A government review into the desirability, purpose and functioning of sharia councils (ie sharia courts) has been 18 months in the making. It was instigated by Theresa May when she was Home Secretary, in the context of allegations of the misuse or abuse of sharia codes of law in the treatment of women (particularly in divorce, domestic violence and child arrangement cases).
Their rulings in this regard were frequently discriminatory, contrary to equality, oblivious to liberal democracy, and damaging to communities. The review sought to examine best practice in relation to their governance and transparency, while assuring compliance and compatibility with UK law.
‘The independent review into the application of sharia law in England and Wales‘ confirms all the discriminatory practices long suspected (and made known by Baroness Cox), but its key recommendation for dealing with them is troubling on a number of levels:
.... One either regulates all religious tribunals and councils equally to ensure compliance with state orthodoxy, or one regulates sharia councils exclusively, which is patently discriminatory, if not ‘Islamophobic’. How do you solve a problem like sharia? [Archbishop Cranmer] Read more
