Al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya - Ibn Taimiya - (الكتاب/123)

Al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyyaIbn Taimiya

In any event, scholars unanimously agree that this category (1) deserves punishment. Whoever fails to follow this course (2) leaves prescribed penalties unenforced, causes rights to be lost, and allows the strong to devour the weak. Such a person resembles someone who holds property belonging to an unjust debtor who delays payment (3)—whether a specific asset in his possession or a debt he owes him—yet refuses to hand it over to a just judge (4), so that the judge may use it to settle the debtor’s debt or to provide the maintenance he owes to his household, relatives, slaves, or animals.

A right often becomes incumbent upon a person on account (5) of someone else, just as maintenance becomes obligatory because a relative is in need, and blood money becomes obligatory upon the killer’s male agnatic relatives. This form of discretionary punishment applies to anyone known to have in his possession property—or a person—who must be produced, yet refuses to produce it or him, as in the case of brigands, thieves, and those who protect them. It also applies to anyone known to know where the property or person is but who refuses to disclose the location.

If, however, he refuses to disclose or produce the person or property in order to prevent the claimant from transgressing (6) against or wronging the person sought, then he is acting rightly. The two cases are often confused, and doubt and desire may combine. It is therefore necessary to distinguish truth from falsehood.

This frequently occurs among the leaders of nomadic and settled communities when someone seeks their protection (7), or when kinship or friendship exists between them, for they regard the partisan zeal of the Age of Ignorance,

(1) The remaining manuscripts read: “type.” (2) Manuscripts (Z) and (Zh) read: “these paths.” (3) Manuscripts (Z) and (L) read: “the debtor who delays payment.” (4) The original and manuscript (Y) read: “through a judge”; manuscript (Z) reads: “to a judge.” The adopted reading is from the remaining manuscripts. (5) The original reads: “is not”! Manuscript (Y) reads: “because of someone.” (6) Manuscripts (Y), (Zh), (B), and (L) read: “*yata'addā* (transgresses).” The words “and producing [the person or property]” are absent from manuscript (F). (7) The word *mujīr* (protector) is omitted from manuscripts (Z) and (B).

وعلى كل تقدير فهذا الصنف (١) يستحق العقوبة باتفاق العلماء. ومن لم يسلك هذا السبيل (٢) عطَّل الحدود، وضَيَّعَ الحقوق، وأكلَ القويُّ الضعيفَ. وهو يشبه من عنده مال الظالم الماطل (٣) من عين أو دين، وقد امتنع من تسليمه إلى حاكم (٤) عادل يوفي به دينه، أو يؤدي منه النفقة الواجبة عليه لأهله أو لأقاربه أو مماليكه أو بهائمه. وكثيرًا ما يجب على الرجل حقٌّ بسبب (٥) غيره، كما تجبُ عليه النفقة بسبب حاجة قريبة، وكما تجب الدية على عاقلة القاتل. وهذا الضرب من التعزير عقوبة لمن عُلِمَ أن عنده مالًا أو نفسًا يجب إحضارُه وهو لا يُحْضِره؛ كالقُطَّاع والسُّرَّاق وحُماتهم، أو عُلِم أنه خبير به وهو لا يخبر بمكانه. فأمّا إن امتنع من الإخبار والإحضار؛ لئلا يعتدي (٦) عليه الطالب أو يظلمه؛ فهذا محسن، وكثيرًا ما يشتبه أحدهما بالآخر، وتجتمع شبهة وشهوة، والواجب تمييز الحق من الباطل. وهذا يقع كثيرًا في الرؤساء من أهل البادية والحاضرة إذا استجار بهم مستجير (٧)، أو كان بينهما قرابة أو صداقة، فإنهم يرون الحَمِيَّة الجاهلية،

(١) بقية النسخ: «الضرب». (٢) (ز، ظ): «هذه السبل». (٣) (ز، ل): «المماطل». (٤) الأصل و (ي): «بحاكم» و (ز): «لحاكم»، والمثبت من باقي النسخ. (٥) الأصل: «ليست»! (ي): «بسبب من». (٦) (ي، ظ، ب، ل): «يتعدى». «والإحضار» ليست في (ف). (٧) سقطت من (ز، ب): «مجير».