Islam versus Boko Haram and Forced Marriages
By Ghulam
Ghaus Siddiqi, New Age Islam
8 May 2023
Hauwa Maltha
Was Forced To Marry Three Militants In The Next Nine Years
Main Points
·
Hauwa
Maltha, who was forced to marry three militants linked to Boko Haram,
has been freed by the military after being kidnapped by Boko Haram in
2014.
·
Boko
Haram's actions conflict with Islamic values.
·
Islam
prohibits forcing a woman to marry against her choice.
·
Boko
Haram is actively pursuing an anti-Islamic agenda.
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The women
with their children at an army base in Maiduguri, Nigeria. Photograph: Jossy
Ola/AP
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Hauwa Maltha,
one of the two girls from the Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok who
were kidnapped, was just freed by the military on May 4. She disclosed that
after being kidnapped by Boko Haram in 2014, she was forced to marry
three militants in the next nine years. Hauwa delightedly discussed her rescue
with the newsmen.
Boko Haram
and Its Background
Boko Haram,
which means “Western education is forbidden”. The word Boko is a
holdover from the colonial English word for book. The Nigeria-based terrorist
organisation Boko Haram aims to destroy the current government and
install a self-proclaimed “Islamic state” in its stead. Since the latter part
of the 1990s, it has existed, but it experienced setbacks in July 2009 when
battles with Nigerian government troops resulted in the deaths of hundreds of
its members, including former head Muhammad Yusuf.
In a video
released in July 2010, Abubakar Shekau, a former Boko Haram
second-in-command, pledged a commitment to fight Western influences in Nigeria.
Later that month, he made a second declaration endorsing Al-Qaida and
threatening the US. He has led the group to use more IEDs, vehicle-borne IEDs
(VBIEDs), and female suicide strikes against a variety of targets,
demonstrating the group's growing operational prowess. In June 2011, the group
unveiled its first VBIED.
Boko Haram's
capabilities grew in 2014 as a result of its attacks against Muslims,
Christians, security personnel, the media, educational institutions, and
politicians. It raised its prominence internationally in 2015 by making a
public declaration of allegiance to ISIL and carrying out suicide bombings in
N'Djamena, Chad. International condemnation of Boko Haram's crimes in
April 2014, which included the abduction of 276 schoolgirls, led to a regional
CT offensive. Boko Haram, however, has persisted, carrying out
attacks in neighbouring countries and underscoring its danger to Western and
regional interests.
Boko Haram
vs. Islam
Students and
innocent bystanders have been the victims of terror attacks and acts of torture
carried out by Boko Haram. Islam, like other religions, considers
it wicked to harm a fellow citizen or block a student's education. The problem
with Boko Haram and other groups like it is that they disobey all
social rules. The actions of Boko Haram are in conflict
with the ideas of mercy and grace as well as the human values ingrained in
Islam.
Islam versus
Boko Haram and Forced Marriages
Forced
marriages, such as the one that occurred with Hauwa Maltha, are in direct
opposition to Islamic beliefs and principles. Boko Haram wants to
impose Islamic law on Nigeria. However, neither Islamic law nor Islamic Sharia
support forced marriages. In order to stress that Boko Haram has
anti-Islamic objectives, I'm repeating a piece I wrote about forced marriages
in the context of the Taliban two years ago because it is still relevant in the
context of Boko Haram.
Forced marriages
are unequivocally prohibited and invalid in Islam. Because the consent of a
woman who is to be married is a prerequisite for the validity of the marriage,
it is only fair that she chooses her future husband.
Nikah [marriage]
is more than just a social connection between two people, a personal desire, a
natural longing, or a private affair. It is a fundamental pillar of the
sustenance of human society and possesses a special significance in Islam, as
evidenced by the fact that every divine rule from the time of Hazrat Adam
[peace be upon him] to the divine law of the last Prophet Muhammad [peace be
upon him] has recognized it. Nikah in Islam requires that the couple lead their
life happily, respecting the rights of each other. This is possible only when
their marriage takes place with their mutual consent. Therefore Islam has
imposed some conditions and commands concerning a successful and valid Nikah.
One of the conditions for the validity of Nikah in Islam is mutual consent.
