Is a joint admission by the buyer and the manumitted slave accepted regarding the slave's freedom when the slave was freed by the buyer?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Usurpation
Primary text
If the buyer frees the slave and both the buyer and the slave then admit the slave is free, this admission is not accepted. The slave remains free because a right pertaining to others has become attached to him. This is the position of the Qadi (judge). The juristic reasoning is that freedom involves a right belonging to God Almighty. Thus, if two witnesses testify to the manumission, even when the master and the slave agree upon the slave's bondage, their testimony is heard. Similarly, if a man claims he is free and subsequently admits to being a slave, his admission of slavery is not accepted. This ruling aligns with the position of Al-Shafi'i.
Supporting text
An alternative possibility exists where the manumission is voided if all parties—the claimant, the buyer, and the slave—agree on the original bondage. In this case, the slave reverts to the claimant because his lineage is unknown, and he admitted to being a slave to the one claiming him, which is valid, just as if the buyer had not manumitted him.