HOME WEB NEWS IMAGES CLASSIFIEDS YELLOW PAGESPOLLS - SURVEYS WIKI COUNTRIES PHOTOS US UK INDIA
Cities Stocks Weather Movies Coupons Travel Blogs Health Horoscope Maps ASIA EUROPE Classifieds Yellow Pages
|
|
| |
|---|---|
|
Allah · Oneness of God | |
| Practices | |
|
Timeline of Muslim history | |
|
Qur\'an · Sunnah · Hadith | |
| Sunni · Shi\'a | |
|
Academics · Animals · Art | |
| Christianity · Jainism Judaism · Sikhism | |
The complex relationship between women and Islam is defined by both Islamic texts and the history and culture of the Muslim world. Sharia (Islamic law) provides for differences between women\'s and men\'s roles, rights, and obligations. Muslim-majority countries give women varying degrees of rights with regards to marriage, divorce, civil rights, legal status, dress code, and education.
Even where these differences are acknowledged, scholars and other commentators vary as to whether they are unjust and whether they are a correct interpretation of religious imperatives. Conservatives argue that differences between men and women are due to different status and responsibilities,Amin Ahsan Islahi, Tadabbur-i-Qur\'an, 2nd ed., vol. 2, (Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1986), p. 278 while liberal Muslims, Muslim feminists, and others argue that more progressive interpretations of the role of women are more just.
Islamic law is the product of Quranic guidelines, as understood by Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), as well as of the interpretations derived from the traditions of Muhammad (hadith), which were also selected by a number of historical Islamic scholars. These interpretations and their application were shaped by the historical context of the Muslim world. Furthermore, whether or not Muslims tended to follow these rules was dependent on the prevailing culture, which differed between social classes, local conditions, and regions.[citation needed] Quranic reforms, which in many regions improved the position of women relative to their situation prior to Islam, have often been undermined by the reassertion of tribal customs, or the use of such customs under the name of Islamic law. The spirit of the Quranic reforms may also have been modified by historical or cultural interpretations, reaffirming male dominance and perpetuating gender inequality.[citation needed]
Costumes of Arab women, fourth to sixth century.
To evaluate the effect of Islam on the status of women, many writers have discussed the status of women in pre-Islamic Arabia, and their findings have been mixed.Turner, Brian S. Islam (ISBN 041512347X). Routledge: 2003, p77-78. Some writers have argued that gender roles before Islam were relatively egalitarian, drawing on disparate evidence ranging from the marriage of Muhammad\'s parents to the worship of female idols at Mecca. Other writers, on the contrary, have argued that women\'s status in pre-Islamic Arabia was poor, citing practices of female infanticide, unlimited polygyny, and patrilineal marriage. Valentine M. Moghadam argues that in "Muslim societies, like many others, harbor[ed] illusions about immutable gender differences. There [was] a very strong contention that women [were] different beings- different often meaning inferior- which strengthens social barriers to women\'s achievement" (p. 5). She states that "women\'s legal status and social positions [were] worst in Muslim countries than anywhere else" (p. 3)Valentine M. Moghadam. Modernizing Women: Gender and Social Change in the Middle East. (Lynne Rienner Publishers, USA, 1993)
Islam changed the structure of Arab society and to a large degree unified the people, reforming and standardizing gender roles throughout the region. According to Islamic scholar William Montgomery Watt, Islam improved the status of women by "instituting rights of property ownership, inheritance, education and divorce."Maan, Bashir and Alastair McIntosh. "\'The whole house of Islam, and we Christians with them...\': An interview with \'the Last Orientalist\' - the Rev Prof William Montgomery Watt." Internet version from www.alastairmcintosh.com. Also published in The Coracle, the Iona Community, summer 2000, issue 3:51, pp. 8-11.In terms of women\'s rights, women generally had fewer legal restrictions under Islamic law than they did under certain Western legal systems until the 20th century. For example, restrictions on the legal capacity of married women under French law were not removed until 1965.Badr, Gamal M. (Winter 1984), "Islamic Criminal Justice", The American Journal of Comparative Law 32 (1): 167-169 [167-8]
During the early reforms under Islam in the 7th century, reforms in women\'s rights affected marriage, divorce and inheritance.Esposito (2005) p. 79 Women were not accorded with such legal status in other cultures, including the West, until centuries later.Jones, Lindsay. p.6224 The Oxford Dictionary of Islam states that the general improvement of the status of Arab women included prohibition of female infanticide and recognizing women\'s full personhood.Esposito (2004), p. 339 "The dowry, previously regarded as a bride-price paid to the father, became a nuptial gift retained by the wife as part of her personal property."Khadduri (1978) Under Islamic law, marriage was no longer viewed as a "status" but rather as a "contract", in which the woman\'s consent was imperative. "Women were given inheritance rights in a patriarchal society that had previously restricted inheritance to male relatives." Annemarie Schimmel states that "compared to the pre-Islamic position of women, Islamic legislation meant an enormous progress; the woman has the right, at least according to the letter of the law, to administer the wealth she has brought into the family or has earned by her own work."Schimmel (1992) p.65 William Montgomery Watt states that Muhammad, in the historical context of his time, can be seen as a figure who testified on behalf of women’s rights and improved things considerably. Watt explains: "At the time Islam began, the conditions of women were terrible - they had no right to own property, were supposed to be the property of the man, and if the man died everything went to his sons." Muhammad, however, by "instituting rights of property ownership, inheritance, education and divorce, gave women certain basic safeguards." Maan, McIntosh (1999) Haddad and Esposito state that "Muhammad granted women rights and privileges in the sphere of family life, marriage, education, and economic endeavors, rights that help improve women\'s status in society."Haddad, Esposito (1998) p.163
