Forced Prostitution

وَلْيَسْتَعْفِفِ الَّذِينَ لَا يَجِدُونَ نِكَاحًا حَتَّىٰ يُغْنِيَهُمُ اللَّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ

 وَالَّذِينَ يَبْتَغُونَ الْكِتَابَ مِمَّا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُكُمْ فَكَاتِبُوهُمْ إِنْ عَلِمْتُمْ فِيهِمْ خَيْرًا وَآتُوهُم مِّن مَّالِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي آتَاكُمْ 

وَلَا تُكْرِهُوا فَتَيَاتِكُمْ عَلَى الْبِغَاءِ إِنْ أَرَدْنَ تَحَصُّنًا لِّتَبْتَغُوا عَرَضَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا

 وَمَن يُكْرِههُّنَّ 
فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ مِن بَعْدِ إِكْرَاهِهِنَّ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

And let those who do not find the means to marry keep chaste until Allah makes them free from want out of His grace.
And (as for) those who ask for a writing from among those whom your right hands possess, give them the writing if you know any good in them, and give them of the wealth of Allah which He has given you;
and do not compel your slave girls to prostitution, when they desire to keep chaste, in order to seek the frail good of this world's life; 
and whoever compels them, 
then surely after their compulsion Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

[Al-Quran, an-Nur 24:33, Translator: Shakir] 

Surah an-Nur begins with the declaration that this surah is obligatory, and the ayaat clearly detailed (Q24:1). The next few ayaat clearly list the punishments and code of conduct in cases of adultery. Yet, not all cases of adultery are voluntary. There are many women, enslaved, even in today's world, who are forced into prostitution by their owners. Allah knows it and offers clear hope to such women who are oppressed and forced into such sinful activities!  

The prostitution industry flourishes due to men willing to pay for sexual favours. Q24:33 begins with the directive to unmarried men to keep themselves chaste till they can afford to get married. Elsewhere in The Quran, men are repeatedly exhorted to pay the bridal due when solemnising a marriage (free women: Q4:24, slave women: Q4:25, women of The People of The Book: Q5:5, the Prophet's to-be-wives: Q33:50, female emigrants who have embraced Islam: Q60:10). The only exception to the rule seems to be where permission is granted to marry widows (mothers of orphans) for the sake of the orphans' welfare, and even in such situations the directive is to pay graciously; however the women may remit as per their peculiar situation (Q4:2-6 , Q4:127).  

Men have been made protectors of women and are responsible for the financial needs of their women (Q4:34).  

Some people argue that payment of bridal due is similar to payment of money to a prostitute. Allah has forbidden sexual relations outside the bond of marriage, and he has enjoined marriage: 

وَأَنكِحُوا الْأَيَامَىٰ مِنكُمْ وَالصَّالِحِينَ مِنْ عِبَادِكُمْ وَإِمَائِكُمْ إِن يَكُونُوا فُقَرَاءَ يُغْنِهِمُ اللَّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ

And marry the single among you and the righteous among your male slaves, and your female slaves. If they are poor, Allah will enrich them from His Bounty. And Allah (is) All-Encompassing, All-Knowing. 

[Al-Quran, an-Nur, 24:32]

And Allah knows best! 

Oppression & Emancipation

Related post:

World Hunger & Slavery

The rural populace is oppressed by feudal landlords in many societies. 

Someone on a discussion list wrote: 'Free will is like right to vote.  People have right to vote but under what conditions.  They are forced to vote a certain person because their life will then be miserable if they do not vote him.  I refer to population living in rural areas where a Chaudhary controls the life of millions through police stations and Maulvis. People of average or low understanding are easy prey.  There are hundreds of ways through which the will of the people can easily be influenced such as social set up, Maulvis, media and greed.  Similarly, it applies to free will, too.  Millions of people can not exercise free will because of so many reasons i.e. they have no capability to add 2 plus two to equal four due to their lowest understanding.  Free will is conditional... '

My understanding of whether oppressed people will be held accountable or not: 

The duty to fight against oppression or at least walk away from it is upon those who can, as Allah knows the abilities and the trials He has set each one of us. Please consider the following verses: 

http://quran.com/4/75-76 

[Sahih International] And what is [the matter] with you that you fight not in the cause of Allah and [for] the oppressed among men, women, and children who say, "Our Lord, take us out of this city of oppressive people and appoint for us from Yourself a protector and appoint for us from Yourself a helper?" Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah , and those who disbelieve fight in the cause of Taghut. So fight against the allies of Satan. Indeed, the plot of Satan has ever been weak. 

http://quran.com/4/97-99 

[Sahih International] Indeed, those whom the angels take [in death] while wronging themselves - [the angels] will say, "In what [condition] were you?" They will say, "We were oppressed in the land." The angels will say, "Was not the earth of Allah spacious [enough] for you to emigrate therein?" For those, their refuge is Hell - and evil it is as a destination. Except for the oppressed among men, women and children who cannot devise a plan nor are they directed to a way - For those it is expected that Allah will pardon them, and Allah is ever Pardoning and Forgiving.  

Quran (Chapter 90 http://quran.com/90) exhorts the free citizens to reduce inequality by freeing slaves and feeding the hungry, stating that these are the difficult yet required things to do. Quran http://quran.com/2/177 also lists the freeing of slaves among the list of righteous deeds. 

The example of the rural populace who are oppressed is a form of slavery. Its the free citizens of the country who should make the efforts to liberate them. Its the free citizens who will have to account for their inaction. 

http://islamawakened.com/quran/102/8/ || http://quran.com/102/8 

پھر اس دن تم سے ضرور بالضرور نعمتوں کا سوال ہوگا 

And Allah knows best! 

Slavery

Q: Muhammad was keeping slaves and made trade in them. This means that slavery is part of Islam forever. Slavery has only been abolished in Muslim countries under Western pressure. Therefore, slavery can be reinstated at any time. Islamic legislation concerning slavery is being reprinted up till today by the main schools of Islam, so that scholars are aware of it. Furthermore Islam allows female slaves and female prisoners of war to be raped on condition that well-established rules are followed.Muhammad himself encouraged this, see the following authentic tradition/hadith transmitted by Muslim. The title of chapter 29 is already very revealing:Sahih Muslim 8:29: “IT IS PERMISSIBLE TO HAVE SEXUAL INTERCOURSE WITH A CAPTIVE WOMAN AFTER SHE IS PURIFIED (OF MENSES OR DELIVERY) IN CASE SHE HAS A HUSBAND, HER MARRIAGE IS ABROGATED AFTER SHE BECOMES CAPTIVE.”Sahih Muslim 8:3432: “Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that at the Battle of Hunain Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) sent an army to Autas and encountered the enemy and fought with them. Having overcome them and taken them captives, the Companions of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) seemed to refrain from having intercourse with captive women because of their husbands being polytheists. Then Allah, Most High, sent down regarding that:" And women already married, except those whom your right hands possess (verse 4:24)" (i.e., they were lawful for them when their 'Idda period came to an end).

A: Slavery was an integral part of human society, and abolishing it in one go would have created more problems for the society. Muslims were encouraged to free slaves, and slowly, slavery was decreased, if not completely done away with. It is permissible to marry( enter into a marriage contract called nikah) with a slave woman. Allah does not order or allow ‘sex outside marriage’………… whether its rape or with consent, rather, strict punishment is prescribed for sex outside marriage.