Gary's views

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

SHARIA LAW
Few things have made me as angry recently as the Archbishop's comments about Sharia law. I have met him and he is a genuine and intelligent man, but he has got this completely and utterly wrong. Instead of suggesting that elements of Islamic law might be drafted into our own law in the future we should be sending the opposite signal: that Sharia law will never be acceptable in any part of the legal system in the United Kingdom, full stop.

I say this for two reasons. First of all, it is crucial, if we are to retain any form of national and social cohesion that we all live under the same law. Naturally now we have devolved institutions in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, sometimes their laws are different from those in England. But if I fly into Glasgow the same law applies to me in that city as any other person in it. That is how it should be. I do not like certain aspects of our drinking and gambling laws, but I cannot claim that certain parts of the law do not apply to me differently because I am a practicing Christian, nor should I. Britain has never been so diverse and even the cultural gaps between old and young have never been greater. But having one law for all, irrespective of race, colour or creed is part of what binds us together.

Second, we have got to stop pandering to minorities, and in this case a minority of a minority. I am pleased to know lots of Muslims. They are delighted to be British citizens and embrace all that westernisation has to offer. They are hard working, committed to their families and ambitious for themselves and their children. They love the freedom this country offers. They would be horrified at the thought of being shackled once again by Sharia law, especially the women. The Muslim community makes up about 3% of British people and of those only a tiny fraction are the religious zealots we see on TV. The vast majority of this group just want to be accepted for what they are: moderate British citizens who want to get on with their lives.

So let us stop bowing and scraping to a few extremists who want to impose their ways on the rest of us. Let there be one law, the same law, for all of us. What do you think?

Labels: SHARIA LAW

posted by Nigel on Friday, February 15, 2008