The US-based PEW Research Centre's Forum on Religion and Public Life has released the results of its recent world-wide opinion survey of Muslim populations. The part pertaining to Pakistan is startling, though reflective of two seemingly contradictory realities. It of course is included among majority of 39 countries surveyed, where Muslims say that "Islam is the one true faith leading to eternal life in heaven and that belief in God is necessary to be a moral person." But what is hard to believe is the finding that "support for making Sharia the official law of the land tends to be higher in countries like Pakistan (84%) and Morocco (83%)."
That surely is not how the situation looks like from inside Pakistan. The support for Sharia calls for a more careful interpretation. If 84 percent of the population supports Sharia law, religious parties should have been dominating electoral politics in this country. The reality though is quite the contrary. People tend to separate politics from religion. They vote for the mainstream parties, always confining religious parties to the periphery of national politics. So where did the 84 percent figure come from? Part of the explanation may lie in the framing of the question. When asked if they want Sharia laws, most Muslims are expected to answer in the affirmative. It may be recalled that while deciding to exploit the public's religious sentiments in order to prolong his stay in power, a much hated military dictator, General Ziaul Haq, had held a referendum asking just one question of the voters ie, if they liked Islam. The answer had to be yes. And it was stretched to mean they wanted him to remain president.
As the survey report notes, Muslims around the globe have differing understanding of what Sharia means in practice. There are as many versions of Sharia law as are sects. Also Muslim societies are not homogenous; local cultures have their own influence. Which is why the survey found that Muslims differed widely on such questions as whether polygamy, divorce and family planning are morally acceptable and whether daughters should be able to receive the same inheritance as sons. Pakistan, unlike certain nearby Muslim countries, is home to several different sects. Therefore, the constitutional proviso that no law would be repugnant to the spirit of Islam serves just fine. Overall, like most other Muslims surveyed, Pakistanis see no inherent tension between being religiously devout and living in a modern society. They have fought long and hard for democracy in the hope of building a just society where all communities and sections of society can live as equal citizens with equal opportunities for individual advancement and collective progress.
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Pakistan: '' 84 percent for Sharia law? ''
The US-based PEW Research Centre's Forum on Religion and Public Life has released the results of its recent world-wide opinion survey of Muslim populations. The part pertaining to Pakistan is startling, though reflective of two seemingly contradictory realities. It of course is included among majority of 39 countries surveyed, where Muslims say that "Islam is the one true faith leading to eternal life in heaven and that belief in God is necessary to be a moral person." But what is hard to believe is the finding that "support for making Sharia the official law of the land tends to be higher in countries like Pakistan (84%) and Morocco (83%)."
That surely is not how the situation looks like from inside Pakistan. The support for Sharia calls for a more careful interpretation. If 84 percent of the population supports Sharia law, religious parties should have been dominating electoral politics in this country. The reality though is quite the contrary. People tend to separate politics from religion. They vote for the mainstream parties, always confining religious parties to the periphery of national politics. So where did the 84 percent figure come from? Part of the explanation may lie in the framing of the question. When asked if they want Sharia laws, most Muslims are expected to answer in the affirmative. It may be recalled that while deciding to exploit the public's religious sentiments in order to prolong his stay in power, a much hated military dictator, General Ziaul Haq, had held a referendum asking just one question of the voters ie, if they liked Islam. The answer had to be yes. And it was stretched to mean they wanted him to remain president.
As the survey report notes, Muslims around the globe have differing understanding of what Sharia means in practice. There are as many versions of Sharia law as are sects. Also Muslim societies are not homogenous; local cultures have their own influence. Which is why the survey found that Muslims differed widely on such questions as whether polygamy, divorce and family planning are morally acceptable and whether daughters should be able to receive the same inheritance as sons. Pakistan, unlike certain nearby Muslim countries, is home to several different sects. Therefore, the constitutional proviso that no law would be repugnant to the spirit of Islam serves just fine. Overall, like most other Muslims surveyed, Pakistanis see no inherent tension between being religiously devout and living in a modern society. They have fought long and hard for democracy in the hope of building a just society where all communities and sections of society can live as equal citizens with equal opportunities for individual advancement and collective progress.
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