In Islam, relations between the sexes are governed by the principle of complementarity rather than the principle of equality.Carla Makhlouf Obermeyer. "Islam, Women, and Politics: The demography of Arab countries", Population and Development Review, Vol. 18, No. 1. (Mar., 1992), pp. 33-60Haddad, Moore, and Smith, p155. In many Islamic societies, there is a division of roles creating a woman’s space in the private sphere of the home and a man’s in the public sphere.Hessini.Because of this economic reliance of women on men, the Qur\'an justifies that men should always be in charge over women.See also : "And it is for the women to act as they (the husbands) act by them, in all fairness; but the men are a step above them."See also : "Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah hath guarded ..." A woman\'s primary responsibility is usually interpreted as fulfilling her role as a wife and mother,Ahmed, L., 1992, Women and Gender in Islam: Historical Roots of a Modern Debate, New Haven, Yale University Press. whereas a man’s role is to work and be able to financially support his wife and family. The Qur\'an also directs men to honour their mothers and strongly disapproves of parents who feel ashamed over the birth of a daughter instead of a son. Islamic scholars maintain that the Qur\'an, the holy book of Islam, affirms women\'s religious and moral equality.Haddad and Esposito, pp. xiiGlassé, p476.Malise Ruthven (2000). Islam: A very short introduction, Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-950469-5, p.93
Islam discourages social interaction between men and women when they are alone, but not all interaction between men and women. This is shown in the example of Khadijah, a rich, twice widowed businesswoman who employed Muhammad and met with him to conduct trade before they were married, and in the example set by his other wives, who taught and counseled the men and women of Medina.
In some Islamic countries, such as Saudi Arabia, sex segregation has been or is strictly enforced. The Taliban treatment of women in Afghanistan is an extreme example of this. Even in countries where the sexes mingle socially, they generally remain segregated within the mosque (see Women in religious life below).
Islam gives women the right to own, which entitles them to have personal possessions. While women have fewer financial obligations than men, some of their financial rights are limited. Women\'s share of inheritance, as outlined in the Qur\'an, is typically less than that of men. Women\'s right to work is also disputed.
According to Bernard Lewis, while Islam sanctions a social inequality between man and woman, Muslim women have historically had property rights unparalleled in the modern West until comparatively recently.Lewis, What Went Wrong? 2002, pages 82-83
In general, as Valentine M. Moghadam argues, "much of the economic modernization [of women] was based on income from oil, and some came from foreign investment and capital inflows. Economic development alters the status of women in different ways across nations and classes"Valentine M. Moghadam. Modernizing Women: Gender and Social Change in the Middle East. (Rienner Publishers, USA, 1993). This is a proof that since always the status of women was influenced by the economy of the region and its development.
A woman, when compared with her husband, is far less burdened with any claims on her possessions. Her possessions before marriage do not transfer to her husband and she is encouraged to keep her maiden name. She has no obligation to spend on her family out of such properties or out of her income after marriage. A woman also receives a mahr (dowry), which is given to her by her husband at the time of marriage.Jamal Badawi, The status of women in Islam Women, unlike men, also have the right to be supported financially.Fathi, Asghar. Women and the Family in Iran. Brill (1985), p25. ISBN 9004074260.
In Islam, women are entitled the right of inheritance, but often a woman\'s share of inheritance is less than that of a man\'s. In general circumstances, Islam allows females half the inheritance share available to males who have the same degree of relation to the deceased.For example, where the deceased has both male and female children, a son\'s share is double that of a daughter\'s. Additionally, the sister of a childless man inherits half of his property upon his death, while a brother of a childless woman inherits all of her property.[citation needed] Some argue that this difference derives from men\'s obligation to support their wives financially, while the women\'s share would be entirely at her own disposal.
In most Muslim nations, the law of the state concerning inheritance is in accordance with this law.[citation needed]
The Qur\'an guarantees women the right to inherit a proportion of their father\'s estate. A widowed woman inherits a portion of her husband\'s estate.
Women are allowed to work in Islam, subject to certain conditions, and even recommended to do so should they be in financial need.Al Qaradawy, Yusuf. The Status Of Women In Islam. Chapter: The Woman as Member of the Society: When is a woman allowed to work? This is supported by the Quranic example of two female shepherds (). Islam recognizes that the society needs women to work for the sake of development. In general, women\'s right to work is subject to certain conditions:
Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the Muslim community to organize work for women, so that she can do so in a Muslim atmosphere, where her rights are respected.
