Emancipation
England, Northern Ireland, Scotland & Wales
The shameful attacks on Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury
The attacks on Rowan Williams by the media, various lay members of the Church as well as politicians from all parties which have taken place since he delivered a lecture on 7th February, 2008, reflect the lamentable level of intellectual rigour applied to a matter of importance. Most involved in the criticism do not appear to have read what Rowan Williams stated concerning the role of religious laws beside or within secular law. Although some claim to have read what he said, it is apparent that they have not understood what he has said. Rowan Williams' main purpose, it would seem, was to explore the difficulties and sensitivities of the topic rather than state that some sharia law might become part of English Law. Indeed, Rowan makes the point that the full meaning of sharia is not a codified system but subject to interpretation by legal jurists. The distinction between secular law and religious law is made very clear and there is no attempt to mix the two.
The critics of Rowan Williams need to be confronted because in most cases their venom has demonstrated a shameful collective negative sensitivity to anything associated with Islam or sharia. Rather than babble and express somewhat visceral attacks on Rowan Williams and thereby exposing their own limited understanding of the enormous sensitivity of the issues at hand, a sensitivity admirably analysed and expressed in Rowan Williams' lecture, many critics only reflect their inability to grapple with the important issues the Archbishop has raised. This is lamentable because he addresses issues which are of fundamental importance to good community relations as well as issues of profound importance to the current discussions concerning the constitutional settlement of the United Kingdom.
Complexity
Part of the problem is that Rowan Williams' lecture is not a public relations document full of buzz words and some punchy phrases. It is however a reflective piece of work which exposes the complexity of the challenge facing England in delivering on the duty to uphold in practice a level of human rights characterised by a state of affairs where everyone is genuinely treated on an equal basis. Indeed, Rowan Williams analyses why this is a state of affairs is difficult to satisfy when there are different cultures and religions. The government's pride-of-place emphasis on human rights legislation, indeed, is in danger of erosion and reversal under the weight of the parallel promotion of multiculturalism. To avoid this implosion the issues raised by Rowan Williams need to be considered in a calm and reflective way rather than being dismissed in an offhand manner.
Constitutional dimensions
In fact Rowan Williams' approach to this issue has also touched upon other relevant issues which, it would seem, many do not wish to discuss. However the issues are of vital importance to the defence of individual freedom in the United Kingdom and they relate to the legal significance of European Union treaties and law, on the role of the minority principle and juries and, above all, the trends towards codification of British law. These are all vital constitutional issues and they will be covered in subsequent articles.
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