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New Social and Legal Challenges
Resul ing om he P esence o Islam
in 21s Cen u y Eu opean Socie ies1
Zoila Combalía
Uni e si y o Za agoza, Spain
combalia@uniza .es
COMBALÍA, Zoila. New Social and Legal Challenges Resul ing om he P esen-
ce o Islam in 21s Cen u y Eu opean Socie ies. In e na ional and Compa a i e
Law Re iew, 2020, ol. 20, no. 2, pp. 113–128. DOI: 10.2478/icl -2020-0020
Summa y: One o he g ea es challenges acing he Eu opean socie ies and legal sys-
ems a ises om he apid changes ha ha e aken place in ecen decades, om a ce -
ain le el o cul u al and eligious uni o mi y owa ds a landscape o di e si y in which
Islam has made i s p esence el . The iabili y o coexis ence be ween he Islamic and
Wes e n cul u es should es on wo ounda ions: i s ly, he accep ance o a common
minimum de ined by espec o a pe son´s digni y, ha is, an ag eemen on he ques-
ion o human igh s. Along wi h his consensus he e is also a need o espec and he
in eg a ion o di e si y. This s udy se s ou o analyse he challenges ha bo h issues
aise..
Keywo ds: Law and in e cul u ali y. Human igh s in Islam and in he Wes . In eg a ion
o eligious di e si y in Eu ope.
1 In oduc ion
One o he g ea es challenges acing ou socie y, and, he e o e, ou legal
sys em, a ises om he apid changes ha ha e aken place in ecen decades,
om a ce ain le el o cul u al and eligious uni o mi y owa ds a landscape
o di e si y in which Islam has made i s p esence el 2. The iabili y o coexis -
1 This a icle is an upda ed e sion o he one I published in Spanish: COMBALÍA, Zoila,
Nue os desa íos sociales y ju ídicos de i ados de la p esencia del Islam en las sociedades
occiden ales del siglo XXI. La Albola ia: Re is a de Humanidades y Cul u a, nº 4, 2015.
2 Acco ding o a s udy by he Pew Resea ch Cen e (A ailable a : h ps://www.pew o um.
o g/2017/11/29/eu opes-g owing-muslim-popula ion/. Accessed: 11-01-2021), he num-
be o Moslems in Eu ope shall inc ease om app oxima ely 25 million in 2016 (4.9% o
he popula ion) o be ween 35 and 75 million in 2050, which ep esen s an inc ease ha
a ies be ween 5 and 14 pe cen . The epo s udies he 28 coun ies o he EU – including
he UK despi e B exi -, and No way and Swi ze land. In pa icula , he numbe o Moslems
in Spain in he 90s did no each 200,000, while he cu en igu e is 1,946,300, acco ding
o da a in he la es o icial epo o he Minis y o Jus ice ega ding eligious eedom
in Spain (A ailable a : h ps://www.mp .gob.es/mp /subse/libe ad- eligiosa/Documen s/
In o meAnual/In o meAnual_2017.pd . Accessed: 11-01-2021) which includes da a om
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ence and unde s anding be ween he Islamic and Wes e n cul u es should in my
opinion es on wo ounda ions: i s ly, he accep ance o a common minimum
de ined by espec o a pe son´s digni y, ha is, an ag eemen on he ques ion
o human igh s. Along wi h his consensus he e is also a need o espec and
he in eg a ion o di e si y. This s udy se s ou o analyse he challenges ha bo h
issues aise.
2 The consensus o e human igh s issues3
The e is a sec o o Wes e n socie y ha has de eloped a nega i e image o
Islam as a eali y ha is incompa ible wi h human igh s, o a g ea ex en as a
esul o Islamic undamen alism, e o ism o he unequal s a us o women and
eligious mino i ies in some coun ies o he Islamic wo ld.
This censu e o human igh s is no a unila e al p ocess; oices a e also being
aised in Islam, denouncing he lack o cohe ence o he Wes in de ending human
igh s4. Al hough he UN has been e ec ed as a o um o in e na ional consen-
sus on human igh s, i s ole has been ques ioned in ecen decades. C i icisms
ha e been hea d ha a gue ha he documen s o he UN a e wes e nised5 and
do no ake in o accoun con ibu ions om o he cul u es6. In his con ex , a
he Obse a o io Andalusí o he UCIDE.
