2019-05-23 Code of Conduct of Islamic Leadership
Code of Conduct of Islamic Leadership
In Shaykh’s Clothing is a resource website for spiritual abuse in the Muslim community. On 17 May 2019 Danish Qasim and Danya Shakfeh, Esq., posted the following on In Shaykh's Clothing:
After spending nearly a decade listening to you and hearing your concerns, we have written, and are now providing the most comprehensive ethical guide for Muslim institutions.
We’ve worked with Muslim institutions for the past 3 years in policy and training. Our focus is customizing policies to fit their religious inclinations. Now we are releasing a policy for free for all Islamic institutions with universal standards for bare minimum practices. This is informed by 9 years of working with targets of spiritual abuse, consultation with lawyers, cult experts, religious scholars and mental health professionals. We have identified the main areas of spiritual abuse that can be addressed at the organizational level. Our code clearly sets the minimum standard of ethical conduct for Muslim organizations and creates a legal mechanism of enforcement through contract law.
On the code of conduct page they provide the following links:
Their summary elaborates upon the purpose of the code:
The purpose of this Code of Conduct is to create accountability via establishing professional expectations. A code of conduct will not eliminate spiritual abuse. Institutions that adopt this code may still cover up abuse, in which case victims will need to take action against the institution for violating the code . Below is a brief explanation on how the Code of Conduct will help address abuse in the following areas:
Members of other religions interested in the ethics of influence in religious settings may benefit from studying what Mr. Qasim and Ms. Shakfeh have produced.
Articles on ICSA's ethics topic collection may also be helpful.