THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: A new documentary that goes undercover in Britain's Islamic courts reveals the shocking discrimination some women are suffering
In a terraced house in East London, just a stone’s throw from the glittering stadiums of the Olympic Park, a handful of people wait in a small reception room. A young Asian woman and her mother hitch their scarves over their heads while a Somali couple stare at the floor.
This is Leyton Islamic Sharia Council, the oldest and most active such council in the country where scholars hear about 50 cases a month, most of them marital disputes. Nine out of 10 cases are brought by women because, in an Islamic marriage, it is far easier for a man to divorce; the only way for a woman is through one of these Sharia councils. No one knows how many there are in Britain today, in mosques and in houses – one report estimates at least 85. Although they cannot enforce their judgments, these councils control the lives of many Muslim women who may only have had a religious marriage. Even if they had a civil marriage too, some feel the need for a Sharia divorce as a way of moving on with their lives and finding a sense of resolution.
A sign outside one of the rooms says “Arbitration”. Inside it looks like a court, a wall lined with religious books and a raised dais for the judge. The tension in here crackles as a couple, who do not want to be identified, argue in front of Leyton’s most senior Islamic scholar, Dr Suhaib Hasan, an elderly man with a white beard wearing long robes.
They have been coming here for a year now. The woman accuses her husband of refusing to work, ignoring the children and verbally abusing her, all of which he vehemently denies. When he is ordered to leave for a moment, she breaks down in tears. “I hate him, he has ruined my life,” she cries. “I cannot bear to even look at him.”
Dr Hasan’s face is impassive as he tells her to give her husband one more month to try and reconcile, with the help of Allah. The woman sobs as she begs him to grant the divorce as she only had a religious marriage and her fate is in the council’s hands. » | Jane Corbin | Sunday, April 07, 2013
