By. Dr Williams– A new poll from the Pew Research Center shows the majority of the world’s Muslims want to be governed by an intransigent interpretation of Islamic law (sharia), and condone the stoning of women as a punishment for alleged adultery.
The same majority favor hand amputation for thieves and the death penalty for many Muslim who converts to another religion.
The poll further shows that 85% of Pakistani Muslims support laws that segregate men and women in the workplace.
The Muslims from Indonesia, Egypt, Nigeria, and Jordon were the most enthusiastic in their support of a fundamental interpretation of Islamic law and expressed their desire for Islam to play a greater role in the politics of their governments.
In Nigeria, nearly one half of the respondents expressed their support of al Qaeda.
Hezbollah and Hamas were endorsed by the vast majority of Musims in Jordan and Lebanon.
The poll further revealed that 59% of the Muslims in Egypt and 58% in Nigeria are rabid fundamentalists.
Turkish Muslims appeared to be the most conflicted in their views of fundamentalism and modernism, with more than half supporting the expanding influence of Islam in their country’s political system.
Turks were similarly torn in their positions regarding Hamas, Hezbollah, and other outlets of militant Islam.
The poll was conducted April 12 to May 7 in seven countries with large Muslim populations. About 8,000 people were interviewed face to face, and the survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points for Pakistan and 4 percentage points for the other countries.