Women Rights in Muslim Society - Essay Example

Contrary to the image of Islam promoted by western mass media, the core beliefs of Islam endorse a society of peace, toleration, and equality; the code of laws centrally promotes these universally valued notions, and their full acceptance can doubtlessly be beneficial in the reconciliation of cross-cultural conflicts. With regards to belief, Islam is not particular in who accepts its major premises. In effect, the very formulation of Islam as an organized faith was a decisive attempt to reconcile many of the conceptions of God as they have revealed themselves throughout antiquity; by acknowledging the legitimacy of all of the ancient prophets, Islam makes its doctrines remarkably inclusive. Therefore, the requisite of belief for Muslims is a relatively simple one; if you recognize that the ancient prophets had some conception of the true nature of God, then you are capable of leading a holy and virtuous path. Faith demands adherence to the code of laws, and a recognition of the nature of mankind and his place within the world. The Qur'an makes it clear that no restrictions should be placed upon who can be saved spiritually based upon sex, culture, race, class, or the actions of others. However, these stipulations upon entry into heaven do not formally empower women in their social relationships. Although a person of any sex or ethnicity possesses the capacity to recognize Allah as the one true God and Muhammad as his prophet in virtually all Muslim societies, many of these societies rely upon tribal law and gender traditions to determine particular power structures. The consequence of this is that in a number of Muslim societies women are explicitly identified as being inferior to men and, accordingly, are forced to occupy purely subservient positions. Of course, violence against women has been recognized as a global pandemic, which is not at all exclusive to the Islamic world: "The situation has lead public health experts to consider violence against women a global public health issue, one requiring a public health approach."1 Domestic abuse is common across virtually all cultures and religions to a very high degree; but in many Islamic societies - the Arab world in particular - violence against women could be far more prevalent than in the West, stemming partially from the underground, behind-closed-door character of women in these societies and partially from the widespread acceptance of domestic violence by the male-dominated, ruling sects. As a result, "Research carried out in several Arab countries, however, shows that at least one out of three women is beaten by her husband."2 It has been argued by a number of Western theorists that violence is endemic to Muslim societies; violence against those of other religions and violence against those occupying a lower-rung on the social ladder - women - are both justified within the overall Muslim worldview, according to these theorists. In Islam, within any given community, the rights of the underprivileged are such that they are justified in overthrowing those institutions that are deemed unjust, so long as the injustice lies clearly outside the teachings of the Qur'an. One of the difficulties with this position is that if the practices of other societies are unjust with respect to the teachings of Muhammad and Islam, then there is good reason to work to physically bring down these societies so they better adhere to the paths of virtue. So, quite often, cross-societal violence is clearly justified. But the reverse of this situation is also superficially justified; if the underprivileged of society are deemed to be behaving in an immoral manner, then violence against them is also justified. Although comprehensive studies and, therefore, accurate data is scarce, is has been often suggested that this justification for violence against women is quite prevalent in nations such as Afghanistan and Pakistan.3 Efforts to overcome these rationalizations for such violence have come largely from the West, though much of the propaganda has been aimed at appealing to the core Islamic beliefs held the populous: "These include launching media campaigns to inform the public that forced and child marriages violate fundamental precepts of Islam, and clearly establishing the 'marriage' of a girl-child as a crime subject to prosecution and punishment."4 In Afghanistan the U.S. and their allies have attempted to also set up a system for protecting abused women by creating women's shelters, which were previously unheard of in the region.5 According to Yakin Erturk, special reporter of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights and Violence Against Women, "In only an exceedingly small fraction of cases will any sanction be imposed on the perpetrators of domestic violence [in Afghanistan]," she noted, adding that many women have no alternative but to endure such violence since unaccompanied women have no place in the public space and are automatically suspected of being engaged in sexual offences."6 Although these protections are now at least partially in place, they are seen by many as an outside, Western influence or an unjustified incursion into basic Muslim ways of life; namely, disruption of their patriarchal society. Broadly, it is not merely that violence against women is more prevalent in many Islamic societies - since it is widespread in Hindu and Christian societies as well - but that with the exception of regions in which the West has directly intervened, there are