In praise of the shura

The West has much to learn from Afghanistan’s community courts

Kabul, Afghanistan

I was invited to take part in a shura this week. One of our masons had been hit around the head with an iron bar by a local mechanic. Shura describes a traditional Islamic approach towards sociopolitical organisation and comes from an Arabic word meaning ‘consultation’. An elderly alim (religious scholar) sat next to a younger mullah at the head of the room. The mullah’s name was Qari Abdul Ahad. He is a well-known local figure and happens to be the mason’s brother. I took my place beside the alim having greeted the other 15 reesh safedan (‘white-beards’) who sat cross-legged around the room. A senior Afghan engineer conducted the meeting from his knees in the middle of the room. The wounded mason sat meekly in the corner by the door, sporting a large dressing on the side of his head. Next to him sat the mechanic’s father, looking perplexed, as the elders set about deciding his son’s fate.

The mullah spoke first in a tone that did little to conceal his anger, appealing both to the Quran and the alim beside him as he sought justice for his family. It was difficult to see what his eyes were doing behind his gold-rimmed aviator sunglasses but his words came in a torrent of Quranic recitation. His anger boiled and globules of spit landed on the ankles of one of his opponents. It was a humiliation that went unnoticed as his demands on the community grew increasingly unrealistic. He was allowed to continue in this fashion for 15 minutes until interrupted by an elder. Pleas for restraint came from the floor and the mullah retreated once again to the Quran for a just penalty.