Adapting Koran to current realities<\/p>\n
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
For a 34 year-old, Muslim preacher-cum-gender activist Siti
\nRuqoyyah Ma'shum has been through more than most women her age in
\nthe marital department.<\/p>\n
Growing up and living in the strict Islamic boarding school
\nsurroundings of the small, poor regency of Bondowoso, East Java,
\nRuqoyyah was forced to marry a son of her father's cleric
\ncolleague when she was barely 15 years old.<\/p>\n
Arranged since she was a toddler, the marriage, however, ended
\nin divorce as her husband and his family could not accept the
\nfact that Ruqoyyah was as a better and more popular preacher than
\nher ex-husband, she said.<\/p>\n
She moved on to husband No 2. A well-educated politician and
\nseemingly pious, he turned out to be an abusive partner who also
\npracticed polygamy. The second marriage also ended, but not after
\nRuqoyyah said was a long, agonizing and discriminatory process in
\nthe religious court.<\/p>\n
For many women it is often through these bitter, first-hand
\nexperiences that they realize the continuing discrimination
\npracticed against their sex. The difference with Ruqoyyah,
\nhowever, was she wanted to make sure other women around her would
\nnot have to go through the same fate.<\/p>\n
Ruqoyyah uses regular Islamic gatherings not only as the venue
\nto spread Islamic teachings but also as an opportunity to
\ncampaign for gender equality and equity.<\/p>\n
\"I regularly teach all-woman congregations, from children to
\nthe elderly. Apart from preaching, I also make myself available
\nto them for consultations on anything, from religious issues to
\nmarital problems. This is where I familiarize gender issues to
\nthem,\" said the softly spoken activist.<\/p>\n
Islamic boarding schools are places where the patriarchal
\nculture is deeply entrenched, but Ruqoyyah benefits from her
\nposition as a respected figure, given her experience in
\npreaching.<\/p>\n
\"It's a matter of a good approach. We can't just use
\nsophisticated gender terms -- we need to explain the substance.
\nWe must not confront (the ulema), but instead be very well-
\nmannered, and respectful -- especially to the elderly clerics,\"
\nshe said.<\/p>\n
Ruqoyyah's approach has won the heart of many male clerics and
\nshe is often invited to preach to all-male congregations as well.
\nDespite a strongly chauvinistic culture, with polygamy practiced
\nwidely, many ulema were not resistant to her progressive ideas,
\nshe said.<\/p>\n
However, other ulema had challenged her by attacking her
\ncampaigning when they shared podiums, attempting to discredit her
\nand her ideas.<\/p>\n
\"I usually come to them, asking them not to attack me in
\npublic, because that means deceiving people. There is a change,
\nsomehow. At least some preachers don't use sexist humor that much
\nanymore,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Ruqoyyah first rose to prominence as a preacher in 1989 as her
\nthen father-in-law saw her potential and nurtured her, teaching
\nher public speaking and sometimes asking her to be his
\nsubstitute.<\/p>\n
\"My late father was well educated; he graduated from Al Azhar
\nUniversity, Cairo. But he still bowed to the patriarchal culture
\nin the boarding school,\" said the mother of a teenage son.<\/p>\n
Her father-in-law's attention, however, sparked her first
\nhusband's and relatives' jealousy, who said it was unethical for
\na woman to outshine her husband.<\/p>\n
Other challenges also came from women who, being mistresses or
\nother wives, condemned Ruqoyyah's progressive ideas.<\/p>\n
\"I let them be. I just let women know their own rights and the
\nconsequences of their choices. I don't teach women to be harsh to
\ntheir husbands, or ask second wives for a divorce.<\/p>\n
\"On the other hand, if women accept polygamy, I always tell
\nthem not to whine or speak ill of their husbands but accept their
\nsituation,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Ruqoyyah fought back against her second husband who, she said,
\nfrequently beat her, did not give her financial support, sexually
\nassaulted her and eventually married another woman while he was
\nstill married to Ruqoyyah.<\/p>\n
Only then did Ruqoyyah realize how insensitive and sexist the
\nlegal system was here to a woman filing for divorce. The process
\nwas lengthy, the judges and lawyers smirked at her, and when the
\nprocess was finally completed after three years, there was no
\nalimony -- the foregone conclusion when a woman files for
\ndivorce.<\/p>\n
\"That's why many women who are financially dependent on their
\nhusbands never file for a divorce, no matter what. There are many
\nweaknesses in our legal system with regard to women ... But I
\nwanted to at least show (people) that nobody is above the law and
\nno one can treat women unjustly,\" Ruqoyyah said.<\/p>\n
Single now, she is actively involved in several organizations,
\nincluding Puan Amal Hayati and the Wahid Institute, which are
\naffiliated with Nahdhatul Ulama (NU), the largest Muslim
\norganization in the country, as well as women's organizations
\nsuch as Rahima.<\/p>\n
The frequent training and workshops provided by these
\norganizations have made her articulate in conveying her ideas
\nabout the issues of contemporary Islam. She also hosts a regular
\nradio program on Islam and gender, travels around the country and
\nhas also been to the United States for an interfaith dialog.<\/p>\n
Her hometown, the poor Prajekan village in Bondowoso, however,
\nis where her heart is.<\/p>\n
Asked about the toughest case she had ever been involved in
\nthere, Ruqoyyah said it was when a grandfather raped his
\ngranddaughter and the fifth-grader became pregnant.<\/p>\n
The girl's family came to Ruqoyyah for help as there was no
\ninstitution helping to empower women in the town.<\/p>\n
Ruqoyyah advised the family to allow the girl to abort the
\nchild, although local ulema condemned this as haram (unlawful and
\nsinful).<\/p>\n
\"Sometimes local figures are insensitive and follow the
\n(religious) texts too strictly. But this girl was so young, she
\nhad a long journey ahead of her. We couldn't marry her to the
\nfather, either, as it was her grandfather, and besides, the
\npregnancy was only one month old,\" she said.<\/p>\n
A clinic they went to objected the abortion at first, but then
\nagreed to do it free of charge, as the family was poor.<\/p>\n
The girl is still at school and is a regular member of
\nreligious gatherings led by Ruqoyyah.<\/p>\n
The grandfather still lives in the area, although he has been
\nostracized by the local community.<\/p>\n
\"People need us to provide solutions. In a case like that, we
\ncannot preach. I often tell my congregation that religious texts
\ncannot be changed, particularly the Koran. But the interpretation
\ncan and must be adapted to current realities,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Her sincere wish is to return to her school, delayed because
\nof her forced marriage.<\/p>\n
\"I always tell my son when he's lazy to go to school, look at
\nummi (mom); I'm old but I'm eager to go back to school,\" she
\nsaid, laughing.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/adapting-koran-to-current-realities-1447893297",
"image": ""
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