SISTERS' SEMINAR OF NASFAT LAGOS ISLAND BRANCH YOUTH WING

Contact: Amir Nasfat Lagos Island Branch
              Marina Car Park, Opp. Mr. Biggs', Marina Lagos.
Tel: +2348024621682, +2348077807526             
 
                                   NASFAT LAGOS ISLAND BRANCH YOUTH WING






                                                    COMPREHENSIVE REPORT


                                                                         ON


                                                         SISTERS’S SERMINAR






 ABORTION, BIRTH CONTROL & SURROGATE PARENTING: AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE.




                          VENUE: MARINA CAR PARK, OPP. MR. BIGG’S, MARINA, LAGOS.


DATE: 7TH MARCH, 2010


GUEST LECTURER: ALHAJA RASHEEDAT BELLO


Coordinator, Nasfat Health and HIV/AIDS Initiatives (NASHHIN)



INTRODUCTION

All Praise and adoration be unto Almighty Allah and shower His blessing upon His chosen servant, Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.), his households and Muslim in general. Amin.

In principle, the Qur'an condemns the killing of humans (except in the case of defense or as capital punishment), but it does not explicitly mention abortion. This leads Islamic theologians to take up different viewpoints: while the majority of early Islamic theologians permitted abortion up to day 40 of pregnancy or even up to day 120, many countries today interpret these precepts protecting unborn children more conservatively. Although there is no actual approval of abortion in the world of Islam, there is no strict, unanimous ban on it, either. Islam has not given any precise directions with regard to the issue of abortion. Hence it is not a matter, which has been clearly stated in the Shari'ah (Islamic Law) but rather an issue pertaining to the application of our knowledge of the Shari'ah. Such application may vary in conclusion with a difference in the basic premises of one's arguments.

The Qur'an clearly disapproves of killing other humans: “Take not life which Allah has made sacred” (6:151; see also 4:29 “If a man kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell, to abide therein (for ever)” (4:93). Allah (SWT) went even further, making unlawful killing of a single individual human being equal to mass murder of the whole of mankind: "Because of that, We ordained for the children of Israel that if anyone killed a person not in retaliation for murder or for spreading mischief on earth, it would be as if he killed all mankind. And who saved a life; it would be as if he saved all mankind." (Al-Maidah, 5:32)

As to whether abortion is a form of killing a human, the Qur'an does not make any explicit statements. Only Surah 17:31 warns believers in general: “Kill not your children for fear of want. We shall provide sustenance for them as well as for you. Verily the killing of them is a great sin.” There are those in Islam who oppose all abortions. A favored text to support this is: "Do not kill your children for fear of poverty for it is We who shall provide sustenance for you as well as for them." (Surah, Al-An' am, 6:151). This Qur'anic reference is to killing already born children--usually girls. The text was condemning this custom. The Arabic word for killing used in this text "means not only slaying with a weapon, blow or poison, but also humiliating or degrading or depriving children of proper upbringing and education." The text doesn't explicitly address the abortion and therefore doesn't close the argument on it. The Qur'an says:

“We created man from an essence of clay: then placed him, a living germ, In a secure enclosure. The germ We made a leech; and the leech a lump of Flesh; and this We fashioned into bones, then clothed the bones with flesh; Then We develop it into another creation. (Surah Al-Mu'minoon, 23: 12-14).”

This verse reveals how the fetus is formed and transforms into a complete human being.

The elaborate process of the development of the first human being is given in the Qur'an as follows:

“He who has made everything which He has created most well. He began the creation of man with (nothing more than) clay, and made his progeny from a quintessence of the nature of a fluid despised. Then He fashioned him in due proportion and breathed into him something of His Ruh(Life-Energy). And (with this) He gave you (the faculties of) hearing and sight and understanding. (Surah Al-Sajadah, 32:7-9).”

During the development of fetus, the body received the Divine Ruh (Life-energy) and subsequently the human faculties of hearing, sight and understanding were developed.

There is no agreement among legal scholars – including those of the founders of the four schools of religious law of the early Islamic period – as to the exact point in time this happens.

LECTURER: Alhaja Rasheedat Bello

ABORTION

According to Alhaja Rasheedat Bello, Islam's approach to the issue of birth control and abortion was very balanced. It allows women to prevent pregnancy but forbids them to terminate it. However, In case of rape the woman should use the morning after pill or RU486 immediately after the sexual assault in order to prevent the possible implantation of a fertilized ovum. Modern technology (like ultra sound scan) has made it possible to know whether or not a child has a defect long before he is born. Some people justify the abortion of a defective foetus.

