Dought & clear, - Protecting societies from zina

How can four witnesses be brought against the man and woman who commit
zina in the present age?
How can we advise our Muslim youth against this evil action? May
Allaah reward you with good.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
The scholars have listed the ways of establishing proof of zina, and
there are four ways:
1- Testimony of witnesses
2- Admission by the parties concerned
3- Pregnancy of a woman who has no husband or master
4- If the husband engages in li'aan and the wife refuses to take
part in li'aan
With regard to witnesses to zina, they should be four people whose
testimony is acceptable, and they should state that they have seen the
zina in clear terms, i.e., they should have seen the man's penis in
the woman's vagina. If some of them only testify that they saw them
naked, or they describe certain positions or movements, that is not
sufficient to proof that zina took place.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said inal-Sharh
al-Mumti'(6/157):
They should describe zina in clear terms, such as saying: "I saw his
penis in her vagina". There is no alternative to that. If they say:
"We saw him on top of her and they were naked", that is not
acceptable. Even if they say "We saw him doing with her what a man
does with his wife," that is not sufficient as testimony. They must
say "We bear witness that his penis was in her vagina." And this is
very difficult, as the man said who was testified against at the time
of 'Umar: "If you were among the (four) thighs you would never be able
to give this testimony." Hence Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah mentioned
that at his time no case of zina was proven by means of testimony from
the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
until the time of Ibn Taymiyah. If no case was proven from that time
until the other, then we do not know of any case that was proven by
testimony up till our own times, because it is very difficult. End
quote.
This strictness with regard to testimony about zina serves only to
achieve the purpose aimed at by sharee'ah, which is to conceal people
and not spread immorality, and to make societies avoid accusations
against people's honour and aspersions on their lineages.
Al-Qurtubi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said inal-Jaami' li Ahkaam
al-Qur'aan(5/83):
Allaah has stated that testimony in a case of zina must be given by
four people, so as to make it hard for those who are testifying to
such a thing, and to conceal people. End quote.
Shaykh 'Abd al-Rahmaan al-Sa'di said in hisTafseer(1/563):"Why did
they not produce four witnesses?" [al-Noor 24:13], i.e., why did the
accusers not bring witnesses to the things they accused them of? "four
witnesses" i.e., of good character. "Since they (the slanderers) have
not produced witnesses! Then with Allaah they are the liars" - even if
they are certain about that in themselves, they are liars in Allaah's
judgement, because Allaah has forbidden them to speak of that without
four witnesses. Hence Allaah says: "Then with Allaah they are the
liars", and He did not say "Then they are the liars". All of this
points to the grave sanctity of the Muslim's honour, so it is not
permissible to make accusations against it without establishing
testimony. End quote.
See also the answers to questions no. 839and 6926.
Secondly:
With regard to protecting our youth and our societies against this
evil, it is essential that there be a concerted effort on the parts of
nations and societies, on various fronts. It is a communal
responsibility, not an individual one. It is not possible to attain
the well being of societies without integrated efforts to adopt the
means that will protect them against zina and its effects. These means
include the following:
1 - Spreading awareness of the seriousness of the sin of zina, and
that it is one of the major sins which common sense and sharee'ah
agree is abhorrent and haraam; explaining that it is the cause of
nations' downfall and that it brings calamities upon this world, and
the punishment of Hell on the Day of Resurrection.
Imam Ahmad said: After murder, there is nothing worse than
zina.Ghadha' al-Albaab(2/435).
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
"And come not near to unlawful sex. Verily, it is a Faahishah (i.e.
anything that transgresses its limits: a great sin), and an evil way
(that leads one to hell unless Allaah forgives him)"
[al-Isra' 17:32]
Shaykh 'Abd al-Rahmaan al-Sa'di said in hisTafseer(1/457):
Allaah describes zina and its evil as "a Faahishah (i.e. anything that
transgresses its limits: a great sin" i.e., a sin that is abhorrent
according to sharee'ah, common sense and sound human nature, because
it is a transgression against the rights of Allaah, the rights of the
woman, the rights of her family, and the rights of her husband, and it
is spreading immorality, confusing lineages and other evils. The
phrase "and an evil way" means it is an evil way for the one who dares
to commit this grave sin. End quote.
