International

Queen wades into Sharia row

LONDON: The Queen on Wednesday waded into the Sharia row as the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams struggled to quell the storm over his remarks that aspects of the Islamic law could be incorporated into Britain’s secular legal system.

The Queen, who is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, was reported to be “distressed” that the controversy could undermine the authority of the Archbishop and the church. The Daily Telegraph quoted royal sources as saying that the Queen was “worried” that the row “may sap the authority of the church”.

In a nod to his critics, Dr. Williams admitted that there might have been a lack of clarity in the way he expressed his view but insisted that it was not “inappropriate” for the leader of the Church of England to raise issues about the “perceived concerns” of other religious groups.

Dr. Williams, who has faced calls for him to resign, accused the media of misreporting his speech. He said “some of what has been heard is a very long way indeed from what was actually said.”

Addressing the General Synod, the Church of England’s ruling body, Dr. Williams said he took “responsibility for any unclarity” and for “any misleading choice of words” but he insisted that he had a right to say what he did.

“I believe quite strongly, that it is not inappropriate for a pastor of the Church of England to address issues about the perceived concerns of other religious communities, and to try and bring them into better public focus,” he said.

Dr. Williams denied that he ever advocated that Sharia should run as “parallel jurisdiction” and was simply reflecting over the relationship between law and religion.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu