British sharia idea slammed; Archbishop's comments condemned

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle, England), Feb 8, 2008

Byline: By DENISE MOORE

THE Archbishop of Canterbury has been criticised for claiming the adoption of elements of Islamic sharia law in the UK "seems unavoidable".

Dr Rowan Williams said there was a place for finding a "constructive accommodation" in areas such as marriage which could allow Muslim women to avoid Western divorce proceedings.

But his comments have been attacked by Christian and secular groups and a spokesman for Prime Minister Gordon Brown insisted British law would be based on British values and sharia law would be no justification for acting against national law.

Dr Williams told BBC Radio 4's The World At One: "It seems unavoidable and, as a matter of fact, certain conditions of sharia are already recognised in our society and under our law, so it is not as if we are bringing in an alien and rival system.

"We already have in this country a number of situations in which the internal law of religious communities is recognised by the law of the land as justifying conscientious objections in certain circumstances.

"There are ways of looking at marital disputes, for example, which provide an alternative to the divorce courts as we understand them."

But a spokesman for Mr Brown said: "Our general position is that sharia law cannot be used as a justification for committing breaches of English law, nor should the principles of sharia law be included in a civil court for resolving contractual disputes.

"If there are specific instances like stamp duty, where changes can be made in a way that's consistent with British law and British values in a way to accommodate the values of fundamental Muslims, that is something the Government would look at. But the Prime Minister believes British law should apply in Britain, based on British values."

Alistair McBay, spokesman for the National Secular Society said: "In a plural society, all citizens are equal under the law and the Archbishop's comments directly undermine this. On the one hand religious groups say they want to integrate, but actually they want to segregate."

Stephen Green, national director of Christian Voice, said: "This is a Christian country with Christian laws. If Muslims want to live under sharia law then they are free to emigrate to a country where sharia law is already in operation."

Islamic sharia law, though controversial in the West for the extreme nature of some of its punishments, is a legal and social code designed to help Muslims live their daily lives.

Derived partly from the Koran and refined over the centuries by Islamic scholars, it gives a moral system for living.

"Sharia is actually a very positive term," said Dilwar Hussain, a researcher at the Markfield Islamic Foundation in Leicestershire. "It is a personal law, covering the way people worship, the way they pray, the way they fast, the way they relate to each other.

"The term itself has become controversial because although it encapsulates a broad set of values and principles, it is the punishments that people focus on, and we see references to flogging, amputation and stoning. In certain extreme cases, in certain countries, these do happen, but they are the least important parts of sharia."

Polls have indicated some UK Muslims would like to live under sharia law rather than British law.

COMMENT: PAGE 6

CAPTION(S):

DEBATE: Some British Muslims would prefer sharia law; CONTROVERSIAL IDEA: Dr Rowan williams