Introduction
The term waqf literally means “to hold” or “to confine”. This term is used in Islam in the sense of endowing and preserving something for the benefit of the needy among Muslims. It relates primarily to land and buildings and secondly to books, cattle, shares, stocks and cash.
Traditionally, the Muslims in those four provinces are deeply religious in sentiment having great attachment to the Islamic institutions and culture. Though there are no official figures of the number of Muslims in Thailand, estimates indicate it to about 6 million, forming 4 percent of the 65 million (in 2001) of the population. The Muslim communities are concentrated in the four major provinces like Pattani, Narathiwat, Yala and Satul (Sentul). They are living primarily in the area near the Northern part of the Malay Peninsula. Moreover, the Muslims in those four provinces in the South are not an immigrant community, but indigenous to the area. They are categorized as Malay-Muslim communities. Being a non-Muslim country, Thailand does not have any law governing specifically to the needs of waqf institution . Currently, Waqf in those for provinces is run under supervision of the Provincial Islamic committee and Mosque committee. The main objective of this paper is to examine the availability of Thai laws concerning waqf properties and the practices of waqf committee in the Malay-Muslim majority areas by focusing on the practices of Al-Jamie Narathiwat mosque waqf committee. To achieve that aim, the writer organizes this paper as follows: the next section will discuss the method of collecting waqf property, followed by examining the available Thai laws concerning Muslim affairs in Thailand viz., the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque 1947, the Royal Act concerning Islamic Patronage Act 1945, Thai Civil and Commercial Law Code 1934 and Thai National Land Code 1951. Later the writer will propose some suggestions and recommendations. This article was done via a combination of methods. The preliminary study was through library research. Analysis of the contents of waqf legislation in Thai law. Insights were obtained through the interviews and discussions with the Imam of Al-Jamie Narathiwat mosque, and secretary Islamic Religious Committee Council Narathiwat.
Method of collecting waqf property
The common practice in collecting waqf property in those areas is that the contributor will donate or dispose his land to the mosque. The recipient will be imam. In most cases, the trustee for waqf property is the mosque committee itself. The waqf properties in the Malay-Muslim areas comprise of open land, apartments and rubber or coconut plantations. All these properties were donated to mosques. Incomes from these properties go to the maintenance of mosques and religious schools. The balance will be deposited in the name of waqf committee’s account. The objective of collecting waqf property is to bring waqf property towards sustainable development and poverty alleviation.
Laws Concerning Muslim Affairs in Thailand
In Thailand, all religious matters including waqf, collecting zakat and fitrah were administered jointly by Chularajmontri, Provincial Committee for Islamic Affairs and Mosque Committee. As for the position of waqf land in Thailand is out the ambit of the Thai civil law. Fortunately, there has been decided case by the Provincial court in Narathiwat, southern Thailand as to acceptance of the concept of waqf under Islamic law. Before I discuss that case, it is necessary to study the provisions of two laws concerning the Muslim affairs in Thailand in general. Those two laws are as follows:
The Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque, 1947
In Thailand, Masjid committees have been given the power to manage the mosque and its property according to Islamic law and state law. And secondly, to ensure the proper observance of Islam according to Malay culture. These provisions are in fact very general. By virtue of this Act the mosque committees are formed to administer the affairs of the mosque. Before the committees are appointed, the mosque must be first registered at the Muslim Religious Committee Council (MRCC) in the province. The details of the mosque as to its location, mosque committee members, the letter of the appointment of imam, khatib and bilal must be approved by MRCC and submitted to the governor. The appointment and dismissal of a imam, khtib and bilal is usually made by the MRCC, subjected to the consent by the community in that area. As for the job scope the mosque committees are governed by the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque, 1947.
Composition of the Committee
According to the Patronage of Islam Act of 1945, it provides the composition of the Committee, which consists of Chularajmontri and Provincial Islamic Religious Committee as permanent committee members. Whereas Mosque committees are elected from the communities. Below is the organizational structure of the Muslim affairs in the Kingdom of Thailand.