She made point of reference to Shari'ah as it allow abortion only when doctors declare with reasonable certainty that the continuation of pregnancy would endangered the woman's life. This permission was based on the principle of the lesser of the two evils known in Islamic legal terminology as the principle of al-ahamm wa 'l-muhimm (the more important and the less important). She made point of reference that “the Prophet said, "When two forbidden things come [upon a person] together, then the lesser will be sacrificed for the greater." In the present case, one is faced with two forbidden things: either abort the unborn child or let a living woman die. Obviously, the latter is greater than the former; therefore, abortion is allowed to save the live person.

Permissibility of Abortion

"And do not kill your children for fear of poverty: We give them sustenance and yourselves (too): surely to kill them is a great wrong." (17:31).

The abortion of a foetus from the mother's womb is a different issue, since the sperm and egg have already met and fertilized what could become a human being. The scholars all agree that abortion is forbidden after the first four months of pregnancy, since by that time the soul has entered the embryo but it would allow the use of RU486 (the "morning-after pill"), as long as it could be reasonably assumed that the fertilized egg has not become implanted on the wall of the uterus. Most scholars say that abortion was legal under Islamic Shari'ah (law), when done for valid reasons and when completed before the soul enters the embryo. To abort a baby for such vain reasons as wanting to keep a woman’s youthful figure, were not valid.

"...And do not slay your children for (fear of) poverty -- We provide for you and for them --- and do not draw nigh to indecencies, those of them which are apparent and those which are concealed, and do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden except for the requirements of justice: this He has enjoined you with that you may understand." (6:151)

Qur’anic verses misinterpreted

There are, however, some Qur'anic verses which prohibit infanticide:

"And do not kill your children for fear of poverty: We give them sustenance and yourselves (too): surely to kill them is a great wrong." (17:31)

These verses in fact were revealed to forbid the pre-Islamic Arab practice of killing or burying alive a newborn child (particularly a girl) on account of the parents' poverty or to refrain from having a female child. Perhaps in those days, people did not know safe methods of contraception and early abortion.

Embryonic development was central to the Muslim arguments on abortion. According to Muslim scholars, it is lawful to have an abortion during the first 120 days, but after the stage of ensoulment (after the soul enters into the fetus), abortion is prohibited completely except where it is imperative to save the mother's life. After ensoulment, however, abortion is prohibited absolutely and is akin to murder.

The Hanafi scholars, who comprised the majority of orthodox Muslims in later centuries, permitted abortion until the end of the four months. According to them, a pregnant woman could have an abortion without her husband's permission, but she should have reasonable grounds for this act. One reason, which was mentioned frequently, was the presence of a nursing infant. A new pregnancy put an upper limit on lactation, and the jurists believed that if the mother could not be replaced by a wet-nurse, the infant would die.

Views of Four Madhhabs (Schools of Thought)

There is broad acceptance in the major Islamic schools of law on the permissibility of abortion in the first four months of pregnancy. Most of the schools that permit abortion insist that there must be a serious reason for it such as a threat to the mother's life or the probability of giving birth to a deformed or defective child. However, as the Egyptian booklet."(The Arab Republic of Egypt published a booklet called "Islam's Attitude Towards Family Planning.") says: "Jurists of the Shiite Zaidiva believe in the total permissibility of abortion before life is breathed into the fetus, no matter whether there is a justifiable excuse or not." That would be a pure form of what some call "abortion on demand."

The majority of orthodox Muslims (following the Hanafi school) in later centuries, allowed abortion until the end of the four months. According to them, a pregnant woman could have an abortion without her husband's permission, but she should have reasonable grounds for this act. Most of the Maliki jurists (legal scholars) described abortion as completely forbidden. In their view, when the semen settles in the womb, it is expected to develop into a living baby and it should not be disturbed by anyone. According to Ibn Jawziyyah, when the womb has retained the semen, it is not permitted for the husband and wife, or one of them or the master of the slave-wife, to induce an abortion. After ensoulment, however, abortion is prohibited absolutely and is akin to murder. She said.

The Hanafi school (prevalent in Turkey, the Middle East and Central Asia) allows abortions to take place principally until day 120; some jurists restrict this provision to “good cause”, e.g. if the mother is still nursing an infant and fears that her milk may run out during the new pregnancy. In aborting up to day 120, the woman commits a mere moral transgression, not a crime. The Shafi school (dominant in Southeast Asia, southern Arabia, parts of East Africa) allows abortions to be performed up to day 120. For the Maliki school (prevalent in North and Black Africa) an abortion is permissible with the consent of both parents up to day 40; it is no longer allowed after that. For the Hanbali school (predominant in Saudi Arabia and United Arabic Emirates) abortions are principally prohibited from day 40 onward.

Some Shiite groups, such as the Ismailis, do not permit abortions to take place at all. In case of infringements of this law, abortions before day 40 are penalized with a monetary fee. Other Shiite groups such as the Zaydites allow abortions to be performed up to day 120, equating an abortion up to this point with contraception. Whoever injures a pregnant woman to the extent that she loses her child must pay compensation according to Islamic law. Strictly speaking, this money belongs to the dead child, who is to inherit it. The family of the woman who undergoes an abortion must also pay compensation if the child’s father had not consented to the abortion performed on her.

