The worrying rise of Sharia marriages

In Britain today, there are believed to be thousands of women in religious-only marriages who are not recognised as legally married. This means they have no marital rights under the law and have no option of obtaining a civil divorce.

In these mainly Sharia-compliant marriages, the husband has all the power. Indeed, he can divorce his wife simply by saying ‘talaq’ (‘divorce’) to her three times. And just like that, she is left with nothing – she has no legal recourse and no protections. Often, this is the first moment the wife in such unions becomes aware she has no legally recognised marital status. All of this is because, as a 2015 Law Commission report explains, these religious-only marriages (regardless of faith) are considered a ‘non-marriage’ under the law.

Baroness Cox, founder and director of Equal and Free, has been campaigning for several years now to draw attention to this injustice. Last month, she wrote a public letter signed by several other peers to home secretary Suella Braverman. There she called for the government ‘to enshrine the rights of every woman in the UK who is married without the protection of the law’.

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