3 I published some o he issues conside ed in his s udy in: COMBALÍA, Zoila. Secula i-
sa ion, human igh s and women in Islamic socie ies. In CONTRERAS, Jaime & MAR-
TÍNEZ DE CODES Rosa M., eds. T ends o Secula ism in a Plu alis ic Wo ld, F ank u -
Mad id, Ed. Ve ue , 2013, pp. 225–240.
4 Hun ing on w o e ha Asian and Islamic coun ies do no hesi a e o highligh he dis-
c epancies be ween Wes e n heo y and p ac ice. “Hypoc isy, double s anda ds, and “bu
no s” a e he p ice o uni e salis p e ensions. Democ acy is p omo ed, bu no i i b ings
Islamic undamen alis s o powe ; nonp oli e a ion is p eached o I an and I aq, bu no
o Is ael; ee ade is he elixi o economic g ow h, bu no o ag icul u e; human igh s
a e an issue o China, bu no wi h Saudi A abia; agg ession agains oil-owning Kuwai -
is is massi ely epulsed, bu no agains non-oil-owning Bosnians. Double s anda ds in
p ac ice a e he una oidable p ice o uni e sal s anda ds o p inciple.” (HUNTINGTON,
Samuel P., The Clash o Ci iliza ions and he Remaking o Wo ld O de , New Yo k: Simon
& Schus e , 1996).
5 Fo example, Ma ín Muñoz commen s on he belie in some Islamic sec o s “ ha he
Uni e sal Decla a ion o Human Righ s (…) was an e hnocen ic p oduc , he pa icipan s
o which we e Eu opean s a es ha kep a la ge pa o he Moslem wo ld in a colonial o
semi-colonial s a us, and was an ou come o he Judeo-Ch is ian cul u e ha olun a ily
igno ed he humanis ic con ibu ion o Islam” (MARTÍN MUÑOZ, Gema. La igualdad
en e los sexos y la cues ión de los de echos humanos y del ciudadano en el mundo á abe.
In MARTÍN MUÑOZ, Gema & MESSAOUDI, Jalida (eds.), Muje es, democ acia y desa -
ollo en el Mag eb, Mad id: Ed. Fundación Pablo Iglesias, 1995, p. 15.
6 In o de o wo k agains he belie ha he Uni e sal Decla a ion o Human Righ s is a
“Wes e nised” documen , The UN has de eloped a numbe o ini ia i es such as he semi-
na o ganised by he O ice o he High Commissione o Human Righ s in collabo a ion
wi h he OIC, wi h he i le: En iching he uni e sali y o human igh s. Islamic pe spec i es
on he Uni e sal Decla a ion o Human Righ s. The semina highligh ed he ac ha he
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mo emen a ose ha se ou o show he wo ld ha he e is an Islamic iden i y o
human igh s, a way o concei ing hem ha is genuine, di e en and e en p io
o Wes e n a i ma ions7. To u he highligh hese decla a ions, some Islamic
o ganisa ions ha e enac ed a se ies o documen s on human igh s8, he mos
emblema ic o which was he Cai o Decla a ion o Human Righ s in Islam o he
O ganisa ion o Islamic Coope a ion in 19909.
2.1 The legal basis o human igh s in Islam and in he Wes
When making a compa a i e analysis, he i s hing ha calls one’s a en ion
is he di e en ounda ions on which human igh s es in Islamic and Wes e n
ex s. Thus, unlike he secula ben o many Wes e n ex s, many o he Islamic
decla a ions use a eligious easoning. As I men ioned in ano he s udy10, “i is
no a ques ion o me e o mal con essionali y— hey s a and end by in ok-
ing Allah and he P ophe —, bu a he o a ma e ial na u e; in o he wo ds
hey es ablish ha ‘ he igh s and eedoms in he Islamic sys em a e no na u-
al igh s bu a he di ine gi s suppo ed by he p o isions o he Sha ia and
Islamic ai h’11. This is pa en ly exp essed in ce ain decla a ions in which each
and e e y ecognised igh and eedom is suppo ed by a li e al quo a ion o he
Decla a ion is gene ally alued as an impo an achie emen o humani y, bu ha i needs
o be conside ed in a way in which cul u al di e si y is espec ed, e en mo e so when mos
o humani y was no p esen when i was p epa ed. The published conclusions s a e ha
Moslem communi ies will coope a e wi h any in e na ional ini ia i e, as long as hey a e
in i ed o do so as equals, bu hey will ejec any p ojec ha obliges hem o enounce
hei iden i y. Along he same lines, he Resolu ion o he OIC adop ed on he 50 h anni-
e sa y o he Decla a ion, called o “ espec o he main legal sys ems in he wo ld,
including he Islamic model” as some hing “essen ial o p omo ion o b oade unde -
s anding and he uni e sali y o he UDHH” (Resolu ion no. 51/8-P (IS) on coo dina ion
be ween membe s s a es in he a ea o human igh s).