Figure 1
The flow of the organizational structure of the Muslims affairs in the Kingdom of Thailand
King
Department of Local Administration, Department of Religious Affairs,
Ministry of Interior Ministry of Education
Chularajmontri
The National Committee for Islamic
Affairs of Thailand (5 persons)
The Central Committee of Islamic
Affairs of Thailand
The Provincial Committee for Islamic Affairs (30 committees)
Mosque Committee headed by Imam( 15 persons)
Source: Omar Farouk, “The Muslims of Thailand: A Survey” (1988).
Powers and Duties of the Waqf committee
The committee is vested with the powers and charged with the duties to administer, control and manage waqf properties. It is provided in the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque 1947. Their responsibilities and duties are as follows:
1. Investing and determining the nature and extent of waqf properties
2. Ensuing that waqf property and incomes arising there from
3. Giving instructions for the proper administration of waqf properties
4. Monitoring the affairs of the mosque
5. Introducing creative and innovative modes of waqf development.
Those duties as provided in the Royal Act suggested that the waqf committee could function as waqf property protectors. However, in practice the waqf committee in those for provinces are facing various problems, for example the problem of staffing, less of creativity and innovative thinking in developing and promoting awqaf. More importantly, most of the committee are lacking of professional expertise in awqaf development.
Analysis the provisions of the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque1947
According to what has been mentioned above, it found that section 7 of the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque 1947 speaks about the mosque property by giving the authority to the mosque committee to manage and control over mosque property. Thus according to this law, the waqf committee is the one that has total supervision over all the waqf properties. The waqf committee has the right to freely distribute the endowed money to any direction without being confined to the areas that the original endowers have decided to allocate their money to. This act is too general and vague, it might be abuse of power by waqf committee and therefore, independent body should be appointed.
From what we can see above, it is proven that there is no proper waqf institution which initiated by the government in the four southern border provinces of Thailand. Though there is law speaks about it.
The Royal Act concerning Islamic Patronage Act, 1945
The Act of 1945 was similar with the above Act and was enacted to regulate and monitor the Muslim affairs in Thailand. Though it was similar with the Royal Act, it is important to discuss its provisions. There are two sections which speak about mosque property viz., section 7 and section 8.
Section 7 of the Islamic Patronage Act, 1945 provides to the effect that:
“The Provincial Islamic Religious Committee has the power to monitor and take care the properties owned by mosques”
Section 8 of the Islamic Patronage Act, 1945 also provides
“The procedural regulating concerning appointments and removal and management of the mosque property shall be determined by the National Committee for Islamic affairs with the consent of the Ministry of Interior”.
Analysis the provisions of the Royal Act concerning Islamic Patronage Act 1945
By virtue of section 7 and 8 of the Patronage of Islam Act of 1945 several persons could be appointed as committee to look after mosque property. Secondly, the definition of mosque property includes waqf properties as understood by Muslims. There is also no detailed provision on the qualifications of trustee or mutawalli. It is observed that this provision is silent about the appointment of trustee, its procedures of handling the dispute as to the waqf property. This two Acts viz., the Royal Act, 1945 and the Muslim mosque Act,1947 seem to overlook the importance of waqf property, for example the issue of the registration of waqf property and the appointment and responsibilities of mutawalis. Therefore, those two laws as mentioned above should be reviewed and amended. As a result, the MRCC has to adopt a conventional approach wherever the two Acts are silent. In Narathiwat, for example, the normal practice is that when complaint was lodged as to waqf property, the MRCC will call imam, khatib and bilal to give statement. If MRCC is unable to settle the case, the imam with the consultation of the mosque committee members will bring the case to the provincial court. The provincial court will refer to the Thai Civil and Commercial Law Code 1934.
Form the discussion above, it is suggested in such a way because those two laws are very important in the administration of waqf property in Thailand. Besides that there are certain laws which dealt with property and trust.
