What is the obligation of one who sees a person in sin, and should he conceal it from them, and what is the nature of concealment?
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The questioner : Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.
His EminenceThe Shaykh : In reality, a person may see a man committing a sin, for example, people committing sodomy or unlawful sexual intercourse, or some other sin. Then, after a few days, he talks about it. This young man who saw them says: "I saw people, but I do not want to inform you. I want to conceal it from them. Concealment is good, but I do not know if this is concealment? And what is the nature of concealment? For example, if one finds such people, what should he do with them? May Allah reward you with good."
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for one who sees a person committing a major sin or other sins to first advise him. If he then reforms, that is what is desired. If he does not reform, it is obligatory to report his case to the one in authority.
It is not permissible at all to tell people about the sins one has seen, because if one does that, this sin becomes trivial in the hearts of people. Then, people who hear this imagine that the entire society is like this, and this is wrong. The society, praise be to Allah, has good and it has evil, but its good in most of our lands—praise be to Allah—is greater than its evil without doubt. So, for a person to talk about the sins, open sinfulness, and lewdness he sees in societies, I see that this is an error. And a person should first address the problem with the one committing the sin. If he can address it himself, he is the most appropriate to do so. And a person’s conviction based on what he learns from the Shari'ah is better than his being deterred by what comes from the ruler, because he leaves it off with conviction and repents to Allah with a true repentance. If this is not possible, the matter is reported to the one in authority, and the conscience is cleared by that.
As for some people who, when they see something, go and talk about it, and perhaps they make the mud stickier by describing the matter as worse than what they saw, this is wrong, and we do not approve of this.
As for concealment: if a person is unable to advise the one he saw committing a sin, then he looks at the situation: if the person is known for evil and corruption, then it is not permissible to conceal it from him; rather, he should explain his case to the one in authority. But if the person is unknown in his status, or is known for uprightness but his soul incited him to do what he did, then concealing it from him is better.
His EminenceThe Shaykh : In reality, a person may see a man committing a sin, for example, people committing sodomy or unlawful sexual intercourse, or some other sin. Then, after a few days, he talks about it. This young man who saw them says: "I saw people, but I do not want to inform you. I want to conceal it from them. Concealment is good, but I do not know if this is concealment? And what is the nature of concealment? For example, if one finds such people, what should he do with them? May Allah reward you with good."
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for one who sees a person committing a major sin or other sins to first advise him. If he then reforms, that is what is desired. If he does not reform, it is obligatory to report his case to the one in authority.
It is not permissible at all to tell people about the sins one has seen, because if one does that, this sin becomes trivial in the hearts of people. Then, people who hear this imagine that the entire society is like this, and this is wrong. The society, praise be to Allah, has good and it has evil, but its good in most of our lands—praise be to Allah—is greater than its evil without doubt. So, for a person to talk about the sins, open sinfulness, and lewdness he sees in societies, I see that this is an error. And a person should first address the problem with the one committing the sin. If he can address it himself, he is the most appropriate to do so. And a person’s conviction based on what he learns from the Shari'ah is better than his being deterred by what comes from the ruler, because he leaves it off with conviction and repents to Allah with a true repentance. If this is not possible, the matter is reported to the one in authority, and the conscience is cleared by that.
As for some people who, when they see something, go and talk about it, and perhaps they make the mud stickier by describing the matter as worse than what they saw, this is wrong, and we do not approve of this.
As for concealment: if a person is unable to advise the one he saw committing a sin, then he looks at the situation: if the person is known for evil and corruption, then it is not permissible to conceal it from him; rather, he should explain his case to the one in authority. But if the person is unknown in his status, or is known for uprightness but his soul incited him to do what he did, then concealing it from him is better.