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By Justice Retd Nasir
Aslam Zahid
Women’s rights in Islam
Prior to the advent of
Islam in Arabia, women
were treated like slaves
or property. Their
personal consent
concerning anything
related to their
well-being was
considered unimportant,
to such a degree that
they were never even
treated as a party to a
marriage contract. Women
were used for one
purpose, and then
discarded. They had not
independence, could own
no property and were not
allowed to inherit. In
times of war, women were
treated as par of the
prize. Simply put,
their condition was
unspeakable. In
addition, the birth of
daughter in a family was
not an occasion for
rejoicing, but was
regarded with
humiliation. The
practice of killing
female children was
uncontrolled. With the
arrival of Islam came
the verse from the Quran
condemning those who
practiced female
infanticide.
“And when the news of
(the birth of) a female
(child) is brought to
any of them, his face
becomes dark, and he is
filled with inward
grief! He hides himself
from the people because
of the evil of that
whereof he has been
informed. Shall he keep
her with dishonour or
bury her in the earth?
Certainly, evil is their
decision.”
(An-Nahl 16:58-59)
And
as part of a description
of various events on the
Day of Judgment, the
Quran mentions:
“And when the female
(infant) buried alive
(as the pagan Arabs used
to do) shall be
questioned. For what
sin she was killed? (At-Tawir
81:8-9)
Outside Arabia
conditions for women
were no better. In
India, Egypt, and all
European countries in
the Dark ages, women
were treated worse than
slaves. They were not
regarded as human beings
but as sort of a
sub-species between
humans and animals.
The rights of Muslim
women were given to us
by Allah , who is
All-Compassionate,
All-Merciful, All-Just,
All-Unbiased,
All-knowing and Most
Wise. The rights, which
were granted to women
more than 1400 years
ago, and were taught by
the perfect example of
the Prophet Muhammad
(SAW), were given by the
one Who created us and
Who alone knows what
rights are best for our
female natures. Allah
say in the Quran:
“O you who believe! You
are forbidden to inherit
women against their
will, and you should not
treat them with
harshness, that you may
take away party of the
Mahr (bridal-money given
by the husband to his
wife at time of
marriage) you have given
them, unless they commit
open illegal sexual
intercourse. And live
with them honorably. If
you dislike them, it may
be tha you dislike a
thing and Allah brings
through it a great deal
of good.”
(An-Nisa 4:19)
The most basic right of a woman in Islam is the knowledge and
recognition that she
never has to ask or
demand or fight for her
rights which are
guaranteed to her by
Allah Himself.
RIGHTS THAT ISLAM GIVES TO WOMEN
Human Rights
Islam considers a woman to be equal to a man as a human being
and as his partners in
this life. Women have
been created with a soul
of the same nature as
man’s.
And in the words of the Prophet Muhammad:-
“Assuredly, Women are the twin halves of
men.”
In Islamic law a woman is an independent, unique
individual in her own
right. She has the same
responsibilities towards
herself, towards Allah
and towards other human
beings as the male, and
will be punished or
rewarded in the
Hereinafter without
discrimination towards
her female gender.
Civil Rights
"There is no compulsion in religion ".
A Muslim woman is not permitted to change her family name to
her husband’s name upon
marriage. She is always
known by her father’s
names, as a mark of her
own identity. In
choosing a marriage
partners, her consent to
accept or reject any
prospective suitor for
marriage must be
respected. A Muslim
woman has the right to
seek divorce, if
necessary within the
laws of Islam. Muslim
women are not forbidden
from going out in the
community, working or
visiting relatives and
female friends, if there
is no objection from
their guardian/husband
and they are covered and
behave and speak
according to Islamic
guidelines and, if
necessary, escorted by
their Mahram (a close
male relative).
However, a women’s home
should be the main base
that she works from.
A WOMAN IN ISLAM HAS THE RIGHT TO GET AN EDUCATION
In the words of the Prophet Muhammad:-
“To
seek knowledge is
obligatory on every
Muslim”
Muslim here meaning male and female Muslims, as women are the
twin halves of Men.
Allah encourages Women
to read and keep up the
learning process. He
also bestows His mercy
upon all who seek
knowledge, and gives
them high status.
THE RIGHT TO GO TO THE MOSQUE.
ALLAH said :-
“If someone’s wife asks his permission to go the
mosque, he should not
deny it to her”
women should be covered
Islamically, according
to the Muslim women’s
dress requirements. At
the same time, a woman’s
prayer in her home is
better from the
standpoint of her
household duties and
duties as a mother.
Also it is better in the
sense that it prevents
unnecessary mixing with
men.
ISLAM GIVES MEN AND WOMEN EQUAL RIGHTS.
In reality, and in Islam, the rights and
responsibilities of a
woman are equal to those
of a man, but they are
not necessarily
identical with them..
Equality and sameness
are two very different
things. Women and men
are physically very
different from one
another, even though
they are equal to each
other in other important
ways.
THE RIGHT TO SEEK EMPLOYMENT.
If you take a look at many societies today, a woman is only
valued and considered
important if she
performs the functions
of a man, (while at the
same time displaying her
feminine attractions to
the public). While
these women may carry
the immense
responsibility of
bearing and rearing
children, you have to
admit that they may
still be at par with men
in nearly every area of
life. The result is the
present-day confusion
concerning sex role
differentiation, resulting
in very large numbers of
divorces and
emotionally distraught
children.
While Islam does prohibit women working outside the home, it
does stipulate that the
following restrictions
be flowed to safeguard
the dignity and honor of
women and the purity and
stability of the Islamic
society. (the conduct
of women, after all, is
“backbone” of any
society).
o
Outside employment should not come before, or seriously
interfere wither
responsibilities as wife
and mother.
o
Her work should not be a source of friction within the
family, and the
husband’s consent is
required in order to
eliminate later
disagreements. If she
is not married, she must
have her guardian’s
consent
o
Her appearance, manner and tone of speech and overall
behavior should follow
Islamic guild lines.
These include:
restraining her glances
in relation to any men
near the work place,
wearing correct Islamic
dress, avoiding men, not
walking in a provocative
manner, and not using
make-up or perfume in
public.
o
Her job should not be once which causes moral
corruption in society,
or involve any
prohibited trade or
activity, affect her own
religion, morals,
dignity and goods
behavior, or subject her
to temptations.
o
Her job should not be once which is mixing and
associating with men.
o
A woman should try to seek employment in positions
which required a woman’s
special skills or which
relate to the needs of
women and children, such
a teaching nursing other
women, midwifery,
medicine with
specialization’s like
pediatric or
obstetrics-gynecology.
MODESTY OF DRESS.
For a Muslim woman, her modest dress in an expression of a
universal sisterhood.
An Islamic dress also
liberates the Muslim
woman, and she is then
automatically respected
for her mind instead of
her body. Simply put,
she retains her dignity!
It is like saying: I am
a respectful woman. I
am not for every man to
look at, touch, or speak
to, I am protected,
exactly like a precious
while pearl which, if
touched by everyone,
will become black and
dirty.
A woman’s modest dress protects society from adultery and other
forms of illegal sexual
relations that lead to
the break up of families
and corruption of
society.
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