However, the employment of women varies over fields in Islamic law. Whereas women may seek medical treatment from men, it is preferred that they do so from female physicians. It is also preferred that female schools, colleges, sports centers and ministries be staffed by women rather than men. On the contrary, there are disagreements between Islamic schools of thought about whether women should be able to hold the position of judge in a court. Shafi`ites claim that women may hold no judicial office, while Hanafites allow women to act as judges in civil cases only, not criminal ones. These interpretations are based on the above quoted Medinan sura (verse) .Haddad/Esposito pg.41
Even when women have the right to work and are educated, women\'s job opportunities may in practice be unequal to those of men. In Egypt for example, women have limited opportunities to work in the private sector because women are still expected to put their role in the family first, which causes men to be seen as more reliable in the long term.Assaad, R., 2003, Gender & Employment: Egypt in Comparative Perspective, in Doumato, E.A. & Posusney, M.P., Women and Globalization in the Arab Middle East: Gender, Economy and Society, Colorado, Lynne Rienner Publishers Patterns of women\'s employment vary throughout the Muslim world: as of 2005, 16% of Pakistani women were "economically active" (either employed, or unemployed but available to furnish labor), whereas 52% of Indonesian women were.http://www.prb.org/pdf05/WomenOfOurWorld2005.pdf
The status of women\'s testimony in Islam is disputed. Some jurists have held that certain types of testimony by women will not be accepted.. In other cases, the testimony of two women can equal that of one man.According to Averroes, a 12th-century Maliki, "There is a general consensus among the jurists that in financial transactions a case stands proven by the testimony of a just man and two women." (Ibn Rushd. Bidayatu’l-Mujtahid, 1st ed., vol. 4, (Beirut: Daru’l-Ma‘rifah, 1997), p. 311). The reason for this disparity has been explained in various manners, including women\'s lack of intelligence,Sahih Bukhari 3:48:826 women\'s temperament and sphere of interest,Ghamidi. Burhan:The Law of Evidence. Al-Mawrid and sparing women from the burden of testifying.Half of a Man!, Renaissance - Monthly Islamic Journal, 14(7), July 2004 In other areas, women\'s testimony may be accepted on an equal basis with men\'s.Ibn Rushd. Bidayatu’l-Mujtahid, 1st ed., vol. 4, (Beirut: Daru’l-Ma‘rifah, 1997), p. 311.Azeem, Sherif Abdel. "Women In Islam Versus Women In The Judaeo-Christian Tradition." World Assembly of Muslim Youth (1995).
Commentators on the status of women in Islam have often focused on disparities in diyyat, the fines paid by killers to victims\' next of kin after either intentional or unintentional homicide,Ghamidi, Mizan, The Penal Law of Islam. between men and women. Diyya has existed in Arabia since pre-Islamic times.El Fadl, p86.Hallaq, Wael B. A History of Islamic Legal Theories: An Introduction to Sunni Usul Al-fiqh. Cambridge University Press (1997), p7. ISBN 0521599865. While the practice of diyya was affirmed by Muhammed, Islam does not prescribe any specific amount for diyyat nor does it require discrimination between men and women; the Qur\'an has left open its quantity, nature, and other related affairs to be defined by social custom and tradition. Traditionally, however, diyya for a woman is half that of a man;Faruq, Sherif. A guide to the contents of the Qur\'an. Garnet & Ithaca Press p212. ISBN 1859640451.Barak, Gregg. Crime and Crime Control: A Global View. Greenwood Press (2000), p99. ISBN 0313306818. this is currently codified in the laws of some Muslim-majority countries such as Iran.Joseph and Najmabadi, p407.
