Is a slave freed if two just partners testify that they accepted payment from the slave to purchase his freedom from his master?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mukātaba (Contractual Manumission)
Primary text
The slave becomes free upon the testimony of the two partners, provided they are just, when they testify that they received the agreed-upon price intended for his manumission. They share in the money taken. If the slave is a partner in ownership, the two witnesses who testified to receiving a portion of the price must share the funds taken with the slave, as the price belonged to the shared owners.
Supporting text
One view holds that if the slave asks his masters to sell him using assets in his possession, and one partner denies receiving his share, the testimony of the other two just partners regarding the payment is accepted for the purpose of freeing the slave's share represented by their portion. The remaining share of the denying partner remains subject to the condition of physical receipt (*qabd*). An objection raised against Al-Kharqi's position is that if a slave uses his own property to buy himself, the sale and manumission are void, and the master has taken the slave's money. The response to this objection suggests interpretations where the slave is a *mukatab* asking them to expedite the payment, or the money in the slave's hand belongs to a third party, or the manumission is conditional upon the receipt of the money.