Page 147 - UAE Truncal States

Chapter Three

Ihc Ruler to ask for his verdict, this implied that they were both
Prepared to accept his ruling; it might also indicate that the case had
already been heard before some authority whoso ruling the parlies
had not been willing to accept. In an Arab tribal society people often
preferred to request a powerful, wise, and popular shaikh to give his
ruling in their disputes; similarly, an oppressive ruler was kept busy
with endless disputes because people found it difficult to avoid
transgressing his many rules and regulations.03
In this type of jurisdiction it is not altogether relevant whether the
judgement is in conformity with the stipulations of a specific and
quotable law; what is important is whether both parties and the
observers perceive the judgement as fair in the circumstances and
whether they all accept the verdict. The legal principles which
guided this process of arriving at a judgement were first of all the
customary law, *urf, which developed within a particular group of
tribes, was known to and recognised by its members, and was
peculiar to that group. One was also guided by common sense, and
often by impartiality and a lack of concern with the question of who
was at fault: a major consideration was which of the parties could
belter afford to concede or to pay the cost. Since the verdict had to be
acceptable to everyone involved it had almost always to be a
compromise.
Because all the people concerned were Muslim, their personal lives
and social behaviour, and therefore these legal principles too,
including 'urf, were moulded by Islam. Yet such verdicts were not
founded on specific precepts of shari'ah, the Muslim code of law,94
unless the parties turned to a mulawwa\95 a man who had studied
the Quran, was known to be religious, and was often even called
qadi.
Recently most Rulers on the Trucial Coast have found it necessary
for religious reasons to give their subjects the benefit of jurisdiction
by bringing to the shaikhdom someone who has undergone formal
training in Islamic law, and they have appointed a qualified qadi. A
Ruler will often listen to the complaints of the parties and will then
send for the qadi to deal with the case, or he will send the parties
away lo consult the qadi in his house. Any such proceedings take
place in the majlis, where everyone who cares to attend or who
happens to be present may give his view.
In Abu Dhabi the position of qadi was held during the rule of
Shaikh Hamdan bin Zayid and some of his successors by Muham-

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