Finding the Discrepancy: Piracy under International Law and Islamic Law
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32493/palrev.v9i1.61543Keywords:
Piracy, International Law, Islamic lawAbstract
The article compares the two body of laws, public international law (PIL) vis-à-vis islamic law, in regulating the act of piracy. The importance of this comparison arises as the history shows that the governance of the Oceans had shifted from one era to another: Sumerians, Phoenicians, Hellenic League, Rome and Ottoman Empire. Muslims began its supremacy over some areas of the Ocean in the 8th century and thus contributed to the establishment of several legal norms that applicable in the oceans i.e. sovereignty, use of force (including rule of war) and maritime security, including piracy. The article uses normative legal research by assessing relevant international law instruments such as UNCLOS, SUA Convention, Regional Agreements as well as Resolutions of the United Nations and sources of islamic law encompassing the Quran, hadith and scholars’ interpretation. The result establishes that although both PIL and islamic law regulate the act of piracy, the punishments between the two are quite contrast.
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