Do christianity and judaism truly offer women a better treatment than islam does?
i think, its not easy to search for and find answers (to these difficult questions). the first difficulty is the one has to be fair and objective. --- In [email protected], Carla Annamarie <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > i think in many middle east countries where they re bound with customs and > traditions which men is the ruler, the superior-being and women is only > men's property, women is a weaker being (inferior) not an equal partner.., > since childhood her rights re determined by her familly (Father and > brothers), her familly will arrange her marriage with someone that she's > barely knew.., and after the married her husband is the sole proprietor of > her.., womens have a very fragile status, she's not protected under law, > bcs according to law her husband is her protector, so if she got divorce, > things becomes worse bcs socially she's an outcast from her familly and her > social community, dont ever think abt child support from the husband..it's > impossible, even she has to fight her right to keep her child.., > if many of them works indecent job liked a belly dancer..bcs they re lack > or less opportunity for them for a good job..esp bcs they re a divorcee..in > spite of that i admire them..bcs despite of terrible things that happened > to them, they survived.. > perhaps they can never be strong enough to handle it by them self..but in > my point of view they can do better..they prove it that they really can do > better..without men..:)).. > > > > > > > "Ambon" > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <Undisclosed- Recipient:;> > cc: > 03/23/2005 02:45 Subject: [ppiindia] 'You can never be strong enough' > AM > Please respond to > ppiindia > > > > > > > > 17 - 23 March 2005 > Issue No. 734 > Living > > Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 > > > > > > http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2005/734/li1.htm > > 'You can never be strong enough' > As the number of single mothers continues to rise, Serene Assir > listens to accounts of tragedy, hope and heroism > > -------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- > Click to view caption > Dina Sarhan explaining the fine points of cooking > ------------------------------------------------------------------ > > Egyptian tradition is such that few things are worse than being a > single woman -- except, perhaps, being a single mother. And though cases of > unmarried women single-handedly raising children remain rare in Egypt, > those of divorced or widowed women bearing the economic, social and > emotional brunt of parenthood are countless. Many take on the role of both > parents while the father moves in with a second wife, serves a prison > sentence, works abroad or completes up to three years of military draft. > > "Problems are particularly acute in the case of women raising > children in economically depressed areas," Mona Shadi, programme > coordinator for the Association for the Development and Enhancement of > Women (ADEW) told Al-Ahram Weekly. "The women we reach out to often lack > all the basic guarantees to which the state entitles them. Many cannot read > or write, many others lack identity cards since they are registered under > the name of their former husbands, and thus they have no access at all to > the authorities -- never mind the ability to seek help." > > "This world is a dirty place," 23-year-old Ashraqat, mother of > Shurouq, says with a mixture of fervour and despair. Ashraqat discovered > she was pregnant one month after signing her divorce papers, following a > brief but abusive stint of wedlock, during which her husband took advantage > of her economically even as he forced social restrictions on her. Now, she > lives in Cairo, having left her native village of Bilbis in the Sharqiya > district, but earns her living as a belly dancer in Hurghada nightclubs, > where she can work without the necessary documentation. > > "I remember when he used to promise me we would make our dreams > come true," she told the Weekly. "Now I know the truth." (While we have > this conversation in a traditional coffee house, the owner shakes his head > at me disapprovingly, walking by; later he tells me off for sitting with > someone so "low"). > > Ashraqat went to school up to the age of 14, and was dancing > professionally by 15. The man she loved came from a better-off family, so > when she was married she imagined she would no longer have to dance (or > otherwise employ her body) to make a living. "But my husband would bring > clients into the house, then take the money afterwards. I had everything I > could possibly want, I even had a really nice mobile phone, but he took > control of my life and made me do things I didn't want to do. > > "By the time I discovered I was pregnant it was too late. When I > told my mother, she beat me -- she'd been against the marriage since the > beginning. But she was to forgive me later on, and now she helps me. My > father, well -- he treats me and my daughter like strangers. That's okay. I > don't need anyone, I can manage without. Now you ask me whether I'd do it > all over again? No. I'd marry the person my parents choose, someone with > money. It wouldn't matter whether I loved him or not. This is no life..." > > This bitterness, the sense of being excluded, Shadi explains, tend > to be incorporated into the way single mothers bring up their daughters -- > an added problem. As if to confirm this, Ashraqat explains that "what I > teach my daughter is this: If someone picks on you, hit him. You can never > be strong enough." ADEW seeks to address this issue by holding programmes > for children as well as mothers, Shadi goes on to point out: "We frequently > succeed, but just as frequently we fail." > > Ashraqat's experience, though an extreme example, remains broadly > relevant. "As a divorc��e," she explains, "I am desired by many men, because > they know that I am not a virgin, and as a result they think I'm an easy > target. But everything I do," she pleads, "I swear, though I know dancing > is sinful -- I do it for Shurouq, so that when she grows up she has all the > things that I didn't have. I love her..." > > Such an attitude of self-sacrifice is seen across the board. It may > be innate in all mothers, but it stands out with particular force in those > who undergo the most painful trials. "When the children's father passed > away," Um Sherif, 67, tells the Weekly, "my life was already difficult > enough. God, I had 14 children to take care of!" Eight were hers, the rest > her husband's -- by his first wife. "The youngest was just two years old. > Now," she says, "they all have homes of their own, and they are all happy." > > Um Sherif lives in a semi-agricultural area deep within one of > Cairo's poorer districts. She can neither read nor write, but three of her > sons are electronic engineers in the Gulf, and two work in respectable > businesses in Cairo. > > Hers is an impressive case: She fought against all odds to raise > her children, and she managed extraordinarily well. A strong woman, she is > proud of her achievements. "I never accepted help from anyone. I knew that > if my children were to be happy, I would have to do it all by myself. I > thought of remarrying, but when I saw how prospective husbands would seek > to interfere in the upbringing of my children, I decided against it." > > But according to social perceptions, it is a misfortune for a woman > to remain unmarried. "Yes dear," Um Sherif says, defiantly, "but if you > listen to what people say, you'll find it impossible to breathe. I learned > this very early on in life. People love to interfere, but in order to > survive you must do what you feel is right." > > That said, social prejudice cannot be ignored as a negative factor > in the lives of single mothers. "My sister is a teacher," Mervat told the > Weekly, "and has always been well-to-do. She divorced her husband following > an unhappy marriage, and brought up her son and daughter comfortably, > without experiencing pressure from anyone. It was her son who turned > against her in the end -- once he married, he started despising her, > cursing the fact that she chose to live independently." > > Yet the principal problem seems to stem from an area beyond the > social, strictly speaking. A woman raising children on her own is a woman > without support in Egypt, and though this is increasingly acceptable at the > social level -- women gain in respect, particularly, as they grow older -- > bureaucratic issues stand in the way of true emancipation. Tasks as banal > as renting a flat become a problem because business deals are usually made > with men. Registering a child under the mother's name remains legally > impossible. > > "And now," Ashraqat says, about to set out for Hurghada, "I've got > to make sure I'm ready for the big lie: When the policeman wakes me up > while we're on the bus to ask for my ID, I'm just going to have to pretend > I'm too exhausted to fetch it. And as I'm not wearing any makeup, he'll > hopefully be taken in by the innocence of my expression. Let's just pray > he'll leave me alone." > > Shurouq looks beautiful in the photographs Ashraqat shows me. To > this day, without an ID card, the mother is fighting out the case for the > custody of her child. > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > ------------------------ Yahoo! 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