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May 21, 2011 at 8:24 am (This post was last modified: May 21, 2011 at 8:27 am by Rayaan.)
(May 20, 2011 at 1:34 pm)fr0d0 Wrote: Following on from points there... you said Ryaan you were unsure of Islamic law... It is stated that: The punishment is legal under the Islamic Sharia principle of qias, equivalence or analogy, which allows retribution for violent crimes.
I wasn't sure about this until further investigation, but that's right, under the principle of qisas, this would be a legal retribution.
The important thing to know is that the exact punishment for pouring acid on one's face is not something which is specifically mentioned in the Quran and Hadiths unlike the punishments for adultery, theft, and alcohol-drinking, for example (which are called hudud crimes). Therefore, the pouring of acid simply falls under the category of qisas under the Islamic penal system (qisas meaning "retribution"). It is permitted only in cases where someone has deliberately and unjustly wounded, mutilated, and/or killed another person. If a Muslim slashes his victim's face, then he''ll have his face slashed, if he cuts his victim's ears, then he'll have his ears cut, if he rips off his victim's arms, then he'll have his arms ripped off, etc.
But also know that retribution does not equal to an eye-for-an-eye punishment ALL the time. Sometimes, it can be a little more flexible. There are times when a punishment can be lightened for a criminal. They can ask forgiveness from their victims, or in the case of the murder, from the family of the victims. If the criminals gain forgiveness, then they'll be exempt from qisas and then the case will fall into ta'zeer. In the ta'zeer case, the ruling will be based solely on the judges decision, which is when the judge will decide to put the criminal on a less severe punishment based on what he thinks is most effective for the eradication of that particular act or its effect in society whether it be jail time, limited lashing, or anything else short of death.
"We have prescribed for you therein: 'A life for a life, and an eye for an eye, and a nose for a nose, and an ear for an ear, and a tooth for a tooth, and for wounds retaliation;’ But whoso remits it (in the way of charity), it shall be an expiation for him. And those who judge not by what Allah has revealed, such are the wrong-doers." - (Surah 5:45)
The verse above tells us when there should be a cancellation to the "eye for a eye" rule in the Islamic law (except in the case of hudud crimes).
The reason why it does not apply to hudud crimes is because those are the crimes which have an exact reference in the Quran with a specific act and a specific punishment for that act. Hudud crimes have pre-established punishments which are specifically mentioned in the Quran, and these crimes are the "claims of God," unlike the the ta'zeer crimes, which are the "claims of His servants." Therefore, there is no plea-bargaining or reducing the punishment for a hudud crime. These crimes are the claims of God and thus the punishment for them cannot be reduced, modified, nor cancelled by a judge.
Edit: This was kind of a long reply in response to a short comment and has a few Arabic terms. That's why I've hidden it.
