'˜Liberals who back Sharia law would be its first victims'

Sharia law is a central part of Islam and as such is something Muslims may aspire to seeing enacted in countries that they move to, he believes.

“It is utterly incompatible with UK law in so far as by even acknowledging an alternative judicial system we undermine our own,” he said.

“The western pluralist liberal democracy can only be sustained by rejecting an Islamic Sharia theology which undermines it.

“The values we take for granted are imperilled by Sharia and one only has to look at Saudi, or Iran, to understand that unless we want to hang gay people, stone adulterers and amputate the limbs of criminals we should say no to this ideology.

“The irony is that liberals who seek to accommodate Sharia will become its first victims.”

Critics of Sharia law as enforced in many Islamic countries say it is often incompatible with democracy, Human rights, Freedom of speech, Freedom of thought, conscience and religion, LGBT rights and Women’s Rights.

Belfast Pastor Jim McConnell was recently charged and cleared of a criminal offence for saying he did not trust Muslims.

At the time he said his remarks were inspired by hearing the story of pregnant woman Meriam Yehya Ibrahim (26), who was sentenced to death in Sudan after refusing to recant her Christian beliefs.

But the Muslim Council of Britain yesterday firmly defended Sharia law.

“There has been a lot of hysteria and nonsense written about ‘Sharia’ and Sharia law, often by experts who resort to Wikipedia,” it told the News Letter.

“Whilst the word of God and the basic precepts of Islam (such as the belief in God, his Prophet and the requirements of worship) are immutable, Islamic thought has continuously evolved over time and in the face of changing circumstances.

“Among the paramount objectives of Sharia are the preservation of life and fostering intellectual development.”

It argued that Sharia “encourages civic responsibility and good citizenship” in Britain.

“Muslims, like other faith communities, do not want special favours but parity.

“We should also be open to the idea that the spirit and precepts of Sharia can help enrich British society, as it is doing for example in the area of Islamic finance and its approach to equality.”

Gavin Boyd, policy manager of the Rainbow Project, said it believes that the interests of LGB&T people are best served “by legal systems which are secular and founded on the principles of human rights and a respect for the fundamental dignity of all persons”.

He added: “We do not support any legal system in which the dignity of human beings is less valuable than adherence to religious beliefs, be they Islamic, Christian, Jewish or any other.”

Former Belfast Islamic Centre spokesman Dr Raied al-Wazzan told BBC Talkback in November that he would support the introduction of Sharia law into the UK, if it was done with public support.

Asked on Wednesday what Sharia would look like in the UK, he replied: “I am not a cleric, you could find better people to comment than me. It depends what you are talking about.

“There are hundreds of books on Sharia law and my own interpretation may be different to someone else’s.”

In January last year he apologised after voicing support for Islamic State on BBC Radio Ulster. His complaint to PSNI about McConnell’s comments led to the pastor being prosecuted.

Belfast Islamic Centre did not offer any comment on Sharia law.

Ben Lowry: Dr Al-Wazzan role in McConnell case was a reason to pause