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| Principles of Islamic
Interpersonal Conflict Intervention: A Search within Islam and Western Literature © I. Exploring Islamic Sources on Dispute
Resolution Fiqh becomes only a part of a wider
research that encompasses culture, history, sociology, and psychology. For
example, Qur'an provides several rules related to divorce situations and
conditions. Usually these Qur'anic verses include four elements: The second methodological parameter is
related to the social justice and social change functions of dispute
resolution, in relation to Islamic theory and Islamic culture. It is
necessary to distinguish in such a research between the Islamic theory
(consisting of the main sources of Islam, Qur'an and Sunnah), and the
Islamic culture which developed over centuries of integrating the Islamic
theory with cultural and traditional practices in different parts of the
world. The distinction is necessary because the Islamic culture does not
necessarily follow its sources in the Islamic theory. The mixing of
Islamic theory with elements of existing cultures usually led to depleting
Islam of its egalitarian, democratic drive. Abuses of power by Islamic
rulers, abuses against women, and minorities at times, were triggered by
inherent tribal and traditional norms, which overshadowed the pure Islamic
message, or which forced extreme interpretations of the sources in order
to justify these practices. If the dispute resolution as a social movement
is considered to be an agent for social change (Laue and Cormick, 1978),
it will be the responsibility of Islamic dispute resolution professionals
to restore the Islamic principles of equality, justice and freedom,
through their practice. Therefore, in this research it will be necessary
to adhere only to Islamic sources, using interpretations which are
consistent with the spirit of Islam. For example, in interpreting several
of the Qur'anic verses and Hadith related to women, it is fundamental to
recognize the Qur'anic emphasis on the equality of genders in terms of
creation, action and accountability (Wadud-Muhsin, 1992). This foundation
sets the stage for understanding several of the matters which have been,
for centuries, patriarchally misinterpreted. A good example is that
several of the scholars tended to emphasize certain segments of Qur'anic
verses while almost ignoring others, with the result of subjugating women
and reinforcing male domination. It is not sufficient, nor is it acceptable, to generate dispute resolution models in the Islamic setting which will only maintain the status quo as described above, or which will impose western models without careful review of their advantages and their limitations. If the challenge for dispute resolution professionals in the west is against persistent forms of racism, discrimination and capitalist injustice (Laue and Cormick, 1978), for Muslims the challenge is to restore justice and equality by liberating Islam from the doctrine and cultural elements that subjugated its followers to political and social oppression. II. Principles of an Islamic Conflict
Intervention Model 1. Restoring to Islam its messages of
justice, freedom and equality. These principles are derived, as will be
discussed, from Islamic sources, especially the Holy Qur'an. These
principles also have support in the western literature. Specifically, this
research draws upon the work of theorists in the field of conflict
analysis and resolution who grounded their intervention models in ethical
frameworks (Laue and Cormick, 1978, and Williams, 1978), and others who
expanded their intervention models either by utilizing contingency models
(Fisher and Keashly, 1991), or by engaging various roles, in addition to
mediation, which could solidify the intervention process (Mitchell, 1993). 1. Restoring to Islam its Messages of
Justice, Freedom and Equality Just as described above, persisting
cultural and traditional institutions and structures have diluted Islam of
its messages of equality and its intent on social justice. It is only
natural that conflict situations will contain elements of these
institutions and structures. An intervener needs to assist parties in
clarifying and correcting their beliefs and attitudes that are influenced
by these institutions and structures. The intervener may be able to
provide the information needed in this regard, or s/he may seek the
assistance of other individuals in the community (i.e., religious
scholars, or community leaders) who may be in a better position to provide
this information. This role of restoring to Islam the
messages of justice, equality and freedom, was described in the Qur'an on
several occasions (5:9, 9:71, 16:90). Almost all stories of prophets in
the Qur'an indicated that the prophets confronted societies that had
institutionalized social, economic or political unjust and unfair
practices (7:85, 11:84-85, 21:11, 26:128-130, 26:146-152, 26:165-166,
26:181-184, 28:4-6, 29:28-29). Those who wanted to maintain the status quo
usually rejected the message of a prophet because they grew accustomed to
certain norms and practices, and were not about to change them (2:170,
5:107, 7:70, 10:78, 11:87, 31:21, 43:22-24). A prophet's mission was
usually to lead these societies away from distorted beliefs and practices,
towards justice, compassion and equality. The mission of the prophet of
Islam, Muhammad, was no exception. And as Muslims aspire to model their
behavior after Qur'an and Sunnah, it becomes the task of Muslim conflict
interveners to replicate the process of restoring the Islamic principles
(3:104, 3:110, 31:17) by clarifying to conflict parties the misperceptions
and negative practices that for long have influenced their lives. The Islamic intervention, thus, must be
guided by the goals of restoring to Islam its original messages of
justice, equality and freedom, especially to those who have been
disempowered over ages and centuries of distortion, misinterpretations,
and domination of traditional norms. The Islamic model, however, is unique
with its emphasis on modeling norms and behavior after the sources in
Qur'an and Sunnah. Therefore, the efforts of empowerment and search for
common good in an Islamic settings must go through a process of
reinterpretation of sources, revealing and understanding the main
principles of these sources, and reviving the spirit of equality and
justice. Such a process of reinterpretation was labeled by John Esposito
(1988) as the neomodernist. According to him, those representing this
group "are activists who look to the early Islamic period as
embodying the normative ideal...[they] distinguish sharply between the
principles and values of Islam's immutable revelations and the
historically and socially conditioned institutions and practices that can
and should be changed to meet contemporary conditions." (Esposito,
1988, p.181-182) A conflict intervener in an Islamic setting
may not have all the resources, credibility and knowledge to address all
these matters. S/he may have to rely on other resources to ensure proper
interpretation and restoration of the Islamic principles. In addition,
s/he may also need to engage others in the community who could provide to
a conflict resolution its legitimacy, sustainability and effectiveness.
