Below is from Mariam Namazie, and ex-Muslim, from her organisation, One Law for All in the UK. The UK has some 80+ Sharia courts. A scandal that they do. There's an enquiry into them, but the feeling around the interested blogosphere is that it'll be a whitewash.
OVER 300 ABUSED WOMEN ISSUE STATEMENT AGAINST PARALLEL LEGAL SYSTEMS: WHO WILL LISTEN TO OUR VOICES?
"We oppose any religious body – whether presided over by men or women – that seeks to rule over us.” So say more than 300 mostly Muslim women, but also others from different faiths who have been abused in their personal lives. From their own lived experiences, these women are voicing their alarm, through a powerful statement published today, about the growing power of religious bodies such as Sharia councils. Read the full statement.
SHARIA COURTS HAVE NO PLACE IN UK FAMILY LAW: LISTEN TO THE WOMEN WHO KNOW
In a piece also published today, Southall Black Sisters Director Pragna Patel states: "Our demand is simple: no religious arbitration of any kind in family matters. We want a secular law underpinned by human rights values to be applicable to all without exception. As the One Law for All campaign has continued to assert, this is the only way to guarantee freedom of religion as well as freedom from religion. The challenges we face are too important to be reduced to a crude and regressive politics of representation". Read full article.
DEVASTATING NEW EVIDENCE AGAINST SHARIA COURTS IN BRITAIN
Also published this week is devastating new evidence submitted by One Law for All to the Home Affairs Select Committee. It reveals how Sharia councils violate human rights, how discrimination and violence lie at the heart of the courts, how they are linked to the transnational Islamist movement, and why they are a parallel legal system, which must be dismantled. The submission also objects to Naz Shah's line of questioning of Spokesperson Maryam Namazie and accusations of "Islamophobia" and "anti-faith" to discredit secular voices.
The evidence unequivocally finds that Britain is failing to meet its obligations to gender equality in family relations as specified in CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women) by permitting the continuation of these courts. Read the full submission.
Previous submissions to the Home Affairs Select Committee by One Law for All, Southall Black Sisters, IKWRO, Centre for Secular Space, Yasmin Rehman and British Muslims for Secular Democracy can be seen here.
Personal testimonies from women whose rights have been violated by Sharia courts continue to be added to our website.
#ONELAWFORALLBECAUSE
#STRUGGLENOTSUBMISSION
We are calling on black and minority women and men as well as secularists and women's rights campaigners to highlight why they are opposed to parallel legal systems and defend one secular law for all. Post your messages on social media using the above hashtags, including with your photo. See some messages here.
SUPPORT THE IMPORTANT WORK OF THE ONE LAW FOR ALL COALITION
Please continue to support the work of the One Law for All coalition by donating. No amount is too small and every little helps. A special thanks to those who donate on a regular basis. We can't tell you what a difference it makes.
DON'T FORGET 22-23 JULY 2017 CONFERENCE
Please don't forget to buy tickets to the 22-23 July 2017 International Conference on Freedom of Conscience and Expression if you can make it. It will be a historic conference - one that you can join for as little as £85 a day (including refreshments, lunch, cocktails, and a brilliant line up of speakers and acts). Find out more about the conference here.
On behalf of One Law for All, we hope you have a lovely holiday and New Year.
We look forward to working with you over the next year against parallel legal systems and for one secular law for all!
Warm wishes
Gina Khan and Maryam Namazie
One Law for All
077 1916 6731
@GinaKhanUK
@MaryamNamazie