Islamic criminal jurisprudence does not discriminate between genders in punishments for crimes.[citation needed] In case of sexual crimes such as zina (fornication), however, women may be found guilty more easily than men, because of the visible evidence of pregnancy; without a pregancy, four witnesses are required to file a zina case.Asifa Quraishi. "Her Honor: An Islamic Critique of the Rape Laws of Pakistan from a Woman-Sensitive Perspective," in Windows of Faith: Muslim Women Scholar-Activists in North America, Gisela Webb (Ed.), Syracuse University Press (June 2000). The author also argues that this traditional view may be inconsistent with the requirements outlined in the Qur\'an. The difficulty of prosecuting rapists and the possibility of prosecution for women who allege rape has been of special interest to activists for Muslim women\'s rights.See, e.g., http://www.geo.tv/zs/Zina_article_Final.pdf. In the past decades there have been several high profile cases of pregnant women prosecuted for zina who claim to have been raped.In Pakistan, Rape Victims Are the \'Criminals\' By SETH MYDANS From: New York Times, May 17, 2002 Saudi Rape Case Spurs Calls for Reform By RASHEED ABOU-ALSAMH Published: December 1, 2007Nigeria: Under Islamic Law, Rights Still Unprotected Changing Rape Laws in Pakistan
The overwhelming majority of Muslim scholars believe that there is no punishment for a woman coerced into having sex.According to Ibn Qudamah, "This is the view of Omar, al-Zuhri, Qatadah, al-Thawri, al-Shafi\'i, and others and we do not know anyone who has departed from this view." (Although this seems to indicate unanimity, Ibn Qudamah himself uses the language "overwhelming majority.") Muwaffaq al-Din Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni (Beirut: Dar al-Kitab al-\'Arabi n.d), Vol. 10, p. 159, quoted in http://www.geo.tv/zs/Zina_article_Final.pdf. According to a Sunni hadith, the punishment for committing rape is death, there is no sin on the victim, nor is there any worldly punishment ascribed to her.Sunan Abu Dawud 38:4366 . However, the stringent requirements for proof of rape under some interpretations of Islamic law, combined with cultural attitudes regarding rape in some parts of the Muslim world, result in few rape cases being reported; even the cases brought forward typically result in minimal punishment for offenders or severe punishment for victims.http://www.islam-democracy.org/documents/pdf/6th_Annual_Conference-JulieNorman.pdf It can be difficult to seek punishment against rapists, because a zina case cannot be brought without four witnesses, even for rape cases. Some scholars, however, treat rape instead as hiraba (disorder in the land),See, e.g., http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=1369 and Asifa Quraishi. "Her Honor: An Islamic Critique of the Rape Laws of Pakistan from a Woman-Sensitive Perspective," in Windows of Faith: Muslim Women Scholar-Activists in North America, Gisela Webb (Ed.), Syracuse University Press (June 2000). Mentioned in verses , which does not require four witnesses. The form of punishment and interpretation of Islamic law in this case is highly dependent on the legislation of the nation in question, and/or of the judge.
So-called honor killings (murders, nearly exclusively of women, of persons who are perceived as having brought dishonor to their families) are often identified with Islam, though they predate the introduction of Islam into Arabia and are non-Quranic. Joseph and Najmabadi, p215. However, honor killings are sanctioned in Iran\'s and Afghanistan\'s penal codes in which honor killing is legal or lightly punished. Honor killings are more common in Muslim-majority countries, though they occur in other countries as well.http://www.extrajudicialexecutions.org/reports/E_CN_4_2000_3.pdf Chapter V, Section C Many Muslim scholars and commentators say that honor killings are a cultural practice which is neither exclusive to, nor universal within, the Islamic world."Q&A: Honour killings explained", BBC News, 2004-06-22. Retrieved on 2007-07-09. For instance, the practice is little known in Indonesia, the world\'s most populous Islamic country, as well as in parts of West Africa with majority-Muslim populations.http://www.nuradeen.com/Reflections/ElementsOfSufism3.htm
A riverside Muslim wedding in India.
According to Islamic law (sharia), marriage cannot be forced."Ibni `Abbaas reported that a girl came to the Messenger of God, Muhammad (sws), and she reported that her father had forced her to marry without her consent. The Messenger of God gave her the choice [between accepting the marriage or invalidating it]." Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal 2469. "...the girl said: "Actually I accept this marriage but I wanted to let women know that parents have no right [to force a husband on them]". Sunan Ibn Maja 1873.
No age limits have been fixed by Islam for marriage. Though it is said that women should not be married under the age of nine. Children of the youngest age may be married or promised for marriage, although a girl is not handed across to her husband until she is fit for marital sexual relations.Levy, p.106
Islamic jurists have traditionally held that Muslim women may only enter into marriage with Muslim men, although some contemporary jurists question the basis of this restriction.Imam Khaleel Mohammed\'s defense of inter-faith marriageAsharq Al-Awsat Interviews Sudanese Islamist leader Dr. Hassan Turabi This is pursuant to the principle that Muslims may not place themselves in a position inferior to that of the followers of other religions.Friedmann (2003), p. 162On the other hand, the Qur\'an explicitly allows Muslim men to marry chaste women of the People of the Book, a term which includes Jews, Sabians, and Christians.Qur\'an, On Christian Men marrying Muslim Women However, fiqh law has held that it is makruh (reprehensible) for a Muslim man to marry a non-Muslim woman in a non-Muslim country.On Christian Men marrying Muslim Women
Polygamy is permitted under restricted conditions, but it is not widespread.The New Encyclopedia of Islam (2002), AltaMira Press. ISBN 0-7591-0189-2 . p.477 Women are not allowed to engage in polyandry, whereas men are allowed to engage in polygyny.Ghamidi, Mizan, The Social Law of Islam.
Widow inheritance is about 1/8 of the property of her deceased husband. The widow woman is allowed to marry any non-mahram person, if she wishes.
