Islam's Response to Contemporary Issues — Page 197
Economic Peace 197 from hand to hand, it shall be no sin for you not to reduce them to writing. And have witnesses when you buy or sell. And let no harm befall a scribe or a witness and if you do such a thing it shall certainly be disobedience on your part. And be ever mindful of your duty to Allah. And Allah grants you knowledge and Allah knows all things well. And should you be on a journey and not find a scribe, the alternative is a pledge with possession. And when one of you entrusts something to another, then let him who is entrusted render back his trust when he is called upon to do so, and let him be mindful of his duty to Allah, his Lord. And conceal not testimony; and whoever conceals it is one whose heart is certainly sinful. Remember Allah knows well all that you do. 16 It is very important to remember that these verses have been completely misapplied and used entirely out of context by those medieval minded scholars who insist that according to Islam a single woman’s testimony is not sufficient. They say that for each legal requirement, two women’s testimony is essential in comparison to one man’s wherever one man’s testimony is sufficient. Having totally misconstrued the meaning of these verses, they have falsely envisaged the role of male and female witnesses in Islamic jurisprudence. They think that when the Holy Quran requires one man as a witness, the testimony of two women will be substituted in lieu thereof; where two men’s testimony is required, four women’s testimony will be required; and where four male persons are required as witnesses, eight women will be required to testify the same. This concept is so unrealistic and alien to Quranic teachings that one is exasperated to see such medievalist stance on this important judicial issue.