The following article is culled from the Observer.
I am not sure what Imam Leigh is saying here. The Imam siad livi9ng in a
country with three laws is confusing, but yet wants the President to
introduce Sharia qwhiles we respectr the constitution and defend the others
rights. How many Laws is that Mr Imam Baba Leigh?...................

The imam of the Kanifing Estate Mosque, Baba Leigh, has renewed the debate on
whether the strict Islamic law, shariah, is appropriate for The Gambia.
Speaking to Daily Observer yesterday, the controversial imam said, "President
Yahya Jammeh should not even bother. It is very easy for people to tarnish a
leader's image through a simple thing. I agree that the head of state was
misquoted by the media but let him not even make any rectification because
the introduction of shariah in The Gambia will not be any mistake.

Muslims should be naturally governed by shariah law because Islam calls for
shariah. It is quite puzzling for a Muslim to say that he or she cannot live
with shariah. This is owing to the fact that shariah is misunderstood. It is
seen as a very terrible, bloody and horrifying law by such people. That is
very incorrect," he said. Imam Leigh said shariah "is not all about cutting
hands, killing or beating. It is a way of life as Islam is.

A Muslim, after declaring his faith in Allah and His messenger, must abide by
the stipulations of the shariah." He argued that critics of shariah are
simply ignorant of its implications. "These ignorant people are part of the
Muslims of The Gambia who start thinking about what goes on in Nigeria or
Iran as soon as one talks about shariah. If I were the head of state, I would
have expressed my wish for introducing it in The Gambia without imposing it
on anybody," he remarked.

Imam Leigh said shariah should be introduced by the people of The Gambia and
that task must be carried out by the ordinary Muslim citizens of the country.
He said he was aware that non-Muslims also live in The Gambia. "Those people
have their constitutional rights which must be protected. Shariah, when
introduced, will not effect them as they too have their own religion and way
of life. We are not going to do it the way Nigerians do it as we can't drive
away these Christians," he said. Imam Baba Leigh said he wanted an audience
with the president to discuss this issue of shariah. "I have tried this many
times but to no avail.

I would like to advise the head of state on this issue if I have any chance
of meeting him personally. It is rather unfortunate that I only see the
president when meeting him in a group. I will not only tell him that shariah
is good or ideal for only The Gambia but for the whole world. We are now
living in a very confused society with three different sets of laws; Western
law, customary law and part shariah law. A single state being governed by
three sets of laws is confusing," he argued. Imam Leigh said imams and other
erudite Muslim scholars must sensitise their followers about shariah.

"People need to be sensitised before shariah can be introduced so as to waive
the fear people have about it. Shariah works effectively for the interest and
welfare of people. It was not the non-Muslim president of Nigeria who
introduced shariah in areas governed by shariah but the people themselves and
this is what Gambians must emulate. I am calling for the introduction of
shariah but it should not be with force," Imam Leigh concluded.

During his Eid-ul-Fitr meeting with religious leaders at State House last
weekend, President Jammeh was quoted by Radio Gambia as saying he was going
to introduce the strict Islamic law in The Gambia in 2001. However, that
statement was hotly disputed by the State House press and PR director,
Fatoumata Jahumpa-Ceesay, who said the president was misquoted. However, the
constitution of The Gambia has entrenched the secularity of the state and
frowned upon the introduction of any state religion.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L
Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask]
if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------