The role of Islam in Iraq

Contributed by: filbert Tuesday, August 09 2005 @ 06:58 AM CST

Iraqis debate what role Islam will play in their new constitution[*1] .

“If Ayatollah al-Sistani suggests that he wants Islam in the constitution, that will harden the position of those who want a religious-oriented state,” says Tom Palmer, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute in Washington, who has met with members of Iraq’s parliament on the constitution and is closely following the drafting process.

“It’s possible that the law would be innocuous and merely say that no legislation may violate Islam. The big problem is, who gets to determine that? Religious courts? Whose?” says Mr. Palmer.

Here’s where we get down to the fundamental problem: Islam does not recognize any separation of religion and state. Until it does, the crisis of Islam vs. the civilized world will continue.