Toronto SUN: "Catholic canon law, Judaic law -- or Sharia simply out of step for a modern society"

Sun, April 17, 2005

Bryant feels the heat over Sharia law
IT IS SIMPLY OUT OF STEP FOR A MODERN
SOCIETY TO ALLOW MEDIEVAL FORMS OF JUSTICE

By CHRISTINA BLIZZARD
The Toronto Sun
http://tinyurl.com/7z48r


WHILE ATTORNEY General Michael Bryant was making headlines all last week with his plans to keep Karla Homolka on a short leash when she is released from prison, his toughest test this spring could well be the way he deals with the thorny issue of Islamic law.

Last December, former NDP attorney general Marion Boyd released a 150-page report report supporting changes to the 1991 Arbitration Act that could allow civil family law cases to be decided using sharia law, a 1,400-year-old set of Islamic rules and laws covering legal and family issues.

The province asked Boyd to assess a plan by the Islamic Institute for Civil Justice to use sharia principles in settling family law matters. No decision has yet been made.

But Bryant is under pressure from his own backbench, especially from women, who fear any introduction of sharia law will be a setback for women and children.

Etobicoke Centre MPP Donna Cansfield has heard from groups in her community who fear their rights will be diminished. "Obviously, representing women and children is a concern to me so I think the safeguards dealing with the issues around equity and protection of women's and children's rights are important," says Cansfield.

WHAT PROTECTIONS?

She wants to know, "what are the protections that are required to ensure that their rights are in fact protected?"

Cansfield says she's talked to the Canadian Association of Muslim Women and a number of individual Muslim women in her community. "Some of them are saying they are not sure their community knows and understands the difference between arbitration and mediation," she says. (Arbitration is binding.)

Another Liberal, Kathleen Wynne, believes the province needs to move carefully on this. "It is a very big issue and it is a women's issue to a large extent, so I am vitally interested on how we respond to the report," says the Don Valley West MPP.

The Quebec government said emphatically recently that it would not allow sharia rules to be used in its courts.

Critics say sharia law is dismissive of women and treats them as being inferior to men. In the case of a marriage breakup, under Islamic law, the man is given custody of the children and it allows only three months of support to the woman.

Complicating the issue is the fact that the Arbitration Act already allows Jews and Catholics to use their own religious tenets in settling disputes. If Bryant disallows sharia, he could face accusations that he is discriminating against Muslims.

SIMILAR CONCERNS

MPPs from other parties have similar concerns. New Democrat Marilyn Churley says it's not just the Muslim faith that presents a problem when it comes to arbitration.

"Within all faith-based dispute mechanisms, there can be issues around patriarchy and sexism," she says. "The arbitration process is too susceptible to manipulation when dealing with the power dynamics often present in family relationships.

"It is not difficult to imagine, and indeed we heard of cases, where a woman leaving an abusive relationship may face intense pressure to agree to an arbitration process that is not in her interest."

The fact is, it is simply out of step for a modern society to allow medieval forms of justice, be it Catholic canon law, Judaic law -- or sharia.

Sure, Boyd and others may try to convince us that Sharia will only be used when a woman agrees to it. But how hard is it to intimidate a young woman who may be new to this country, may not be familiar with her rights -- and who may live in fear of what will happen if she doesn't agree?

The only sensible route for Bryant is to drop all religious abitration from the legislation. This is the 21st century and all women should be treated in the same fashion -- and equal to men in the eyes of the law.