Answered
What are pros and cons of sharia law?
Answer 1 Sharia law is based mainly on God holy book Quran and the prophet Sunnah (sayings and practices). Accordingly, no one can claim that he/she has the authorit…y to claim that sharia law is subject to debates about pros and cons. The only point is that the application of Sharia law needs good understanding and sound judgement. Answer 2 While the divine nature and purpose of Shari'a Law may be beyond the scope of rational debate, the nature of those who claim to govern according to its principles can easily be debated. Shari'a-style governments tend to have certain general features that can be weighted and discussed. Such governments include the current governments of Iran and Saudi Arabia, the temporary governments of Al-Shabaab in Somalia and Ansar ed-Dine in north Mali, the former Taliban government in Afghanistan, and the former Morsi government of Egypt. Pros: Islamic Unity: Shari'a Law tends to create the prospect of a new type of unity in states that are fractured by ethnic and tribal divides, a union through Islam. This helps to cement the idea of a united country. Religious Principles Applied to Public Life: Those who support Shari'a government often do so because they believe that Liberal governments have a net result of removing religion from people (whether or not that is true is subject to debate). However, Shari'a governments often require the religious principles to be applied by law, such as the wearing of head-scarves, the banning of alcohol, and other such religious requirements which make it more common for people to be religious. Cons: Non-Muslim Discrimination: Nearly every government that implements Shari'a Law has an uptick in the amount of violence and repression against non-Muslims. Christian Churches in Egypt have been more frequently bombed, Sunni communities in Iran and Shiite communities in Saudi Arabia are actively prevented from praying as they would like. Jews are forbidden from living in Saudi Arabia in any long-term capacity and the Jews of Iran are forbidden from expressing any form of Zionism. Baha'i communities in Iran are actively discriminated against and attacked. Criminalization of Apostasy and Homosexuality: Iran and Saudi Arabia both enforce strong punishments (such as 20 year prison sentences or executions) against those who are believed to be homosexuals and those who openly renounce Islam as their religion. The government in effect is punishing people for how they choose to associate and what they choose to believe. Additionally, many countries that implement some minimal form of Shari'a Law also have blasphemy laws that result in a vast limitation of both freedom and an excuse for people to settle petty grievances by imprisoning their rival with an accusation of apostasy or homosexuality. Authoritarianism: No Shari'a based society has fully accepted democracy or popular rule in anything but name. This comes from the idea that Shari'a leaders think that they are beyond reproach, save by God himself. As a result, they do not need to cater to different opinions held by other men. Barbaric Punishments: Al-Shabaab, Ansar ed-Dine, and the Taliban were quite famous for hacking off limbs as punishments for thieving. Saudi Arabia has public stoning for adulterers. (MORE)
