Piracy, Armed Robbery at Sea, and Hirabah: An Islamic Law Perspective

Abstract

This paper addresses two major issues. First, it evaluates Hirabah as one of the hudud crimes in Islamic criminal law. Hirabah is an act of violence that transgress the rights of a person. The victim in this act is not limited to the victims who are the subject of violence but to public in general. The act of hirabah has made the public to live in fear, if not for a long time but perhaps for some time. Hirabah is not limited to armed robbery such as bank robbery, but it can be extended to the sea such as piracy. It can also occur on the air such as hijacking an airplane. In other words, the crime of hirabah is wide, in terms of place, time and act. The keyword for the act of hirabah is fear. The discussion on the requirements or elements to constitute hirabah, the conditions of the Muharib (the person who commits hirabah), exceptional cases, punishments as well as juristic views on issues related to this crime will be discussed. This paper also analyses if the extent of two crimes, piracy and armed robbery at sea, are to be categorised as Hirabah. The paper concludes by recommending policies and mechanisms to overcome hirabah.