Concealment of the Offenders:
Its Conceptions, Evidence, Objectives, Criteria
This study discusses the concealment of the offenders, but also emphasize the importance of clarifying this concept. Furthermore, it differentiates between this concept and other relevant concepts. Moreover, this study explains that the ruling of the concealment of the offenders is required by sharia. This is evident by many proofs of the Quran and the Sunnah in addition to being in line with the sharia’s objectives.
Additionally, the study mentions several advantages to the concealment of an offender and the disadvantages of reporting an offender. Examples include ensuring the Islamic community cohesion, encouraging offenders to repent, and warning from spreading immorality among Muslims.
According to the texts of the sharia scholars, the sharia has given high interests to the concealment of the offender. Particularly, the sharia ruling of this matter is systematically arranged with sharia-based criteria. This implies that the sharia texts on the concealment of the offender are not in conflict. Although some texts imply reporting on offenders, sharia scholars have chosen that there is no conflict among evidence of the sharia (al-jam’ bayn al-adillah). Therefore, any meaning contradicts the obligation of concealment of the offenders is limited to situations that some criteria have not been applied in.
