Legal Pluralism In Muslim Contexts

Emphasising an empirical research to contemporary legal pluralist settings in Muslim contexts, the present collected volume contributes to a deepened understanding of legal pluralist issues and realities through comparative examination. This approach reveals some common features, such as the relevance of Islamic law in power struggles and in the construction of (state or national) identities, strategies of coping with coexisting sets of legal norms by the respective agents, or public debates about the risks induced by the recognition of religious institutions in migrant societies. At the same time, the studies contained in this volume reveal that legal pluralist settings often reflect very specific historical and social constellations, which demands caution towards any generalisation.

Legal pluralism has often been associated with post-colonial legal developments especially where common law survived alongside tribal and customary laws. Focusing on Sharī‘a, this book examines the legal policies and experiences of various societies with different traditions of citizenship, secularism and common law. Where large diasporic communities of migrants develop, there will be some demand for the institutionalization of Sharī‘a at least in the resolution of domestic disputes. This book tests the limits of multiculturalism by exploring the issue that any recognition of cultural differences might imply similar recognition of legal differences. It also explores the debate about post-secular societies specifically to the presentation and justification of beliefs and institutions by both religious and secular citizens. This book was published as a special issue of Democracy and Security.

Legal pluralism: Ziad Bahaa-Eldin.

Legal pluralism denotes both the multiple social fields which produce partilly interacting norms and the state's recognition of the many sources of law which constitute its legislation. It advocates a break from traditional legal theory in favour of describing the law from a more sociological and anthropological perspective. The theory of legal pluralism proves a useful tool, offering a challenging avenue for the examination of socio-legal activities. Too often, however, the literature on legal pluralism has failed to place sufficient emphasis on its fundamental theoretical questions. The result of a seminar held in Cairo in December 1996 with contributions by sociologists, anthropologists, political scientists, legal theoreticians, and practising lawyers, Legal Pluralism in the Arab World represents the first comprehensive examination of this phenomenon. This collection of essays attempts to define the notion of legal pluralism from a sociological, anthropological, and theoretical perspective and highlights its connection with particular Arab societies and countries. The work's unique features include * a preface by John Griffiths, one of the most significant voices in the formulation of the theory of legal pluralism; * a broad range of case studies, demonstrating the diversity in formulations of the theory; and * a wide variety of approaches to the subject matter. Legal Pluralism in the Arab World is the only work in existence which addresses the concept of legal pluralism in this particular part of the world in such a systematic manner. These essays significantly enrich the current canon on legal pluralism and offer the reader a unique example of its richness and usefulness.

This book is a comprehensive introductory text to the subject of Western Muslims’ diverse interpretations, discussions and practices of Shari’a with a particular focus on their daily lives in the West. Through a series of interconnected chapters, the book navigates key themes such as Shari’a and legal pluralism, Shari’a vis-à-vis the experiences and political participation of Muslims in Western democracies, the role of religious scholars, the dynamics of Shari’a courts, Shari’a and multiple belongings, and transnational loyalties. Functioning as a comprehensive reader and handbook, the book offers non-experts a comprehensive understanding of the meaning and relevance of Shari’a in Western contexts, exploring how Muslims interpret and apply its principles in their lived experiences and challenging the one-dimensional narratives.

Indonesia has probably the fastest changing legal system in the Muslim world. This ethnographic account of legal pluralism in the post-conflict and disaster situation in Aceh addresses changes in both the national legal system and the regional legal structure in the province. Focusing on the encounter between diverse patterns of legal reasoning advocated by multiple actors and by different institutions (local, national and international; official and unofficial; judicial, political and social cultural) it considers the vast array of issues arising in the wake of the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami in Aceh.It investigates disputes about rights to land and other forms of property, power relations, the conflict of rules, gender relationships, the right to make decisions, and prevailing norms. These disputes are presented on multiple levels and in various forums, either through negotiation or adjudication, regardless of whether they are settled or not. The cases involve various actors from villages, the courts, the provincial government and the legislature, the national Supreme Court and the central government of Indonesia.

The question of tolerance and Islam is not a new one. Polemicists are certain that Islam is not a tolerant religion. As evidence they point to the rules governing the treatment of non-Muslim permanent residents in Muslim lands, namely the dhimmi rules that are at the center of this study. These rules, when read in isolation, are certainly discriminatory in nature. They legitimate discriminatory treatment on grounds of what could be said to be religious faith and religious difference. The dhimmi rules are often invoked as proof-positive of the inherent intolerance of the Islamic faith (and thereby of any believing Muslim) toward the non-Muslim. This book addresses the problem of the concept of 'tolerance' for understanding the significance of the dhimmi rules that governed and regulated non-Muslim permanent residents in Islamic lands. In doing so, it suggests that the Islamic legal treatment of non-Muslims is symptomatic of the more general challenge of governing a diverse polity. Far from being constitutive of an Islamic ethos, the dhimmi rules raise important thematic questions about Rule of Law, governance, and how the pursuit of pluralism through the institutions of law and governance is a messy business. As argued throughout this book, an inescapable, and all-too-often painful, bottom line in the pursuit of pluralism is that it requires impositions and limitations on freedoms that are considered central and fundamental to an individual's well-being, but which must be limited for some people in some circumstances for reasons extending well beyond the claims of a given individual. A comparison to recent cases from the United States, United Kingdom, and the European Court of Human Rights reveals that however different and distant premodern Islamic and modern democratic societies may be in terms of time, space, and values, legal systems face similar challenges when governing a populace in which minority and majority groups diverge on the meaning and implication of values deemed fundamental to a particular polity.

Drawing on theories of legal pluralism, this book tests whether and to what extent claims of the modern nation-state laws to exclusive dominance over other spheres are tenable, and reassesses the operation of law in society. Incorporating a combination of legal theory, post-modern critique and socio-legal analysis of three current jurisdictions in which Muslims play an important role, the volume identifies Muslims' current socio-legal situation and attitudes from different perspectives and reconciles them with modern legal systems in three key countries. It analyzes the conflict between the assumptions of modern legal systems and plural legal realities, and also examines attempts by modern legal systems to impose official laws in the face of resistance from unofficial Muslim laws and discusses possible responses to the challenge of dynamic Muslim legal pluralism. A valuable resource for students, researchers and academics with an interest in the areas of Islamic law and politics, and the interplay between secular law and religious/cultural traditions.

Legal Pluralism in Conflict offers a new theoretical perspective for conceptualising and analysing the relationship between ethnic minority laws and the official legal order. Examining the limits of liberal legal thought in light of a contemporary plurality of ethnic identifications and religious beliefs, Prakash Shah takes up the case for a 'legal pluralism' that views ethnic minority laws in interaction with the official British legal order. This form of legal pluralism is not, however, without conflict. This book pursues a series of case studies that critically consider why and how state laws marginalise ethnic minority legal orders. Legal Pluralism in Conflict contains discussions of the recognition of polygamous marriages, homicide, the expertise provided in immigration cases and the legal discourse of nationality. It is in this engagement with some of the most challenging issues posed by the diverse character of modern society that its author sets out an alternative course for ethnic minority legal studies. Legal Pluralism in Conflict will be invaluable to students and researchers concerned with law's relationship to and treatment of ethnic and religious diversity, as well as to those with wider interests in the limits and possibilities of political pluralism.