Ruby Amatulla

Prophet’s giving general amnesty after the total victory in Mecca in 630 AD. This is a historic example left behind for the Muslims to take note and follow. The Quran allows retribution as a deterrence. In a regular time a wrong can be responded inflicting damage in equal or proportional measures so that the future potential perpetrators are discouraged. However the Scripture also proclaims that if the receiver of such injustice & injuries can forgive: it is much better for him/her as it would help receiving God’s forgiveness and purifying of his/her heart. The Quran in many ways in many places promoted forgiveness and generosity and discouraged ‘tit for tat’ behavior. The Prophet left the highest example of working from moral high ground by giving amnesty to the conquered enemies who perpetrated twenty years of hostility and belligerence and eight years of direct warfare in which the Muslim community had to endure enormous loss and lives until the enemies were defeated. He exemplified magnanimity in victory for the posterity.

The points to note is that when a state of confrontation and war exists the law of retribution can work as a deterrence. However that need is generally over when there is a complete victory and such trail of bloodshed would not be possible by the perpetrators. This is a critical point to consider for forgiveness and amnesty.

The second point is that if the institutions are developed and functioning as that of the nation-states of our modern time, these retribution policies that were indispensible deterrence in tribal and primitive contexts may not be necessary anymore.