Rights for women in Islam

Rights for women in Islam

Almost every day, there is news about women rights in The
Jakarta Post. Most of the women rights violations are blamed on
the apparently discriminatory Islamic law. These are a few,
apparently, common forms of discrimination mentioned.

- Why are women obliged to maintain purdah, to cover themselves
properly?

- Women are given less inheritance rights as compared to men.

- Why are two women required to appear as a witness in court
compared to one man?

- Why are women not allowed to become an imam or lead a prayer?

Now I would like to share my views and Islamic philosophy
behind the above mentioned points.

In Islam, it is not just the women who are asked to maintain
purdah but men are also ordered to keep their eyes cast down and
not to look here and there when there is no need to do so. The
philosophy behind purdah is to protect the chastity of women.
Medical science would support me, that, we feel a desire and
attraction for the opposite sex as soon as we reach adulthood.

Because Islam claims to be a champion of moral values, it
does not allow either men or women to have premarital sex or
extramarital affairs. The best way to save ourselves from all
those bad intentions that may arise after looking at a woman who
is not properly covered up is -- purdah for women and keeping the
eyes cast down for men -- after all, prevention is better than
cure.

The second point is that in the Islamic domestic system, men
are obliged to provide for their families financially, not women.
As men carry the burden, justice demands they have more rights to
the inheritance. However, for the readers' interest, it is only
Islam which gives inheritance rights to women. No other religion
gives such rights to women. Even some of the most developed
countries in the West gave women the right to own property just a
few decades ago.

Appearing as a witness -- this is also a proven fact that
women are much more emotionally sensitive as compared to men. It
is also true that emotions overwhelm logic. This is why in
emergency cases such as appearing as a witness, a woman is asked
to have another lady with her, who can encourage her and remind
her in case she forgets. This shows Islam's extra favor and care
for women, and is not an indication that it looks down on them.

Finally, we should remember that women are not totally
prohibited from becoming an imam or leading a prayer. They are
allowed to become an imam, but for women only. In Islam
cleanliness is a must for prayers. As we all know that during
menstruation uncleanliness cannot be avoided. So men are chosen
as an imam for both sexes.

FAZAL-E-MUJEEB, Jakarta