quite often no social support mechanisms to assist victims of such violence, because the dominant social philosophies condone violence against women in numerous situations. A report issued by Human Rights Watch "points out the law [in the West Bank] drastically reduces penalties for men who kill or hurt their wives or female relatives for committing adultery, offers rapists complete impunity if they agree to marry their victims, allows only male relatives to file incest charges on behalf of children and requires mandatory prosecution for domestic violence if the victim is hospitalized for more than 20 days."7 Although certain interpretations of the Qur'an doubtlessly justify the treatment of women in such an inequitable fashion, competing interpretations often find such practices completely unacceptable. Further comparative evidence suggests that such patriarchal practices may be more culturally than religiously based, judging from close readings of the Bible as well. In certain interpretations of Christian theology - based on absolutist interpretations of the Bible - the stoning of women for adultery and the natural place of the man at the head of the family, for example, are perfectly warranted notions. One of the key differences between the rate of violence against women in Christian societies and the rate of such violence in Muslim societies may be the prevalence of such absolutist religious interpretations and their corresponding social structures. In other words, the dearth of egalitarian philosophies and their political counterparts may be one of the foundational causes of increased gender violence in the Muslim world, not that these philosophies or their political counterparts are elementally incompatible with one religion or another. Emerging evidence may also imply that domestic violence is correlated with political strife. In Gaza, although no rigorously scientific report has been possible, individual or anecdotal evidence is supporting the notion that men frustrated by tough economic or political times are more apt to physically take this frustration out on the women in their lives. The report issued by the Human Rights Watch acknowledges that economic sanctions and blockades of the region - primarily by Israel - have weakened many detrimental institutions in the region, this has not done enough to fundamentally root out the institutionalized supports of violence against women. However, more recent studies by the United Nations have suggested that in pervasive socio-political violence in Israel has been correlated with pervasive - and increasing - violence against women: "The United Nations Development Fund for Women says there is anecdotal evidence that domestic violence - verbal, physical, sexual and psychological - has increased noticeably since Israel's recent bloody operation in Gaza and in general since Hamas took over sole control of the strip almost two years ago."8 Additionally, with the weakening of numerous social and economic institutions, the frustration of men has increased as any possible support mechanisms for women have been disappearing - including the loss of contact with family members. In today's world, there may be no more obvious example of socio-religious extremism than Afghanistan, and the code of laws introduced by the Taliban. According to the National Organization for Women Foundation, approximately nine million women in Afghanistan have virtually zero human rights, by modern Western standards.9 Among the rights that are systematically denied these women are the rights to an education and the right to speak in public; many are also denied the right to appear in public without a male escort and proper attire - a burqa covering their entire body. Overall, these codes of conduct are a reflection of a very specific and conservative interpretation of Islamic law; as such, they could be regarded as more of a cultural phenomenon than a direct result of Islam or its teachings. Furthermore, the prevalence of violence against women and the limitation of females' human rights in many Muslim-dominated portions of the globe have also been noted as corresponding with political strife and warfare. Objectively, correlation does not imply causation: A correlation of violence against women in the Muslim world does not demand that Islamic law is the culprit. These portions of the globe possess many other similarities that could more properly be identified as direct causes. Nevertheless, it is clear that one way to begin minimizing the negative effects of such violence is to introduce social support mechanisms - even if they are brought by the Western powers. Beyond that, more egalitarian interpretations of the Qur'an may also benefit women in these war-torn, politically unstable, economically unstable and predominantly Muslim regions of the world. Works Cited: Adler, Katya. "Gazan Women Face Rise in Abuse." BBC News, March 30, 2009. Chelala, Cesar. "Violence Against Women: a Hidden Pandemic in the Arab World." Middle East Times, May 15, 2009. MacIntyre, Donald. "Abuse of Women Still Rife in Palestinian Life, Says Study." The Independent, November 7, 2006. National Organization for Women Foundation. "Stop the Abuse of Women and Girls in Afghanistan." NOWF, 2009. Available: http://www.nowfoundation.org/issues/global/taliban.html. Semple, Kirk. "Afghan Women Slowly Gaining Protection." The New York Times, March 2, 2009. U.N. News Centre. "Violence against Women in Afghanistan Remains Dramatic - U.N. Expert." U.N. News Centre, July 18, 2005. Read More