Azman Mohd Noor

Rape: A Problem of Crime Classification in Islamic Law

In Islam, rape is considered a serious sexual crime. Since it consists of forced sexual intercourse, most of the classical jurists called it zinā bī l-ikrāh , that is, forced unlawful sexual intercourse. The question arises whether rape is part of zinā or an isolated crime. This article focuses on the notion of rape, including a definition of this crime, its punishments, and a comparison between rape and zinā in Islamic jurisprudence.

A Framework for Determination of Actual Costs in Islamic Financing Products

Islamic banking commonly considered as an alternative to the conventional banking system, conducts its business based on certain financial contracts in order to attain profit, while doing away with the element of interest (riba). Among the services offered by Islamic financial institutions (IFI) are financing products and fee-based services to generate profits free from interests and other non-permissible incomes. The fee-based services conducted by Islamic banks may raise some Shari’ah issues such as the practice of charging a fee on services related to loan (qard) facility. Similarly, in financing activities, the IFI also imposes some amount of compensation or related charges in the case of late payment or default events for such financing. This paper aims to discuss the mechanism to determine the calculation of such actual charges and fees from Shari’ah perspective. Nevertheless, this paper does not intend to discuss the issue of “pricing” for Islamic financial products to determine its sales price and profit margin. This paper proposes Shari’ah compliance parameters on the computation of the actual costs for some related financing products offered by Islamic financial institutions.

Application of the Build, Operate, Transfer (bot) Contract as a Means of Financing Development of Waqf Land: Malaysian Experience

The build, operate and transfer (bot) contract has widely been applied in developing economies since the participation of private sectors has declined in the reconstruction and funding of public infrastructure. bot is a financing and operating approach, which has been practiced primarily in the area of infrastructure privatization in developing countries. Recently, application of the bot scheme has been carried out in many waqf institutions, especially Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan. The bot approach offers new perspectives in the field of waqf as it has the capability to enhance waqf property for the public’s benefit. Property enhancement is the major reason why waqf is enjoined by Islam. Waqf institutional involvement in developing its property and public infrastructures by way of bot contracts is proving to be a challenging exercise. This article examines the current practice of applying bot contracts in waqf institutions in general and in Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan in particular, with specific reference to the application of other types of contracts. In addition, the practice is discussed in terms of its compliance with the principles of Sharīʿah law. Moreover, this article aims to identify the issues, problems as well as challenges that might face waqf institutions during implementation of bot contracts.

Imposing Zakāt on Legal Entities and its Applications in Islamic Financial Institutions

Abstract Zakāt (obligation to donate a certain proportion of wealth each year to charitable causes) is imposed on particular assets owned by Muslims. However, as there has been a tremendous development in trade locally and globally, and with the growth of Islamic banking and finance and the increased demand for Sharīʿah-compliant services and supplies, a number of contemporary Muslim scholars have suggested that zakāt be imposed on legal entities. This implies that the calculation is based on the company’s net asset value. Based on this proposition, one need not know the identities of the shareholders: i.e., whether they are government-linked companies, foreign parent companies, individual proprietors, Muslims or non-Muslims. This article aims to examine the validity of imposing zakāt on legal entities from the Sharīʿah’s perspective.