Democracy, the Rule of Law and Islam

In this work of comparative law, 29 contributions (written by legal scholars and practitioners) looking at Islamic and Egyptian law and their relationship to the issues of democracy, the principle of the rule of law, and human rights are presented by Cotran (an English Circuit Judge and Chairman of the Centre of Islamic and Middle Eastern Law at the U. of London) and Sherif (a Judge and Commissioner Counselor for the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt). In the first half, the papers look at judicial independence, judicial review, human rights, and democracy in international, regional, and Egyptian contexts. The second group of contributions examines broader questions of Islam and law, including freedom of religion and belief as internationally protected rights, the relationship of human rights in Islam and United Nations instruments, the human rights situation for Saudi Arabian women, and Islamic constitutionalism in theory and practice. Annotation c2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)