Several differences become clear, however, between modern legal practices and the statements made by early Islamic jurists. In principle, the protection of unborn lives is today in the forefront, i.e. modern-day legal scholars judge more conservatively than the authors of the early Islamic legal texts. Exceptions were made in some countries if the life of the mother is endangered, based on Surah Baqarah, 2:233: "A mother should not be made to suffer because of her child.” As a result, abortion is possible for health reasons up to day 90 in many countries. In Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey abortion is fully prohibited (an exception is made if the mother’s life is endangered); this does not imply, however, that abortions are not at all performed. Tunisia’s liberal abortion practice allows for abortions to be performed up to the end of the third month. There, abortions are principally permissible for single as well as married women in the first three months, provided that a registered doctor performs them. The approval of the husband or of a male guardian is not required in Tunisia.

Some contemporary voices speak out fully against abortion, arguing that Islam is granted strength through multitudes of children. Traditionally, a large family with several sons has always been the ideal situation in the Islamic world. Abortion in this context is compared with murder, with references to the endangered health of the woman. Other voices view abortion as a type of birth control and refer to the fact that the wives of prophets also practiced birth control with the approval of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Muslim women’s rights advocates demand the right to free abortion in connection with the demand for self-determination. The hesitation of many doctors, for fear of legal prosecution, to perform abortions in clinics leads to illegal operations and numerous cases of death. A number of legal assessments (fatwas) have been published on the subject of abortion; this support one viewpoint or the other but do not legally have the character of law and are therefore not binding.

She emphatically pointed out that In Islam, abortion is primarily a prohibited sphere. The general rule is that abortion is harâm. Under certain circumstances, however, an abortion may be permissible. According to the Sharî’ah, the sin of abortion, once the limbs have formed, is the same as murder. An abortion prior to the limbs being formed would not carry the sin of murder, but still is a major sin.

Period of Gestation

In a Hadith related by Imâm Bukhâri and Imâm Muslim, our beloved Prophet Muhammad Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam has said:

"Verily the creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother's belly for forty days in the form of a seed, and then he is a clot of blood for a like period, and then there is sent to him the angel who blows the breath of life into him..."

Thus it would seem that the breath of life [rûh] is instilled into the foetus after 120 days.

The Qur’ân describes the various stages of man's primordial development but it does not specify the exact duration of each stage. In Surah Mu'minun, the Qur’an states:

"Man We did create from a quintessence (of clay), then We placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest, firmly fixed, then We made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood, then of that clot We made a lump (foetus), then We made out of that lump bones, and clothed the bones with flesh, then We developed out of it another creature, so blessed be Allâh, the best to create." (Surah 23-12-14)

Based on this, Muslim jurists have deduced that the first four months of gestation is the critical time period. After this the foetus is regarded as being 'alive' and all abortion is not permissible for any reason whatsoever, and if performed would constitute murder. ]'bus an abortion may be performed when a very valid and legitimate reason exists and certain stringent criteria are fulfilled, only prior to the first four months of gestation period.

However, if the pregnancy constitutes a serious threat to the life of the mother, then an abortion is permissible irrespective of the period of gestation.

Permissible Factors

If there is a high risk that a woman may suffer from any of the following factors, then in tile opinion of an honest, reliable and an experienced Muslim doctor, abortion may be permissible prior to four months gestation:

-If the pregnancy constitutes a danger to the mother's physical and mental health.

-If there is a possibility of the foetus being born with a generically transmitted disease or a severe congenital defect.

-If an intra-uterine diagnosis of a severe foetal abnormality, incompatible with life is made e.g. Anencephaly.

It must however be stressed that these were exceptional circumstances in which all abortion is allowed. Once again it must be emphasized that the permission granted rests on medical grounds. She added.

Cripple

If a pregnant woman was severely crippled or suffers from a serious mental illness and was in no position to care for herself, and If it was possible to give the child for caring or adoption after it was born. Then abortion was out of the question. However, if no such arrangement can be made, then an abortion will be permissible before the end of the first four months of gestation. She explained.

Control of Menstruation

Some women control their menstruation periods with the aid of drugs to suit certain occasions e.g. honeymoon, Hajj, etc.

Allah says in the Qur’an:

"They ask you concerning women's menstrual periods. Say: "They are filth, so keep away from women in their periods and do not approach them until they are clean. But when they have purified themselves, you may approach them in any manner, time and place ordained for you by Allah, for Allah loves those who turn to Him constantly and He loves those who keep themselves pure and clean." (Surah 2:222)

From this verse it was apparent that menstruation was an impurity harmful to the body and should therefore be released and was undesirable to retain within the body according to her. Therefore She added.