7 “Ces décla a ions isaien en p emie lieu à éa i me une iden i é islamique qui en u pas
p ise en considé a ion dans les déba s de l’ONU depuis 1948. Ainsi, elles appellen que
ou e législa ion ien de Dieu, seul dé en eu de la sou e aine é e que, pa conséquen
ou d oi humain ne peu ê e é alué qu’au ega d de la Loi (i.e. la Sha ia) Cependan ,
elles en en de ne pas omp e o alemen a ec les décla a ions ‘uni e selles’. Rappelan
que l’islam a assu é, bien a an les philosophes des Lumiè es, les ga an ies indi iduelles
a i mées pa la Ré olu ion ançaise…” (BOTIVEAU, Be na d. Democ a ie e d oi s de
l’homme: mises en pe spec i e islamis es. In MARTÍN MUÑOZ, Gema (ed.), Democ acia
y De echos Humanos en el Mundo A abe. Mad id: Ed. Cul u a Hispánica, 1993, p. 78). See
also in his ega d: ARZT, Donna E., I di i i eligiosi dell’uomo negli S a i musulmani del
MedioO ien e edell’A ica delNo d. CoscienzaeLibe à, 1996, nº 27, pp. 138–140.
8 C . some o hese documen s in he appendices o COMBALÍA, Zoila, El de echo de libe -
ad eligiosa en el mundo islámico, Pamplona: Na a a G á ica Ed., 2001.
9 Adop ed by he 19 h Islamic Con e ence o Minis e s o Fo eign A ai s, held in Cai o om
31 July o 4 Augus 1990.
10 COMBALÍA, Zoila, Los o denamien os eu opeos an e las mino ías musulmanas: ap oxi-
mación al es udio de los de echos humanos en las decla aciones islámicas. Anua io de
De echo Eclesiás ico del Es ado, 1998, nº 12, pp. 484 onwa ds.
11 Kuwai Symposium , no.10 o chap e 1.
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Qu an o in a hadiz”12. In Islam, human igh s a e bo n om he concep ion o a
pe son as a eligious being who has o accoun o himsel and his wo ks be o e
Allah and ha , in o de o mee his obliga ions, he ecei es om he C ea o he
igh s and libe ies ha pe mi s him o comply wi h di ine will13.
The decla a ion o he Sha ia as a basis o human igh s does no include
he no ion ha i s ecogni ion is limi ed o Moslems; hese igh s ex end o all
indi iduals, bu wi h he causes, scope and limi s es ablished by Islamic eligious
law14. The s a emen o he Islamic Council o Eu ope (ICE) is illus a i e in his
ega d: Uni e sal Islamic Decla a ion o Human Righ s.
2.2 The insepa able link be ween igh s and du ies: special e e ence o he con-
lic s be ween eedom o exp ession and eligious eedom
The i s consequence o he abo e s a emen s is ha he Islamic wo ld iew
does no unde s and he igh s and eedoms o he indi idual wi hou e e ence
o hei du ies and obliga ions; i is a human being’s esponsibili y be o e God
ha leads o such igh s being g an ed. Al-Ansa i decla ed ha adhe ence o his
is in i sel an obliga ion ha de i es om he manda e o do good and a oid e il
ha in Islam is based on he ollowing p ecep s o he Qu an: “And le he e be
[a ising] om you a na ion in i ing o [all ha is] good, enjoining wha is igh
and o bidding wha is w ong, and hose will be he success ul” (Qu an, 3, 104)15.
12 C . he Decla a ion o he Islamic Council o Eu ope o 1981.
13 Acco ding o some Moslem schola s, he Islamic concep o igh s, unlike Wes e n ones, is
no based on he idea o libe a ion, bu on he equi emen o balance (RAMADAN, Ta iq.
