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Wednesday, June 8, 2011

No sharia in England, new proposed law says

As the English lion weakens the end of her majesties reign appears close.  There is occasionally a spark of the old Leo, roaring like his cousin at MGM studios.  This challenge to Islamic supremacy is most likely nothing more than a weak swipe with an arthritic paw, yet it may do some good in slowing down the jihad raging across the British Isle.

The first anti-sharia bill has been proposed, and the fireworks have just begun.  We shall see just how many teeth Rex Britannia has left.


From Christian Concern June 8

New Bill to stop Sharia Law Operationg in the UK

On 7 June 2011 Baroness Cox introduced a new Bill in the House of Lords intended to outlaw the use of Sharia law where it conflicts with English law. In proposing the new Bill she said:

“Equality under the law is a core value of British justice. My Bill seeks to preserve that standard. My Bill seeks to stop parallel legal, or ‘quasi-legal’, systems taking root in our nation. Cases of criminal law and family law are matters reserved for our English courts alone.

“Through these proposals, I want to make it perfectly clear in the law that discrimination against women shall not be allowed within arbitration. I am deeply concerned about the treatment of Muslim women by Sharia Courts. We must do all that we can to make sure they are free from any coercion, intimidation or unfairness. Many women say, ‘we came to this country to escape these practices only to find the situation is worse here’.”

The Bill has arisen over concerns about the discrimination suffered by Muslim women under the Sharia system. The Bill proposes to protect women by stopping discriminatory rulings that are contrary to UK law and ensuring that Sharia law does not appear to have jurisdiction where it does not.

Sharia law is a detailed system of Islamic law. It is used in both Sharia Councils and Muslim Arbitration Tribunals in the UK. The first Sharia Council was established in 1982 in Birmingham. A recent Civitas report suggested that there are now at least 85 such entities operating in the UK and that the Islamic Sharia Council has made over 7,000 judgments. There are currently at least five Muslim Arbitration Tribunals in Britain (Birmingham, Bradford, London, Manchester and Nuneaton).

Rulings under Sharia law are enforced through the 1996 Arbitration Act, which states that any form of agreement can be used if both parties agree to adhere to its decision. But Civitas found that the decisions of Sharia courts in the UK are likely to be unfair to women and backed by intimidation, and that Sharia rulings transgress human rights standards as applied by British courts.

The Bill’s proposals include:
  • A new criminal offence of ‘falsely claiming legal jurisdiction’ for any person who adjudicates upon matters which ought to be decided by criminal or family courts. The maximum penalty would be five years in prison.
  • Explicitly stating in legislation that sex discrimination law applies directly to arbitration tribunal proceedings. Discriminatory rulings may be struck down under the Bill.
  • Requiring public bodies to inform women that they have fewer legal rights if their marriage is unrecognised by English law.
  • Explicitly stating on the face of legislation that arbitration tribunals may not deal with matters of family law (such as legally recognised divorce or custody of children) or criminal law (such as domestic violence).
  • Making it easier for a civil court to set aside a consent order if a mediation settlement agreement or other agreement was reached under duress.
  • Explicitly stating on the face of legislation that a victim of domestic abuse is a witness to an offence and therefore should be expressly protected from witness intimidation.
Read it all

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