Opinions of what life would be like in Saudi Arabia are mostly based on ignorance and fear. One main concern of most people outside the Kingdom is that the Islamic law, Shariah, is enforced in Saudi Arabia. This is indeed true! We do live according to the Shariah and in the court this law is put into practice. It is also true that the Western media has associated Shariah with cruelty, backwardness, intolerance, anti-modernism and opposed to the goals of human rights such as life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness! With this biased coverage of this important topic they even fuel many people's fear of Islam. Shariah is the law which Allah ordained for mankind. It is a divine blueprint on how to organize the relationship and interaction with all mankind, and it encompasses everything, starting from interaction within the family to interaction between states! This law is from Allah, that is why it is more just and fair than any other man-made law. The One Who created us and Who offers us guidance knows better what is in our best interest than any human ever could. “It is He who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth!” (Qur'an, 48:28) “It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should have any choice about their affairs. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly strayed into clear error.” (Qur'an, 33:36) Meaning the laws of Allah and his Messenger (pbuh) are binding on all believers. “The only statement of the true believers when they are called to Allah and his Messenger to judge between them is that they say ‘We hear and we obey'. And those are the successful.” (Qur'an, 24:51) That is the reason why in Saudi Arabia the law of Allah is given preference over man-made laws. Many people claim that the rulings of Shariah are cruel, inhumane. The laws of Allah can never be cruel. It is the law of Allah and It is a just law, and it does not follow the ever-changing desires and whims of humans. So, let's take a look at one Shariah ruling almost everybody knows: “As to the thief, male or female, cut off his or her hand: A retribution for their deed and exemplary punishment from Allah and Allah is exalted in power, full of Wisdom.” (Qur'an, 5:41) It is important to understand what Islam teaches regarding stealing. A thorough investigation must be done as to the circumstances that caused the person to steal. It might come as a surprise that if somebody is caught stealing – as a result of hunger, poverty or necessity to survive – their hand should not be amputated. Instead of amputation, Shariah dictates that members of the society provide support to the individual in the form of financial support, employment, education or charity. The purpose is to eliminate the reason for this person to steal and to rehabilitate him. This was introduced 1450 years ago! This is not some kind of modern social talk about rehabilitation of offenders, but the ruling of Shariah! In most Western countries the idea of rehabilitation was not introduced till 40 years ago, and is still discussed, mostly under the topic of cost saving. But in Islam you even find individuals who cover the expenses in order to gain the pleasure of Allah! One could think that the idea of rehabilitation of offenders was copied from Shariah! In case the offender is found guilty of stealing for some other reasons, like greed or selfishness, he will be punished to the full extent of the law. Unlike many Western countries, where the right of the criminal is often held higher than the right of the victims, Shariah is very serious about dealing with lawbreakers, for the good of the community. It makes life a lot easier for the majority who is law-abiding! In some offences, especially capital crimes, Shariah leaves the decision to the one who was wronged. Reconciliation between the concerned parties was recently introduced in some Western countries in their legal systems and was hailed as a truly modern approach in dealing with crimes. In Islam it was introduced 1450 years ago. I think it becomes clear that Shariah is not only the law ordained by Allah for all mankind, but it is actually the better choice. It is more perfect than any man-made law, and as a matter of fact has been the source of a many laws in Western countries today. __