Marriage in Islam can’t be valid without the consent of the woman who is to be
married. Whether she is a virgin or has been married before, her approval is
required before her parent or guardian can act on her behalf in any marriage
contract
Forcing a woman
to marry against her choice is forbidden in Islam and thus the marriage done by
force is not valid in Islam. A woman once complained to the Prophet (peace be
upon him) about her father marrying her to his nephew without her permission.
Her father, she said, intended to improve his reputation by marrying her. The
marriage was cancelled by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). “Now
that I am free, I freely consent to this marriage,” the woman later told the
Prophet (peace be upon him), “I only wanted it to be known that males have no
say over women in their marriages.” Imam Bukhari narrated this event in his
compilation of Hadiths [Sahih Bukhari] under the chapter “If a
man marries his daughter notwithstanding her opposition, the marriage is null
and void”. The full hadith is as follows;
Khansa bint [the
daughter of] Khidam Al-Ansariya narrated that her father married her [without
obtaining her permission, to someone] when she was a widow [and an adult] and
she disliked that marriage. So, she came to Allah’s Messenger [peace be upon
him] and he declared that marriage invalid. (Sahih Bukhari, 5138, Book 67,
Hadith 74/ Also in other books of Ahadith such as Abu Dawud 2101, Nasa’i 3268,
Ibn Majah 1873, Darimi 2192, Musnad Ahmad 6-328, Mishkatul Masabih 3128)
First, get
women’s consent and then marry them to men. This has been emphasized as a
condition for the validity of marriage in numerous Ahadith [plural of hadith].
It is narrated
by Hazrat Abu Hurayrah [may Allah be pleased with him] that Allah’s Messenger
[peace be upon him] said, “A woman who has no husband [Ayyim] must not
be married until she is consulted, and a virgin must not be married except
after her permission”. They [the companions/Sahaba] asked, “O Messenger
of Allah, how can we know her permission”? He said, “Her silence [indicates her
permission]”. [Sahih Bukhari 6968, Sahih Muslim 64-1419, Tirmidhi 1109, Abu
Dawud 2092, Nasa’i 5611, Ibn Majah 1871, Musnad Ahmad 2-250, Darimi 2186]
Ayyim mentioned
in the Arabic version of the aforementioned hadith means a lady without a
husband. This could refer to a divorced woman or a widow. Because such a lady
is generally less bashful, the techniques for obtaining her consent differ. She
will either make a request or offer a clear hint that she wishes to marry
someone. On contrary to the older woman, the virgin is generally shy, yet when
questioned, she will respond with silence rather than an audible response. As a
result, her silence in this circumstance is interpreted as approval. The Hanafis
base this hadith to state that the marriage of an adult virgin [Bakirah
Balighah] is not valid except after her permission.
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It is reported
by Hazrat Ibn Abbas that Allah’s Messenger [peace be upon him] said, “The Ayyim
[meaning a divorced, or widow, adult and sane] has a greater right [about the
marriage of herself] than her guardian. A virgin [who is an adult] must be
asked for permission about herself [i.e. about her marriage]. Her permission is
her silence”. [Sahih Muslim 2-1036]
It has become
clear from the above discussion that in Islam the consent of both the bride and
groom is required for the Nikah [marriage] to be legal and valid. As for
the right of consent for men to marry women, this can be derived from the
following Quranic verse which reads: “Marry the women whom you like”
(4:3) Both the boy and the girl must consent in the presence of two witnesses
for the Nikah [marriage] to be legitimate in exchange for the Mehar [a
necessary payment of a sum of money as a gift given as a token of respect to the
wife]. It is also evident that no one in Islam has the right to force a girl to
marry him; neither Shariah nor modern-day laws permit it. If anyone tries to do
so, a complaint must be filed immediately with the appropriate authorities so
that the girl can be freed from tyranny.
The discussion
above makes clear that Boko Haram is utterly opposed to Islam and that
it is attempting to discredit Islam in the eyes of the international community.
It wouldn't be exaggerating to say that this terrorist organisation is actively
pursuing anti-Islamic agenda.
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A regular columnist with NewAgeIslam.com, Ghulam Ghaus
Siddiqi Dehlvi is a classical Islamic scholar with a Sufi background and an
English-Arabic-Urdu Translator.
URL: https://newageislam.com/radical-islamism-jihad/boko-haram-forced-marriages-/d/129742
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