I begin with the Name of Allaah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
“The recompense of those who wage war against Allaah and His Messenger and do mischief in the land is only that they shall be killed or crucified or their hands and their feet be cut off on the opposite sides, or be exiled from the land. That is their disgrace in this world, and a great torment is theirs in the Hereafter.” Q5:33
Man has been created differently from animals and thus he is not expected to behave in animalistic way. The faculty of reasoning and the criterion to judge between right and wrong make man distinct in his actions. However, if this faculty is abused, man becomes like animal or even worse. The honor of man is sacred and any attempt to abuse this honor is an act of sacrilege. Inherently, man and woman have been created with sexual urge which needs to be guided by a Divine law otherwise it will make a monster out of them. Societies from time immemorial have been plagued with various forms of abhorrent crimes, and rape has been consistently featuring on the top list of heinous crimes condemnable by all religions and in the minds of all men of wisdom with sound and balanced understanding. Rape is a cancer, rape is destructive, rape is the weapon of morally bankrupt people lacking religious commitment and it is a crime committed against both sexes but the frequency with which the act of rape is meted out to women makes it almost synonymous to women. Most rape research and reports of rape are limited to male-female forms of rape, the other cases are rare, though present.
Islam views women from a special perspective because of their makeup in comparison to men and this is not in anyway a denigration of their being but as a special way of honoring them. Allaah, Exalted be He, says: “A creature (women) who is brought up in adorments, and who in dispute cannot make itself clear.” Qur’an 43:18 . Islam has accorded special honor to women and is stern against any attempt to transgress their honor. In fact, the Arabic term “ightisaab” refers to taking something wrongfully by force but it is now used exclusively to refer to transgression against the honor of women by force (rape).
According to Wikipedia, “Rape is defined in most jurisdictions as sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, initiated by a perpetrator against a victim without their consent.” In Islam, rape is essentially Zina (adultery/fornication).
Societies have been discussing the motivation behind rape, some tied it down to the ideologies of male sexual entitlement, mysogyny, sadism and some even think that the motive behind most rapes is a product of how women dress half-nakedly. Yet, Islam has commanded that women to dress modestly and men lower their gaze. Be it as it may, since nothing tangible has been done in terms of punishing the perpetrators, the cases of rape are ever on the increase especially against children. The effect rape has on the victims is overwhelming, apart from the clinical complications, they are left psychologically and emotionally traumatized and in most cases suicidal. Who will wipe out the tears of women silently being raped repeatedly and have no strength to voice out their plights, the university campuses are becoming fertile grounds for rapists in the form of lecturers, supervisors, fellow students, some minors under the care of their guardians are constantly being abused sexually and the atmosphere is being clouded with incessant cases of rape as though humanity is living in the animal kingdom.
It is said that the pain of rape cannot be erased with time, hence the perpetrators deserve a stern punishment. When Islam prohibits a thing, it closes all the avenues that lead to it. Studies show that most rapists act under the influence of drugs and alcohol. The gender barrier between men and women must be respected as enshrined in Islamic teachings and the mentality of excessive freedom must be put under moral watch. International Amnesty stated in a 2004 report entitled “Stop Violence Against Women” that every 90 seconds a woman was raped during that year in America. The human society is on a roller-coaster of self destruction, leniency in punishing those guilty of heinous crimes like rape is responsible for the rise of such crimes.
As stated above, rape is essentially zina (fornication or adultery) and is proven in the same way as zina is proven, which is with four witnesses. The punishment is one hundred lashes if the man was a virgin and stoning if he was previously married. If rape is committed using the threat of a weapon or if the woman is abducted forcefully from her home, then it becomes a case of haraabah (banditry or terrorizing the people), which is proven with two witnesses only. The punishment for it is mentioned in the verse referenced above, Allaah, Exalted be He says: “The recompense of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and do mischief in the land is only that they shall be killed or crucified or their hands and their feet be cut off on the opposite sides, or be exiled from the land. That is their disgrace in this world, and a great torment is theirs in the Hereafter” Qur’an 5:33
In all these, once the case of rape is proven, only the man is punished and the woman is free of any crime. Imam Malik (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “In our view the man who rapes a woman, whether she is a virgin or not, if she is a free woman he must pay a “dowry” like that of her peers, and if she is a slave he must pay whatever has been detracted from her value. The punishment is to be carried out on the rapist and there is no punishment for the woman who has been raped, whatever the case.” Al-Muwatta. Here, paying her dowry does not equate marrying her like some countries practice. How can love and compassion exist between the aggressor and his victim? However, scholars like Abu Haneefah and Ath-Thawri do not believe that the rapist is obliged to pay the dowry but he is to be punished accordingly, if married, stone to death. Of importance to note is that, a woman’s claim to have been forced into having sexual intercourse can only be accepted on the basis of proof or strong circumstantial evidence otherwise it will become another convenient tool for blackmail.
In the chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, article 51, individuals and groups have the right to self defense, Islam has this since 1400 years ago. A woman has the right to defend herself against a would-be rapist. It says in al-Mughni by Ibn Qudaamah al-Hanbali: “Concerning a woman who was pursued by a man, and she killed him to protect herself, Ahmad said: ‘If she knew that he wanted [to rape] her, and she killed him to protect herself, then she is not at fault.’ Ahmad mentioned the hadeeth which al-Zuhri reported from al-Qaasim ibn Muhammad, from ‘Ubayd ibn ‘Umayr, in which it said that a man had visitors from [the tribe of] Hudhayl, and he wanted [to rape] a woman, so she threw a rock at him and killed him. ‘Umar said, ‘By Allaah, there is no diyah for him ever’ that is, she did not have to pay the ‘blood money’ for him. If it is permissible to defend one’s money, which one can give away, then a woman defending and protecting herself and her honour which cannot be given away, is clearly more permissible than a man defending his money. If this is clear, then she is obliged to defend herself if she can, because letting someone overpower her [rape her] is haraam, and by not defending herself, she lets him overpower her.” [al-Mughni, 8/331]
In conclusion, governments must make stringent laws against rapists and be swift in implementing the law on those found guilty of the crime. Islam values prevention more than cure, hence community-based efforts and actions must be encouraged and intensified to prevent sexual assaults. Parents must pay attention to the activities of their children, adults must be careful where they visit and should appreciate modest display when going out in the public. A system that listens to the complaints of the victims of rape and act accordingly will encourage many people to report their cases and it will go a long way in reducing its occurrence. Do not stigmatize the victims of rape, they need support and sympathy.
Mr Abdul (Penabdul), an architect, teaches at the Baze University, Abuja. He is also the Chairman/CEO of Sustainable Project Works (SPW) Ltd. He can be reached on Twitter: @Penabdull and Instagram: @Penabdul
