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The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill was introduced into the House of Commons on 24th January 2013. This bill seeks to legalise gay marriage.
The second reading of the Bill took place on 5th February, as you may remember the majority of Muslim MPs voted in favour of the bill, which caused considerable outrage. What everyone who condemned these MPs must ask themselves is, what did they do in the run up to the second reading debate, did you voice opposition to the bill in any way? Did you sign any of the petitions? Did you raise your concerns with your MP? If the answer to these questions is no, what is the difference between those MPs who supported the bill and us, who through our own negligence stood as bystanders as the pro-gay argument controlled the public debate, with only Christian groups defending marriage? A cynical few may argue how will our actions change anything? The answer to that question is, change of any kind does not come about by surrendering our will without expending our effort, our accountability before Allah Azza wa Jal is not based on the outcome or result, but as a result of what we intended from the action and the fulfilment of the action for the sake of Allah Jalla wa ‘Ala.
We do not have many opportunities left to protect marriage and stand up against its re-definition, one opportunity is to write to the Committee scrutinising the bill, they have requested submissions from interested parties.
The committee scrutinising the bill has met and has asked for written submissions from interested parties. Islamic organisations, masaajid and concerned individuals are highly encouraged to provide a submission before the deadline which is on 12th March 2013.
You should utilise this opportunity to have heard a voice that has hitherto been absent from the discussion – the Muslim voice.
Please include a brief introduction about you or your organisation. The submission should not have been previously published or circulated elsewhere.
Submissions should be in the form of a Word document. A summary should be provided. Paragraphs should be numbered, but there should be no page numbering.
Essential statistics or further details can be added as annexes, which should also be numbered. To make publication easier, please avoid the use of coloured graphs, complex diagrams or pictures.
As a guideline, submissions should not exceed 3,000 words.
Please include in the covering email the name, address, telephone number and email address of the person responsible for the submission. The submission should be dated.
All written evidence will be circulated to all Committee Members to inform their consideration of the Bill. Most submissions will also be published on the internet as soon as possible after the Committee has started sitting.
You can view current submissions at the following location,
Please note your submission may be published online and therefore accessible to the general public.
If you have any questions about your submission, please direct them to The Scrutiny Unit using the details below.
Scrutiny Unit contact details
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 020 7219 8387
Fax: 020 7219 8381,
Address: Michelle Edney
Senior Executive Officer
Scrutiny Unit, 7 Millbank,
London SW1P 3JA.
Sources:www.islam21c.com
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