What is the ruling on young people participating in scouting camps held outside their country?
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The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : May Allah forgive us and you, O honorable Shaykh. Schools incorporate non-curricular activities, including what is called scouting, which involves trips and other activities. They have decided to hold camps in the cities of Jeddah and Ta'if for a week during the vacation. The young people who go to these camps are at least sixteen years old, and they claim to have some students of knowledge with them. What is the ruling on young people participating in these camps, and what is your guidance to their guardians regarding travel? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : I think that such centers should be established in the same country, meaning each country should establish a center for itself to gather the young people around it, so they do not need to travel. They will be more at ease and better protected from idleness when they are with their families. Those who travel to other countries may find the opportunity to engage in idleness at the beginning of the day, at the end of it, or at night, especially in some parks by the sea in Jeddah or similar places. I think the guides should strive to have the centers established in their own country. However, if an older, sensible, and respectful person wants to go with them to participate in guidance and counseling, there is nothing wrong with that. But if a young boy goes merely for a leisure trip, I do not think that is good, although I do not say that it is forbidden; rather, I think that something else is better than it.
The questioner : May Allah forgive us and you, O honorable Shaykh. Schools incorporate non-curricular activities, including what is called scouting, which involves trips and other activities. They have decided to hold camps in the cities of Jeddah and Ta'if for a week during the vacation. The young people who go to these camps are at least sixteen years old, and they claim to have some students of knowledge with them. What is the ruling on young people participating in these camps, and what is your guidance to their guardians regarding travel? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : I think that such centers should be established in the same country, meaning each country should establish a center for itself to gather the young people around it, so they do not need to travel. They will be more at ease and better protected from idleness when they are with their families. Those who travel to other countries may find the opportunity to engage in idleness at the beginning of the day, at the end of it, or at night, especially in some parks by the sea in Jeddah or similar places. I think the guides should strive to have the centers established in their own country. However, if an older, sensible, and respectful person wants to go with them to participate in guidance and counseling, there is nothing wrong with that. But if a young boy goes merely for a leisure trip, I do not think that is good, although I do not say that it is forbidden; rather, I think that something else is better than it.