Certain Other Laws Relevant to the Property Administration in
IntroductionThe term waqf literally means “to hold” or “to confine”. This term is used in Islam in the sense of endowing and preserving something for the benefit of the needy among Muslims. It relates primarily to land and buildings and secondly to books, cattle, shares, stocks and cash.Traditionally, the Muslims in those four provinces are deeply religious in sentiment having great attachment to the Islamic institutions and culture. Though there are no official figures of the number of Muslims in Thailand, estimates indicate it to about 6 million, forming 4 percent of the 65 million (in 2001) of the population. The Muslim communities are concentrated in the four major provinces like Pattani, Narathiwat, Yala and Satul (Sentul). They are living primarily in the area near the Northern part of the Malay Peninsula. Moreover, the Muslims in those four provinces in the South are not an immigrant community, but indigenous to the area. They are categorized as Malay-Muslim communities. Being a non-Muslim country, Thailand does not have any law governing specifically to the needs of waqf institution . Currently, Waqf in those for provinces is run under supervision of the Provincial Islamic committee and Mosque committee. The main objective of this paper is to examine the availability of Thai laws concerning waqf properties and the practices of waqf committee in the Malay-Muslim majority areas by focusing on the practices of Al-Jamie Narathiwat mosque waqf committee. To achieve that aim, the writer organizes this paper as follows: the next section will discuss the method of collecting waqf property, followed by examining the available Thai laws concerning Muslim affairs in Thailand viz., the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque 1947, the Royal Act concerning Islamic Patronage Act 1945, Thai Civil and Commercial Law Code 1934 and Thai National Land Code 1951. Later the writer will propose some suggestions and recommendations. This article was done via a combination of methods. The preliminary study was through library research. Analysis of the contents of waqf legislation in Thai law. Insights were obtained through the interviews and discussions with the Imam of Al-Jamie Narathiwat mosque, and secretary Islamic Religious Committee Council Narathiwat.Method of collecting waqf propertyThe common practice in collecting waqf property in those areas is that the contributor will donate or dispose his land to the mosque. The recipient will be imam. In most cases, the trustee for waqf property is the mosque committee itself. The waqf properties in the Malay-Muslim areas comprise of open land, apartments and rubber or coconut plantations. All these properties were donated to mosques. Incomes from these properties go to the maintenance of mosques and religious schools. The balance will be deposited in the name of waqf committee’s account. The objective of collecting waqf property is to bring waqf property towards sustainable development and poverty alleviation.Laws Concerning Muslim Affairs in ThailandIn Thailand, all religious matters including waqf, collecting zakat and fitrah were administered jointly by Chularajmontri, Provincial Committee for Islamic Affairs and Mosque Committee. As for the position of waqf land in Thailand is out the ambit of the Thai civil law. Fortunately, there has been decided case by the Provincial court in Narathiwat, southern Thailand as to acceptance of the concept of waqf under Islamic law. Before I discuss that case, it is necessary to study the provisions of two laws concerning the Muslim affairs in Thailand in general. Those two laws are as follows:The Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque, 1947In Thailand, Masjid committees have been given the power to manage the mosque and its property according to Islamic law and state law. And secondly, to ensure the proper observance of Islam according to Malay culture. These provisions are in fact very general. By virtue of this Act the mosque committees are formed to administer the affairs of the mosque. Before the committees are appointed, the mosque must be first registered at the Muslim Religious Committee Council (MRCC) in the province. The details of the mosque as to its location, mosque committee members, the letter of the appointment of imam, khatib and bilal must be approved by MRCC and submitted to the governor. The appointment and dismissal of a imam, khtib and bilal is usually made by the MRCC, subjected to the consent by the community in that area. As for the job scope the mosque committees are governed by the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque, 1947.
Composition of the Committee
According to the Patronage of Islam Act of 1945, it provides the composition of the Committee, which consists of Chularajmontri and Provincial Islamic Religious Committee as permanent committee members. Whereas Mosque committees are elected from the communities. Below is the organizational structure of the Muslim affairs in the Kingdom of Thailand.
