Does Islam oppose gender equality?

Does Islam oppose gender equality?

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Islam has been widely perceived as a religion that does not
respect gender equality. Many, including Muslims, believe that
Islamic doctrine views women as subservient to men or their
husbands whose wishes they are obliged to fulfill.

Muslim writers grouped under the Study Forum for Yellow Books
(Forum Kajian Kitab Kuning) have launched a book to counter
traditional Islamic manuscripts, known as Kitab Kuning which have
been used as a fundamental reference of wide-ranging teachings,
including those on the relations between man and woman.

These old manuscripts have been called as such because they
were usually written on yellow paper.

The book titled Wajah Baru Relasi Suami-Istri (The New Face of
Husband-Wife Relations) specifically criticizes a Kitab Kuning
called Uqud al-Lujjayn (Couple's Contract) written by Imam An-
Nawawy, who lived between 1813 and 1898. He was born in Banten of
Arab descend.

The newly launched book, for example, opposes a traditional
Islamic concept that rejects a women's right to file for a
divorce.

Such a concept is part of the Islamic teachings taught in
kitab kuning, which has not been questioned by the country's
Muslim majority.

The writers argue that author Imam Nawawy chose hadist
(Prophet Muhammad's traditional collection of stories related to
his words and deeds), the origin of which cannot be traced back
to Muhammad.

Other Islamic concepts that the book also criticizes include a
popular notion that a wife is not allowed to refuse her husband's
request for sex. Many other concepts on gender inequality are
criticized in the book.

Noted Muslim preacher Mustofa Bisri, popularly known as Gus
Mus, from Rembang, Central Java, said the book Wajah Baru Relasi
Suami-Istri was a civil way of expressing disagreement with the
views written by a great ulema.

He said some other ulema also did not agree with the contents
of An-Nawawy's book, asserting that Uqud al-Lujjayn was not the
main reference for students of pesantren (Islamic boarding
schools) in Indonesia.

Many other kitab kuning, which have been taught at Islamic
boarding schools, include Durrat al-Nasihin (Pearls of Wisdom)
Ihya' Ulum ad-Din, (Living Religious Sciences) and Fath al-Qarib
al-Mujib: Syarh Matan Abi Syuja. (Opening something near: A
Commentary on Abi Syuja's Book)

Although Uqud al-Lujjayn is not used as an official reference
in Islamic boarding schools, it is very popular in Indonesia as
is usually taught in intensive Islamic courses during the fasting
month of Ramadhan in pesantren.

The team of writers behind Wajah Baru Relasi Suami-Istri are
former first lady Sinta Nuriyah Abdurrahman Wahid, Lies Marcoes,
Attashendartini Habsjah, Badriyah Fayyumi, Arifah Choiri Fauzi,
Juju Juhairiyyah, Djudju Zubaedah, Farhah Ciciek, Faqihuddin
Abdul Kodir, Ahmad Lufty Fathullah, and Syafiq Sasyim.

Ibu Nuriyah, speaking at the book launch, said it took almost
four years to prepare the 206-page book, which some critics have
dubbed as a monumental work.

Musdah Mulia, chairwoman of the Jakarta-based Institute for
the Study of Religion and Gender, said that to write a book which
contradicted popular perceptions required extraordinary courage
on the part of its writers.

"I believe there are many persons capable of writing such a
book, but it's very seldom one can find writers with courage to
write a book that will predictably draw opposition from the
public," said Musdah, who is also a lecturer at the Jakarta based
State Academy of Islamic Studies (IAIN).

According to another Muslim scholar Ulil Abshar Abdalla, the
book is a "monumental work" that offers corrections to
traditional manuscripts written by great ulema, whom many Muslim
leaders are reluctant to criticize.

He said such a rare work was a product of ijtihad (a move to
decide on a certain controversial issue through serious and
comprehensive studies).

Ulil confirmed that some 60 hadist quoted by An-Nawawy in his
Uqud al-Lujjayn are those of questionable authenticity.

Such critical analyses of any kitab kuning is required to
assess whether the Islamic concepts contained there are still
relevant to the current situation, he said.

"A book is a cultural product, which should be written in the
context of a cultural setting. Therefore, reinterpretation (of
traditional manuscripts) is needed," said Ulil of the country's
largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU).

But another Muslim scholar Moeslim Abdurrahman said that the
Wajah Baru Relasi Suami-Istri was more than a product of ijtihad.
It could even be considered a work produced through jihad,
meaning that the writers had nullified all An-Nawawy's arguments
in conflict with their mission -- gender equality.

Moeslim said the writers tried hard to prove that An-Nawawy's
concepts that opposed gender equality were not the real Islamic
teachings.

"All that the writers have done is to seek a legitimate basis
for their arguments on gender equality," he added.

According to Musdah, Wajah Baru Relasi Suami-Istri is an
alternative to many books depicting the relations between men and
women that are sold at bookstores. "It is up the readers to make
an assessment and to make conclusions about the books they read,"
she added.