by W. Patrick Lang
“According to Kurdish and Sunni negotiators, the US ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad, proposed that Islam be named “a primary source” and supported a wording which would give clerics authority in civil matters such as divorce, marriage and inheritance. If approved, critics say that the proposals would erode “women’s rights and other freedoms enshrined under existing laws.” The Guardian
How sad is that? The new constitution might lead to an erosion of “women’s rights and other freedoms enshrined under existing laws.”
Under existing laws!! That means the laws of the Saddamist state that we destroyed in the name of human rights.
It should have been clear in advance that the removal of one tyranny in a context like that of Iraq would likely lead to another with the “players” re-shuffled. The new “management” of Iraq just has a different agenda than the old one.
Yesterday, on the parade of “heads” that is Sunday Morning TV … CONTINUED BELOW:
we had the chance to hear Professor Laith Kubba, now adviser to the former “Dawa” leader, Jaafari. Jaafari is now the Iraqi PM. Kubba is an American citizen who teaches at an American university and whose nuclear family lives in London. He was speaking yesterday as an Iraqi government person, “We are re-building our country,” etc. Since I don’t think he was talking about tornado damage in the Mid-West, I deduce that he meant Iraq. This dual citizenship thing is getting out of hand.
Under questioning, Kubba gravely, and with a straight face, told us all that under the law code that will be based on the new constitution, families will have the option to choose whether questions of family law; divorce, inheritance, propert rights, the independence of women, the age of majority in children, etc. shall be decided before the courts on the basis of a secular European based law code or on the basis of some version of Sharia (Islamic law either Sunni or Shia). I suppose the Sunnis could choose to have their cases decided under Hanafi or Shafa’i law and the Shia would choose otherwise.
I suppose it is possible that a government dominated by Shia Divines might accept that Christians and others could be judged on the basis of an essentialy irreligious law code. That idea hasn’t worked well in other places run by Islamic zealots. Sudan and Afghanistan would be examples, but IT COULD HAPPEN.
Such people are small minorities in Iraq. The great majority are Muslims; Sunni (Arabs, Kurds and Turkomans) or Shia (Arabs). Are we really supposed to believe that a government under the influence of people who think that Islam is a “seamless garment” in which all aspects of life are properly subjected to the divine will, would accept to have MUSLIMS, who by definition have submitted to the will of God, decide their family life issues by CIVIL law?
Can it be that Laith Kubba believes that the Ayatollah Sistani would agree to having Muslims decide to have such cases judged on the basis of European law? Sistani has already told Jaafari that he “wishes” that no law should be made which conflicts with Islamic principles. We were also told yesterday by the speaker of the National Assembly that agreement had been reached on the principle that “no law shall be made which conflicts with Islam..” Today all will be made clear.
As for Kubba, one can only hope that he does not suffer the fate of so many liberal enablers of radical revolution. Exile.
PL – Personal Blog: Sic Semper Tyrannis 2005 || Bio