A COMMON QUESTION that Dr. Qureshi and other critics of Islam have raised many times over is in regards to female prisoners of war and their treatment in Islam. Critics always link this subject matter with Jihad in order to support their narrative that Islam is a violent and oppressive religion. They seem to suggest that just as Islam is aggressive and violent in war, it also mistreats those who are captured during times of warfare. It is alleged that Islam promotes slavery and the turning of prisoners of war into slaves and concubines. This could not be any further from the truth and only shows either ignorance or mischief on the part of such accusers.
First, it is a fact that Islam did not introduce slavery. It was a part and parcel of the very fabric of the world in which Islam came into being. There were a great number of slaves that were already a part of the society where Islam began. In fact, Islam condemned slavery in unequivocal terms and prohibited all forms of making slaves except in a very restricted sense, during war. According to Islam, it is sinful to take away the liberty of a person by kidnapping him or her or by any other means, with the exception of soldiers during a battle.
All human beings as such are equal in the sight of God and enjoy equal human rights. Islamic teaching on this point is quite clear, unequivocal and emphatic. The Holy Quran for instance enjoins the Muslims to treat the slaves kindly:
And worship Allah and associate naught with Him, and show kindness to parents, and to kindred, and orphans, and the needy, and to the neighbour that is a kinsman and the neighbour that is a stranger, and the companion by your side, and the wayfarer, and those whom your right hands possess (i.e. slaves). Surely, Allah loves not the proud and the boastful.174
Emphasizing the same, Prophet Muhammadsa said:
Slaves are your brothers whom Allah has put under your control, so feed them with the same food that you eat, clothe them with the same clothes you wear, and do not burden them with so much that they are overwhelmed; if you do burden them, then help them.175
There are many other similar statements of Prophet Muhammadsa and if these teachings are followed in letter and spirit, a slave would become like a member of the family and would not be treated any differently, and would cease to be a ‘slave’.
On top of this, Islam emphasizes the emancipation of slaves as the Holy Quran states:
And what should make thee know what the ascent is? It is the freeing of a slave.176
It is not righteousness that you turn your faces to the East or the West, but truly righteous is he who believes in Allah and the Last Day and the angels and the Book and the Prophets, and spends his money for love of Him, on the kindred and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and those who ask for charity, and for the emancipation of slaves…177
Prophet Muhammadsa emphasized the same when he said:
He who emancipates a slave, Allah will set free from Hell, limb for limb.178
In light of these teachings, Muslims played a great role in the emancipation of slaves. According to historical records, Prophet Muhammadsa himself freed 63 slaves during his life-time, Hazrat ‘Ā’ishahra freed 67, Hazrat ‘Abbāsra freed 70, Hazrat ‘Abdullāh bin ‘Umarra freed 1,000, and Hazrat ‘Abdur Raḥmān bin ‘Aufra freed 30,000.179
A question may arise here that when Islam came with such a strong message of freedom for the slaves, why did it not give general orders for the emancipation of all slaves at once? The answer to this question is that Islam did not come to make an empty show of greatness by doing something like this. Instead, its objective was to slowly and gradually reform and improve the society at large. It was neither feasible, nor wise, to suddenly abolish the institution of slavery which had become interwoven into the very texture of society since pre-Islamic times.
The slaves were dependent upon their masters for food, clothing, and shelter, and a sudden abolishment would have caused a large number of people to lose a source of income and livelihood, without there being any social safety-net in place to prevent the potential crisis which such a measure would have plunged the society into. A portion of them would then have turned to illegal ways of earning a living, and the society as a whole would have taken a moral downturn. Therefore, although Islam sought to abolish all slavery, it proceeded to do it gradually and effectively.
With this goal, Islamic teachings followed two steps. First, a teaching was given that put an end to forcing a free person into becoming a slave. Second, it was taught that slaves who already existed should be treated kindly and with love so that they start to live independent lives and be gradually set free.
The first teaching is expressed very strongly in the following narration:
Prophet Muhammadsa said, “Allah says, ‘I will be displeased with three persons on the Day of Resurrection: (1) One who makes a covenant in My Name, but does not fulfill it; (2) One who sells a free person (as a slave) and personally usurps the sale-proceeds; (3) and one who employs a laborer and gets the full work done by him but does not pay him his wages”.180
The second teaching was followed in two ways. Either the Muslims set free the slaves in their possession as a virtuous act in accordance with Islamic teachings, or the slaves were given the option of earning their freedom through a system called mukātabat.
Through this system, the master was obliged to set a slave free if he made himself qualified for emancipation. This is something to be judged by the court or the government. The Holy Quran says:
And such as desire a deed of manumission in writing from among those whom your right hands possess, write it for them if you know any good in them; and give them out of the wealth of Allah which He has bestowed upon you.181
Here, the Holy Quran is very clear in its teaching that if a slave desires to have freedom by payment of an amount, the master is obliged to fulfill the slave’s wish and to set him free provisionally, so that the slave has an opportunity to earn the amount fixed for his release. On top of this, the master is told that he should return some of this money back to the freed slave. This is a system of mukātabat through which Islam ensures that slavery comes to an end eventually.
All these teachings make it clear that emancipation of slaves is a top priority in Islam. The only question that remains is: Can prisoners of war be turned into slaves?