I think Jack Straw has the right to show his personal view point on a matter but at the same time every person in a free country has the right to choose what he/she wants to wear.
I personally feel that there should be a grand conference among the top muslim scholars around the world where they would agree/decide on one ruling for various matters like:
- definition of halal/zabiha food. Can we eat food from christians/jews as in england/US or do they need to be slaughtered properly by a muslim?
- how should Eid/ starting of ramadan be decided on various countries. On local moon sighting or following Saudi Arabia.
- what is the definition of "modest clothing" for men and women. Do women have to cover face and hair? or do men have to keep beard? is it fard or wajib? etc
The scholars would have to decide on this based on the strongest evidence from Quran and Sunnah. If they cannot come to a conclusion even after all the discussion then both rulings should be made permissable and left for personal discretion.
The christians had a similar conference under the Byzantine emperor in 300AD where various issues like (should Jesus be a God or just a messiah) were decided. Fortunately we muslims DO NOT have such huge difference in aqeedah(belief), and the small differences like moon sighting and proper attire should be easily resolved...
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