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Muslim leader urges wider use of Shariah law in Philippines
A leading Filipino Muslim leader has called for the inclusion of criminal offences and increasing the coverage of Shariah law in the Philippines to urban communities with sizeable Muslim populations. A majority of Muslim Filipinos, he said, were happy in their homeland with steps Manila had taken by recognising and implementing Shariah law in some parts of the Philippines.At the 2nd International Conference of Islamic Scholars held at the Hotel Borobudur in Jakarta, Taha M Basman, Commissioner, Unesco, Philippines and President of the Philippine Islamic Council said despite these achievements, several steps were yet needed to be taken urgently by Manila, especially filling up vacancies at the various Shariah courts that have been established in the country's southern region, Mindanao. In a paper presented at the conference, he pointed out that five district Shariah courts in the Philippines currently have no judges. These included courts in the Jolo, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga, Lanao Del Sur and Maguindanao-Sultan Kudarat districts. Over 20 judges needed to be appointed to these Sharia courts whose jurisdiction also extends over various cities, townships and villages in these districts, he added. "Al Hamdullilah, we thank Almighty Allah that through the years, the minority Muslims in the Philippines have achieved significant strides in co-existing with other religious groups in the country. However modest, the Shariah law is now a permanent fixture in the life of Muslims in the Philippines," he added. Posted by: ryuge 2006-06-23 |
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