All these are the matters of the second principle: Engaging the community
in the intervention and resolution processes. 2. Engaging the Community in the
Intervention and Resolution Processes The Islamic theory, especially as presented
in several Hadith (statements made by the Prophet Muhammad), emphasized
this notion of relatedness and community (Alfahim, 1988) . Further, these
statements, along with several Qur'anic verses (2:177, 4:36, 4:58, 4:75,
4:97-100, 4:135, 5:9, 49:10) advocated active involvement with community
issues, standing up for justice (even against self and loved ones), and
taking action in resolving disputes. Among several western writers on Islam or
on community building, Mary Clark (1990), when looking at contemporary
institutions which foster shared meaning and social bonding, stated that
"[t]he major religions of the world, of course, come first to mind.
It is no accident that they arose in parallel with the earliest
civilizations, largely to ameliorate some of their worst excesses, and
even today they represent important sources of sacred social meaning for
tens of millions of people. Islam is perhaps the chief contemporary
example (Clark, 1990, p.51). This strong sense of relatedness and
community could be utilized for the benefit of conflict intervention in
Islamic settings. A conflict intervener must not assume that the community
is made of independent autonomous individuals who expect that
interpersonal conflict intervention will take place only between primary
parties and the intervener. An Islamic setting is likely more engaging and
involving of other entities and parties in any given conflict (for
example, extended family members). This involvement of others could be a
strength for conflict intervention. In doing so, Muslim interveners, and
those whose aid is needed to resolve a conflict, would be modeling Islamic
norms and principles as described in Qur'an and Sunnah. In addition,
building on the strength of the community, and its culture of relatedness,
would put to useful purposes resources that are otherwise wasted or
neglected. In an Islamic setting, a professional
conflict intervener may function in the capacity of an orchestrator. S/he
may then utilize the expertise, clout and influence of a variety of
community members to facilitate the intervention process, and to secure a
sustainable resolution or agreement. One role that may be rather crucial for the
Islamic setting is that of an interpreter of Islamic sources. As mentioned
earlier, the task of interpretation is necessary for a successful modeling
of Islamic values and principles. In some instances parties may accept an
intervener's interpretation of certain issues, but in others they may not.
The question of who to interpret, and with what authority, has troubled
the modern Islamic intellectuals (Esposito, 1988, p.174-175). There is no
easy answer to this question. But guided by the methodological principles
set earlier, an intervener should assist parties in exploring
interpretations which are consistent with values of equality and justice,
and which separate Islam from traditional, authoritarian, restrains. 3. Adjusting the Intervention Techniques
According to the Conflict Situation, and its Stages Qur'an also declared adjustable
intervention in marital disputes. It distinguished between situations of
marital disagreement (sheqaq) versus situations of deviance (neshouz) by
one spouse. In the former situation, Qur'an mandated the intervention by
two third parties representing each spouse. In the latter situation
(despite great controversy over the interpretation of some words) Qur'an
mandated a contingency process to be followed by the man, and another to
be followed by the woman (4:34-35 and 4:128-130), where each party is
responsible to take actions to restore normalcy to the relationship, and
should all these efforts fail, to pursue divorce. In general, Qur'an, and the Prophetic
examples show that Islamic theory advocates an adjustable model for
intervention in all types of disputes. The Islamic theory is guided by the
principles of justice and adherence to the values of Islam. Therefore,
third parties are expected to function in a reconciliatory mode, unless
clear injustice or deviance take place. In this case third parties should
get actively involved in restoring justice and eliminating deviance,
before returning to the reconciliatory role. Selected Bibliography Source: |