WOMEN’S RIGHTS

WOMEN’S RIGHTS

Womenare being so special because they always become a priority in any condition to our society since a long time ago. It is undeniable to say that women have their own special power to make something to the world. When we talk about women today it always been related to the rights of this genders. Woman's status in Islam is one of the most controversial and serious issues of our time, not only among Muslim women and those who represent them in the area of women's rights in the Islamic world, but also among fundamentalist Muslims. Some cover Islam's achievements for the woman, maintaining that it was Islam that gave the woman her rights and honour, while others blame all the disadvantages in the position of Muslim women on Islam.

Woman appears in the Quran in three aspects. Firstly, as a biological and social being.Secondly, as a believer.Thirdly, as a character in the biblical salvation narrative.What the Qur´an says about the woman as a biological social being can be considered objective, not diminishing any of her rights, though the current theme in this respect is "Men are the managers of women for that God has preferred in bounty one of them over another, and for that they have expended of their property"  . The Qur´an pictures Mary's mother as being disappointed over the fact that she gave birth to a "female" and she said to Allah "Lord, I have given birth to her, a female (And Allah knew very well what she had given birth to; the male is not as the female)"  . Those concerned with the Qur´an and those who read it know well that the judgments mentioned in it concerning women form a good part of it. As it is known, the fourth surah is called "Women" or known as Surah Al-Nisa, and is one of the longer surah. But before looking into the legislative position of women, I would like to stress again that women have their special value based on what have been stated in Qur’an. Just take a deep look into Qur’an or try to understand completely what has stated. You can see that in Qur’an the women’s rights also has been stress up about this issue and that is emphasize the women in Islam. So, there’s no doubt in women’s rights in Islam as it is all stated completely in that.

Before the advent of Islam, women were treated extremely harshly.  It was acceptable for female babies to be buried alive and women were treated more as chattels and objects of sexual pleasure. Islam changed all this, and taught equality of both genders. For the status of women, the Holy Prophet of Islam knew the essential part women had to play in the development of society, so he laid great stress on the upbringing of girls by saying, “A man who has two daughters and brings them up and educates them to the best of his capacity shall be entitled to paradise”. According to Islam women are not considered inferior to men. Men and women have similar rights and in some areas women actually enjoy certain privileges that the men do not. In terms of property, marriage and divorce women have been given rights and in fact at each turn they have been considered and provided for as appropriate. It is true to say that Islam gave women rights which are unparalleled in the history of women.Allah has declared in the Holy Qur’an that He has created men and women as equal beings.He has created you from a single being; then from that He made its mate.  

In marriage, Jurists have dealt with the rights of wives over her husband. Muhammad said in his final address, the right you acquire over them is that they should not let someone you hate sleep in your beds, and not to commit anadultery. “If they do, then God has given you permission to leave them alone in their beds and give them a beating, though not too hard. If they give over, they get their provision and clothing with kindness; I command you good-will for your wives, for they are your captives that do not own anything of their own. You have taken them by the faithfulness of God, and made their sexual organs lawful for you by the words of God”. The Messenger of God said “to feed and clothe her, if you yourself have food and clothing. Do not slap her on the face, orutter obscenities to her, nor desert her except inside the house”. Protection by the husband is one of the rights that the woman acquires. Muhammad said, “I warn you about the right of the two weak ones: the orphan and the women.”Sexual intercourse is another right she has over him, because it is the duty of the husband as long as he has no excuse. Malik holds this same opinion. If he travels for any reason or for any necessity, she must forego this right no matter how long his journey lasts. But if he has no substantial excuse, and makes excuses for not having intercourse several times, then they can be separated [by law].If he has a free woman for wife, he has to sleep with her once every four nights, and if he has four wives, each of them receives one night every four nights. He should treat his wives justly. Muhammad said in the Hadith, "If a man has two wives, and he shows favour to one against the other, he will come on the Resurrection Day with a limp."

Divorce existed before Islam, but the advent of Islam made the divorce process much more favourable to women.  Women’s property is not divided during a divorce.Whatever a woman earns or is given before and during the course of the marriage remains her property if the marriage ends.This prevents men from taking advantage of women’s property or wealth through marriage. On the other hand, the man’s property is divided if a divorce occurs according to the couple’s marriage contract. A woman is entitled to support and maintenance from her former husband if she requires.There are also special instructions if divorce occurs before the marriage is consummated and before or after the dowry is set.Islam also instituted a three-month waiting period for women called Iddah.  During this three-month period women are not permitted to re-marry.The basic reason for this rule is to determine whether the woman was pregnant before she remarried so the proper father could be ascertained. This practice also ensures the child’s identity and lineage can be accurately determined. A husband and wife are also allowed to attempt reconciliation during the waiting period.However, men are specifically instructed not to take back their wives to “injure or take undue advantage” of them.