Some Muslims argue that abortion is permissible if the fetus is younger than four months (120 days). They quote a statement from the Prophet (s) that refers to a human being starting as a fertilized ovum in the uterus of the mother for forty days, then it grows into a clot for the same period, then into a morsel of flesh for the same period, then an angel is sent to that fetus to blow the Ruh into it and to write down its age, deeds, sustenance, and whether it is destined to be happy or sad.

Assuming the Hadith to be authentic, scholars explain that the error comes from understanding that before the Ruh is blown into the fetus at 120 days, the fetus is not a living entity, and therefore aborting it does not amount to killing it. It therefore becomes clear that aborting a fetus before 120 days is still killing a living entity, let alone abortion after that presumed period.

Some Muslims argue that the only case when aborting a fetus, before or after 120 days, is allowed in Islam, is when a medical situation threatens the life of the mother, leaving only two options, to let either the other or the fetus survive, but not both. Scholars argue that such a case can only be determined by a specialist, trusted and committed Muslim doctor. They argue that the mother can have other children, whereas the child cannot make up for losing the mother.

Point of Reference

She made mentioned of a well know book written by Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi , “The Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam” stated as follow: “While Islam permits preventing pregnancy for valid reasons, it does not allow doing violence to it once it occurs”. Muslim jurists have agreed unanimously that after the fetus is completely formed and has been given a soul, abortion is Haram. It is also a crime, the commission of which is prohibited to the Muslim because it constitutes an offense against a complete, living human being. Jurists insist that the payment of blood money (diya) becomes incumbent if the baby is aborted alive and then died, while a fine of lesser amount is to be paid if it is aborted dead.

However, there is one exceptional situation. If, say the jurists, after the baby is completely formed, it is reliably shown that the continuation of the pregnancy would necessarily result in the death of the mother, then, in accordance with the general principle of the Shari'ah, that of choosing the lesser of two evils, abortion must be performed. The reason for this is that the mother is the origin of the fetus; moreover, her life is well established with duties and responsibilities, and she is also a pillar of the family. It would not be possible to sacrifice her life for the life of a fetus which has not yet acquired a personality and which has no responsibilities or obligations to fulfill.



Birth Control

According to her, birth control has two aspects:

-Family Planning i.e. limiting the number of children to a specific number.

-Population control i.e. the regulation of the growth of population in such a way that it does not exceed a certain limit.

The concept of birth control was based on the Malthusian Theory which states that while the harvest reaped from available land was limited, the rate of growth of human population was not. Consequently it will continue to increase and will eventually reach an explosive proportion whereby the available land will not be able to support the vastly expanded population. Malthus stated that to control the growth of population, the husband and wife should exercise self-restraint for curbing population growth. Owing to mass propaganda. The phobia of "population explosion" reached such proportions that any and all methods, including abortion to control population growth were advocated and accepted. However, at present the situation is such that abortion even of well-formed foetuses is considered justified and has been legalized in many countries. 'This is despite the fact that Malthusian and Neo-Malthusian theories over the past two centuries have been disproved, and the myth of "population explosion" lay bare.

The Islamic Viewpoint

In order to understand whether Islam prohibits birth control, certain basic and essential concepts need to be enunciated and clearly understood. These are based on the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam. Their validity cannot be questioned by our limited knowledge of Islam, preconceived notions, selfish motives and apologetic attitudes.

Consider the answers to the following questions by Alhaja Rasheedat Bello:

As Muslims, what is our belief?

What is our concept of Allah?

What is our position on this earth?

What is the basic economic principle in Islam?

As Muslims it is our belief that Allah, the Almighty is Rabb-ul-Âlamîn, i.e. Lord of the Universe. The quality of Rububiyat belongs to Allah i.e. He is the Creator, Nourished, Sustainer, Protector, Preserver and Master of all that is in the Universe.

We believe that Allah has created us and the universe and made all the necessary and complete arrangements for our sustenance before our creation. It is Allah who has taken upon Himself the responsibility to sustain all the creatures on earth. Allah states in the Qur’an:

"There is no creature on earth but whose sustenance is provided by Allah." (Surah 9:6)

Allah Ta'ala has also undertaken to maintain a balance in the production of crops and the supply of all our essential needs in proportion to our requirements. Nothing has been created in an unbalanced and disproportionate manner. The source of all potential forces and energies being with Allah, it is inexhaustible and unlimited. Allah states in the Qur’an:

"And there is not a thing but its treasures are with Us, but We only send down thereof in due and ascertainable measure." (Surah 15:21)

"All things have We created in proportion and measure." (Surah 54:49)

At another place it was stated that if man were given all things beforehand, then man would destroy it or be extravagant in its use. Thus everything has been created in a balanced way. Such a situation will never arise on a universal scale, when there will be people but no food to eat. Shortage of food in the world is not real but apparent and based on artificial premises. Scarcity of food is a man-made situation created by manipulation of the laws of supply and demand by business interests for the sake of excess profiteering. In order to increase the price of grain, shiploads thereof are sunk.

