etc) the penalty for apostacy is
decapitation. So they consent to the conversion without being fully
informed of the implications. Even among the born Muslim Malays of Malaysia
most were not aware of this until the recent Nor Aishah case was
publicised. How different is the situation of a born Muslim being "stuck"
in Islam from that of Hindus of old born into a particular caste being
"stuck" in that caste. Don't Muslims condemn the latter?

6. Murtad means "to go back" to a state of non-belief.

The word used for apostacy in Islam is Murtad which is derived from Irtidad
which means "to go back" (or back-slide in Christian terminology). That is
a Muslim who recants and goes back to his pre-Muslim state of being a
non-believer/non-Muslim (kafir). As such it may be argued that only someone
who was originally a non-believer and who converted to Islam could actually
"murtad". The term would not apply to a born Muslim since he was never a
non-believer and therefore connot "go back" to his original state of
non-belief. This would seem fair if taken with the above-mentioned point #
5, i.e., since a born Muslim never actually had a choice in being a Muslim
it would not be just to punish him when he finally does consider his
position as a Muslim and decides that he does not wish to be one. "Murtad"
would only apply to converts who recanted, since they had the opportunity
to thoroughly study the religion and the implications of conversion before
becoming a Muslim.

7. Decapitating an apostate tantamounts to "double-punishment".

As far as i know the Hudud laws save a criminal from punishment in the
hereafter. E.g., if a thief has his hand cut off for his crime - he has
paid for his crime completely. He is then not liable to be punished for the
same crime in the hereafter. In that sense the Hudud laws should be
welcomed by criminals since losing your hand in this world cannot be as bad
as the torment of losing your soul in hellfire in the hereafter. If we
apply this same principle to the decapitation for apostacy case, does that
mean that since the apostate has been punished in this world by being
decapitated he is freed from punishment in the hereafter? If he is
decapitated here and burns in hell there - he's punished twice for the same
crime!

.... And if any of you turn back from their faith and die in unbelief, their
works will bear no fruit in this life and in the Hereafter; they will be
the Companions of the Fire and will abide therein. (Quran 2:217) In this
verse the Quran clearly states that an apostate who dies in his state of
non-belief will burn in hell. Since God has already assured him his
punishment in the hereafter, should Muslims punish him here as well by
decapitating him. Also note that the verse does not say that if you turn
back from your faith you will abide in hell - it says if you turn back from
your faith and then die in unbelief you will abide in Hell. Which seems to
suggest that the apostate is not immediately condemned when he recants - he
has the opportunity to realise his error and return to Islam - he is only
condemned if he does not return to Islam and eventually dies a
non-believer.

8. Decapitation robs the apostate of the opportunity to realise the errors
of his action (insaf & taubat)

If I am not mistaken, the usual time limit given for an apostate to
reconsider and return to Islam is three days or the duration of three
warnings. No one can set a time frame for a change of heart. Who is to say
that if the apostate had been allowed to live he would not have returned to
Islam on the fourth day. If he is decapitated on the third day we will
never know. Would it not be better to allow him to live and by your
kindness and love make him eventually realise that he has forsaken a
wonderful religion and allow him to return to Islam as an eventual citizen
of heaven rather than summarily decapitate him and seal his citizenship in
hell.

9. Islamic laws apply to Muslims only - an apostate is already a
non-Muslim.

The moment a Muslim declares publicly that he has given up Islam he is a
non-Muslim. Can Islamic laws then be applied to this new non-Muslim? Would
he not come under the jurisdiction of the secular courts and not the
Syariah courts from the point of recantation onwards? Malaysians ridiculed
the US for wanting to apply the laws of their land on Petronas, a non-US
company, for trading with Iran, which is outside the boundaries of the US.
Isn't it just as unfair to apply Islamic laws on someone who is not anymore
a Muslim.