For inheritance, Allah stated in the Quran, Allah commands you as regards to your children's (inheritance); to the male, a portion equal to that of two females . Those who misunderstand Islam claim that Islam does injustice to women in terms of inheritance. They opine that it is unfair to grant the male a double to that of the female even though they are children of the same parents. Allah, the Exalted, offered a full and detailed method of women's inheritance in the Qur'an and Sunnah, and if an unbiased student of knowledge reflects on the details, he or she will discover the fault of this opinion. To begin with, Allah has determined all the shares of all the relatives in respect to their relationship to the deceased. As He the Most Wise said “There is a share for men and a share for women from what is left by parents and those nearest related, whether the property is small or large, an obligatory share ”.Allah has stated three types of shares for a woman's inheritance as follows. First, a woman will have an equal share as that of the man. Second, a woman will have an equal share to that of the man or a little less. Third, a woman will have half the share of a man. This means that the minimum of her shares is half, and considering that a female has no continual financial responsibilities as a child, sister, wife or mother, and these responsibilities are always on the men of the family, this is very generous indeed.  

A woman in Islam has the right to knowledge and education. Allah (SWT) encourages women to read and keep up the learning process. He also bestows His mercy upon all who seek knowledge, and gives them high status. This is referring to religious knowledge, in the first place, and to any other kind of knowledge, in the second place, where one has the intention of benefiting herself, her family and the Islamic society. Additionally, a husband should not forbid his wife from going out of the house to seek basic religious knowledge, unless he is teaching her at home. The Quran advises mankind to pray, “Then high above all be Allah, the True King. And be not in haste [O Muhammad (SAW)] with the Quran before its revelation is completed to you, and say: My Lord! Increase me in knowledge ”.

A woman in Islam is allowed to seek employment. In Islam, however, the value and importance of women in society and the true measure of their success as human beings, is measured with completely different criteria: their fear of Allah (SWT) and obedience to Him, and fulfilment of the duties He has entrusted them with, particularly that of bearing, rearing and teaching children.Nevertheless, Islam is a practical religion, and responds to human needs and life situations. Many women need, or wish, to work for various reasons. For example, they may possess a needed skill, such as a teacher or a doctor. While Islam does not prohibit women working outside the home, it does stipulate that the following restrictions be followed to safeguard the dignity and honour of women and the purity and stability of the Islamic society, (the conduct of women, after all, is the "backbone" of any society). Firstly, outside employment should not come before, or seriously interfere with her responsibilities as wife and mother.Secondly, her work should not be a source of friction within the family, and the husband’s consent is required in order to eliminate later disagreements. If she is not married, she must have her guardian’s consent. Thirdly, her appearance, manner and tone of speech and overall behaviour should follow Islamic guidelines. Next, her job should not be one which causes moral corruption in society, or involve any prohibited trade or activity, affect her own religion, morals, dignity and good behaviour, or subject her to temptations.Then, her job should not be one which is mixing and associating with men.Lastly, a woman should try to seek employment in positions which require a woman’s special skills, or which relate to the needs of women and children.

In reality, and in Islam, the rights and responsibilities of a woman are equal to those of man, but they are not necessarily identical with them. Equality and sameness are two very different things. I think you’ll agree that, for one thing, women and men are physically very different from one another, although they are equal to each other in other important ways.In the West, women may be doing the same job that men do, but their wages are often less. The rights of Western women in modern times were not created voluntarily, or out of kindness to the female. The modern Western woman reached her present position by force, and not through natural processes or mutual consent of Divine teachings. She had to force her way, and various circumstances aided her. Shortage of manpower during wars, pressure of economic needs and requirement of industry forced women to leave their homes to work, struggling for their livelihood, to appear equal to men. Whether all women are sincerely pleased with these circumstances, and whether they are happy and satisfied with the results, is a different matter. But the fact remains that whatever rights modern Western women have, they fall short of those of her Muslim counterpart! Islam has given woman what duties her female nature. It gives her full security and protects her against becoming what Western modern women themselves complain against: a "mere  sex object."

Based on what I see, the rights of women especially in Islam are very comprehensive in every aspect that we need in our daily life.To be conclude, we can summarized that, Islam does stress on the rights of women in many aspect. For example, Islam did mention about the speciality of women which is stated in surah an-Nisa (special surah for women out there), the high status of women in society, what is allowed and what is not allowed for a husband when treat their wife in a marriage, the rights of women towards his husband property after being divorce, the right of a woman in the inheritance, the right of women in seeking knowledge, the right of women in seeking employment after married, and the equality of right between men and women. Islam has stated all these rights with full of explanations and verses to support these issue.  So, it is deniable to say that women’s rights are limited because Islam has stated all this. For me, if this issue are questioned by non-Muslim to the Muslim, we can easily use all these points to support and answer that to make them understand Islam and try not to make any bad assumption towards Islam.