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Sharia law in UK is "unavoidable": Church leader

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Written by News Editor

Friday, 08 February 2008

The religious head of the Anglican Church sparked an angry row Friday after saying the adoption of some parts of Islamic Sharia law alongside Britain's legal system "seems unavoidable." Speaking to BBC radio on Thursday Williams said: "There is a place for finding what would be a constructive accommodation with some aspects of Muslim law as we already do with aspects of other kinds of religious law." Williams added that other religions, like Judaism, enjoyed tolerance of their laws in Britain and called for a "constructive accommodation" with Muslim practice in areas such as marital disputes. Asked if the adoption of some aspects of Sharia was necessary for community cohesion, he said: "It seems unavoidable." Giving an example of how Sharia could come into play, Williams said: "There are ways of looking at marital disputes, for example, which provide an alternative to the divorce courts as we understand them." There are already some religious courts in operation in Britain -- orthodox Jews can choose to turn to the Beth Din to resolve civil disputes, including divorces, if both sides agree to accept its authority. But Williams stressed there could be no place for "a kind of inhumanity that sometimes appears to be associated with the practice of the law in some Islamic states -- the extreme punishments, the attitudes to women." He also called on people in Britain to look at Sharia "with a clearer eye" and "not just associate it with what we read..." If the law did not take more account of minority communities, there would be "no way of legally monitoring what communities do" and levels of oppression could intensify as "people do what they like in private," he added. The issue of integrating Britain's 1.8 million Muslims has been widely debated since July 2005, when four British Islamists carried out suicide bombings on London's transport system, killing 52 people. Those attacks prompted questioning of a long-standing policy of avoiding a single British identity and promoting a multicultural society, which some argue has led to segregation of ethnic minorities. Top Reactions The Archbishop's unexpected comments sparked a huge debate in the UK but the government said it was out of the question that the principles of Sharia could be used in British civil courts. Prime Minister Gordon Brown's official spokesman distanced the premier from the remarks, stressing that "British law should apply in this country, based on British values." Labor parliamentarian Khalid Mahmood had no doubt about where he stood: "I, along with the vast majority of UK Muslims, oppose any such move to introduce Sharia here. British law is the envy of the world." Culture Secretary Andy Burnham went further, telling BBC television Williams was "wrong" and his views were a "recipe for chaos, social chaos." The main opposition Conservatives described the remarks as "unhelpful." Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, called Williams' intervention "muddled and unhelpful". "Raising this idea will give fuel to anti-Muslim extremism," he added. Nick Clegg, leader of the centrist Liberal Democrats, said "On this I think he is wrong" while former Interior Minister David Blunkett said formalizing Islamic law "would be catastrophic in terms of social cohesion". Shaista Gohir, a government advisor on Muslim women, told BBC online that most Muslims in Britain would not welcome Sharia law, adding that polls suggested about 40 percent favored its introduction. Top British press The press laid into Williams, who has long advocated stronger relations with Muslim leaders. The Sun, Britain's leading tabloid, ran the headline "What A Burkha" and said on Friday: "It's easy to dismiss Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams as a silly old goat. In fact he's a dangerous threat to our nation." While the Independent broadsheet said he had made as big a mistake as Pope Benedict XVI, who in 2006 triggered worldwide protests after quoting a historic text saying the Prophet Mohammed's teachings were "evil and inhuman." However, Williams' intervention was welcomed by some, like the Ramadhan Foundation, a British-based body which promotes cooperation between Muslims and non-Muslims. Chairman Muhammad Umar said: "I believe that Muslims would take huge comfort from the government allowing civil matters being resolved according to their faith." The organization added in a statement that Sharia was "widely misunderstood" and that Williams' comments would "reinstate the debate based on facts, not right-wing headlines."

 

 

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