It is an accepted and recognized fact that the potential of a piece of ground to bear fruit, crops and vegetation is not limited by Allah to a specific amount. Modern methods of irrigation and cultivation have been responsible for a tremendous increase in the output of the same piece of ground which used to bear a limited percentage of crops or was altogether barren, desert land.

To think that Allah has forsaken the world and that population explosion would occur so that man would starve to death was the view of a person who does not believe in Allah. Allah is an Ingenious Power, the best of Planners and can accomplish anything. As Muslims we firmly believe in this concept and therefore cannot accept the economic reason for family planning.

That the increase in population should be curbed for economic reasons is not a new proposition. This concept was not exclusive to the Malthusian theory. The same concept was prevalent during the Jâhiliyyah (pre-Islamic) period.

The Qur’an should be read and understood in the proper perspective. In Surah Bani Israel from verses 23 - 3 1, the Qur’an teaches us the following:

“To worship none but Allah.

To be kind and fulfil one's duties to one's parents.

To help the poor, weak and needy. Not to neither be extravagant nor practice niggardliness.

Allah provides sustenance for whom He pleases. Not to kill children for fear of want”.

Allah has ordered man to maintain a balance between his income and expenditure. The word Iqtisâd used in Arabic conveys the meaning that the Islamic law of economics is based upon following a middle and balanced course in expenditure. Islam demands that one should neither be miserly (to the extent of not even spending on essential requirements), nor should one be a spendthrift indulging in extravagance. Not to spend on a necessary requirement is niggardliness and to spend lavishly is extravagance. Both are extreme courses. Therefore a balanced way in expenditure should be adopted. Allah knows best the true needs of every person and cares for them. To some He gives in abundance and others receive less, but in all cases, He gives in just measure.

"Verily your Lord provides sustenance in abundance for whom He pleases.' and He provides in a just measure. For He does know and regard all His servants." (Surah 17:30)

In the next verse Allah warns:

"Kill not your children for fear of want. We shall provide sustenance for them as well as for you Verily the killing of them is a great sin." (Surah 17:31)

The purpose of this sequential teaching is to show that this is not simply a question of killing. If it were so, then there would be no need for such a verse, since murder, whether of a child or an adult remains a crime which has been prohibited by the Qur’an. Therefore, there was no need to mention it in the above verse if the intention was only limited to proscribing a crime. But by mentioning it in the above verse, Allah analyses the mentality of the person who kills his children and the reason for his doing so.

Some of the Arab tribes practised female infanticide. Even now infanticide is practised in many countries for economic reasons. The key words are "for fear of want." To kill children out of fear of poverty and thereby try to curb the population is an abhorrent idea which the Qur’an cannot tolerate and does not propagate.

The protagonists of birth control have exploited the similar mentality of present-day man to the maximum. They declared that if no attempts were made to curb the rate of population growth, then there would soon be insufficient food for people to eat. Millions who accepted the assertion without questioning its validity, were mislead, and eventually started practicing birth control without paying attention to what the consequences might be.

Such thinking was totally repugnant to the spirit of Islam. It was diametrically opposed to the teachings of the Qur’an. The Qur’an makes it clear, in no uncertain terms, that it was Allah and Allah alone who provides mankind with sustenance. A person can only give to another person what he himself has received from Allah.

She explained that Allah created man and woman, and assigned different roles, responsibilities and functions to them. Procreation and reproduction of mankind is a basic object of marriage in Islam and therefore any action which has an effect of curtailing or stopping altogether this process cannot be acceptable from the Islamic point of view.

In man’s quest for bodily comforts and luxuries, many expenses have to be borne to maintain a high standard of living and in this process life becomes intolerable. In his selfishness and greed, he wants numerous items on his dining table at any one meal time. He is not content with one food item only. There is no need for one to have so many courses at a particular meal with the resultant leftovers being thrown away. At lunch and dinner parties, thousands of rands are squandered, and instead of making provision for the future generation, one would rather see them killed (through birth control). Such thinking is unacceptable in Islam. The desire to have a small family is not validated by the notion that one has to undergo many difficulties; this is the result of non-Islamic thinking. There is no justification to encourage this kind of thinking.

Islam has taken into consideration the real needs of man at all times and the changing circumstances and problems. It has a solution to all problems but it cannot change its laid down rules to suit the condition of a society, which is materialistically inclined and devotes itself to the attainment of evil desire.

She also said that Birth control should be viewed in the light of the above facts. Nevertheless, Islam being a perfect code of life permits certain methods of contraception for particular cases and for specific reasons.