Making the youth aware of the bad effects that result from the spread
of this evil, which threatens the stability of families and societies,
such as the spread of fatal diseases, the prevalence of illegitimate
children, disintegration of the family, children not being cared for
properly and having a bad upbringing, increase in the divorce rate,
spread of crime and so on. These effects are felt by the societies in
which permissiveness in its worst forms is widespread, which could
lead to disintegration of those societies and the downfall of those
civilizations.
3 - Striving to facilitate the shar'i way to have sexual
relationships, which is through halaal marriage, by encouraging
marriage and explaining that sharee'ah encourages it, and that it is
the way of the Messengers, and that the one who gets married has
completed half of religion, and that he will be rewarded for keeping
himself and his wife chaste.
4 - One of society's responsibilities in this matter is to remove the
obstacles that cause delays in getting married. So they should address
the poverty that may be an obstacle to marriage, and provide the
material means to young people who do not possess enough to keep
themselves chaste. In his commentary on the verse (interpretation of
the meaning):"And marry those among you who are single (i.e. a man who
has no wife and the woman who has no husband) and (also marry) the
Saalihoon (pious, fit and capable ones) of your (male) slaves and
maid-servants (female slaves). If they be poor, Allaah will enrich
them out of His Bounty. And Allaah is All-Sufficient for His
creatures' needs, All-Knowing (about the state of the people)"
[al-Noor 24:32], al-Qurtubi said: Marry those among you who have no
spouse, for that is the way to achieve chastity. End quote (12/239).
In the bookal-Amwaalby Abu 'Ubayd al-Qaasim ibn Salaam (251) it says
that 'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Azeez wrote to his governor in Iraq saying:
Seek out every unmarried man who has no wealth and if he wants to get
married, then arrange his marriage and give charity to him.
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said inal-Mughni(7/587):
A man must keep his son chaste if he needs to get married, and this is
the apparent meaning of the view of al-Shaafa'i. End quote.
5 - The least that societies and parents can do with regard to this
important issue is to stop going to extremes with regard to dowries,
or showing off and indulging in excess with regard to the expenses of
marriage, or trying to acquire wealth from them.
'Umar ibn al-Khattaab delivered a speech from the minbar and said:
"Do not go to extremes with regard to the dowries of women, for if
that were a sign of honour and dignity in this world or a sign of
piety before Allaah, then Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) would have done that before you. But he did not give any of
his wives, and none of his daughters were given, more than twelve
uqiyah."
Narrated by Abu Dawood (2106); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani
inSaheehAbi Dawood.
Wise people do not disagree on the point that parents' going to
extremes with regard to their daughters' dowries is one of the causes
of the spread of corruption and immorality in their societies.
Will Durant said, speaking of the spread of immorality in some western
societies in some era of history in his bookMabaahij al-Falsafah(The
Pleasures of Philosophy) (127-128):
There is no dispute that this is to some extent due to the demands for
high dowries made by fathers as the price for their chastity at a time
when marriage was, frankly, a commodity to be bought. End quote.
6 - One of the most important means by which societies may ward off
the evil of zina is spreading an atmosphere of love between spouses,
and striving towards the happiness of families by means of love,
respect, sincerity, loyalty, rights and duties, for happy families and
loving couples are a means of protecting society from deviation and
falling into immorality in search of illusionary happiness.
7 - Finally, it is essential to strive to establish a conservative and
religiously-committed environment which is connected to Allaah, may He
be glorified and exalted, in which wanton display and unveiling are
unknown, and in which 'awrahs are covered, in which alcohol and music,
which are the promoters of zina, are forbidden, because these things
are the fuel for the fire of immorality, so if the society rids itself
of them, it will be safe from that fire.
You may also benefit from reading the answers to the following
questions on this website: 20161and 3234.
Useful books on this subject includeal-Tadaabeer al-Waaqiyah min
al-Zinaby Fadl Ilaahi.
And Allaah knows best.