1874 Islamic marriage contract
The contract specifies the dowry (mahr) the groom gives to the bride upon their marriage. It may also specify where the couple will live, whether or not the first wife will allow the husband to take a second wife without her consent, whether or not the wife has the right to initiate divorce, and other such matters. The marriage contract somewhat resembles the marriage settlements once negotiated for upper-class Western brides, but can extend to non-financial matters usually ignored by marriage settlements or pre-nuptial agreements.
In practice, most Islamic marriages are entered into without a written contract, or with a "fill in the blanks" form supplied by the officiant. In such cases, Islamic law, influenced by custom and/or rulings by local courts based on local law, governs the treatment of a divorcee or widow, and is often, in the opinion of Islamic feminists, unfair or unkind. Islamic feminists have been active in informing Muslim women of their rights under Islamic law (sharia) and encouraging them to negotiate favorable contracts before marriage.
The Qu\'ran considers the love between men and women to be a Sign of God. Islam advocates a harmonious relationship between husband and wife, and mandates that the will of the woman be honoured.[citation needed] It puts the main responsibility of earning over the husband. Both are asked to fulfill the other\'s sexual needs.[citation needed] Husbands are asked to be kind to their wives and wives are asked to be obedient to their husbands. The Qur\'an also encourages discussion and mutual agreement regarding family decisions.
In case of "rebellious" behaviour, Verse 34 of an-Nisa says the husband should urge his wife to mend her ways, refuse to share her bed, and admonish her by beating.Ibn Kathir, “Tafsir of Ibn Kathir”, Al-Firdous Ltd., London, 2000, 50-53 In particular, there is conflict about the proper severity of beatings, and whether the aforementioned remedies for rebellion must be taken in sequence. Some scholars say that beating should be used only as a last resort, and that not beating is preferable to beating. While many of the scholars allowing "beating" stress that it is a last resort, discountenanced, and must be done so as not to cause injury, women often face "extra pressure" in Muslim-majority cultures to submit to such violence.Constable, Pamela. "For Some Muslim Wives, Abuse Knows No Borders." Washington Post (May 8, 2007).
More positively, some hold that Islam enjoins sexual pleasure within marriage; see Asra Nomani\'s polemic "Islamic Bill of Rights for Women in the Bedroom".
A high value is placed on chastity (not to be confused with celibacy) for both men and women. To protect women from accusations of unchaste behaviour, the scripture lays down severe punishments towards those who make false allegations about a woman\'s chastity.
Female genital cutting has been associated with Islam and in certain areas has acquired a religious dimension Mohd. Salih al-Munajjid (Hafizullah) (Unknown). Is there any saheeh hadeeth about the circumcision of females?. Fatwa (Religious verdict, suggestion). MuslimAccess.Com. Retrieved on 2007-04-06. ; however, a UNICEF study of fourteen African countries found no correlation between religion and prevalence of FGM.UNICEF. "Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: A Statistical Exploration." Unicef.org, 2005.
Though slavery is today widely viewed to be opposed to Islamic principles of justice and equality Encyclopedia of the Qur\'an, Slaves and Slavery and has been outlawed in almost all of the Muslim world,Brunschvig. \'Abd; Encyclopedia of Islam the Qur\'an permits sexual relations between a male master and his female slave outside of marriage.See Tahfeem ul Qur\'an by Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, Vol. 2 pp. 112-113 footnote 44; Also see commentary on verses : Vol. 3, notes 7-1, p. 241; 2000, Islamic PublicationsTafsir ibn Kathir 4:24 (The major juristic schools of Islam traditionally accepted the institution of slavery.Lewis, Bernard. Race and Slavery in the Middle East. Oxford University Press (1994), chapter 1.)
The rules for talaq (divorce) vary among the major Islamic schools. For both Shi\'a and Sunni Muslims, the right to demand a divorce is primarily for men. Unless otherwise specified in the marriage contract, women can only seek divorce through court proceedings by convincing a qadi to grant a divorce. Shi\'as and Sunnis believe that a wife can ask for a hula (also transliterated khulah) divorce.
Usually, assuming her husband demands a divorce, the divorced wife keeps her mahr (dowry), both the original gift and any supplementary property specified in the marriage contract. She is also given child support until the age of weaning, at which point the child\'s custody will be settled by the couple or by the courts.
Women’s right to divorce is often extremely limited compared with that of men in the Middle East.Joseph and Najmabadi, p99. While men can divorce their wives easily, women face many legal and financial obstacles. For example, in Yemen, women usually can ask for divorce only when the husband’s inability to support her life is admitted, while men can divorce at will by verbaly declaring "I divorce you" three times in consecutively to his wife.
In practice in most of the Muslim world today divorce can be quite involved as there may be separate secular procedures to follow as well.
This contentious area of religious practice and tradition is being increasingly challenged by those promoting more liberal interpretations of Islam.
Both husbands and wives are required to inform their spouses before leaving home. A woman needs her husband\'s permission to leave home, though general permission is sufficient for routine trips—with such permission, the wife need not seek permission for each individual trip.Women Traveling without Mahram. European Council for Fatwa and Research.
