Muslim World - Law and Ethics

Law and Ethics

Further information: Islamic ethics

In some nations, Muslim ethnic groups enjoy considerable autonomy.

In some places, Muslims implement Islamic law, called sharia in Arabic. The Islamic law exists in many variations, but the main forms are the five (four Sunni and one Shia) and Salafi and Ibadi schools of jurisprudence (fiqh)

  • Hanafi school in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, Albania, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, other Balkna States, Egypt, Spain, Morocco, Canada, Maldives, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Russia, China, Central Asian Republics, West Africa, European Union, other countries of North and South America.
  • Maliki in North Africa and West Africa
  • Shafi'i in Malaysia, Qatar, Indonesia, Brunei, Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia and Yemen
  • Hanbali in Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar
  • Jaferi in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain and Azerbaijan. These four are the only "Muslim states" where the majority is Shia population. In Yemen, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon are countries with significant Shia population.
  • Salafi in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar
  • Ibadi in Oman and small regions in North Africa

Muslim women dress modestly to show their high characters. Thus, in some Muslim countries, the Islamic law requires women to cover either just legs, shoulders and head or the whole body apart from the face. In strictest forms, the face as well must be covered leaving just a mesh to see through. These rules for dressing cause tensions, concerning particularly Muslims living in Western countries, where restrictions are considered both sexist and oppressive. Many Muslims oppose this charge, and instead declare that the media in these countries presses on women to reveal too much in order to be deemed attractive, and that this is itself sexist and oppressive.

Islamic economics bans interest or Riba (Usury) but in most Muslim countries Western banking is allowed.

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