Islam, le ace à ace des ci ilisa ions, Jo dan. 1996, pp. 153 onwa ds.). See also: ALTWAIJRI
A.O., Human Digni y in he Ligh o Islamic P inciples. In Publica ions o he Islamic Edu-
ca ional, Scien i ic and Cul u al O ganiza ion, 1999; ABDUR RAHMAN, I. Doi, Sha i’ah.
The Islamic Law, London: Ta Ha Publishe s, 1984, pp. 422–425.
14 The eason why such igh s a e ecognised o all is exp essed in a icle 1 o he Decla a ion
o he OIC in he ollowing e ms: “All human beings o m one amily whose membe s
a e uni ed by hei subo dina ion o Allah and descen om Adam. All men a e equal in
e ms o basic human digni y and basic obliga ions and esponsibili ies, wi hou any dis-
c imina ion on he basis o ace, colou , language, belie , sex, eligion, poli ical a ilia ion,
social s a us o o he conside a ions. The ue eligion is he gua an ee o enhancing such
digni y along he pa h o human digni y”.
Along he same lines, A koun s a es ha non-disc imina ion in e ms o he enjoymen
o human igh s has i s g ounds in he Sha ia, since he Qu an p oclaims ha “We ha e
honou ed he sons o Adam” and also he wo ds o he P ophe also con ain he ollowing
highly signi ican s a emen s: “The e is no me i o an A ab o e a non-A ab, no o a
whi e pe son o e a black pe son, excep in e ms o ea ing Allah”; “women a e he sis e s
o men” (ARKOUN, Mohamed. Les d oi s de l’homme en Islam. In MARTÍN MUÑOZ,
Gema (ed.), Democ acia y De echos Humanos en el Mundo A abe. Mad id: Ed. Cul u a
Hispánica, 1993, p. 33).
15 Schola s o he Sha ia ag ee ha he obse ance o wha is good and he p ohibi ion o e il,
and as a esul espec o human igh s, is no a ecommenda ion bu a he an obliga ion
and an imposi ion ha indi iduals canno enounce (Talk by Al-Ansa i con ained in he
summa y o he semina “En iching he uni e sali y o human igh s. Islamic pe spec-
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This no ion o a gua an ee o he p o ec ion o human igh s ha is insepa a-
ble om esponsibili ies can be seen in one o he cu en con lic s in which he
Islamic pe spec i e has come in o con lic wi h he Wes e n iew; he e I e e o
he social and legal con lic s b ough abou by he use o eedom o exp ession
o de ame eligion o inju e eligious eelings16. Since he a wa issued by Aya -
olah Khomeini agains Salman Rushdie on 14 Feb ua y 1989 o he publica ion
o his book “Sa anic Ve ses”17, names such as Theo Van Gogh, La s Vilks, he
Danish newspape Jyllands-Pos en o he F ench magazine Cha lie Hebdo, ha e
now become sadly amous.
Why do he Wes and Islam en e in o hese con lic s? I should be poin ed
ou ha bo h eedom o exp ession and eligious eelings a e p o ec ed in bo h
cul u es and legal sys ems. Bu , when hey collide wi h each o he , he Wes su -
e s pa icula ly because he es ic ion o ce ain libe ies, such as eedom o
exp ession, which i ega ds as undamen al o a democ a ic sys em, leads i
ejec any es ic ion o censu e, while Islam eels wounded by he con emp
shown by he Wes owa ds belie s ha a e he essence o i s iden i y, and by he
ac ha his con emp is ensh ined in wha hey conside o be a “ i olous”
exe cise o eedom. I could be s a ed ha in such con lic s he Wes emphasises
eedom, –maximum possible eedom, minimum necessa y es ic ion–, while
Islam unde lines he impo ance o esponsibili y.
A p ime example o his di e ence is he ex o he Islamic documen s ha
sa egua d eedom o exp ession in e ms ha a e no common in he Wes .
i es on he Uni e sal Decla a ion o Human Righ s” –HR/IP/SEM/1999, pa . I, 15 ma ch
1999–, p. 17. A ailable a : h ps://digi allib a y.un.o g/ eco d/1490749).