Although no limitation or prohibition against women\'s travelling alone is mentioned in Quran, there is a debate in some Islamic sects, especially Salafis, regarding whether women may travel without a mahram (unmarriageable relative). Some scholars state that a woman may not travel by herself on a journey that takes longer than three days (equivalent to 48 miles in medieval Islam).Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari. "Can Women Travel Without A Mahram?" Sunnipath.com (July 03, 2005). According to the European Council for Fatwa and Research, this prohibition arose from fears for women\'s safety when travel was more dangerous. Some scholars relax this prohibition for journeys likely to be safe, such as travel with a trustworthy group of men or men and women, or travel via a modern train or plane when the woman will be met upon arrival.
Sheikh Ayed Al-Qarni, a Saudi Islamic scholar known for his moderate views, has said that neither the Qur\'an nor the sunnah prohibits women from driving and that it is better for a woman to drive herself than to be driven by a stranger without a legal escort. (He also stated, however, that he "personally will not allow [his] wife or daughters or sisters to drive."Somayya Jabarti & Maha Akeel. "Women Not Prohibited From Driving in Islam, Says Al-Qarni." Arab News (January 11, 2004).) Women are forbidden to drive in Saudi Arabia per a 1990 fatwa (religious ruling);Amnesty International. "Saudi Arabia: Women." Amnesty.org. Saudi Arabia is currently the only Muslim country that bans women from driving. John L. Esposito(2002), p.99, What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam, Oxford University Press Natana J. Delong-Bas(2004), p.123, Wahhabi Islam: From Revival and Reform to Global Jihad, Oxford University Press When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, they issued a 2001 decree that also banned women from driving.The Situation of Women in Afghanistan - United Nations Report John Esposito, professor of International Affairs and Islamic Studies at Georgetown University, has argued that these restrictions originate from cultural customs and not Islam.
Four examples of hijab. Clockwise from top left: Turkey; Dubai, UAE; Tehran, Iran; and Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.
Hijab is the Quranic requirement that Muslims, both male and female, dress and behave modestly. The most important Quranic verse relating to hijab is sura 24:31, which says, "And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their private parts and not to display their adornment except that which ordinarily appears thereof and to draw their headcovers over their chests and not to display their adornment except to their ..."
Scholars agree that a woman should act and dress in a way that does not draw sexual attention to her when she is in the presence of someone of the opposite sex. Some scholars specify which areas of the body must be covered; most of these require that everything besides the face and hands be covered, and some require all but the eyes to be covered, using garments such as chadors or burqas. Most mainstream scholars say that men, in contrast, should cover themselves from the navel to the knees.
Sartorial hijab as practiced varies throughout the Muslim world. In Iran, strict hijab requirements are enacted in law, while in Muslim-majority areas of India, social norms rather than law dictate the wearing of hijab. At the opposite end of the spectrum is Tunisia, where the government is actively discouraging women from wearing the veil.
Sartorial hijab, and the veil in particular, has often been viewed by Westerners as a sign of oppression of Muslim women.McGoldrick, Dominic. Human Rights and Religion: The Islamic Headscarf Debate in Europe. Hart Publishing (2006), p13. ISBN 1841136522. It has also been the cause of much debate, especially in Europe amid increasing immigration of Muslims;Alam, Fareena. "Beyond the Veil." Newsweek (Nov. 26, 2006). the 2006 United Kingdom debate over veils and the 2004 French law on secularity and conspicuous religious symbols in schools are two notable examples.
Arab women often observe purdah. It is important to differentiate between purdah and hijab. Hijab is an Islamic tradition that is based on physical and psychological morality, while purdah does not necessarily conform to Islamic teachings.
In Islam, there is no difference between men and women\'s relationship to God; they receive identical rewards and punishments for their conduct.USC-MSA Compendium of Muslim Texts
According to a saying attributed to Muhammad, women may not be forbidden to enter mosques."Do not stop Allah\'s women-slave from going to Allah\'s Mosques." (Sahih Bukhari 2:13:23.) However, as Islam spread, it became unusual for women to worship in mosques because of fears of unchastity caused by interaction between sexes; this condition persisted until the late 1960s.Mattson, Ingrid. "Women, Islam, and Mosques." In Encyclopedia of Women And Religion in North America (Rosemary Skinner Keller, Rosemary Radford Ruether, and Marie Cantlon, ed.). Indiana University Press (2006), p616. ISBN 0253346886. Since then, women have become increasingly involved in the mosque, though men and women generally worship separately.Mattson, Ingrid. "Women, Islam, and Mosques." In Encyclopedia of Women And Religion in North America (Rosemary Skinner Keller, Rosemary Radford Ruether, and Marie Cantlon, ed.). Indiana University Press (2006), p616-17. ISBN 0253346886. (Muslims explain this by citing the need to avoid distraction during prayer prostrations that raise the buttocks while the forehead touches the ground.Smith, Jane L. Islam in America. Columbia University Press (2000): p111. ISBN 0231109679.) Separation between sexes ranges from men and women on opposite sides of an aisle, to men in front of women (as was the case in the time of Muhammad), to women in second-floor balconies or separate rooms accessible by a door for women only. There is a growing movement of women who complain of second-class conditions in separate female sections of mosques."Women in Mosques." PBS.org. Accompanied Religion & Ethics Newsweekly episode no. 811 (November 12, 2004). On the Hajj (the mandatory pilgrimage to Mecca) men and women pray side by side.
