The Muslim Woman

Finally, there’s relief for Muslim women, a new nikahnaama has come up that’ll significantly empower the Shia women. According to this new nikahnaama, the women would be able to initiate divorce, which was forbidden previously in Islam. In addition to it, the Shia women have now acquired the right to know about their husband’s income and details about his respective occupation. Now their husbands cannot even stop them from working after marriage neither they can demand any dowry. Moreover, she can also sue her husband if she: 1. is manhandled by her 2. hasn’t seen him for two years 3. if his personal details after marriage proves to be false The member of All India Shia Personal Law Board, Maulana Mirza Mohammad Athar said, ‘According to Allah, the right of divorce lies with the husband. But Islam also accepts it when under special circumstances, the husband delegates the right of divorce to the wife.’ He further added, ‘Women have many rights in Islam. But so far these have not been presented to the people.’ Ayatullah Siastani, the honored cleric of Najaf in Iraq has already given a green signal to this nikahnaama. Read

Senator Dr Khalid Mehmood Soomro, Secretary General of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, Sindh, has accused the government for demolishing the MMA proposals and accused the President, General Musharraf, and his associates of blackmailing the public in the name of Women’s rights protection act. He asserted that government did not agree to MMA’s proposals regarding women’s property rights, sell of daughters, forced marriages, daughters given in compensations settlement of murders, divorces etc. He stated that the Act is completely against the spirit of Islam and Shariah, which is not safeguarding women but laying the foundation of anti- Islamic society. He urged the ulema, scholars of all schools of thought to unite and reject the act. He said, ‘we are proud to be fundamentalists and would contest against what he called ‘progressives’. The MMA had decided to fight in and outside the parliament to force the government to withdraw the act, which would not give space to the president to act freely.’ Read

They are pushed aside by their in-laws, shunned by neighbors, exploited by employers and harassed by security officers. They are Kashmir’s ‘half-widows’, 2,000 women whose husbands never returned home after security forces took them away for questioning as suspected separatists. Where are they? Are their hearts still palpitating or have the white shroud enveloped them? The disputed border region between India and Pakistan has witnessed infinite deaths. Many people have vanished, presumed killed or imprisoned without trial or record. And amongst these things, women have become ‘the sufferers’ who are subjected to pay a huge price as they are lost in the limbo between missing and confirmed death. Every week women in the region gather in protest along with their lost husband’s photographs. The so-called ‘half- widows’ are not in a position to collect their due pensions or remarry without official statement that their husbands are dead. It has been speculated that in the past decade, nearly, 10,000 people were subjected to forced disappearances by armed personnel and about 2000 to 2500 among them were married men. Women are not able to remarry because of the lacking official statement about their husband and also their religion forbids them to do so. According to Islam, women must wait for seven years before taking another husband. Half widows are not in a position to have any relief at their disposal from the Indian government during the stipulated period of seven years. Nevertheless, they are entitled to have either a one-time grant of between $1,000 and $2,000 or a monthly pension of about $10. Till date, the government has offered aid to 400 half-widows. Activists are of the view there are between 2,000 and 2,500 such women. Bottom line: Even after seven years, women right to their husband’s property is further threatened as the in laws come in between and assert their right on the possessions, making the life of women more deplorable. Men may be the worst targets in a conflict situation but women in Kashmir have experienced the conflict doubly. Although, most of the dead or missing in Kashmir are men, they leave behind women to cope with mental trauma, economic hardships and the hard struggle to rebuild their lives and homes. Only hope keeps the women going. Hope that their husbands and sons would come back one day and they could experience the lost familial beat pulsating in their life too. Read

Syrian law contains provisions that discriminate against women and facilitate violence against them. Under the law, some forms of violence against women can be carried out with near impunity. For instance, men can escape punishment or receive reduced sentences if they kill a female member of the family with whom they are committing ‘adultery’ or other ‘vicious sexual relations’. Isn’t it fueling illegitimate relationships then? The scale of violence against women in Syria remains poorly documented for a number of reasons including social restrictions, seclusion, bad education, poverty, etc. However, some general findings postulated: 1. In 56% cases, women were punished for ‘disrespect’ and cursing. 2. 14% for neglecting their household duties. 3. Husbands beat their wives in 49% of such cases, used insults in 38%, andused silent treatment in 8.4%. 4. 67% of women had been punished in front of their families. 5. 52% were insulted. 6. 87% were battered. We may also go to the extent of saying that the religion itself is conditioning obstacles regarding interactions between the genders. True, Islam limits interaction between sexes and calls for modesty in dress and conduct but isn’t it carried to far? A woman in Islamic countries is not suppose to drive, cannot talk to man other than her husband, they have no voice of their own, just living a life of drudgery like that of a slave, moving in accordance with her ‘shuahar’ as if they are no more like a puppet. There have been serious flaws in the administration of justice in Syria, lack of legal and other safeguards to protect the rights of native women have made the men hawk upon them. The need of the hour is to grant the UN bodies that are operating within the nation, greater attention in combating the problems that are specific to women rights. Only then, the respect and promotion of women’s human rights would become an irreversible reality, at the same level as men’s human rights. Image Read

