{"id":1919,"date":"2004-08-23T21:47:01","date_gmt":"2004-08-24T02:47:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/?p=1919"},"modified":"2004-08-23T21:47:01","modified_gmt":"2004-08-24T02:47:01","slug":"canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/","title":{"rendered":"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards"},"content":{"rendered":"<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\">\n<html><head><meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"><meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"><\/head><body><table cellpadding=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" border=\"0\" align=\"right\">\n<tr>\n<td><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.altmuslim.com\/ee_images\/canadamuslim.jpg\" border=\"0\"><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"right\">\n<div class=\"caption\">Waiting for justice<\/div>\n<p><\/p><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<p>The Canadian province of Ontario has been involved in a bold legal experiment allowing Muslims to voluntarily resolve family disputes using arbitration boards governed by Islamic principles \u2013 but Canada\u2019s Muslims are <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dailytimes.com.pk%2Fdefault.asp%3Fpage%3Dstory_11-8-2004_pg7_34\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">sharply divided<\/a> over their implementation.  Central to the controversy is the fact that the <a href=\"http:\/\/muslim-canada.org%2FIICJ.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Islamic Institute of Civil Justice<\/a> (which administers the rules but does not supercede Canadian law) draws on the expertise of Muslim jurists trained in <i>sharia<\/i>, interpretations of which differ depending on school of thought and which some fear could be <a href=\"http:\/\/cnews.canoe.ca%2FCNEWS%2FCanada%2F2004%2F08%2F22%2F597420-cp.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">manipulated<\/a> by conservative elements in the Muslim community.  <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe differential treatment under Islamic law in certain circumstances will basically affect equality rights,\u201d says Riad Saloojee of CAIR-Canada, who supports faith-based arbitration as an alternative to litigation so long as additional safeguards are implemented.  \u201cWho will represent the rights of women?\u201d asks <a href=\"http:\/\/www.chp.ca%2Farc-CHPSpeaksOut%2Fislamic_law.htm\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Alia Hogben<\/a>, president of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women. \u201cWe don\u2019t understand, from the Canadian Muslim women\u2019s point [of view], why another system is being applied.\u201d  (These concerns aren\u2019t limited to Muslims \u2013 Canada\u2019s Jewish community is going through the same <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cjnews.com%2Fviewarticle.asp%3Fid%3D3962\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">internal debate<\/a>, for many of the same reasons.)  <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/muslim-canada.org%2Fsitedex2.htm%23TheCanadian\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Supporters<\/a> of the mediation rules, which have been in place in a less formal way since 1991, feel that the concerns has been <a href=\"http:\/\/muslim-canada.org%2Fambitioninterview.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">overblown<\/a>.  \u201cA lot of the hyperbole and the foreboding of doom is just <a href=\"http:\/\/www.csmonitor.com%2F2004%2F0810%2Fp01s03-woam.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">nonsense<\/a>,\u201d says Mubin Shaikh, a spokesman for Toronto\u2019s Masjid El Noor. \u201cNo one is advocating amputations in the public square. We accept that the Charter of Rights is supreme. Sharia won\u2019t be used to contradict that supremacy.\u201d  They <a href=\"http:\/\/muslim-canada.org%2Fnews04.html\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">argue<\/a> that a multicultural society like Canada, there is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theglobeandmail.com%2Fservlet%2FArticleNews%2FTPStory%2FLAC%2F20040819%2FCOSHARIA19%2FTPComment%2FTopStories\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">flexibility<\/a> to allow Muslims to govern family life with their own rules.  \u201cOther cultural communities like the Francophones, the Jewish people and the aboriginal communities,\u201d explained Syed Mumtaz Ali of the IICJ, \u201chave been using their civil law courts for a long time.\u201d  <\/p>\n<p>If the boards do proceed, they will offer a chance to compare Islamic principles closely to those of the West.  \u201cDo they meet with modern standards of justice <a href=\"http:\/\/news.bbc.co.uk%2F1%2Fhi%2Fprogrammes%2Fbreakfast_with_frost%2F3574040.stm\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">compatible<\/a> with a liberal democracy in the beginning of the 21st century?\u201d asks Professor Nadere Hashemi of the University of Toronto.  \u201cThere is a potential here for something positive to come out in terms of a Canadian contribution to an Islamic reformation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><i><\/i><\/p>\n<p>Shahed Amanullah is editor-in-chief of altmuslim.com.\n<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":530,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-briefings"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"altmuslim\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2004-08-24T02:47:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.altmuslim.com\/ee_images\/canadamuslim.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Shahed Amanullah\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Shahed Amanullah\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/\",\"name\":\"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2004-08-24T02:47:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2004-08-24T02:47:01+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#\/schema\/person\/0e0efbb645cc461c721083358f82f945\"},\"description\":\"The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/\",\"name\":\"altmuslim\",\"description\":\"Global perspectives on Muslim life, politics &amp; culture\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#\/schema\/person\/0e0efbb645cc461c721083358f82f945\",\"name\":\"Shahed Amanullah\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6c9ebfb8c37dbc2e9865b291bbaeff08?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6c9ebfb8c37dbc2e9865b291bbaeff08?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Shahed Amanullah\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/author\/shahedamanullah\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards","description":"The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards","og_description":"The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/","og_site_name":"altmuslim","article_published_time":"2004-08-24T02:47:01+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.altmuslim.com\/ee_images\/canadamuslim.jpg"}],"author":"Shahed Amanullah","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Shahed Amanullah","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/","name":"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#website"},"datePublished":"2004-08-24T02:47:01+00:00","dateModified":"2004-08-24T02:47:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#\/schema\/person\/0e0efbb645cc461c721083358f82f945"},"description":"The growth of Islamic arbitration boards in Canada has everyone (including Muslims) debating the implementation of sharia principles.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/2004\/08\/canadas_muslims_divided_over_sharia_arbitration_boards\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Canadian Muslims: Canada&#8217;s Muslims divided over &#8220;sharia&#8221; arbitration boards"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/","name":"altmuslim","description":"Global perspectives on Muslim life, politics &amp; culture","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#\/schema\/person\/0e0efbb645cc461c721083358f82f945","name":"Shahed Amanullah","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6c9ebfb8c37dbc2e9865b291bbaeff08?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6c9ebfb8c37dbc2e9865b291bbaeff08?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Shahed Amanullah"},"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/author\/shahedamanullah\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/530"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1919"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1919\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/altmuslim\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}