Turkey ‘concerned’ over changes to Islamic Law in Greece

Turkey on Thursday said it views new Greek legislation which changes the way Islamic law is implemented among the country’s Muslim minority with “concern”.

In a statement, Turkey’s foreign ministry warned Athens against infringing upon the prerogatives of elected Muslim jurists (muftis) in Western Thrace, shortly after the country passed legislation amending the way Islamic law is applied in the region.

Greece’s parliament voted overwhelmingly to make the practice of Sharia Law in family disputes optional for the country’s Muslim minority earlier this week.

The legislation will allow Muslim litigants to opt for a Greek civil court to resolve family disputes rather than appealing to locally-elected Islamic jurists.

For family law matters, Greek Muslims generally seek recourse to muftis on issues such as divorce, child custody and inheritance. Rights groups say it is a system that frequently discriminates against women.

The issue has its origins in the period after World War I, and treaties between Greece and Turkey that followed the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.

Turkey’s foreign ministry claimed no consultations were made with the elected muftis - which are unrecognised by Greece.

(greece.greekreporter.com)