We’re constantly told that no Muslims in the West hold to the aspects of Sharia that contradict Western law, and that anyone who believes otherwise is a greasy Islamophobe. Tabatabai must not have gotten the memo.
“Chopping off hands is much more cost effective than sending thieves to jail: Canadian Muslim Scholar,” from Alternative Angle, September 3 (thanks to Blazing Cat Fur):
Dr. Sayed Khalil Tabatabai, Iraqi born, is a well known Shiite scholar and cleric in Canada, who gives courses and lectures on Islamic Law and the tenants of Islam at Imam Hussain Charitable Foundation in Montreal….
“Westerns usually say that the [Islamic] prescribed penalties are harsh. We”ll mention them briefly. First to be mentioned is the penalty for theft. It is true that the penalty for theft is mentioned in the Koran, and that the hand of the thief should be chopped off, but it isn’t an indiscriminate law, [it doesn’t mean] that the hand of any thief will be chopped off.”
“There are many conditions in this regard. Firstly, the money must be protected and [the thief] targets protected money, meaning he enters a house and the money is inside a locker in protected place, and he violates the sanctity of the house and the sanctity of the place and steals the money from the protected place…”
“His [thief’s] hand will be chopped off if he enters the money [means house], the money is protected and he steals it. This case refers to an action that based on determination; it was preceded by lookout and involved determination and an attempt to violate the sanctity of others…”
“The theft is not an indiscriminate case, meaning that the case should be brought to the judge, and the judge determines the sentence, and not anyone else who would say that so-and-so person stole from me, so I will chop off his hand. It is not permitted to me [means without verdict] to chop off his hand.”
“It is obligatory to bring witnesses and evidence, and to bring the case to the court, and the judge in the court will review all evidence, and if he finds any doubt the penalty will be dismissed, and if the evidence is 100 percent corroborated, then it is possible that the penalty will be executed…”“The very high cost [of fighting crime and maintaining jails] ruins the economy of the country. [Governments] have to spend billions of dollars on funding the security forces. If one hand, two hands or three hands are being chopped off the people in the rest of the society will refrain from theft and the people will live in security. Which way is better?…”
“One who fights against Allah and his messenger, and brandishes a weapon for attacking people and intimidating people, and may rob people by threats and force, [unlike] the thief who commits the theft by night and the people are not aware of the theft. In this case, this person comes with a weapon whether it is a sword, a dagger, a knife or it can be a handgun or any weapon, and he intimidates people [by saying:]: give me [the money] or I’ll kill you, or he may rob and kill or intimidate people, the security of people, [in this case] his prescribed penalty is death, crucifixion or chopping off his hand and leg as is being detailed in the verse [of the Koran]. This man is a criminal who threatens the security of the society and it is natural that he deserves this penalty…”
“The penalty that applies on a married person who commits, Heaven forbid [literally we seek refuge in Allah], the crime of fornication is stoning. He will be stoned.”