During September, people were shocked by the numerous reports of rape cases followed by robbery and even murder at public transportation stations throughout Jakarta. The constant media coverage of sex crimes including televised debates about possible causes and solutions have encouraged similar incidents throughout other major cities in Indonesia. In 2011, forty rape cases were reported in Jakarta and more than 3700 reported incidents across Indonesia. However it is commonly known that more incidents go unreported, and from day to day the number is increasing.

بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Media office of Hizb ut-Tahrir Indonesia

No: 26/PN/09/11

26 Shawwal 1432 Hijri / 24/09/2011

The Statement from the Women of Hizb ut-Tahrir-Indonesia:

The Rise of Sexual Abuse, the Rotten Fruit of Capitalism

During September, people were shocked by the numerous reports of rape cases followed by robbery and even murder at public transportation stations throughout Jakarta. The constant media coverage of sex crimes including televised debates about possible causes and solutions have encouraged similar incidents throughout other major cities in Indonesia. In 2011, forty rape cases were reported in Jakarta and more than 3700 reported incidents across Indonesia. However it is commonly known that more incidents go unreported, and from day to day the number is increasing.

The increase of sex crimes is comparable to many western capitalist countries like Britain and the United States. A possibility of 78 incidents of rape occur every hour or 683,280 each year. It’s a horrible phenomenon that paints a portrait of a damaged society.

Capitalism, the system practiced in this country, is the instigator of the emergence of societal damage including fertilizing sex crimes. Its capitalist economic system has led to rampant poverty; it also encourages women to leave their homes to work late hours at night. This system also teaches people to justify any means to achieve material things. The capitalist social system allows women to expose their bodies becoming an object of sexual exploitation. Worst of all, the state does not position itself as a servant, protector, or responsible agent for its people. Therefore, it’s difficult to expect any guarantee by the state to provide adequate and safe means of transportation to protect the honor of women. It is also understandable if the public loses trust in the government because the perpetrators were not subjected to any criminal sanctions due to the corrupt judiciary.

In response to the recently revealed rampant cases of rape, Muslimah Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia states:

1. The widespread cases of sex crimes only occur in societies which apply and allow the Capitalist ideology of freedom (liberalism) to expand rampantly. These crimes will be stopped through the implementation of the Islamic system, the Khilafah Islamiyah. The Islamic economic system, Islamic social system and the Islamic system of pubishments will be implemented so as to prevent various acts of criminality including sex crimes.

2. The Islamic system will provide education for women to recognize how Islam safe-guards their honor and will place sanctions on those who publicly expose their bodies. It would impose strict penalties on perpetrators of rape based on Nidzam Uqubat fi al-Islam (Islamic system of punishments). Rape accompanied by the threat of a weapon is convicted as a highway robber. Meanwhile, the penalty for highway robbers has been mentioned by Allah سبحانه وتعالى:

إِنَّمَا جَزَاءُ الَّذِينَ يُحَارِبُونَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَيَسْعَوْنَ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَسَادًا أَنْ يُقَتَّلُوا أَوْ يُصَلَّبُوا أَوْ تُقَطَّعَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَرْجُلُهُمْ مِنْ خِلَافٍ أَوْ يُنْفَوْا مِنَ الْأَرْضِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ لَهُمْ خِزْيٌ فِي الدُّنْيَا ۖ وَلَهُمْ فِي الْآخِرَةِ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ

“The reprisal against those who wage war on Allah and His Messenger, and go about the earth corrupting it, is that they should be killed or crucified, or have their alternate hands and feet cut off, or be banished from the land. That will be their degradation in this world and in the Next World they will have a terrible punishment.” (Surah Al Maidah: 33)

3. Only Islam and the implementation of the Islamic Sharia are able to provide reassurance to the needs of women. Protection and the fulfilment of women’s needs by the state have been widely proven throughout the history of Islamic government. Throughout the history of Islamic government, women were protected and their needs were fulfilled by the State. An example of this was during the Prophet Muhammad’s صلى الله عليه وسلم time when a Muslim woman was in the market of Bani Qainuqa (Jewish tribe) when a Jew untied her clothes exposing her body while she was standing. Other Jews gathered around her laughing. The woman screamed. Then one of the Sahabah came to her help and immediately killed the culprit. As a result, the Jews killed him. When this news reached the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم he immediately gathered his army. The Prophet’s صلى الله عليه وسلم troops besieged them for 15 days until Bani Qainuqa surrendered due to their fear.

It is time to return the glory to human life through an earnest struggle for the Islamic Khilafah system so that all forms of criminality which damage people could soon be stopped.

Iffah Ainur Rochmah

Spokeswoman for the Women of Hizbut Tahrir- Indonesia