Should Sharia laws be reconsidered?
Author: Sandhya Jain Publication: The Pioneer Date: February 12, 2002 As Muslim nations, leaders and intellectuals begin responding to growing international concerns over fundamentalism, it may be worthwhile for the United Nations and human rights bodies to consider if the practice of religious-criminal law in several Islamic countries is consistent with the ethos and values of the modern world. Muslims like Ibn Warraq crave the right to interpret their faith according to their sensitivities (ijtihad), without fear of violence from those with differing opinions. What defeats this endeavour in several countries is the attempt by both the clergy and the rulers to appear more Islamic than the violent fundamentalist groups. Some prominent cases from various parts of the world throw light on how the Sharia impacts the lives of those on the wrong side of a religious or ideological divide. The Taliban’s arrest of foreign aid workers last year, on charges of preaching Christianity in Islamic A