While in menstruation, women are considered unclean and therefore advised against praying."Isn\'t it true that a woman can neither pray nor fast during her menses?" The women replied in the affirmative. He said, "This is the deficiency in her religion." (Sahih Bukhari 1:6:301.)"I do not make the mosque lawful for a menstruating woman." (Sunan Abu Dawud 1:232 .)
In Islam\'s earlier history, female religious scholars were relatively common. Mohammad Akram Nadwi, a Sunni religious scholar, has compiled biographies of 8,000 female jurists, and orientalist Ignaz Goldziher earlier estimated that 15 percent of medieval hadith scholars were women.Power, Carla. "A Secret History." New York Times (Feb. 25, 2007). After the 1500s, however, female scholars became fewer, and today—while female activists and writers are relatively common—there has not been a significant female jurist in over 200 years.Khaled Abou El Fadl. "In Recognition of Women." Themodernreligion.com. Originally published (in a slightly different form) in The Minaret (July/Aug 1991) and reprinted in Voices vol. 1, no. 2 (Dec/Jan 1992). Opportunities for women\'s religious education exist, but cultural barriers often keep women from pursuing such a vocation.
Women\'s right to become imams, however, is disputed by many. A fundamental role of an imam (religious leader) in a mosque is to lead the salah (congregational prayers). Generally, women are not allowed to lead mixed prayers. However, some argue that Muhammad gave permission to Ume Warqa to lead a mixed prayer at the mosque of Dar.Javed Ahmed Ghamidi, Religious leadership of women in Islam, April 24, 2005, Daily Times, PakistanMusnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, (Bayrut: Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al- ‘Arabi, n.d.) vol.5, 3:1375
Late Benazir Bhutto, former prime minister of Pakistan was the first woman elected to lead a Muslim state."Benazir Bhutto: Daughter of Tragedy" by Muhammad Najeeb, Hasan Zaidi, Saurabh Shulka and S. Prasannarajan, India Today, January 7, 2008
The only hadith relating to female political leadership is Sahih Bukhari 5:59:709, in which Muhammad is recorded as saying that people with a female ruler will never be successful.Anne Sofie Roald. Women in Islam: The Western Experience, p186-7. (The al-Bukhari collection is generally regarded as authentic, though one Muslim feminist has questioned the reliability of the recorder of this particular hadith.) However, some classical Islamic scholars, such as al-Tabari, supported female leadership. In early Islamic history, women including Aisha, Ume Warqa, and Samra Binte Wahaib took part in political activities. Other historical Muslim female leaders include Razia Sultana, who ruled the Sultanate of Delhi from 1236 to 1239,Beale, Thomas William and Henry George Keene. An Oriental Biographical Dictionary. W.H. Allen (1894), p392.Ahmed, Nazeer. Islam in Global History: From the Death of Prophet Muhammed to the First World War. Xlibris (2000), p284-86.. and Shajarat ad-Durr, who ruled Egypt from 1250 to 1257.Shajarat (Shaggar, Shagar) al-Durr And her Mausoleum in Cairo In the past several decades, many countries in which Muslims are a majority or a large minority, including Indonesia,Karon, Tony. "Megawati: The Princess Who Settled for the Presidency." Time (July 27, 2001). Pakistan,Ali A. Mazrui, Pretender to Universalism: Western Culture in a Globalizing Age, Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, Volume 21, Number 1, April 2001 Bangladesh,MacDonald, Elizabeth and Chana R. Schoenberger. "The 100 Most Powerful Women: Khaleda Zia." Forbes (Aug. 30, 2007}. and Turkey,"Tansu Çiller." About.com. have been led by women.
200px
According to Sheikh Zoubir Bouchikhi, Imam of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston’s Southeast Mosque, nothing in Islam specifically allows or disallows voting by women.Islam Online.net Until recently most Muslim nations were non-democratic, but most today allow their citizens to have some level of voting and control over their government. The disparate times at which women’s suffrage was granted in Muslim-majority countries is indicative of the varied traditions and values present within the Muslim world. Azerbaijan has had women\'s suffrage since 1918, but some Islamic states did not have women\'s suffrage until the last ten years[citation needed]. Today, aside from Brunei (where neither men nor women can vote)Central Intelligence Agency. "Brunei." World Factbook (2007). and Saudi Arabia (where only men can vote),Central Intelligence Agency. "Saudi Arabia." World Factbook (2007). all Muslim-majority nations allow women to vote. (Lebanon requires proof of education for women to vote.Central Intelligence Agency. "Lebanon." World Factbook (2007).) It is to be noted that even where women\'s suffrage as a right is technically present, women may not as a practical matter be able to vote.[citation needed]
Within the Muslim community, conservatives and Islamic feminists have used Islamic doctrine as the basis for discussion of women\'s rights, drawing on the Qur\'an, the hadith (the sayings of Mohammed), and the lives of prominent women in the early period of Muslim history as evidence. Where conservatives have seen evidence that existing gender asymmetries are divinely ordained, feminists have seen more egalitarian ideals in early Islam. Still others have argued that this discourse is essentialist and ahistorical, and have urged that Islamic doctrine not be the only framework within which discussion occurs.Deniz Kandiyoti, "Women, Islam and the State", Middle East Report, No. 173, Gender and Politics. (Nov.-Dec., 1991), pp. 9-14.