Contraception

Islam allows the practice of contraception only under certain circumstances. These particular circumstances are discussed in the paragraphs that follow.

Permissible methods of contraception

Basically there are two forms of contraception.

(a) The reversible methods:

i)Physical

Coitus Interrupts

Rhythm Method

ii)Mechanical

Intra-Uterine Devices (IUD)

Condom/Diaphragm

iii)Chemical

Oral Contraceptive Pill

Locally Acting Spermicidal Jellies


(b) The irreversible methods: these are the sterilization operations, vasectomy in the man and Tubal ligation in the woman.

As far as the reversible methods are concerned, Islam allows the physical methods viz. coitus interrupts and the rhythm method. The husband must however, seek the consent of his wife when practicing coitus interrupts. During the period in which the Qur’ân was revealed, azal [coitus interrupts] was practiced by the Arabs, but it was not prohibited by any verse. However, it seems that the Prophet Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam did not approve of it entirely. Once a Sahabi told the Prophet Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam that he practised coitus interrupts. The Prophet Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam thrice commented: ""O! So you practice azal?" in such a manner that it was evident that he did not approve of it entirely. Moreover, that which is destined to happen will take place. In this case it so happened that the Sahabi concerned did have a child despite his practicing azal.

The mechanical and chemical methods are permissible only under special circumstances (mentioned later) provided they do not transgress any fundamental Islamic laws e.g. they should not be harmful to the user. Therefore, it would seem that the use of condoms and spermicidal jellies is permissible. As far as the intra-uterine device and the oral contraceptive pill in concerned, the physician must ensure that there is a proper indication for their use and that they would be safe for the user. Only then would their use be permissible.

Sterilization

The ruling of the Sharî’ah on sterilization operations is as follows:

-Vasectomy in the man

This is totally prohibited in Islâm. It cannot be sanctioned by the Sharî’ah under any circumstances. Islâmic law also prohibits castration. A common factor between vasectomy and castration is that both destroy the power of reproduction in man, although the ability to cohabit is still present. It is a cause of the murder of the future generation.

-Tubal ligation in the woman

This cannot be declared permissible as a general rule, because it renders a woman incapable of conceiving. There is a possibility that the factor on account of which she is being counseled for, tubal ligation might change thereafter. However, there would then be little hope of her becoming pregnant again. However, if honest and experienced doctors’ fear that the life or permanent mental health of a woman would be seriously affected by a pregnancy and there is no other cure for her sickness, in such a case only would tubal ligation is permissible.

Conclusion: It must be made clear that while certain methods of contraception are permissible in Islam, they can only be used under the circumstances sanctioned by the Sharî’ah. These specific circumstances were dealt with In the following lines.

-Family Planning

Most people implement family planning measures for social reasons eg. it is fashionable to have small families, having a large family may curtail the social activities of the wife, having many children may spoil her "figure" etc.

Islam does not sanction family planning to meet with the demands of present day fashion or social reasons. Although Islam encourages a woman to look well and to beautify herself for the sake of her husband, it does not sanction the same for the sake of public approbation, which is the present trend. The Holy Qur’an says:

"And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their modesty that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof, that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands..." (Surah 24:31)

Professional Reasons

Family planning for professional reasons e.g. the wife wants to pursue a career, is not permitted in Islam.

Islam places no burden on the shoulders of a woman or any responsibility on her to earn a living. Her maintenance before marriage is the responsibilities of her father, after marriage her husband, and in old age her children. Islam does not want that a woman should work like a labourer in the markets or be exploited economically. The general rule, therefore, is that it is not permissible to control the birth of children on account of professional reasons.

Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that there are cases where a woman is forced to seek employment to maintain her children or family on account of desperate circumstances. Under such circumstances it would be permissible for the couple to adopt reversible methods of birth control. This relaxation, however, does not apply to those women who merely try to maintain a very high standard of living, or who try to earn and accumulate as much wealth as possible in order to keep in step with the current fashionable trends. This would defeat the object of the creation of women and destroy the family unit which is the foundation of any society.



Spacing Children

The concept of spacing children means the practice of contraception in order to allow a reasonable time period between the births of any two children, the purpose being that each child receives adequate attention of the mother in its upbringing. In the difficult task of nourishing, training and educating a child, the full attention of a mother is required. If a baby is born every year, then it is extremely difficult to provide the necessary care and attention for each child. From this discussion in Raddul Mukhtar and other books of Islamic jurisprudence (on the question of abortion), it can be deduced, that if another pregnancy would seriously affect the care and upbringing of the existing child, then reversible methods of birth control may be practiced.

Thus family planning towards the spacing of children, so that each child receives adequate attention, would be permissible in Islâm. However, it must be emphasized that even this concession should be treated with respect. It must be made clear that spacing of children should not be used as a pretext for continuing family planning for an indefinite period, for this will be contrary to the injunction of our Holy Prophet Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam who said: "Marry and procreate."

