E/CN.4/2006/5/Add.2 page 14 Sharia and the Constitution 61. A main problem raised by the adoption of sharia penal codes in Nigeria is one of constitutionality. As underlined above, article 10 of the Constitution provides that “[t]he Government of the Federation or of a State shall not adopt any religion as State Religion”. Many detractors of these codes consider that making religion the only basis for regulating the behaviour of Muslim citizens in the society, including with regard to criminal matters, is equivalent to adopting a state religion. 62. Other constitutional problems are often raised with respect to the compatibility of sharia penal codes with certain fundamental rights protected by the Constitution, including the prohibition of torture or inhuman and degrading treatment, the prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex or religion, equality before the law, certain rules of due process and, in particular, the right to change religion. 63. In 2002 the Federal Minister of Justice sent a letter to the northern states that had adopted sharia penal codes pointing out that those laws were unconstitutional on different grounds; however, there has so far not been a constitutional challenge of the sharia penal codes at the Supreme Court level or before the Federal Court of Appeal. This may be explained by various reasons, including the fact that many sentences pronounced by subordinate sharia courts are usually quashed on appeal and that only persons who have a locus standi, that is an interest in filing a case because they have been personally affected by the application of these laws, may bring a constitutional claim before the Supreme Court. This therefore precludes non-governmental organizations or other entities from bringing such a case. But a few interlocutors of the Special Rapporteur have also raised the fact that the absence of constitutional challenge is also explained by the fear of most citizens subjected to Islamic laws to legally challenge sharia. 64. Sharia law advocates consider that the Constitution has given the states legislative authority to adopt criminal laws and that the constitutionally protected right to freedom of religion entitles citizens of Nigeria to decide whether they want to be governed by Islamic law. Some Muslims told the Special Rapporteur that only the Holy Koran had legal significance for them, and that there could be no other laws, including the Constitution, that could govern their lives. 65. So far, the Federal Government, except for the letter of the Minister of Justice mentioned above, has remained passive, sometimes claiming that any kind of intervention would rather worsen the situation. Moreover, a committee has been created by the Federal Government to draft a uniform sharia penal code and code of procedure for the states that have adopted Islamic criminal law, without achieving much progress so far. Sharia in Nigeria and human rights 66. The adoption of sharia penal codes by state governments, and in particular their application, pose various questions in terms of international human rights law.