Pakistan Adopts Measure to Base Its Laws on Koran
Parliament on Thursday passed a measure that would make the Koran the supreme law of Pakistan and subject all aspects of life to Islamic tenets.
The new system of law, called sharia, will govern life in this impoverished nation of 120 million from social mores to education and the economy. It will frame laws in line with the Koran, the Muslim holy book, and the Sunna, a collection of the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told Parliament after the vote that “it was better to pass the bill through Parliament than through a revolution.”
“The bill will not bring about a change overnight. It will follow a gradual course,” he said.
Women fear the bill will jeopardize family laws. Strict Islamic interpretation gives a father automatic custody of children older than 7 years, favors boys in inheritance and makes divorce possible for a man who thrice mutters: “I divorce you.”
Women also fear sharia law will give the power of interpretation to ultra-conservative Islamic clerics, who openly advocate that women be hidden behind a veil.
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