English – Muslims in the West, case of Switzerland (written) 2007

Introduction  3

1. Main reasons behind the confrontation 4

1) Different concepts of law   4

1. A) Islamic concept of law: God-made laws 4
2. B) Western concept of law: human-made laws 5

2) Division of society on the internal and external level 6

1. A) Religious division of society 6
2. B) Western territorial/national division of the society 9
3. The conflicting norms in family and inheritance law 10

1) Celebration of the marriage  10

1. A) Islamic norms 10
2. B) Swiss norms 10

2) Religious obstacles to the marriage  12

1. A) Islamic norms 12
2. B) Swiss norms 14

3) Temporary or enjoyment marriage  17

1. A) Islamic norms 17
2. B) Swiss norms 18

4) Polygamy  18

1. A) Islamic norms 18
2. B) Swiss norms 19

5) Dissolution of the marriage  21

1. A) Islamic norms 21
2. B) Swiss norms 22

6) Authority of the husband over his wife  25

1. A) Islamic norms 25
2. B) Swiss norms 26

7) Relations between parents and children  27

1. A) Islamic norms 27
2. B) Swiss norms 27

8) Matrimonial regime and economic relations  31

1. A) Islamic norms 31
2. B) Swiss norms 31

9) Inheritance law   33

1. A) Islamic norms 33
2. B) Swiss norms 33

III. How to resolve the problem of Islamic law   34

1) Answers inside the Arab countries  35

2) Answers inside the western countries  37

Appendix: Model contract for mixed marriage  41

1) Celebration of the marriage  41

2) Religious freedom of spouses  42

3) Fidelity and monogamy  42

4) Children  42

5) Economic relations  42

6) Sartorial norms, work and travel 43

7) Dissolution of the marriage  43

8) Inheritance  43

9) Death and funeral ceremony  44

10) Modification of the present contract 44

english-muslims-in-the-west-case-of-switzerland-written-2007