Head to head: Nigeria's Sharia law

An Islamic appeal court has upheld a sentence of death by stoning for adultery against a Nigerian woman, Amina Lawal, who was found guilty by a court in Katsina state in March after bearing a child outside marriage.

Nigerian writer and Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, and the Muslim Council of Britain's Professor Dawud Noybee explained their opposing views on Lawal's case, and on the issue of the controversial Sharia law, on BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

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Wole Soyinka, Nigerian writer

The application of Sharia, as it is being instituted in a number of states in Nigeria, is against the constitution.

These are cynical people who are playing politics with faith

Wole Soyinka

It is a pure political ploy and it is an attempt to create a crisis - a pure political crisis - because of disgruntlement with the current government.

There is nothing really religious about it. I mean, what excuse do these people - who are just another group within a multi-religious plurality - what excuse do they have?

It is a very idiosyncratic interpretation of the Sharia and this has been pointed out by scholars, Muslim scholars, not just [me]... these are cynical people who are playing politics with faith.

Sanctions

The actions which have been taken by these states are an act of breaking up the nation.

Soyinka: Humans should not be political pawns

That is why I insist that the federal government has to take a very firm stance on this.

Either it is agreed that states can unilaterally break off from the instrument that binds us together - which means that it is no longer one nation - or else [we] must insist that there must be... punitive internal sanctions against states which take such action that make them de facto independent states - theocratic states - within what is a secular constitutional arrangement.

International community

I think the federal government of Nigeria needs to initiate the action... to take a firmer stance and stop putting us through this very sadistic charade in which human beings are being made the mere game of politics in a very traumatic way.

In addition of course, the international community should join in reinforcing the position of the federal government... sanctions, if necessary, should be imposed wherever possible if this horrendous deed is carried out.

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Dawud Noybee, professor for the Muslim Council of Britain

I'm afraid people misunderstand what the Sharia is all about, it is far more than just punishment for crimes.

The whole idea of this punishment is that they should serve as deterrents - not punitive

Dawud Noybee

I must say that... people think about the Sharia only in terms of punishment and I think it's necessary to make this very, very clear; it's about how to live our life in security and also to ensure that economic life and political life are sane in the society.

People should understand that the law is one thing - how it is applied by some people could be different.

This is not peculiar to the Sharia - we have cases in the [British] magistrates courts that have been overturned by higher courts.

[The sentence] is not wrong... I will defend that by referring to the Bible in John Chapter 8, verses 3 to 5: That Moses made it quite clear to the Jews that whoever committed that crime should be stoned to death, and... somebody who committed that crime was brought to Jesus and he never contested it.

Now it is the manner in which it is applied that is quite different... in this particular case, the law - the Sharia - makes it quite clear that if a women is raped, she cannot be subjected to a punishment.

Secondly... if a woman is found to be pregnant that alone is not sufficient as evidence.

Deterrent

Any Muslim that commits that offence [adultery] and is proven to have actually committed it according to the rules of the Sharia - that is four witnesses were there and they saw the act being done - you'll agree with me that this is not something that any society would accept.

Christians and Muslims and Jews believe that the will of God shall be done on Earth.

The whole idea of these punishments is that they should serve as deterrents - not punitive.

As I have pointed out, it is very, very difficult to establish the guilt of a person who is accused of adultery. The whole idea therefore is to make that [law] serve as a deterrent.