Sharia Law

[naomi24]

Did anyone see tonight's BBC documentary on Sharia Law in Nigeria? Any thoughts, and do you think a duel system of Sharia Law and British Law could work here?

[naomi24]

Fender, I wondered how they'd ever get four male witnesses to a rape too,but the judge says the woman is supposed to shout - and then there will be witnesses. Isn't that unbelievable?!

[naomi24]

Sorry, mistake in the question. Of course I meant 'dual'. We can do without duels!!

[Hawkwalk]

although it seemed to be doing some good for petty crime I felt that it was totally inflexible and the judgement is in the hands of one man who is completely controlled by his religion.

The guy who was charged with theft and then given 10 lashes had no chance. There was no evidence by the police, no witnesses, no one claiming their property had been stolen and just a beaten confession from the local police.

And as for a rape case then forget it. If you dont scream and shout and gather 4 witnesses then you are the one in the wrong. How does that work!!!

[WaldoMcFroog]

I didn't see it. How do they decide which system of justice is employed?

[naomi24]

Waldo, The society is made up of both Christians and Muslims, and the people have a choice of whether to use the state judicial system which is based on the British system, or that of Sharia law. It seems that most of the Muslims there choose Sharia law.

[JJ2006]

Hello Naomi24, this is my first answer.

In my opinion the government should never allow Sharia Law to have any official status within our legal framework. However at the same time it's only right that cultural values, religious attitues and family structures should be taken into consideration within the law.

Many of the principles of Sharia Law are considered unacceptable, and offensive even amongst many muslims. These barbaric laws have no places in this country, laws including stoning to death for adultery and petty thieves having arms amputated; or laws that make women inferior while giving men overwhelming power.

[brionon]

Yes if you will also accept Pagan law,of which,as in many things,I am the sole arbiter.

[naomi24]

Hello again, John, and thanks for your input. I hope you enjoy answerbank as much as most of us already here do.

[JJ2006]

Thanks babe

[naomi24]

brionon, you sound a bit like the judge in the programme - although I'm sure you wouldn't be quite so tyrannical! :o)

[Octavius]

All aspects of a Muslim's life are governed by Sharia. In the Islamic tradition Sharia is seen as something that nurtures humanity. They see the Sharia not in the light of something primitive but as something divinely revealed.

Whilst us in the West would see a draconian, medieval practice full of beheadings, stoning and amputations, Muslims see the Sharia regulating all human actions and puts them into five categories: obligatory, recommended, permitted, disliked or forbidden.

In Arabic, Sharia means the clear, well-trodden path to water. Islamically, it is used to refer to the matters of religion that God has legislated for His servants. Thus it is seen as divine guidance.

It is the aspects referred to above that determine we could not alllow a two-tier legal system to evolve or exist, since elements of sharia have no place in a humanitarian society. Not just the hadd penalty aspects (execution, amputation and public floggin), but also the penalties for adultery (100 lashes or stoning, or death if caught in the act by 4 people) and the obligation of a husband to beat his wife into submission and model behaviour.

It is likely that many Muslims in the UK would be in favour of Sharia law being implemented here, but true Sharia law is only really possible in a Muslim society, not in a non-Muslim or mixed society. Flogging for public drunkenness might make some of our binge drinkers think twice before acting as they do.

It would be interesting to see though, whether those (non-Muslim) people who think that we should "bring back hanging" or reintroduce capital punishment would be as eager to see the ful effect of something like sharia law. A short excursion around chop chop square in Riyadh, soon puts that right.

[Lonnie]

Hi naomi,
I never saw the programme, but I know what Sharia Law is, and stands for, having made it my business to read up on it.

As for the difference between the male and female roles in it, fenders second answer just about covers it.

I think it was a 'Dispatches' programme, where an Immam was aked, what happens if a woman doesn't do as she was told, and he replied, Hit her.

[naomi24]

Octavius, It's a mistake to assume that those who call for the return of capital punishment in this country necessarly advocate the brutality associated with Sharia Law.

Hi Lonnie, the thing that struck me most - apart from the outageous law on rape and adultery - was the one fellow who was accused of stealing, and was thrashed for the crime, even though he denied it and there was no evidence whatsoever against him.

It seems in the main that if someone's accused then they're automatically deemed gulty. Did other people feel that?

[Llamatron]

I only caught the last five minutes.
What was truly scary was when the reporter asked should sharia be introduced into the UK and is it really compatible with the modern world. The response was that it was in the Koran and therefore the question cannot even be asked. Such blind unquestioning obedience to a bunch of words in a book is frightening. These people belong in the stone age.

DO NOT QUESTION

The most important unwritten tenant of all religions.

[Llamatron]

That would be 'tenet' then. Doh.

[ruby27]

Yes, and no its not possible as SL is in contradiction with so many laws in this country

Islam is about 1400 years old, if you compare this to Christianity when it was 1400 years old, the treatment of wrongdoers was also barbaric. Probably good reason for separation of Church and State.

Fortunately we has such a well established judicial system, there is no way of this being overturned by a minority, most Muslims in this country do not want Sharia law, ans the few that do are in no position to impose something the massive majority would not accept

[ludwig]

It said at the start of the program that 40% of British muslims want this, which is a bit worrying, but Ruby is right - it would never be feasible to implement any form of dual legal system here.
It might be ok for a country like Nigeria, but in a modern democratic, well educated and largely secular country, that's also bound by EU laws and regulations it would be totally impracticable...and thank 'god' for that.

[Lonnie]

Under this goverment, it truly wouldn't surprise me, for them to say at some stage in the near future, that Muslims can answer to both British and Muslim (Sharia) law, with Sharia taking precedence.