Focus on the rights of women in Islam

The Koran puts women on an equal footing with men but over the centuries the patriarchal culture distorted the “human rights and democracy of Islam” to suit their own needs giving the fairer sex an inferior status according to Azizah Y. al-Hibri, Professor of Law at the University of Richmond in the United States.

The changed conditions for the Muslim women in the Western societies were highlighted by the Lebanese-born US academician calling for interpreting the Koran with relevance to the new environs without forcing Islam to falsely conform to Western culture.

Speaking at a Brussels event chaired by Shada Islam, an eminent journalist, Professor al-Hibri called the Koran, a “seamless web of interconnected ideas” but warned that with the passage of time it has been distorted by culture.

Citing the Holy Book’s references, the learned speaker pointed the Koran said that men and women are created from the same nafs (soul), and the Prophet himself said that women are the split halves (i.e. the same) of men, with the same religious and ethnical duties.

The Prophet expected them to play a major role in both the family and the community, the speaker added. Stressing over and over again the equality of women and men in the eyes of Koran, the professor cited ancient jurists as recognising married Muslim women as fully independent legal and financial entities, entitled to the fruit of their labour, with the same financial thimmah (capacity) as men.

Throwing out the prevailing ideas of inequality, al- Hibri highlighted the recent initiative of Muslim jurists in Morocco with the revival of an ancient line of thinking about women’s personal status code - recognising that both men and women in marriage should draw up a financial agreement relating to how they dispose of their separate incomes, property allocations or joint investments.

Drawing a line of demarcation between culture and religion, the professor urged the Muslim women to adapt to the Western culture without sacrificing the religion.

Calling for adoption of a jurisprudence that is suitable to their culture, adding, “We do not have to invent the wheel,” she warned that Islam jurisprudence should not be distorted to conform to Western societies and cultures.

Citing the Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights, al-Hibri reiterated that every human being is entitled to have his or her freedom of belief to be respected by the state as part of their human rights.

Reacting to a fallacious Western approach towards Islam of “false accommodation,” al-Hibri urged the Muslim women in the Western societies to borrow from the ancient Islamic tradition which gives women financial and legal independence. Al- Hibri expressed the opinion that these beliefs fit well with a Western culture that recognises the rights of women.

Commenting on the widespectrum of intra-Islamic sects, Professor al-Hibri said, “Everybody shares Koran but unfortunately there are difference in some parts of the Muslim world.”

Quoting from her personal experiences, al-Hibri discounted the role played by these.

Commenting on Ahmadias, al-Hibri said, “I know but I don’t know enough about Ahmadias,” but in the same vein, asked to comment on Wahhabism and Saudi Arabian influence, she said, “I do not want to comment. Instead of cursing the dark, I am going to light a candle.”

Much hype about nothing as Fitna hits the virtual world

The http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7d9_12066- 24103 link was the gateway to Fitna, the film by Dutch politician Geert Wilders, but now it has an official statement explaining the removal of the online film, blaming the British media as one of the factors.

While watching the film before its removal from the website, I kept waiting for the “substance” that will provide judgement for all the media frenzy plus strong reactions from political leaders to a move from one of their own creed.

“Fitna,” meaning “strife” is nothing but a 15- minute assorted montage of a parochial politician bent upon serving a stale dish of stolen works of journalists and photo-journalists sprinkled with verses from the Koran, which is sacred to millions of Muslims.

Being a Christian myself, I can vouch for many verses from the Bible, which can be as vicious as ones quoted in the short “assortment.” I refuse to call it a film. I actually felt cheated as having gotten the promise of a “film,” and all those statements from prime ministers and presidents with a heightened security alert and the finale: just 15 minutes of sick stolen works.

Just to give an example: Imagine stills of Muslim demonstrations showing people with “God bless Hitler” placards. There is a lack of historical factual statement here because it’s a known fact that when Jews were being persecuted in Europe, they were living safely in Muslim countries where they were free to practice their faith.

Add to that the scrolling messages at the end of the film reading; “The government insists that you respect Islam, but Islam has no respect for you ... Nazism was defeated in Europe ... Communism was defeated in Europe. Now the Islamic ideology has to be defeated ... Stop Islamisation. Defend our freedom.”

And on top of it all, the clipping of the little Palestinian girl was nothing but simply straight out of a sick mind as one could see she’s completely indoctrinated with hatred and she spoke at that age without even understanding what hate means as love is the emotion that comes naturally to children that age.

Even the dumbest person in the world knows that every Muslim is not a terrorist, a jihad supporter, as not all Christians can be labeled crusaders. Actually, I can imagine Osama bin Laden laughing his head (or turban) off watching this film because Wilders generated a media hype and failed to live up to it while highlighting al-Qaeda propaganda that to be a good Muslim one needs to be a believer in terror tactics.

Result: in the future, even if you do have a vicious product to generate hatred between communities, there won’t be many buyers at projected value and people won’t flock to the Internet to check it out.

Another by-product came free: Wilders got some more cheap notoriety (not popularity) reinforcing the notion that manipulation and dishonesty prevails in the different strata of politics and among politicians.

Moreover, I am happy that Kurt Westergaard, the Danish cartoonist who drew the original Prophet Mohammed cartoons, is pushing for legal action as he felt that the cartoons were taken out of context.

Jan Peter Balkenende, the Dutch Prime Minister aptly rejected it all with a statement on the Dutch Television saying that “the film equates Islam with violence. We reject this interpretation. The vast majority of Muslims reject extremism and violence.”

Final word: Fitna, “the film” can still be seen at Google Video at http://video.google.com- /videoplay?docid=3369102968312745410