16 Fo mo e on his con lic see: COMBALÍA, Zoila. Libe ad de exp esión y eligión en el
De echo compa ado. In COMBALÍA, Zoila, DIAGO Pila and GONZÁLEZ-VARAS, Ale-
jand o (eds.), Libe ad de exp esión y p e ención de la iolencia y disc iminación po azón
de eligión, Valencia, Ed. Ti an lo Blanch, 2020; FERREIRO, Juan, Libe ad de exp esión
y sensibilidad eligiosa: es udio legisla i o y ju isp udencial. Re is a Gene al de De echo
Canónico y De echo Eclesiás ico del Es ado, 2014, nº 35; LÓPEZ SIDRO, Ángel, Libe ad de
exp esión y libe ad eligiosa en el mundo islámico. Re is a Gene al de De echo Canónico
y De echo Eclesiás ico del Es ado, 2012, nº 30; PALOMINO, Ra ael, Libe ad de exp esión
y libe ad eligiosa: elemen os pa a el análisis de un con lic o. Re is a Gene al de De echo
Canónico y De echo Eclesiás ico del Es ado, 2012, nº 29; PÉREZ-MADRID, F ancisca. Inci-
ación al odio eligioso o “ha e speech” y libe ad de exp esión. Re is a Gene al de De echo
Canónico y De echo Eclesiás ico del Es ado, 2009, nº 19.
17 A a wa is de ined as a “a ju isp uden ial judgemen , answe gi en o a legal ques ion by
a specialis in iqh, explana ion ha he mu i gi es o a law o a speci ic case”. In Shii e
Islam, a was ha e special au ho i y (MAILLO SALGADO, Felipe. Dicciona io de de echo
islámico, Gijón: Ed. T ea, 2005, pp. 79 y 80). The ex o he a wa agains Salman Rushdie
is as ollows: “The au ho o The Sa anic Ve ses, a ex w i en, edi ed and published agains
Islam, agains he P ophe o Islam and agains he Qu an, along wi h hose publishe s who
a e awa e o i s con en s, a e sen enced o capi al punishmen . I in i e all b a e Muslims
om any pa o he wo ld o ca y ou his sen ence wi hou delay, so ha no one da es o
insul he sac ed belie s o Moslems”.

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Fo example, a icle 12.1 o he ICE Decla a ion s a es ha “e e y human being
has he igh o hink and belie e and, he e o e, o exp ess wha e e he hinks
and belie es wi hou anyone being able o in e e e o p ohibi i , as long as he
emains wi hin he limi s p esc ibed by Islamic law. No one is en i led o dis-
semina e alsehood o o ci cula e epo s which may ou age public decency
o slande he Islamic communi y”, adding in pa ag aph 5 ha “ espec o he
eelings o hose who ha e di e en eligious opinions is one o he i ues o he
Moslem. No one has he au ho i y o change ano he ’s belie s o o omen he
enmi y o socie y agains him”18. In o he wo ds, he legi imacy o a eedom o
exp ession used o o end belie s is no accep ed, since i is ega ded as a eedom
belonging o a socie y wi hou alues.
2.3 The Sha ia as a limi ; special e e ence o women’s igh s
A logical consequence o conside ing ha he o igin o igh s is in he di ine
plan exp essed in he Sha ia, is o unde s and ha his also ope a es as a limi in
ecognising ce ain igh s ha i g an s19.
The es ablishmen o he Sha ia as a limi has been p o oundly ques ioned in
he in e na ional o ums o he UN. Islamic s a es commonly a i y he Con en-
ions and T ea ies on human igh s, bu when hey do, hey some imes s a e es-
e a ions along he lines o : “inasmuch as hey a e compa ible wi h he Islamic
Sha ia”, which dilu es he scope o he commi men unde aken.
A p esen , mos Islamic coun ies do no di ec ly apply he Sha ia bu ha e
hei own egula ions, bu hese egula ions a e o en inspi ed by Islamic law,
especially in he a ea o amily and pe sonal law, which as a esul has been
de ined as he “bulwa k o he Sha ia”. The ole o he Sha ia as a limi has been
speci ically ques ioned when i ouches on women’s igh s. Al hough his s udy
does no se ou o p o ide an in dep h analysis o his issue, he ques ion may be
posed as o wha ex en Islamic law is esponsible o he in ingemen o igh s
ha women ha e o endu e in some cu en egimes and i any p og ess on his
issue is possible.
18 The OIC decla a ions exp ess hemsel es in e ms e y simila o hose o he ICE when
hey s a e ha “1. E e yone shall ha e he igh o exp ess his opinion eely in such a man-
ne as would no be con a y o he p inciples o he Sha ia. 2. E e yone shall ha e he igh
o ad oca e wha is igh ,, and p opaga e wha is good, and wa n agains wha is w ong and
e il acco ding o he no ms o Islamic Sha ia. 3. In o ma ion is a i al necessi y o socie y.
