ENVIRONMENTAL
FATWAS
Sumatran tiger, by Creative Commons photographer Tom Lee
OVERVIEW
In recent years, Muslim authorities in some key biodiversity countries – notably Indonesia, the most populous Muslim nation – have issued fatwas on environmental issues. A fatwa is a non-binding but authoritative edict or ruling by a recognised religious authority on a point of Islamic law. Fatwas can be powerful tools in communicating to Muslims about conservation regulations and objectives, and in galvanising society to protect and restore nature.
'Killing, harming, assaulting, hunting and/or engaging in other activities which threaten endangered species with extinction are forbidden, except for cases allowed under Shariah, such as self defence.'
– Indonesia's Fatwa no 4.2014 on the Protection of Endangered Wildlife for the Balance of the Ecosystem
FATWAS ISSUED BY INDONESIA
Indonesia is the world's biggest Muslim country, with around 242 million Muslims (87% of the population). It is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world but its natural areas and wildlife are under extreme threat. The British NGO, the Alliance of Religions and Conservation, WWF and the Centre of Islamic Studies at Indonesia’s National University (UNAS) have been working with Indonesia’s Muslim leaders since 2013 to strengthen understanding of Islamic teachings related to the environment and to promote this understanding in Muslim society.
As part of this work, in 2014 and 2016 Indonesia’s national Council of Ulama (MUI) issued two unprecedented Islamic edicts calling on all Muslims to protect nature, outlining key Islamic textual references to environmental care. These edicts, or fatwas, clearly link environmental issues and Quranic teachings on moral and religious responsibility.
Environmental fatwas in Indonesia
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Recycling water (2010)
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Environmentally-friendly mining (2011)
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Misuse of formalin and harmful material in the preservation of fish (2012)
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Waste management (2014)
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The use of Zakat, Infaq, Shadaqah and Waqf for establishment of Water and Sanitation Facilities
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Protection of wildlife for the balance of ecosystem (2014)
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Forest and Peatland Burning (2016)
Fatwa Training for Muslim Leaders
To raise awareness about the teachings of the 2014 and 2016 wildlife and fire fatwas, UNAS, with support from ARC and WWF, produced training courses and educational resources for Muslim leaders and communities.
To date they have trained around 1,000 Muslim leaders to strengthen their understanding of the fatwas’ teachings. Many of them began disseminating the fatwas' messages through sermons and other outreach in their communities. This work was funded by the USFWS and UK DEFRA.
Indonesia's fatwa on
PROTECTION OF WILDLIFE ~ 2014
UNAS (in Bahasa)/2014
Announcement of the fatwa on endangered species
Find out about training resources for Muslim leaders and communities related to this fatwa.
Indonesia's fatwa on
BURNING OF FORESTS AND LAND ~ 2016
MUI/2016 (English)
2016 Fatwa On the Burning of Forests and Land
Indonesia's fatwa on
CLIMATE CHANGE ~ 2024
Fatwa on the Protection of Wildlife
TRAINING & AWARENESS RESOURCES
Click on the slider below to see a range of training resources, mostly in Bahasa, for Muslim leaders & communities.
Fatwa on the Protection of Wildlife
OTHER VIDEO RESOURCES
Click on the slider below to see a range of video resources, mostly in Bahasa, for Muslim leaders & communities.
Fatwa on the Protection of Wildlife.
RADIO & SOCIAL MEDIA
WWF supported a community radio show with the Forkodas Conservation Cleric Forum that aired in 2019. Every Friday, clerics broadcasted fatwa-themed sermons and hosted a talk show in 12 villages in the Rimbang Baling Wildlife Reserve landscape.
2019, two public service announcements were released on state-owned radio in Riau province, reaching target villages in the landscape.
The Forkodas Conservation Cleric Forum has also documented its activities on Instagram.
POSTERS
Click to open a downloadable version.
Fatwa on Fire and Peatlands
TRAINING FOR MUSLIM LEADERS
Click on the slider below to see a range of video resources, mostly in Bahasa, for Muslim leaders & communities.
UNIVERSITY CURRICULUM
Dr Fachruddin Mangunjaya at Pusat Pengajian Islam Universitas Nasional (PPI-Unas) has begun to integrate the lessons learned from the approaches of both fatwas to conservation into lectures for the existing class on Nature Conservation, Environment and Conflict, for the biology masters degree. However, UNAS-PPI is still assessing whether to create a distinct course on conservation and religion.
Dr Mangunjaya also developed a new course for the Faculty of Philosophy and Civilization (Fakultas Filsafat dan Adab), at the Sheikh Maulana Hasanudi Islamic University, in Banten, West Java, within the bachelor's degree programme in Islamic studies (Syllabus Eco-Theology). This is the first Islamic university in Indonesia to adopt such a curriculum.
FATWAS ISSUED BY MALAYSIA
Islam is Malaysia's state religion and approximately 63% of Malaysians identify as Muslims. Inspired by the Indonesian wildlife fatwa, the Malaysian NGO Rimba sought to test the fatwa approach to reduce the illegal wildlife trade in Taman Negara National Park, a Class 1 Tiger Conservation Landscape. In 2015, Malaysia’s first fatwa prohibiting Muslims from engaging in the wildlife trade was passed by religious authorities in Terengganu state.
Funded by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service with support from the British NGO, the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC), Rimba in 2017 launched a programme to train Muslim leaders on the fatwa, who in turn committed to raising awareness about the fatwa in Muslim communities in and around the national park.
To do so, Rimba partnered with the Department of Anthropology and Sociology from the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), the Universiti Selangor (UniSel) and a local Islamic environmental NGO called GRASS Malaysia, to develop a wildlife trade fatwa training module for conservation clerics. The Dai’I Konservasi module is aimed at religious clerics, educators and policy makers and can be used by religious departments and organisations to deliver trainings on the fatwa with religious leaders. It clarifies conservation concepts and suggests ways that clerics can deliver sermons and teachings on the fatwa. It is a resource that can be adapted and used by Muslim leaders in other states in Malaysia.
FATWAS ISSUED BY YEMEN
In an attempt to safeguard rhino populations in eastern Africa, in 1992, the Grand Mufti of Yemen issued a fatwa prohibiting use of rhino horn in the handle of the jambiya, the ceremonial dagger worn by Yemeni men.
The fatwa states: “Islam prohibits the killing of animals, except those slaughtered for their meat, or predatory animals for the protection of mankind. However, killing them to benefit from their horns, skin or other purposes, is prohibited and not allowed.”
The fatwa led to a search for alternative materials for these jambiyas. Read more: https://www.almotamar.net/en/2163.htm
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Key guidance documents
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