Whether perceived injustice is according to Islamic religious doctrine or culture is disputed.
A young Iranian woman is warned about her immodest dress. In April 2007, thousands of Iranian women were warned by the police in a crackdown on so-called "bad hijab."Harrison, Frances. "Crackdown in Iran over dress codes" BBC News (April 27 2007).
Conservatives reject the assertion that different laws prescribed for men and women imply that men are more valuable than women, arguing that the only criterion of value before God is piety.[citation needed] Some Islamic scholars justify the different religious laws for men and women by referring to the biological and sociological differences between men and women[citation needed]. For example, regarding the inheritance law which states that women’s share of inheritance is half that of men, the imam Ali ibn Musa Al-reza reasoned that at the time of marriage a man has to pay something to his prospective bride, and that men are responsible for both their wives\' and their own expenses but women have no such responsibility. Quoted in Grand Ayatollah Makarim Shirazi, Tafsir Nemoneh, on verse 4:12.
The nebulous revivalist movement termed Islamism is one of the most dynamic movements within Islam in the 20th and 21st centuries. The experience of women in Islamist states has been varied. Women in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan faced treatment condemned by the international community.M. J. Gohari (2000). The Taliban: Ascent to Power. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 108-110. For an example, see http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/6185.htm. Women were forced to wear the burqa in public,M. J. Gohari (2000). The Taliban: Ascent to Power. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 108-110. not allowed to work,Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Chronology of Events January 1995 - February 1997." UNHCR.org. not allowed to be educated after the age of eight,U.S. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. "Report on the Taliban\'s War Against Women." State.gov (November 17, 2001). and faced public flogging and execution for violations of the Taliban\'s laws."The Taliban\'s War on Women"PDF (857 KiB), Physicians for Human Rights, August 1998.A woman being flogged in public The position of women in Iran, which has been a theocracy since its 1979 revolution, is more complex. While Iranian Islamists are ideologically committed to inequality for women in the civil code and to sex segregation,[citation needed] there are female legislators in Iran\'s parliamentSee, e.g., Tahereh Saffarzadeh, Masumeh Ebtekar, Marzieh Dabbaq and Zahra Rahnavard. and 60% of university students are women.Esfandiari, Golnaz. "Iran: Number Of Female University Students Rising Dramatically." Radio Free Europe/Free Liberty (November 19, 2003).
150px
Liberal Muslims have urged that ijtihad, a form of critical thinking, be used to develop a more progressive form of Islam with respect to the status of women.Haddad, Moore, and Smith, p19. In addition, Islamic feminists have advocated for women\'s rights, gender equality, and social justice grounded in an Islamic framework. Although rooted in Islam, pioneers of Islamic feminism have also used secular and western feminist discourses and have sought to include Islamic feminism in the larger global feminist movement. Islamic feminists seek to highlight the teachings of equality in Islam to question patriarchal interpretations of Islamic teachings.Madran, Margot. "Islamic feminism: what\'s in a name?" Al-Ahram Weekly Online, issue no. 569 (January 17-23, 2002).
After the September 11, 2001 attacks, international attention was suddenly focused on the condition of women in the Muslim world. United States Institute of Peace. "Women, Human Rights, and Islam." Peace Watch (August 2002). Critics asserted that women are not treated as equal members of Muslim societiesKamguian, Azam. "The Liberation of Women in the Middle East." NTPI.org. and criticized Islam for condoning this treatment.Timothy Garton Ash. "Islam in Europe", The New York Review of Books, 10-05-2006. Some critics have gone so far as to make allegations of gender apartheid due to women\'s status.Feminist author Phyllis Chesler, for example, asserted: "Islamists oppose the ideals of dignity and equality for women by their practice of gender apartheid."[1] For further examples, see http://www.google.com/search?q=%22gender+apartheid%22+islam At least one critic has alleged that Western academics, especially feminists, have ignored the plight of Muslim women to be "politically correct."Lopez, Katherine Jean. A survey conducted by the Gallup Organization found that most Muslim women did not see themselves as oppressed.[2]"Witness to the Death of Feminism: Phyllis Chesler on Her Sisterhood at War." National Review (March 08, 2006).
