Muslim legal professionals on faith, justice and why they’re proud to work in a tolerant Britain

TOP judge Tan Ikram said sitting in court during the 2011 London riots made him proud to work in our legal system.

He heard up to 60 cases a day as the courts dealt with 3,443 crimes committed in five days of chaos.

Mr Ikram, 51, said: “Our legal system is the envy of the world.”

The son of Pakistani-born postman dad and factory-worker mum who moved to the UK in the 1960s — Mr Ikram was brought up in Slough, Berks, and studied law at Wolverhampton University.

Last year he was made the Deputy Chief Magistrate of England and Wales, overseeing 250 judges.

He said: “My dad put a lot of emphasis on education. It was about getting away from the life we had.

“I’m proud to be a Muslim and I’m proud to be British. There is a British moral compass, they are not separate Muslim, Hindu and Christian moral compasses, we all have the same values. My view of the world is as a Brit.

“I’ve never felt that I’ve been held back because I studied in Wolverhampton, even though many of my colleagues went to Oxford or Cambridge.

Our legal system is the envy of the world

Tan IkramJudge

"Those different experiences have helped me as a judge, no question.”

But he added: “We are acutely aware as a judiciary that we want more judges from diverse backgrounds.”

Barrister Emma Edhem would agree. When she first set foot in court in the 1990s she was hit by a sea of white faces.

Now the mum-of-two is the deputy head of international law at one of the country’s biggest chambers and hopes to be the first female, Muslim Lord Mayor of the City of London.

Emma, 51, who was born to Turkish Cypriot parents in the UK, said: “When I was nine we had to stand up and read to the class.

“I was born in the UK and didn’t sound like I was from another country but the teacher still said, ‘the only foreigner reads better than everyone else’. I didn’t know I was a foreigner but it stayed with me.

“Britain has come on leaps and bounds since.

Here in the UK there is now great tolerance. I'm very proud

Emma EdhemBarrister

“I’m a British person, my culture is British, but my faith is Islam. They all compliment each other and I’m proud of all three.

“When I started 25 years ago I would go into court and be the only person of ethnicity and the only woman. Now it is a lot better. There are lots more women and people from ethnic groups.

“Here in the UK there is now great tolerance. I’m very proud.”

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