The situation of women in Pakistan is uncertain today. If we look at the statistics, it seems that there is no end to incidents of violence against women. Eighty per cent of the violence against women cases are pending in lower courts in Pakistan involve family members. Around 1,000 women are sexually abused in the country every year but they go un-reported because women know they cannot survive with such a stigma. Figuratively: 1. Estimates of the percentage of women who experience spousal abuse alone range from 70 to upwards of 90 percent. 2. As many as eight women – half of them minors – are raped in Pakistan everyday. 3. Both reported and unreported rapes indicated the number of victims to be over 10,000 a year. 4. The women crises center received only 201 cases of violence against women since it was set up two years ago, forming only 15 per cent of the actual number. 5. Nearly, 85% of the cases were not reported by women because of the predominant male-dominated society and illiteracy. 6. 87 cases out of 201 cases were related to domestic violence followed by physical torture and abuse, dowry, financial problems and harassment. Women in Pakistan face staggeringly high rates of rape, sexual assault, and domestic violence while their attackers largely go unpunished owing to rampant incompetence, corruption, and biases against women throughout the criminal justice system. The crimes involved ranged from murder, honour killing, gang rape, non-registration of FIR, non-arrest of the accused, kidnapping, abduction and domestic violence. Bottom line A strong feudal and patriarchal social structure, cultural bias against women and the acceptance of traditional customary laws have created an environment that is not conducive to the aspirations of the contemporary women. A fundamental issue has to be resolved – the fate of law making. Is it going to be based on principles of equality or politicized in the name of Islam? However, it must be kept in mind, if Pakistan wants to maintain its image as a civilized and progressive country, women’s issues must addressed immediately.

Muslim girls in the US have no problems with their traditional attire, hijab. They have tagged it as a source of strength, pride and a tool to spread correct information about much-stereotyped Islam. However, in the past years, the issue has ignited a kind of controversy over wearing of the veil in public. Muslims are of the view that France has actually set fire to the debate by barring hair veil in state schools in 2004. This has been followed by other European countries primarily Germany. However, the situation is not the same in the United States, people of Muslim communities are of the view that they don’t have to face any kind of discrimination in the nation and that they are free to do the kind of activities, which every youth in the nation are subjected to do. Whether, it’s hanging out with friends or going for a party or in practicing their religion. Even for younger Muslim girls, wearing hijab at public middle schools enhances their self-confidence and makes them feel distinguished among their peers. And majority of them feel that that they did not feel isolated by their attire. The girls also use their hijabs to spread correct information about much-stereotyped Islam. For example, when people ask the reason of covering hair, a girl explained to them that the hair is the symbol of sensuality and beauty, and that I try to hide that. Ala Gebarin, 17, also takes into her strides stares and remarks she might come across. I am aware that my hijab can be intimidating, but it is only a layer of clothing, said she. Read

It seems that the notorious killings in the name of family honor are next to impossible to root out from the social milieu of Muslim countries, worse yet is that they get legal justification. Who on earth gives anyone the right to kill in the name of honor? The most astounding fact in the whole system is that murders are treated with sympathy by local communities who see them as victims of the shameful actions of their female relatives. It’s as if by calling them ‘honor crimes’ we are letting the murderers get away with their goal of keeping their fake facade of honor. Does it imply that spilling women’s blood is socially acceptable in the nation? Officials from Jordan’s National Institute for Forensic Medicine said they had encountered several incidents where young girls had been killed ostensibly for having sexual relations with a man but autopsies had revealed something different… they were virgins. But whether a murdered girl was a virgin or not holds little weight in the eyes of her family or indeed the court. The pinnacle of the crime shows: 1. Nearly 15 to 20 women were slaughtered, last year in the name of so-called family honor by the family members. Continue reading “Legalized Murder: Killing for ‘Honor’ in Jordan” »