Figure 1
The flow of the organizational structure of the Muslims affairs in the Kingdom of Thailand
King
Department of Local Administration, Department of Religious Affairs,
Ministry of Interior Ministry of Education
Chularajmontri
The National Committee for Islamic
Affairs of Thailand (5 persons)
The Central Committee of Islamic
Affairs of Thailand
The Provincial Committee for Islamic Affairs (30 committees)
Mosque Committee headed by Imam( 15 persons)
Source: Omar Farouk, “The Muslims of Thailand: A Survey” (1988).
Powers and Duties of the Waqf committee
The committee is vested with the powers and charged with the duties to administer, control and manage waqf properties. It is provided in the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque 1947. Their responsibilities and duties are as follows:
1. Investing and determining the nature and extent of waqf properties
2. Ensuing that waqf property and incomes arising there from
3. Giving instructions for the proper administration of waqf properties
4. Monitoring the affairs of the mosque
5. Introducing creative and innovative modes of waqf development.
Those duties as provided in the Royal Act suggested that the waqf committee could function as waqf property protectors. However, in practice the waqf committee in those for provinces are facing various problems, for example the problem of staffing, less of creativity and innovative thinking in developing and promoting awqaf. More importantly, most of the committee are lacking of professional expertise in awqaf development.
Analysis the provisions of the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque1947
According to what has been mentioned above, it found that section 7 of the Royal Act concerning Muslim mosque 1947 speaks about the mosque property by giving the authority to the mosque committee to manage and control over mosque property. Thus according to this law, the waqf committee is the one that has total supervision over all the waqf properties. The waqf committee has the right to freely distribute the endowed money to any direction without being confined to the areas that the original endowers have decided to allocate their money to. This act is too general and vague, it might be abuse of power by waqf committee and therefore, independent body should be appointed.
From what we can see above, it is proven that there is no proper waqf institution which initiated by the government in the four southern border provinces of Thailand. Though there is law speaks about it.
The Royal Act concerning Islamic Patronage Act, 1945
The Act of 1945 was similar with the above Act and was enacted to regulate and monitor the Muslim affairs in Thailand. Though it was similar with the Royal Act, it is important to discuss its provisions. There are two sections which speak about mosque property viz., section 7 and section 8.
Section 7 of the Islamic Patronage Act, 1945 provides to the effect that:
“The Provincial Islamic Religious Committee has the power to monitor and take care the properties owned by mosques”
Section 8 of the Islamic Patronage Act, 1945 also provides
“The procedural regulating concerning appointments and removal and management of the mosque property shall be determined by the National Committee for Islamic affairs with the consent of the Ministry of Interior”.
Analysis the provisions of the Royal Act concerning Islamic Patronage Act 1945
By virtue of section 7 and 8 of the Patronage of Islam Act of 1945 several persons could be appointed as committee to look after mosque property. Secondly, the definition of mosque property includes waqf properties as understood by Muslims. There is also no detailed provision on the qualifications of trustee or mutawalli. It is observed that this provision is silent about the appointment of trustee, its procedures of handling the dispute as to the waqf property. This two Acts viz., the Royal Act, 1945 and the Muslim mosque Act,1947 seem to overlook the importance of waqf property, for example the issue of the registration of waqf property and the appointment and responsibilities of mutawalis. Therefore, those two laws as mentioned above should be reviewed and amended. As a result, the MRCC has to adopt a conventional approach wherever the two Acts are silent. In Narathiwat, for example, the normal practice is that when complaint was lodged as to waqf property, the MRCC will call imam, khatib and bilal to give statement. If MRCC is unable to settle the case, the imam with the consultation of the mosque committee members will bring the case to the provincial court. The provincial court will refer to the Thai Civil and Commercial Law Code 1934.
Form the discussion above, it is suggested in such a way because those two laws are very important in the administration of waqf property in Thailand. Besides that there are certain laws which dealt with property and trust.
Certain Other Laws Relevant to the Property Administration in
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