Sharia councils discriminatory, says Baroness Cox

In the following comment piece, Christian Concern’s Director of Islamic Affairs, Tim Dieppe, discusses Baroness Cox’s Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill, which aims to prevent discriminatory aspects of sharia law. Highlighting the need for this bill’s implementation - particularly in light of recent media attention surrounding problems with Muslim integration – Tim argues that only the values of Christianity can help us to stand for right and wrong in an increasingly pluralistic world. 
 

Baroness Cox was interviewed on the BBC Daily Politics show this week and took the opportunity to highlight the discriminatory nature of these councils. She explained how sharia law is inherently discriminatory against women in that divorce is very easy for men to initiate, but very hard for woman to initiate. In addition, men are allowed up to four wives in Islamic law, and Baroness Cox has met women who have married into polygamous relationships without realising it, causing them much distress. Many Muslim women feel betrayed by Britain because we have allowed such a parallel legal system to flourish in this country. They wanted to escape from the restrictions of sharia law and are dismayed to find it operating here in the UK.

This comes in a week when a new survey of Muslims in Britain found that 23% of those polled would like to see sharia law replacing British law in some areas of the country. Nearly one third said that it was acceptable for a British Muslim to keep more than one wife even though polygamy remains illegal here in the UK. Trevor Phillips, former head of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, expressed his shock at these statistics. He said that he now believes that "The integration of Muslims will probably be the hardest task we've ever faced." He explained that this would mean "abandoning the milk and water multiculturalism still so beloved of many and adopting a far more muscular approach to integration."

Trevor Phillips said that, amongst other things, this would mean "halting the growth of sharia courts and placing them under regulation." With this we wholeheartedly agree. We have supported Baroness Cox as she has successfully taken her Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill through the House of Lords. This Bill would make clear that sexual discrimination is illegal in arbitration councils, thereby effectively disallowing the application of the discriminatory aspects of sharia law. It would also strengthen court powers to set aside rulings where discrimination has taken place or where there is evidence of consent being given under duress or manipulation. It would further create a new criminal offence of falsely claiming jurisdiction thus penalising sharia court judges who make rulings outside their remits.

This Bill now requires support from the government in order to progress through the House of Commons. The Home Secretary, Theresa May, has herself admitted that these sharia councils are discriminating against women. She cited "evidence of women being 'divorce'd under sharia law and left in penury, wives who are forced to return to abusive relationships because sharia councils say a husband has a right to 'chastise', and sharia councils giving the testimony of a woman only half the weight of the testimony of a man." We must hope and pray that the government decides that it is time to end these practices and support Baroness Cox's Bill.

It is good to see that more media attention is being given to the problems around the integration of Muslims into our society. What this highlights is that this country needs a clear set of values which we stand by no matter what other cultures or religions say. We used to have a strong sense of identity as a Christian country and we have lost this. It is only Christianity and its values that will enable us to clearly stand for what is right and wrong in the pluralistic world we now inhabit. 
 

Watch Baroness Cox discuss sharia law on BBC's Daily Politics

Related Links: 
Half of Muslims say gays should be outlawed (Sunday Times £)
One in four British Muslims back Sharia law (Herald Scotland £)
Theresa May speech A Stronger Britain, Built on our Values: A New Partnership to Defeat Extremism (Conservatives)