THE PUNISHMENT OF THE THEIVES.

VERSE NO. 38-40

      Here the punishment for the theif; be it a male or female, is decreed to cut off their hands. This commandment is a general one and in brief, the detail of which should be known by jurists and especialists in the law (SHARIAT), from the traditions, and the methodical way of our prophet.

      In the matter of theft, the male thief has been given precedence over the female; but contrary to this, in the matter of adultery the female has been mentioned before the male. (S 24:2) This is because, women are more effective in the adultery than men, and men are more effective in the matter of theft than women.

      According to Islamic jurisprudence, there are many conditions and terms, for a thief to be punished; some of which are as follows:-

      1- The amount of the thing stolen should at least cost one quarter of a Dinar, which is the chief gold coin of the ancient Muslims. Jurists are not unanimous as to the exact value or amount of the property stolen, which would involve the penalty of the amputation, the majority of the jurisprudents, whether Shiite or Sonnies, hold that petty thefts are exempted of this penalty.

      2- The property should have been stolen from a protected place, such as from a house, a shop, or a pocket.

      3- And that the theft is not done in a year of famine or dearth.

      4- The thief must be wise and full-grown so that his stealth is done with his free Will.

      5- If a father has stolen something of his son, or if a son has stolen something of his father, or if a joint owner has stolen something of their company, are all excluded in this commandment.

      6- So is exempted the thief who has stolen fruits from the trees in a garden.

      7- For the probability of having done a mistake; the thief must be investigated and considered well, before he is punished for theft, So also other conditions that are mentioned in the jurists books are to be observed before the execution.

      8- The above mentioned conditions, does not mean that other kind of thefts that have not the said conditions are lawful. In Islam, any sort of stealth, with any amount of thing stolen, is forbidden and unlawful.

HOW MUCH OF THE HAND IS TO BE CUT OFF?

      Our jurists have understood the phrase; ``CUT OFF THEIR HAND'' from various traditions; to mean, `CUT OFF FOUR OF THEIR RIGHT FINGERS' and the palm of the hand must remain for performing the prostration, which is a main part of Daily Prayers.

IS THIS ISLAMIC PUNISHMENT VERY HARSH?

      Some of the Islamic oppositions have objected that the penalty for theft is very harsh and cruel, and if so, almost all hands in the Islamic societies must be cut off for petty thefts! To answer this, many points and remarks are to be considered, some of which follows:-

      A:- The conditions for doing the punishment, will not cover all kinds of theft and thieves.

      B:- To prove any crime in its Islamic way and method, is very difficult; like the want of the witnesses and testification of four just and Godly men to prove an adultery.

      C:- One should not merely judge with considering one Islamic commandment, independent of all other related commands. Besides the Law for theives, Islamic society has also many strict Laws to reduce poverty and to increase piety. So the commandment of the thief might seem cruel, if we seek to enforce it in a non-Muslim, all free population, like those we see nowadays in Europe or elsewhere.

      D:- If we are the witness of so many thefts in the modern societies, it is because the thief has nothing to fear. In parts of the Islamic world, such as the Saudi Arabia, where the Islamic punishment of thief is observed, thieves are indeed very rare. We often see precious things fallen in the streets there, and no one dares to touch it, until the police who is responsible for that, comes, and picks it up to hand it over to its owner.

      Worthy of note that this Islamic Law of penalty has been executed for centuries throughout the course of history and the event of those executed have been indeed very rare.

      Some have objected that the enforcement of this law costs a lot, and much more than it should, and in such a penalty; a very high price is to be paid for a trifle! In other word; the mulct and blood-money for the amputation of five fingers according to the Law (SHARIAT) is five hundred dinars, but he who has stolen only a quarter of one Dinar should lose four of his fingers! What sort of a justice is this? The same was asked Alm-al-Hoda, a great Islamic scholar a thousand years passed, and he answered it through a beautiful verse as follows:-

      ``The Grace of trustiness enhances the price of the hands to so high a level. The Disgrace of betrayal lowered the price of the hands to so low a degree.''