[lit-ideas] Re: Sharia Law and Britain's decline

  • From: Judith Evans <judithevans001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Thu, 8 Sep 2011 20:47:25 +0100 (BST)

Thank you, Ursula.  I did try to get information by Googling but -- of course? 
-- ran into attack-dog pieces with no actual content.  Yes, it is remarkably 
similar.  And the concerns women critics express are the same.  

Divorce is an interesting issue, as of course it's unsatisfactory for women to 
face one-sided divorce courts, but the state can hardly grant or deny a 
religious divorce.  

Judy Evans, Cardiff, UK










j
 





--- On Thu, 8/9/11, Ursula Stange <Ursula@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

From: Ursula Stange <Ursula@xxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Sharia Law and Britain's decline
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Thursday, 8 September, 2011, 20:32



  
    
  
  
    The Ontario situation is very similar, Judy (and anyone else who is
    interested).

    http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/islam/shariah-law.html

    

    

    

    On 11-09-08 3:09 PM, Judith Evans wrote:
    
      In my view, Lawrence, your blog posts do not count as a reply to any of 
my points.

Let me reply to *your* points, in your email, now.


      
        
          
            
              
                
                  
                    
                      
                        
                          
                        
                      
                    
                  
                
              
            
          
        
      
      “The 
sharia courts operating in Britain, will hear and pass legally binding 
judgment on cases involving divorce, financial disputes, and even 
domestic violence
<<<<<<<<<

Let me quote from the very Daily Mail article you quote:

*******************
In Britain, sharia courts are permitted to rule only in civil cases,
such as divorce and financial disputes.
*******************


And let me explain the divorce point.

Sharia courts can deal only with divorce in an Islamic marriage, can only end 
-- or not -- a Muslim marriage.  (They make this clear.)  Muslim/Islamic 
marriages contracted in the US are not recognised by UK law, a civil marriage 
must be contracted if a couple wish to be regarded as legally married. If a 
couple married by civil and Muslim ceremony seek a divorce, the Sharia court 
can only grant (or not) a Muslim divorce. So, a couple would have to seek a 
civil divorce also.

(The Beth Din is in a similar position.)

Nonetheless, full prior agreement by both parties is required.

"Legally binding" here is, then, an interesting concept.

How, Lawrence, do parties to a Muslim marriage in the US get a divorce from the 
Muslim marriage?

Financial disputes can indeed be decided by the sharia courts/tribunals.  This 
seems so uncontentious to me as to be hardly worth discussing. 

You say (Daily Mail again)

**************
 “In one recent inheritance dispute in Nuneaton, a Muslim man's estate was spit 
was between three daughters and two sons with each son receiving twice as much 
as each daughter – in keeping with sharia law.    
**************

I can't find this case. What did the will say? 


      
        
          
            
              
                
                  
                
              
            
          
        
      
         and even 
domestic violenc
<<<<<<<<<

this is of course dodgy in the extreme.  The sharia courts/tribunals have no, 
repeat, no, jurisdiction in criminal matters. They also can only hear cases and 
issue rulings with the consent of both parties.  

So, what's going on here?  It seems that the tribunals are, in conjunction with 
the police, acting as mediators/arbitrators. Without a specific case or cases I 
can't really say any more except that the police may be at fault here, one 
point apart. Any ruling they make on this cannot be legally binding.

Judy Evans, Cardiff, UK




    
  

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