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Fatwa CenterReason for Rejecting Woman's Testimony concerning Fornication
Question
Why is a woman's testimony concerning fornication rejected?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
The principles and teachings of the Islamic sharia are all based on realizing people's interests in this worldly life and in the Hereafter as well. Some people may perceive this fact while others may fail to realize it. A Muslim should adhere to the commands of Allah, the Exalted, and submissively accept His Judgment whether he knows the wisdom behind it or not. Allah, the Exalted, says (what means): {It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair...} [Quran 33.36]
In fact, fornication is one of the gravest and most hideous sins and involves overwhelming disgrace. Therefore, Islam has emphasized the necessity to have four witnesses to testify against the adulterer and adulteress so as to guard the Muslims' honor and conceal their faults and sins. The eligible eye-witnesses in adultery are four trustworthy men (while a woman's testimony is not accepted), all of whom must have witnessed the actual practice of the sexual intercourse and give a detailed testimony that cannot denote a meaning other than that of fornication. If the testimony given by the witnesses seems contradictory during cross examination or it may be interpreted to mean something other than fornication, then all of them will be subject to the hadd (prescribed corporal punishment) of slander and defamation and receive 80 lashes each, and their testimonies will be rejected ever after. Allah, the Exalted, says (what means): {And those who accuse chaste women and then do not produce four witnesses – lash them with eighty lashes and do not accept from them testimony ever after. And those are the defiantly disobedient,} [Quran 24:4] The well-versed scholar Khaleel 
wrote, “There should be four witnesses who testify to having seen the actual crime all at the same time so as to prove crimes of fornication and sodomy.” [Al-Mukhtasar]
Hence, this issue needs verification, ascertaining, and accuracy because of its serious consequences. The woman's nature cannot – in most cases – tolerate such ascertaining and scrutinizing, especially in intense and tough situations. Perhaps the reason why a woman's testimony is not accepted in such cases is to guard her honor and acknowledge her feminine characteristics and what is suitable for her (personality and nature).
Allah knows best.
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