Islamic law on trial in Nigeria Wednesday, 22 March, 2000, 22:06 GMT By Nigeria correspondent Barnaby Phillips A court case testing the legality of the introduction of Islamic Sharia law in the northern Nigerian state of Zamfara is due to resume on Thursday. The case has been raised by a leading human rights lawyer Olisa Agbakoba, who is arguing that Zamfara, by introducing Sharia criminal law, has violated the Nigerian constitution. Mr Agbakoba's organisation, Huri Laws, alleges that Zamfara has violated the essentially secular nature of the Nigerian constitution through its adoption of Sharia, and that it is favouring one religion, Islam, to the detriment of the other, Christianity. The case is still in its early stages but it, along with four similar suits which Huri Laws has subsequently filed, could help to resolve the burning the controversy over the legality of Sharia - an issue which has divided the country. Emotive issue Last month hundreds of people were killed in the northern city of Kaduna when violence began during a demonstration by Christians against Sharia. Zamfara has been the leading state in the pro-Sharia camp. The Nigerian constitution specifically recognises the authority of Sharia on some aspects of family and civil law, but what has aroused such anger among Christians was Zamfara's move in January to introduce a Sharia criminal code. Many Christians have argued that it is the government, through the attorney-general, which ought to be taking the pro-Sharia states to court. But President Olusegun Obasanjo, who is a devout Christian, has said that any legal move by the government would be divisive. He says he would prefer the government to remain neutral on this most delicate of subjects, while religious and secular leaders work on a political solution. - BBC News ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------