jocelynne

Your post is a small pool of sanity in the storm of pointless religious argument that continues on this thread.

All the seriously religious, from all sides, manage to achieve is the absolute necessity for the separation of church and state.

A big no to all religious law from Sharia through to ecclesiastical principalities.

NO TO RELIGIOUS DOGMA IN AUSTRALIAN LAW.

University of Melbourne actually offer three courses in Islamic law as part of its Graduate Diploma in Asian Law and LL.M. degree.

They are:

* Fundamentals of Islamic Law
* Current Issues in Islamic Law
* Islamic Law and Politics in Asia

The focus is primarily on Islamic law as understood in our SE Asian neighbours, notably Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.

Jocelynne's complaint that the course doesn't Aboriginal, Jewish or customary African law is odd. You would not expect these to be included in a course on Asian law.

Essentially all the foaming, er, contributors to this discussion seem to have overlooked the fact that the original article said, "it is only a matter of time before Sharia law is proposed as a legitimate means of resolving disputes - including family law disputes - as they arise between Islamic Australians".

No change is required to current Australian statute law for this to happen. Indeed as I pointed out in a previous thread, many Muslims already abide by Sharia law principles in diet, prayers, dress and would, where able, in borrowing and lending money.

The main missing ingredient is an institutional one: mediators trained in contemporary Islamic law. Alternative dispute resolution avenues have been used for 20 years in resolving commercial disputes, http://www.acdcltd.com.au/

The Family Court is strongly encouraging mediation as preferable to formal Court proceedings. There is no reason why outcomes couldn't adhere to Islamic law as well as staying within the broad framework of Australian family law.

For those fixated with the idea that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran represent the only possible model for Sharia law, The Malaysian Star reported yesterday on a recent seminar on "Trends in Family Law Reform in Muslim Countries", http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2006/3/27/lifefocus/13720122&sec=lifefocus

QUOTE
Successful law reform

Women’s groups in Muslim-dominated Morocco and Turkey have pushed the democratic process forward by bringing about justice and equality in their family laws...

A coalition of 200 women’s associations made an unprecedented campaign that lasted from 1999-2004 to defend their cause. There were national-level discussions and the women’s groups stood their ground that the law should be based on equality between the genders, said Amina.

In 2001, Morocco’s new king expressed his concern for the welfare of women and selected a consultative committee. The coalition led the demands for the family code reform and proposed that the consultative committee should also be made up of women, not only men and male Islamic scholars. They also proposed that the committee should include legal experts, sociologists, economists and psychologists.

A memorandum on the reform of the family code was sent to the king in March 2003 and the king came up with a consultative committee the following month. The coalition for the campaign presented their case in front of the consultative committee. They later created the guidelines of equality for the family, said Amina.

In October 2003, the king announced the new family code in Parliament. The following month, the women’s movement presented their case in Parliament and in February, Parliament agreed to the family code.
END QUOTE

More at http://www.learningpartnership.org/advocacy/alerts/morocco0204

And from a UK Muslim lawyer and mediator: http://www.consensusmediation.co.uk/adrinmuslimthought.html

MikeM
Well, it's good to see that in some Muslim countries, such as Turkey and Morocco, they are making an effort to get up to date.
They still have a long way to go in many other countries though.
The principle of the separation of Church and State, and the secular nature of the law, are still not principles universally accepted under Islam.
Being an agnostic, I believe that religion should have nothing at all to do with lawmaking.

mangotreeone1: What does Moses being a prophet got to do with anything? I agree that you calling "your jesus" simply a prophet, and a pagan one too boot, is fine. But please understand your jesus is a far different jesus from the real Jesus. This Jesus is, as you have heard repeatedly, the Son of God and the world's Messiah. Please m/t1 just honour your one pedophilic, murderous, robbing, misogynistic, lying prophet - big mo, if you must. numbat.

What's this talk about separation of Church and State? It's an American concept in order to protect Catholics and non-Conformists from state enforced worship and to prevent the establishment of the Church odf England as the established church.. It is not a British concept where the Church of England is the established religion and where, for centuries, Catholics and non-Conformists were compelled to attend Church of England services and where Anglican clergy were members of the House of Lords.