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The image of the typical Muslim
woman wearing the veil and forced to stay home and forbidden
to drive is all too common in most peoples thoughts.
The status
of women in Islam is often the target of attacks in the media.
The hijab or the Islamic dress is cited by many as an
example of the subjugation of women under Islamic law.
Before mentioning the reasoning behind the religiously
mandated hijab (the Muslim womans code of dress), let us
first study the status of women in societies before the advent
of Islam. In the past women were degraded and generally used
as objects of lust.
The
following are examples from history which amply illustrate the
fact that the status of women in earlier civilizations was
very low to the extent that they were denied basic human
dignity:
A. Babylonian Civilization:
Women were degraded and denied all rights under
the Babylonian law. If a man murdered a woman, instead of him
being punished, his wife was put to death.
B. Greek Civilization:
Greek Civilization is considered the most glorious of
all ancient civilizations. Under this very glorious system,
women were deprived of all rights and were looked down upon.
In Greek mythology, an imaginary woman called Pandora is
the root cause of misfortune of human beings. The Greeks
considered women to be subhuman and inferior to men.
Prostitution became a regular practice amongst all classes of
Greek society.
C. Roman Civilization:
When Roman Civilization was at the zenith of its
glory, a man even had the right to take the life of his
wife. A Prostitution and nudity were common practice amongst
the Romans.
D. Egyptian
Civilization:
The Egyptians considered
women to be evil and a sign of a devil.
E. Pre-Islamic Arabia:
Before Islam spread in Arabia, the Arabs looked
down upon women and very often when a female child was born,
she was buried alive.
When
Islam came, it uplifted women and gave them equality and
expected them to maintain their status. Islam raised the
status of women and granted them their just rights 1400 years
ago.
Too
often the image of a covered woman is used to represent what
much of the world views as oppression. Her very existence is
described in terms that convey ignorance and unhappiness.
Words like, beaten, repressed and oppressed are bandied about
by some media in a desperate attempt to convince the readers
that women in Islam have no rights. Descriptive and
intrinsically oppressive terms such as shrouded and shackled
are used to portray an image of women who have no minds and
who are the slaves or possessions of their husbands and
fathers. This is a misconception of the real image of women in
Islam.
In
Islam, a woman has the basic freedom of choice and _expression_
based on recognition of her individual personality. A Muslim
woman chooses her husband and keeps her name after marriage. A
Muslim woman's testimony is valid in legal disputes. In fact,
in areas in which women are more familiar, their evidence is
considered to be conclusive.
In Islam
women are encouraged in Islam to contribute their opinions and
ideas. There are many traditions of the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him/PBUH) which illustrate how women would
pose questions directly to him and offer their opinions
concerning religion, economics and social matters.
The reason why Hijab is prescribed for women is
mentioned in the Quran in the following verses of Surah
(chapter) Al-Ahzab:
"O Prophet! Tell
your wives and daughters, and the believing women to bring
down over themselves (part) of their outer garments. That is
most convenient that they should be known (as chaste,
believing women) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving,
Most Merciful." [Al-Quran 33:59]
The Quran says that Hijab has been prescribed for
women so that they are recognized as being modest women and
this will also prevent them from being
molested.
Suppose two sisters who are twins, and who are equally
beautiful, walk down the street. One of them is attired in the
Islamic hijab, i.e. the complete body is covered, except for
the face and the hands up to the wrists. The other sister is
wearing western clothes, a mini skirt or shorts. Just around
the corner there is a hooligan or ruffian who is waiting for a
catch, to tease a girl. Whom will he tease? The girl wearing
the Islamic Hijab or the girl wearing the skirt or the mini?
Naturally, he will tease the girl wearing the skirt or the
mini. Such dresses are an indirect invitation to the opposite
sex for teasing and molestation. The Quran rightly says that
hijab prevents women from being molested.
Under the Islamic shariah (law), a man convicted of
having raped a woman, is given capital punishment. Many are
astonished at this harsh sentence. Some even say that Islam
is a ruthless, barbaric religion! I have asked a simple
question to hundreds of non-Muslim men. Suppose, God forbid,
someone rapes your wife, your mother or your sister. You are
made the judge and the rapist is brought in front of you. What
punishment would you give him? All of them said they would put
him to death. Some went to the extent of saying they would
torture him to death. To them I ask, if someone rapes your
wife or your mother you want to put him to death. But if the
same crime is committed on somebody elses wife or daughter
you say capital punishment is barbaric. Why should there be
double standards?
Western society falsely claims to
have uplifted women
In western countries where liberation encompasses
unlimited freedom, women are actually finding themselves
living lives that are unsatisfying and meaningless. In their
quest for liberation they have abandoned the ideals of
morality and stability and found themselves in marriages and
families that bear little resemblance to "real life". What is
liberating about working all day and coming home at night to
the housework. What is liberating about having babies who, at
six weeks old, can be deposited in child care centers to learn
their behavior and morality from strangers.
Western talk of womens liberation is nothing but a
disguised form of exploitation of her body, degradation of her
soul, and deprivation of her honor. Western society claims to
have uplifted women. On the contrary, it has actually
degraded them to the status of concubines, mistresses and
society butterflies who are mere tools in the hands of
pleasure seekers and sex marketers.
In conclusion, The Muslim woman was given a role, duties
and rights 1400 years ago that most women do not enjoy today,
even in the West. These are from God and are designed to keep
balance in society; what may seem unjust or missing in one
place is compensated for or explained in another
place.