I may no be exploi ed o misused in such a way as may iola e sanc i ies and he digni y
o P ophe s, unde mine mo al and e hical alues o disin eg a e, co up o ha m socie y
o weaken i s ai h. 4. I is no pe mi ed o exci e na ionalis ic o doc inal ha ed o o do
any hing ha may be an inci emen o any o m o acial disc imina ion” (a icle 22).
19 The compa ibili y o igh s wi h he Sha ia is no jus one o limi s, i is also a e e ence
poin o in e p e ing o cla i ying igh s. Thus, he Decla a ion o he OIC concludes by
a i ming ha “all he igh s and eedoms s ipula ed in his Decla a ion a e subjec o he
Islamic Sha ia” (a icle 24) and ha “ he Islamic Sha ia is he only sou ce o e e ence o
he explana ion o cla i ica ion o any o he a icles o his Decla a ion” (a icle 25).
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Moslems belie e ha he e ela ions con ained in he Qu an and he Sunna
da e om he yea s 610–632. This was a pe iod in which no only he A ab com-
muni ies om which Islam a ose bu socie ies in gene al we e o ganised a ound
pa ia chal s uc u es o male p imacy ha we e o be he model ha inspi ed
he Islamic law enac ed in he 7 h cen u y. The Qu an a i ms ha men and
women ha e equal digni y as human beings20, bu i hen a gues o he p imacy
o men in he amily and in socie y21.
Gi en ha he unc ions o men and women a e no he same, nei he a e hei
igh s and du ies22. As such, men a e obliged o pay he dow y (mah ) o women
when in ending o ma y23 and o main ain hem economically (na aqa)24. The
woman’s igh s o a dow y and o being main ained a e coun e balanced by he
du y o obey he husband and ensu e ha he home unc ions well25.
20 The Qu anic basis o de ending equali y wi h ega d o human digni y is based on he ol-
lowing e ses o su ahs ha e e o he common o igins and na u e o men and women.
The Qu an s a es: “I will no su e he wo k o any o you, whe he male o emale, o go
o was e, each o you is om he o he …” (3, 195); o : “O mankind, ea you Lo d, who
c ea ed you om one soul and c ea ed om i i s ma e and dispe sed om bo h o hem
many men and women...” (4, 1).
21 This equal human digni y is no exp essed in legal e ms. Men and women ca y ou di -
e en unc ions in he amily and socie y and he p ima y posi ion co esponds o men, as
he ollowing su ah s a es: “… And due o he wi es is simila o wha is expec ed o hem,
acco ding o wha is easonable. Bu he men ha e a deg ee o e hem …” (2, 228).
22 This equal human digni y and di e en ia ion in legal e ms can be seen in he OIC decla a-
ion ha s a es ha “woman is equal o man in human digni y; and has he own igh s as
well as du ies o pe o m …” (a icle 6). Fo a mo e de ailed explana ion o he igh s and
du ies o he pa ies see: COMBALÍA, Zoila. ¿Igualdad o equidad?: el econocimien o en
Occiden e de ins i uciones islámicas de inspi ación pa ia cal. In GONZÁLEZ-MORE-
NO, Bea iz (Eds.), Polí icas de igualdad y de echos undamen ales. Valencia: Ed. Ti an lo
Blanch, 2009, pp. 253–298.
23 Fo mo e in o ma ion abou he Islamic dow y see: LIENANT DE BELLEFONDS, Y on
Linan . T ai é de D oi musulman compa é, ol. 2, Pa ís-La Haya 1965, pp. 199 onwa ds;
MILLIOT Louis and BLANC, F ançois Paul. In oduc ion à l’é ude du d oi musulman,
Pa ís: Ed. Dalloz, 2001, pp. 292 onwa ds; NASIR, Jamal J. The Islamic Law o Pe sonal S a-
us. The Hague-London-New Yo k: Ed. Kluwe Law In e na ional, 2002, pp. 83 onwa ds;
SPIES, O o, The Encyclopaedia o Islam, ol. VI, 1986, p. 79 onwa ds.; WANI, Mohammed
A zal, The Islamic Ins i u ion o Mah : A S udy o i s Philosophy, Wo kings and Rela ed Leg-
isla ions in he Con empo a y Wo ld. Noonamy, Kashmi : Up igh S udy Home, 1995.
