THE UNIVERSE 

Nigeria�s bishops attack Sharia Iaw

By TONY DAWBER

THE adoption al Sharia, or Islamie Iaw, as the criminal code in Nigeria is a flagrant violation of human rights of all citizens, the Nigerian bishops said this week.

�The crisis over the Sharia is deepening rather than being resolved. In general, ethnic and religious conflicts have continued unabated,� the bishops said in a statement entitled Our Concern for the Nation.

�Our constitution safeguards the human rights of its citizens. As it protects the legal rights of its citizens, it also limits the behaviour of individuals and groups that might infringe upon the rights of others,� the bishops said.

They said they would continue to seek dialogue and increased understanding with Nigeria�s Muslim community. But the bishops shall not be silent as long as the injustice and the anomaly of the Sharia continue,� the statement said.

Dialogue between Muslims and Christians remained essential to maintaining peace the bishops said, because �as we see so vividly in the world and in Nigeria today, the alternative to dialogue is violence�.

The bishops sharply criticised the recent death-by-stoning sentence given to a Nigerian woman accused of adultery. They said the widened use of Sharia law in criminal matters has �brought a great deal of shame and opprobrium on our nation in the international community�.

�This widened application of Sharia law endangers especially the rights of the poor and women and leaves unpunished the failings of the powerful and wealthy,� the bishops said.

The bishops said citizens were �deeply concerned� about the country�s political climate. Elections were postponed in early August for a third time. The bishops said they would not hesitate to criticise all leaders, especially Catholic officials, who do not live up to the democratic principles of justice, honesty, transparency and accountability.