London, July 4, IRNA

UK-Islam
Britain's top judge has expressed support for aspects of Sharia law to operate in the UK and that principles should be applied to marriage arrangements.

"There is no reason why sharia principles, or any other religious code, should not be the basis for mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution," lord chief justice Lord Phillips said.

"It is possible in this country for those who are entering into a contractual agreement to agree that the agreement shall be governed by a law other than English law," Phillips said.

"Those who, in this country, are in dispute as to their respective rights are free to subject that dispute to the mediation of a chosen person, or to agree that the dispute shall be resolved by a chosen arbitrator or arbitrators," he said.

His support, expressed in a speech to the London Muslim Centre on Thursday night, comes after Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams voiced similar sentiments in February but was faced with a backlash of Islamophobia.

Phillips said that there was "widespread misunderstanding" of the nature of sharia law, but argued that it was "not very radical to advocate embracing sharia law in the context of family disputes, for example."