ASJA backs removal of Muslim woman from court

THE largest Muslim organisation in this country, the Anjuman Sunnat Jamaat Association (ASJA), has supported the decision taken by Siparia magistrate Gillian David to eject a woman, who was dressed in full Muslim garb, including a hijab, from the courtroom. ASJA public relations officer Dr Nazam Shah, said at all times the rules and regulations governing the judicial system in general, and the courts in particular, must be enforced. Shah was responding to questions from Newsday in light of magistrate David’s decision on Monday to bar Tammy McLeod from sitting in on the hearing of a case in which Mc Leod’s 12-year-old daughter is jointly charged with four others for possession of arms, ammunition and illegal drugs.

“You can see me, but I can’t see you,” magistrate David told McLeod during the hearing. Asked to comment on the magistrate’s decision, Dr Shah said while the action may have seemed to be “a little harsh,” he said the laws governing both the magistrates and other courts of law must be enforced. He also observed that Trinidad and Tobago was not an Islamic State, and while persons should not be persecuted for their religious beliefs, he said each citizen also had a duty to obey the laws of the land.