10. All non-Muslims, even born non-Muslims, are apostates

According to a hadith in Bukhari's compilation every child is born a
Muslim, but his parents then make him a Jew or a Christian or a
Zoroastrian, i.e., his parents make him become an apostate. Therefore all
born non-Muslims are really born Muslims who had been made to give up Islam
at a very early age by their parents. Therefore every born non-Muslim
should be informed of the great mistake that had occured in his life and
immediately be given three days to return to the religion he was born into,
i.e., Islam, or face decapitation for persisiting in apostacy. This is not
my own idea - it has been suggested before by a Muslim leader, Maulana Abul
Ala Maududi of Pakistan. That would really be taking things a little too
far wouldn't it.

11. Death penalty would make it easier for would be apostates to flee a
country that practices it.

A Malaysian Muslim who gives up Islam faces a lot of difficulties. He is
raceless - since he does not fit the Malaysian constitutional definition of
a Malay. He will lose all his bumiputera priveleges. He will be shunned (at
best) or harrassed (or worse) by other Malays. He will be outcast from his
family and village. He cannot escape his past identity since he cannot
change his name. If he goes to a non-Muslim place of worship he will
immediately be questioned because his name will show that he is/was
Malay/Muslim. And he will not be able to escape this miserable life unless
he is rich and can afford a business migration scheme. On the other hand if
the death penalty for apostacy was made law in Malaysia, this would
immediately present the apostate with a valid reason (threat to life due to
choice of religion) to seek asylum in a foreign country like the US, UK or
Australia. Wouldn't the Malaysian government's hopes of curbing apostacy
backfire if it's action actually created an easier avenue for apostates to
emigrate. The apostates would be laughing their way to a better life in a
foreign country when they should actually be living a miserable life in
Malaysia which would make them realise the error of their deed and return
to Islam.

I can even imagine non-Muslim Malaysians who wish to emigrate to a foreign
country using the situation to their advantage. First the non-Muslim
Malaysian converts to Islam, then he takes a holiday to, lets say the US,
there he declares that he is giving up Islam then applies for asylum in the
US saying he will be persecuted and put to death for his choice of religion
if he returns to Malaysia!

12. Damage to image of Islam if apostates are decapitated.

Islam has been the victim of bad press either due to the media's ignorance
of what Islam really is, their judging Islam by the actions of so-called
Muslims, or out of maybe even out of malice. If decapitation for apostacy
were an absolutely irrefutable command of God in Islam, Muslims are
duty-bound to carry out the punishment no matter what the cost in terms of
further deterioration of the image of Islam among non-Muslims. But there
does exist disagreement among Muslim scholars on whether this is the case.
If by carrying out this punishment Muslims reckon that they will deter
other Muslims from recanting, let them also consider the affect of this
action on potential converts to Islam. The potential converts may be scared
away or put off by something like this and may turn away from considering
adopting Islam as their way of life. On top of that it will lead to further
misunderstanding regarding the true nature of Islam as was propagated at
one time by orientalists like:

Muhammad preached Islam with a sword in one hand and the Quran in the
other. - Prof Wilfred Cantwell Smith.

In Medina Muhammad became Al-Nabiyyussaif, "The sword-wielding Prophet",
and since then Islam's strongest argument has been the sword. - Rev Dr C G
Pfander.

13. A few more verses from the Quran for Muslims to ponder.

How shall God guide those who reject Faith after they accepted it and bore
witness that the Apostle was true and that Clear Signs had come unto them?
but God guides not a people unjust. Of such the reward is that on them
rests the curse of God, of His angels, and of all mankind; - In that will
they dwell; nor will their penalty be lightened, nor respite be their lot;
- Except for those that repent even after that, and make amends; for verily
God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Quran 3:86-89)

[The punishment prescribed in these verses for apostacy is the curse of
God, angels and mankind - no mention of decapitation or death by any other
means. And the last part of the verses indicate that if eventually the
apostate repents God will forgive him - no time limit is set for this
repentance.]