24 Fo mo e in o ma ion abou he na aqa see: LIENANT DE BELLEFONDS, Y on Linan .
T ai é de D oi musulman compa é, ol. 2, Pa ís-La Haya 1965, pp. 259 onwa ds; NASIR,
Jamal J. The Islamic Law o Pe sonal S a us. The Hague-London-New Yo k: Ed. Kluwe Law
In e na ional, 2002, pp. 97 onwa ds. These du ies o he husband ha e conside able bases
in he Qu an. I s a es wi h ega d o he du y o sus enance, o example, ha he husband
“should p o ide hei (women’s) sus enance and clo hing in a ai manne ” (2: 233).
25 Rega ding he access o women o he labou ma ke , he Sha ia does no p ohibi women
om wo king ou side he home. Wha is mo e, i exp essly es ablishes ha , i she does
wo k, she is en i led o a ai sala y jus like a man. The Qu an s a es: “ o men is a sha e
o wha hey ha e ea ned, o women is a sha e o wha hey ha e ea ned” (4,32), and
some emale con empo a ies o he P ophe ac i ely pa icipa ed in poli ics (see AFSHAR,
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I could be s a ed ha Islamic law, by i ue o i s pa ia chal inspi a ion,
does no include equali y be ween men and women bu a he a s a e o equi-
y; in o he wo ds, he ques ion is no o alk abou equal igh s and du ies bu
a he complemen a y ones, and in he Islamic wo ld iew, his complemen a y
app oach is wha gua an ees social ha mony.
Howe e , he e a e now endencies ha de end he idea ha ull equali y
be ween men and women is compa ible wi h Islam. The s a ing poin o hese
poin s o iew is ha when he Sha ia was enac ed, i mean an ad ance in he
si ua ion o women26 and ha his is he Islamic spi i ha would need o be
exp essed by adap ing i o mode n socie y27.
Thus, i Islam did no ep esen a s ep backwa d a ha ime, bu a he an
ad ance, hen he p oblem is no he p o isions o he Sha ia in hei his o i-
cal con ex , bu a he he li e al manne in which hey a e cu en ly applied.
Should he p o isions o he Sha ia be li e ally applied o should he p inciples
ha inspi ed hem be ex ac ed and adap ed o new con ex s?
2.4 In e p e a ion and applica ion o Islamic law in cu en social con ex s
The answe o his ques ion, as o whe he Islamic law can adap and mod-
e nise, is a highly complex one.
Haleh, Islam and eminism: an analysis o poli ical s a egies, in YAMANI, Mai (ed.),
Feminism and Islam. Legal and li e a y pe spec i es, Be kshi e: I haca P ess, 1997, p. 199).
Howe e , while o men wo k is a legal and eligious du y, o women i is an ou come o
hei decision, as long as i is compa ible wi h ca ing o he home and child en and being
obedien o he husband. As ega ds access o educa ion, Islam de ines i as a igh and a
du y in equal e ms o men and women. The decla a ion o he ICE decla es as such when
i s s a es ha “lea ning is a igh o e e yone. The seeking o science is also a an obliga-
ion o e e yone, men and women”. And i bases his decla a ion on he hadiz o saying o
he P ophe : “ he seeking o sciences is a di ine p ecep imposed on all male and emale
Moslems” (a icle 21).
26 One o he imp o emen s equen ly men ioned when discussing he changes in he condi-
ion o women unde Islam is ha i p ohibi ed he in an icide o emale babies, which in
p e-Islamic A ab socie ies was no an uncommon p ac ice. The Sha ia egula ed polygamy,
which was habi ual in such socie ies, and es ablished limi s (up o ou wi es) and equi e-
men s designed o p o ec women demanding ha he man should ea his wi es equally.
Repudia ion, which was also p ac iced be o e Islam, is no p ohibi ed bu is ega ded as
mo ally ep ehensible beha iou ; acco ding o a saying a ibu ed o he P ophe , “ he mos
ha e ul pe missible hing o Allah is di o ce”. Finally, he Islamic p o isions on p ope y
a e wo hy o conside a ion: Islamic ma iage does no a ec he p ope y and ea nings o
he pa ies and he woman may eely dispose o and adminis e he own p ope y wi hou
any in e en ion o consen om he husband, which was a highly ad anced p o ision o
he imes in which i was enac ed.
