What is the consequence if witnesses retract testimony stating a slave is free (manumitted)?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Judicial Rulings
Primary text
If witnesses testify to the freedom of a slave and subsequently retract their testimony, they are obligated, without dispute, to pay compensation for the slave's value to the original master. This is because removing a slave from the possession of their master through testimony of freedom is analogous to removing the slave by testifying that they belong to someone else. Since liability for value is established in the latter case, it is established here, and they must pay the value because slaves are things to be valued (Mutaqawwamat), not things interchangeable by measure or weight (Dhawat al-Amthal).
Supporting text
The fact that Shafi'i, who dissented in the case of testifying the slave belongs to another, agrees here, serves as proof against his position in the dissenting case.