But those who reject Faith after they accepted it, and then go on adding to
their defiance of Faith, - never will their repentance be accepted; for
they are those who have of set purpose gone astray. (Quran 3:90)

Those who believe, then reject faith, then believe again and again reject
faith, and go on increasing in disbelief; - God will not forgive them nor
guide them on the way. (Quran 4:137)

["those who reject faith ... then go on adding to their defiance ..." and
"... reject faith and go on increasing in disbelief ..." How is the
apostate to go on adding to his defiance or increasing in disbelief if he
is immediately put to death? "those who believe, then reject ... then
believe ... again reject" how is an apostate to yo-yo in and out of faith
if he is put to death on the first instance? There is no mention of capital
punishment in these verses.]

O ye who believe! if any from among you turn back from his Faith, soon will
God produce a people whom He will love as they will love Him - lowly with
the believers, mighty against the rejecters, fighting in the Way of God,
and never afraid of the reproaches of such as find fault. ... (Quran 5:54)

Any one who, after accepting faith in God, utters Unbelief, except under
compulsion, his heart remaining firm in Faith - but such as open their
breast to Unbelief, on them is Wrath from God, and theirs will be a
dreadful Penalty. (Quran 16:106) Without doubt, in the Hereafter they will
perish (Quran 16:109)

Therefore do thou (Muhammad) give admonition, for thou art one to admonish.
Thou art not one to manage men's affairs. But if any turn away and reject
God, - God will punish him with a mighty Punishment. (Quran 88:21-24)

[Note that there is no mention of decapitating the apostate. Only the
assurance of God's terrible punishment for him in the hereafter. Note also
that the verses specifically mention people who accepted Islam then turned
back to their old ways. Would it be correct to expand the application of
these verses to born Muslims who never chose to be Muslims in the first
place.]

Obey God, and obey the Apostle, and beware (of eil): if ye do turn back,
know ye that it is Our Apostle's duty to proclaim (the message) in the
clearest manner. (Quran 5:92)

[God clearly states that the Prophet's duty is only to proclaim the message
- it is not his duty to compel anyone to accept the message (as seen in
Q2:256) and specifically in this verse there is no mention of it being the
Prophet's duty to prevent or punish a Muslim who turns back. When did it
become the Muslim community's (Ummah) duty to punish apostates?]

13. For those who are interested the following books discuss the arguments
for and against the death penalty for apostacy in Islam:

a) Satu Analisa Mengenai Murtad. Amran Kasmin. Pustaka Al-Mizan, Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia.
b) Hukum Jarimah Murtad dalam Syariat Islam. Abdul Ghani Azmi b Hj Idris.
Dian Darulnaim S/B, Kota Bharu, Malaysia.
c) Punishment of Apostacy in Islam. Muhammed Zafrullah Khan. London Mosque,
London.
d) Murder in the Name of Allah. Mirza Tahir Anmad. Lutterworth Press,
Cambridge.

The first two books are for death while the last two books are against
death for apostacy. You have to know the Malay language to be able to read
the first two books.

The fourth book listed was written by an Ahmadiyyah, who are generally
considered deviants by the majority of Muslims (Sunni), and therefore this
book may not be available or may even be banned in Malaysia and other
Islamic or Muslim majority countries. The third book listed does not
indicate any affiliation with the Ahmadiyyahs but the numbering system used
in the book when refering to Quranic verses suggests that it may be
Ahmadiyyah in origin. Again that may make the book unavailable in some
countries. Maybe the publishers would consider releasing a digital form of
the book on the internet as it is my opinion that the arguments put forward
against the death penalty for apostacy in that book should be taken into
account by the authorities currently considering making it law in Malaysia.
And every Muslim should be familiar with the arguments for as well as
against every aspect of his faith - it would only make for a more
well-founded faith rather than blind faith.

In most cases the Quranic verses quoted in this posting are taken from
Abdullah Yusuf Ali's translation of The Holy Quran.

I apologise in advance if I have offended anyone - that was never my
intention. As Malays would put it Maaf Zahir & Batin.

Peace, Shanti, Wassalam, Shalom, ...