Women and girls in Iraq live in constant fear of violence as the conflict intensifies and insecurity spirals. Within their own communities, many women and girls stay at risk of death or injury from male relatives if they depict any behavior held to have brought dishonor on the family. Recently, in Bashika, Mosul, hundreds of men beat and stoned a 17-year-old woman named Du’a Khalil Aswad to death, is a gruesome example of collective ‘honour killing’. The woman, a member of the Yezidi religion, which is practiced by Kurds in Northern Iraq, ran away from her family to join an Arab Muslim man with whom she had fallen in love and had metsecretly, but who rejected her. Damned under the ‘honour’ code, for running away, for choosing outside her own community and for being ultimately rejected, Du’a had nowhere to go. For a couple of days, she had put up with a local Yezidi tribal leader but to live in peace was not in her destiny. She got abducted and brutally murdered in front of hundreds of men by her relatives — who stripped her body, beat and kicked her, and killed her by crushing her body with rocks and concrete blocks. The police officials too participated in this disgusting communal murder.

 Stoning: Is it the part of culture in Iraq?

Death by stoning is slow and painful. Islamic code prescribes that ‘the stone should not be so big as to kill the offender with one or two stones’ and ‘nor should it be as small as pebbles’. The Islamic groups resort to every possible method to terrorize Iraqi women. Today, stoning is only practiced in order to suppress its women and those in the lower cast. Also, those impoverished or socially unimportant get punished by stoning.

Silent Killings

There are frequent reports of ‘honor crimes’ in Iraq – particularly, in the predominantly Kurdish north of the country. Most victims of ‘honor crimes’ are women and girls who are considered by their male relatives and others to have shamed their families by immoral behavior. Often grounds for such accusations are flimsy and no more than rumor. What is the situation like? The government’s failure to protect women, and enforce laws against criminals, has created a situation where thousands of women become victims of so-called honor killings. Violence has risen as a result of patriarchal and religious traditions. In the 21st century, for such crimes to be carried out in broad daylight is not only a shame on society as whole, but most of all, it is a shame on a government that is unable to protect women from such inhumane and backward practices. With officials largely silent on the issue frequently deny that it occurs, it is unclear how many more women in the province were stoned to death. The barbaric and violent practice of stoning will continue as long as people will water the cult of Islam, Muhammad, which has put his hands everywhere especially in this inhuman practice of ‘stoning women to death’ and in imposing uncivilized Sharia Law upon human culture. It forces me to ask a question, can women in Muslim countries ever expect to breathe in the air of self approbation?

Enraged Islamist lawmakers have persuaded the Pakistan government to stop a theatre group staging a satirical play ‘Burqavaganza’; it’s about the burqa, the all-covering head-to-toe garment worn by conservative Muslim women. In the play, young men and women wore the burqa to go out on secret dates and it featured a character called Burqa bin Badin. The play also showed a burqa-clad married couple put to death for making love in public. As expected, religious conformist Pakistanis did not find it funny, rather went as far as to tag the performance as blasphemous, a crime in Pakistan that can carry a death sentence. Culture Minister Sayed Ghazi Gulab Jamal said, the burqa is part of our culture. We can’t allow anyone to ridicule our culture. Progressive Pakistanis have become increasingly shocked by how bold religious radicals have become in spreading their Taliban-style values in society. Madeeha Gauhar with the Ajoka Theatre group told the BBC that the play is not designed to offend Islam or any other religion. She said she heard about the ban from the media as the government had not yet contacted the theater group. We are trying to end the evils from society, we are against forcing women to wear the burqa. I condemn the ban, she told the BBC. Read

As spring season has hit the Iranian province, police authorities have become all the more vigilant. They are cracking down barbers giving Western-style haircuts and shop owners wearing T-shirts with English slogans. They are on the lookout for women wearing head scarves deemed too colorful or small. This won’t stop in here, they are also planning to, block cell phone messages which they consider as ‘immoral’. Such efforts ‘to boost ethical security’ are declared sporadically by the Shiite Muslim regime and the seasonal indignation usually dissipates within weeks. However, at a time of sharpening internal and external political pressures on the government, some residents fear that the current campaign, which is being more strictly enforced, may last far longer. Authorities have already issued warnings to more than 1,000 women for being inappropriately dressed. Another 59 deemed provocatively attired were briefly detained. Last week, an Iranian newspaper reported that security forces had warned 11 European tourists visiting a vegetable market in northern Tehran to observe the Islamic dress code. I have no problem with Islam as a faith but have problem with the organization that treats one section of its members worse than others by denying them the same rights and treating them as second-class citizens. Will they ever jumpstart from there prejudiced stance? Read