Family Planning for Medical Reasons

If an experienced doctor, in all honesty and sincerity, is of the opinion that having children would endanger a mother's physical health e.g. if she is suffering from cardiac disease, renal disease or her life would be threatened, then it is permissible for the couple concerned to practice reversible methods of contraception. The same ruling applies if a mother is physically crippled and therefore unable to care for a child, or if she is suffering from a psychiatric illness. It must be stressed that the decision to practice family planning under such circumstances does not rest upon the couple concerned. The decision must be taken by a physician and must be based on medical grounds. She explained clearly.

Genetic Disuses

She added that, If it was the opinion of a responsible and an experienced physician that there was a high risk - not just a vague suspicion - of a baby being born with a serious genetic disease e.g. Mongolism, hemophilia etc. then it is permissible to adopt reversible methods of birth control.

From this it was apparent that there was a role for the Muslim doctor in genetic counseling. The risk of a baby inheriting a serious genetic disease should be carefully determined, and any advice given should not be based on mere suspicion. Reversible methods of contraception should be advocated in those cases where the risk of a baby being born with a serious genetic disease is high.

Non-Muslim Patients

The attitude of a Muslim doctor at all times must be in consonance with the teachings of Islam for all his patients. Therefore, a different standard with regard to contraception and sterilization for non-Muslim patients cannot be adopted.



Surrogacy

One form of a surrogate mother is the woman solicited by a married couple to be impregnated by the husband's semen, in case the wife cannot get pregnant. The surrogate mother will carry the baby through the antenatal period and after birth hands the baby over to the soliciting couple. In this case the baby will be the child of the husband and the surrogate mother, but biologically alien to the wife.

The other form of surrogacy is resorted to if husband and wife can provide sperm and ovum, but for some reason the wife cannot (or does not want to?) carry the pregnancy, as in cases of absent or defective uterus (or may be at some future development cannot afford to be encumbered by a pregnancy interfering with her career or affecting the beauty of her physique?). In such a case in-vitro fertilization is carried out using husband's sperm and wife's ovum, but the resulting embryo is deposited into the uterus of the surrogate mother, and after birth she is to hand the baby over to the soliciting couple.

As surrogacy became practicable, Steptoe and Edwards had to modify their terminology, using the term 'embryo replacement' instead of 'embryo transfer' the new term signifying that the embryo is in fact replaced into its real mother, whereas "transfer" more appropriately befits the new procedure of lodging the embryo into an alien woman.

The existence of the need created a market for surrogacy, and the existence of a market further augments the need. Agencies for surrogacy sprang up one after another, operating on purely business grounds. Investment in motherhood apparently became a prosperous business, the agency mediating between infertile couples and women prepared to lease their uterus for the duration of pregnancy in lieu of the expenses of antenatal care and a total fee at the end.

The details of the transaction were prepared by legal experts, the medical procedures were carried out by highly qualified medical personnel and the laws of the land had nothing against the new activity for legislation usually lags behind emerging developments. In the brief history of surrogacy interesting incidents have been reported. There were occasions when the surrogate mother acquired a deep feeling towards the fetus during the course of pregnancy, and by the time of birth a fetus maternal bond had been already established and she would not give away the child whom she conceived, carried, delivered and is now ready to suckle.

The opposite situation is reported when the neonate was found to have a congenital abnormality. This time it was the surrogate who was keen to enforce the signed contract and obligate the soliciting couple to take the baby. The soliciting couple would refuse, and accuse the surrogate of having sex with another man achieving the pregnancy, and that the new born baby was not their own embryo that had been lodged into her but failed to implant.

One woman carried the embryo of her sister, and literature on medical ethics exhibited debates on who is mother and who is aunt. On another occasion an ovum was taken from a daughter, fertilized by her step father's sperm, carried by a surrogate, and the born child was taken by her mother and step father.

In the majority of cases, however, the pattern is that a married couple would hire a woman to carry their embryo, and at birth give it back, usually in lieu of a pre-agreed fee.

For the first time in human history the human female accepts to get pregnant with the prior meditated intention of giving away her child. And since this is usually done for money ‘motherhood’, for the first time in human history is being reduced from a "value" to a price. If this practice becomes widespread, the effects on the cohesion of successive generations might prove devastating, causing the already felt generation gap to become an unbridgeable rift of indifference and even animosity. If social norms are ever to accommodate the status of children as "commodities", subject to "buy-sell" rules, other values than parenthood will certainly dwindle, leaving little room to time-honoured values as positive emotion, love, family ties, mutual compassion and tender loving care within the family unit. Surrogacy is not acceptable to Islam, again on the premises that pregnancy should be a fruit on the tree of a legitimate marriage. In the symposium on "Reproduction in the Light of Islam" (Islamic Organization of Medical Sciences, Kuwait, 24-27 May, 1983), attended by medical and juridical Muslim scholars, the technology of in-vitro fertilization and embryo replacement (into genetic mother) or transfer (into surrogate mother) was discussed at length. The consensus was the acceptability of the technique within a family structure of husband and wife, during the span of their marriage, and without the intrusion of another party, be it sperm, ovum, embryo or uterus.

