In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh
Background:
Let me begin by saying that I am outraged by the French assault on Islam & Islamic values. I also do believe that we need to expose the French hypocrisy and strip them of their fake Secular façade.
There are many who have been rightly outraged by the actions of the French police on the beach. However, there are few who have stopped to think about and looked at the moral and Shariah implications of this incident and our elder Mufti Amjad Mohammed is one of them, lets analyse and dissect his position on the issue.
Burkini & Modesty:
Let’s look at others. Alhumdolillah a similar position has been taken by others such as Assim Luqman Al Hakeem (Salafi Shaykh) and he writes:
Islamically, Muslim women being on a beach with nude men and women around is totally prohibited even if they were properly in Hijab!
This French ban illustrates that their concerns are not only for security reasons! They want Muslim women to totally undress like them!
French History:
Wifaqul Ulama have taken the time to point that the French have a pathological obsession stemming from their colonial rule (of Algeria) with veiled Muslim women. The following quote is particularly eye opening:
If we want to destroy the structure of Algerian Society, its capacity for resistance, we must first of all conquer the women; we must go and find them behind the veil where they hide themselves and in the houses where the men keep them out of sight.
What did Mufti Amjad Mohammed say?
Burkini Ban on the Beach
What was she doing on a beach where folk were half-naked or fully naked in the first place? Just as it is impermissible to show our bodies to others it is impermissible to see other peoples' bodies. Then when told she wasn't allowed to wear it, instead of getting up and leaving the beach - she stripped in public.
We can complain about our rights, but really in these circumstances we have to stop and think. Just as we find certain dress code laws in some Muslim countries which non-Muslims have to adhere to then what should we expect from a mixed bag of socialism, liberalism and conservatism country like France which currently links the acts in Nice with Islam and is currently isming against anything which represents Islam.
Leave the Burkini
Keep the Burqa
Leave the Beach
Keep your Islam
Mufti Amjad Mohammed
Analysis:
It should be obvious to anyone with rudimentary and basic Islamic Knowledge we (as Muslims) shouldn’t be looking at naked or half-naked people. If you disagree, this blog will not make any sense, save your time and logoff!
I am fairly used to dress codes from my military days. We carried ties in our pockets to many places, put them on and took them off as necessary. I have been denied entry from many places due to not wearing a tie.
Mufti Amjad Mohammed’s point is reasonable that that the Sister should have got up and left the beach. However, in my experience many French (Muslim) immigrants are not very educated and are regularly harassed and intimidated by the Police. I also know that French have a habit of placing and housing Muslim (immigrants) in areas which are in (rural) French country side. This creates resentment in the local population against the immigrants and also makes life extremely difficult for Muslim immigrants because entire villages and towns discriminate against them (socially).
We do have (Alhumodlillah) examples from Europe of sisters standing upto police harassment such as the Swiss sister was held at the Police station for 3 Hours this week but she refused to unveil.
Mufti Amjad Mohammed has a substantial point that we should keep Haya (Modesty) at the forefront of all our dealings. Burkini doesn’t give anyone the licence to deliberately place themselves in a position where their Islamic ethos is compromised.
Protection of Eemaan is a greater priority to protection of our Human Rights. We should indeed get up and leave instead of placing our Islamic identities and principles in jeopardy.
I see Mufti Amjad Mohammed’s point and appreciate it (Masha’Allah).
I also see the point of view of other Muslims who are not necessarily promoting Burkini or immodesty but using this opportunity to highlight and expose Islamophobia.
One can appreciate both positions, Alhumdolillah and then…
Good old Haris Hammam Strikes!
It is not possible for (Deobandi) Scholars to take a position and for Haris Hammam not to have a meltdown. He didn’t disappoint and right on cue posted:
I'm reading some messages being shared from the mufta bihi brigade, condemning the sister for uncovering herself on the beach in Nice.
"Leave the beach; Keep your Islam" is what he proclaims.
Seriously? Is this what your cowboy ifta training has taught you? That you hide behind fatawa to condemn vulnerable Muslim women? That you strip yourself of wisdom and kick a sister when she's on the ground? That you remain wilfully ignorant of the wider context and government agenda?
Every act of Da'wah has a time and place. There maybe something called أصول الإفتاء but there is also something called أصول الدعوة.
And if you can't comprehend this, just drown yourself in a public toilet.
What can I say?
- South Africans have Mufti A. S. Desai (HA)
- We in (Britain) have Hazrat (Maulana) Ismail Ibrahim (HA)
My Advice to Mufti Amjad Mohammed
I can see why he wants Mufti Amjad Mohammed to drown in a Public Toilet. They both need to be in the same physical space to understand each other. Hazrat (Maulana) Ismail Ibrahim (HA) cannot be expected to rise up from the sewer, consider a nuanced position and at least agree to disagree. This only leaves the other option open, yes we can see that Mufti Amjad Mohammed may not have a choice in the matter should he chose to deal with Haris Hammam.
I however advise Mufti Amjad Mohammed to stay out of the Public Toilets; no matter how careful you are, you will get Najasaah on you, Best to avoid Public Toilet.
For those who can't see what Mufti Amjad Mohammed is saying!
The narrative has been redirected! Media wants us to discuss the individual rights (and wrongs) of wearing Burkini. The elephant in the room is to discuss whether a woman should be in that position (without Mehram), there is nothing personal against the Sister but the situation and circumstances do need to be looked at.
There is push amongst Scholarship to Modernise Islam and here are Scholars who are stepping back from the brink, not going for cheap publicity and actually looking at the issue from a Shariah perspective.