Sexual Abuse by Muslim Family Members
11-8-2000 | IslamWeb
Question:
I am a Muslim woman. As a child I was sexually abused and raped by a fellow Muslim who was very close to my family. I do not remember when it started, but it stopped when I became old enough to say 'NO’ and stand up for my self. At that point this man whom we had grown up to call uncle, broke all ties with my family, in fear of being exposed. For a very long time I was not able to speak about this matter. It has now come to my attention that this devil may have gone on to abuse and rape his own daughters. Complaints were made to the social services about a man fitting his description. He quickly booked their tickets and put them on a flight to Pakistan. He tried to marry both of them off. He succeeded with the elder but the younger one at 15 ran away. She later became an outcast while the elder was abandoned to spend the next 10 years in Pakistan. This man has been very highly regarded and respected in our society. He has labelled his own daughters of being immoral to cover his own dirty secret. He has twice been to haj and is the sharrif nobleman in the eyes of our community. To me this man is a jahanami, but I need to ask the view of the uhlimah on the punishment deemed for a man of these sins. At times I feel like exposing him of his crimes, but then I think of the effect it would have on my own family and how society would judge me, I get put off. In my heart I feel he needs to be shamed and exposed. He has committed zenna against minors. What are our rights in Islam in regards to crimes committed against us? We live in a khaffir country, where there is no sharria punishment except a jail sentence. Please advice me on my cause of action in the light of Islamic teaching.
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 
is His slave and Messenger.
What has been done to you by the mentioned person is a big atrocity and a monstrous crime, that is fornication; worse than that, is that he committed this crime with his daughters and his relatives and near ones. Committing fornication with such people is the worst kind of sin and offence. It is greater than committing fornication with other than them.
The Prophet has explained that whoever commits fornication with the wife of his neighbor, that his sin is greater and worse than his committing the same thing with ten women. That is because it is one of the grave major sins.
The Prophet asked his Companions: “What do you say about fornication? They replied: “It is unlawful as Allah and His Prophet have prohibited it and it is unlawful until the Day of Judgement. He said: "It is less serious for a man to fornicate with ten women than for him to fornicate with his neighbor’s wife." [Ahmad]
Besides, ‘Abdullah ibn Mas'ood 
narrated that a man asked the Prophet saying: “What is the biggest sin in the sight of Allah?” He said, “To set up rivals unto Allah though He Alone has created you.” I said, “In fact, that is a tremendous sin,” and added, “What is next?” He said, “To kill your child being afraid that he may share your food with you.” I further asked, “What is next?” He said, “To commit illegal sexual intercourse with the wife of your neighbor.”
Then the Almighty Allah revealed its confirmation: Allah Says (what means): {And those who do not invoke with Allah another deity or kill the soul which Allah has forbidden [to be killed], except by right, and do not commit unlawful sexual intercourse. And whoever should do that will meet a penalty.} [Quran 25:68] [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
That is because it is an obligation on him to protect the dignity of his neighbor as he knows his (i.e. neighbor) entrance and exit. If an evil act is committed by a reliable and relative person, its sin is even greater. How about a person who commits this evil with his own relative? How about a person who commits it with his own daughters? No doubt that his sin is great before Allah and before the people. All that happened to him due to a relapse in his innate character (nature) and crookedness in his behavior, although he behaves with people in a different way. The correctness of this man seems to be hopeless unless Allah wishes it. He is then considered to be abnormal, with a bad and crooked condition.
That is why the text came very clear that whoever happens to commit fornication with his unmarriageable woman, its punishment is: he has to be put to death. The Prophet said: “Whoever happens to fall (in fornication/adultery) with his Mahram (unmarriageable woman), kill him.” [At-Tirmithi]
A case was presented to Al-Hajjaj that a man committed fornication with his own sister forcibly; he said: detain him and ask from amongst the Companions of the Prophet . So they asked ‘Abdullah ibn Mulassif who said: I heard the Prophet saying: “Whosoever transgresses the Muslims, make line on the middle of his body with a sword.” This means divide him into two parts with a sword. This and the people similar to him whose innate character is relapsed, their punishment in Islam is to put them to death for their disgraceful crime with their Mahram women. If Allah does not punish him in this world and he pretends to be pious, he will never be able to escape from Allah's punishment on the Day of Judgement. His honor will be torn apart just as he tore apart the honor of his daughter and his relative, and just as he spread bad rumors about them in order to cover his reality in front of the people. That Muslim sister has to pray to Allah so that He will give her back her right and protect her from evil.
If the Muslims have a chance to prove his guilt in order that he be punished, they should not hesitate to do so, even if they have to prove it before the authority of the country where they settle matters (which might not be a Muslim country) in order to make of him a lesson and a warning for others.
Allah knows best.