Shari'a and Europe (original) (raw)

The term shari’a often has a negative connotation in the mind of a person born and raised with values of the Western World. For a Muslim on the other hand it is more obvious to associate the shari’a with ‘goodness’. Instead of relating the Islamic law to stoning, the amputation of hands and other forms of cruel corporal punishment Muslims frequently appreciate the shari’a for the reason that it is divine; it offers a Muslim directives to live a just life. “It is only a couple of countries (Iran, Saudi-Arabia, Sudan, and Somalia) where the shari’a is applied in its most repulsing form” (Vreeken, 2010). Shari’a literally means ‘the way to the source’ or as Fulton states: “the translation of shari’a [is] “the way to follow” (Fulton, 2011). “The general consensus of Muslim jurists […] has always been that the Shari’a is concerned with human welfare and based upon justice and equity” (Esposito, 2001). Thus it may be clear that the association with shari’a or Islamic law generates extremely opposed reactions. The translations and connotations of the word shari’a do not give a clear image of the term. Therefore I will outlay the Islamic law in the first chapter. An overview of the historical process prior to the forming of Islamic law and an explanation of the complexity of shari’a will pass by; from the essence, the Qur’an, to the multiple interpretations to the Islamic family law existing in Europe. Furthermore I will analyse what the imaging of the Muslims and the Islam in Europe looks like, and what the consequences of this image are for the introduction of the shari’ a. In chapter three will be determined what the norms and values (with reference to shari’ a) of Europe are. These norms and values will be concretized in the EU directives concerning human rights. An overview of the existing shari’ a courts is evident, Britain and Greece are two EU member states that currently have official Islamic tribunals cooperated in their system. Finally and most important, the EU equality directives will be compared with the corresponding Islamic family laws. The objective of this study is to find an answer to the question whether or not the Islamic Family law can be implemented in the European Union. The general consensus in Europe is that the Islam, and therefore the shari’a is incompatible with the applied European norms and values, represented by the human rights.