27 See ano he example o his posi ion in CONNORS, Jane. The Women’s Con en ion in he
Muslim Wo ld. In YAMANI, Mai (ed.), Feminism and Islam. Legal and li e a y pe spec i es,
Be kshi e: I haca P ess, 1997, p. 364.
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The issue o di icul ies o a “mode n” in e p e a ion o Islamic law, adap ed
o mode n con ex s, is linked o he a i ma ion ha in Islamic law di ine e ela-
ion, as a sou ce o knowledge, p edomina es o e eason28, and o he absence o
a sac amen al au ho i y in Islam.
While in Ch is iani y e ela ion, o God speaking o he human being, akes
he o m o a pe son (Jesus Ch is ), who li es on in his chu ch, e ela ion in
Islam is exp essed in a book: he Qu an, and he e is no sac amen al au ho i y
ha can make an au hen ic in e p e a ion. In o he wo ds, Islam is no a chu ch,
i has no p ies hood; Islam is a communi y– he umma–; he concep o au ho i y
is a mo al one, no sac amen al, linked o he wisdom and ec i ude o whoso-
e e in e p e s he ex s.
In he i s h ee cen u ies o Islam, he e was a g ea deal o eedom and
de elopmen o ij ihad o in e p e a ion, bu hen in he 10 h cen u y, aced wi h
he expansion o Islam and he subsequen ea o a b eak up o he umma and
ha in e p e a ion would end up squande ing he e ela ion, i was decla ed
ha : “ he doo o ij ihad has been closed”29.
Howe e , al hough i may be he case ha no imposing es ic ions on in e -
p e a ions o he Sha ia in he 10 h cen u y would ha e mean a h ea o i s
e y su i al, nowadays he dange s inhe en o he con inuing exis ence o he
Sha ia a e p ecisely because o i s s agna ion and consequen inabili y o esol e
he p oblems ha a ise in mode n socie y. Fu he mo e, he con as s be ween a
law hal ed in in e p e a ions o he 10 h cen u y and he cul u e o he 21s may
place Moslems in he unpleasan quanda y o ha ing o choose be ween hei
condi ion as Moslems o as mode n ci izens, since bo h op ions a e i econcil-
able. This has led o app oaches in which he need o an in e p e a ion o he
Sha ia adap ed o mode n li e is de ended.
I should be highligh ed ha he unde lying p oblem o Islam is no so much
he s a us o women, eligious mino i ies, e c., bu a he one ha goes much
deepe : he abili y o he Sha ia o adap , o be in e p e ed in line wi h he e olu-
ion o socie y30. This, in my opinion, is one o he majo challenges acing Islam
oday.
28 The idea o a na u al law ha can be a ionally known has ha dly been de eloped in Islamic
hinking and law. Howe e , Fe a i has commen ed ha he absence o he no ion o na u-
al law does no exclude he possibili y in Islam o a subs an ial con e gence be ween he
Sha ia and na u al law (FERRARI, Sil io. El espí i u de los de echos eligiosos. Judaísmo,
c is ianismo e Islam, Ba celona: Ed. He de , 2004, p. 175). An example o his con e gence
a e he Islamic Decla a ions ha , as we ha e seen, ecognise basic human igh s, al hough
hey do so be basing hem on he Qu an and he Sunna.
29 See Schach on he ac o s ha led o he p og essi e es ic ions on, and inal closu e o
ij ihad, in SCHACHT, Joseph. An In oduc ion o Islamic Law, Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y
P ess, 1998 ep in ed, pp. 69 onwa ds.
30 A cus oma y a i ma ion made by schola s o Islamic law is ha i is no a di ine and
immu able sys em. Such a conside a ion would lead o con usion be ween he Sha ia,
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SCHACHT, Joseph. An In oduc ion o Islamic Law, Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess,
1998 ep in ed.
A. DE TOCQUEVILLE, Democ acy in Ame ica, I, Vin age Books, New Yo k (1954).
WANI, Mohammed A zal, The Islamic Ins i u ion o Mah : A S udy o i s Philosophy,
Wo kings and Rela ed Legisla ions in he Con empo a y Wo ld. Noonamy, Kashmi :
Up igh S udy Home, 1995.
HADDAD Y onne Y. and GOLSON Tyle , O e hauling Islam: ep esen a ion, cons uc-
ion, and coop ion o “Mode a e Islam” in Wes e n Eu ope. In Jou nal o Chu ch and
S a e, 2007, ol. 49, n. 3, pp. 487–515.