All roads lead to Cagayan de Oro City for the Supreme Court’s 1st National Shari’ah Summit: Forging the Role of Shari’ah in the National Legal Framework, to be held on March 5 and 6, 2023 at Limketkai Luxe Hotel.
The Summit, which will be streamed live via the Supreme Court’s YouTube channel, will gather over 300 participants nationwide, including Justices, judges, prosecutors, and lawyers from all branches of government. Also joining are Shari’ah counselors, Shari’ah judges, members of the academe, representatives of non- governmental organizations, as well as foreign delegates from countries which implement Shari’ah laws.
The Summit aims, among others, to be a venue for knowledge-sharing of ideas and the best practices involving Shari’ah and equip all participants with the basic principles of the Shari’ah justice system. Likewise, it will serve as a platform to address issues challenging the Philippine Shari’ah legal and judicial system and to explore opportunities on how to strengthen the support for Shari’ah justice in the country.
Leading the roster of speakers is Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo, who will discuss the Supreme Court’s Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027 on Strengthening the Foundations of Shari’ah.
Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen will deliver the welcome remarks.
Senate President Juan Miguel F. Zubiri will lead key government officials who will deliver messages of support.
Topics for Day 1 of the Summit include “Brief History of Muslim Filipinos,” “Updates on the Peace Process,” “Shari’ah in the Philippine Legal Framework,” “Shi’a and Sunni, and the Four Sunni Madhab (Schools of Thought),” “Concept of Halal,” and “Islamic Banking in the Philippines.” A panel discussion focusing on “Women in Islam” will also be held.
On Day 2, the topics include “The Muslim Code and the Bangsamoro Organic Law,” “Supreme Court Decisions on Shari’ah,” “Salient Provisions of the Proposed Revised Special Rules of Procedure in Shari’ah Courts,” and “Islamic Banking and Finance.”
There will also be knowledge sharing on the “Best Practices on Shari’ah in Foreign Jurisdictions,” to be led by Egyptian Ambassador to the Philippines H.E. Ahmed Shehabeldin Ibrahim Abdullah who is speaking in his personal capacity as a lawyer and a scholar.
Associate Justice Japar B. Dimaampao, the second Muslim to have been appointed to the Supreme Court after Associate Justice Abdulwahid Bidin, will discuss “What Lies Ahead: Conquering Challenges in the Philippine Shari’ah Legal System and the Evolving Shari’ah Doctrines.”
Philippine Judicial Academy (PhilJA) Chancellor Rosmari D. Carandang will deliver the closing remarks.
The Summit is organized by the Supreme Court in cooperation with its judicial education arm, the PhilJA, in partnership with the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy (PCID) and the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF); with support from the European Union through the SUBATRA and GOJUST2 Programmes co-funded by Cooperación Espańola, and The Asia Foundation. (Courtesy of the Supreme Court Public Information Office)