Although considered to be illegitimate pregnancy, the question of surrogacy opens another front of debate, as to who should be considered the mother of the child: the one who gave the ovum or the one who carried the baby through pregnancy and gave birth to it. In other words who has the legitimate claim on the crop: the farmer or the seed merchant? On the one hand a woman gave the genetic material, whereas the other received a few cells that weighed a fraction of a particle of dust and recruited her body systems for its nourishment and growth over nine months of biological. And psychological interaction until born some seven pounds in weight out of her body.



The separation of the "womb" relation from the "ovary" relationship is a new event, and because old jurists did not address this question contemporary jurists have to. The Quran gives clear guidance that we will quote, but let us first make some linguistic remarks.

In the Arabic language the terminology of' ‘parents’, is derived from "natality". The verb "walada" means to give birth to. .."father" is "walid" and "mother" is "walida", the feminine form. Both parents are "walidan or walidayn", the form for two persons. Both "walid" and "walida" would mean the person who gave (or produced) the birth of a person. Although God knows that we are related to both the ovary and the womb of our mother, the reference in the Quran is always made to the womb relation, and it was repeatedly stated in the Quran that our mothers are those (women) who gave birth to us:

"None can be their mothers except those who gave them birth.” (58:2)

"And we have enjoined on man (to be good) to his parents (his walidayn), in travail upon travail did his mother bear him and in years twain was his weaning. ... (Hear the command): Show gratitude to me and to your parents (your walidayn). To Me is your final goal." (31: 14 )

"We have enjoined on man kindness to his parents (walidayn) in pain did his mother bear him and in pain did she give him birth"(46: 15)

The mothers (walidat) shall give suck to their offspring. " (2:233)

By terminology and by description the mother is the one who gives birth. If we consider an imaginary case of bigamy (a husband married to two wives), an ovum being taken from one wife, fertilized with husband's sperm, and carried-till-birth in the womb of the second wife: the procedure is also condemned because it entails the carrying in pregnancy of an alien seed, which is outside the marriage contract binding the husband and his second wife. At any rate, the child will belong to the woman who carried it and gave it birth.

BUDGETING:

The sum of One hundred and Fifty thousand naira (#150,000) was budgeted for this seminar, but unfortunately the sum of Three hundred thousand naira (#300,000) was spent.

ATTENDANT

Nasfat Lagos Zone 1 5 Branches

- Mushin Branch

- Surulere Branch

- Mainland Branch

- Maryland Branch

- Eti-Osa Branch

Nadwat Youth Wing 17 Members [Female -15, Male -2]



CONCLUSION

In principle, For the first time in human history the human female accepts to get pregnant with the prior meditated intention of giving away her child. And since this is usually done for money ‘motherhood’, for the first time in human history is being reduced from a "value" to a price. If this practice becomes widespread, the effects on the cohesion of successive generations might prove devastating, causing the already felt generation gap to become an unbridgeable rift of indifference and even animosity. If social norms are ever to accommodate the status of children as "commodities", subject to "buy-sell" rules, other values than parenthood will certainly dwindle, leaving little room to time-honoured values as positive emotion, love, family ties, mutual compassion and tender loving care within the family unit. I may now conclude that Surrogacy is not acceptable to Islam, again on the premises that pregnancy should be a fruit on the tree of a legitimate marriage. In order to understand whether Islam prohibits birth control, certain basic and essential concepts need to be enunciated and clearly understood. These are based on the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet Sallallâhu alaihi wasallam. Their validity cannot be questioned by our limited knowledge of Islam, preconceived notions, selfish motives and apologetic attitudes.



REFERENCES

1. Marriage and Morals in Islam. Chapter 4: contraceptives and Abortion. Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi, Pub. By Islamic Education and Information Center, Scarborough, Ont. Canada.

2. www.understanding-Islam.com 1st March 1999

3. Family Planning and Islam: A Review by Khalid Farooq Akbar Hamdard Islamicus Vol. 17, No. 3, 1974.

4. Abortion in Islam. Christine Schirrmacher (Institute for Islamic Studies) Online at www.islaminstitut.de/english/publications/abortion.htm

5. Abortion in Islam. Elsayed Kandil, SALAM Magazine, Sydney, New South Wales http://www.famsy.com/salam/.

6. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi. "Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam" Islamic Book Service, 1982



........................ Abortion, birth control and surrogate Parenting in Islam …………………