By: Kayhan Int’l Staff Writer

 

“To the men a share from what they have earned, and to the women a share of what they have earned.” (Holy Qur’an 4:32)

Prophet Muhammad (SAWA): “Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim man and Muslim woman.”1

Islamic teachings, laws, guidelines and practices provide a complete system for dignified and respected life for females living in any society. This divine system protects women against any form of injustice, supports them in all aspects, provides them with best opportunities to develop their talent in any field and allows them to serve society in any possible role they can. Females are not only loved as daughters and sisters and highly respected as mothers and wives but are also authorized to exercise their role as the center of a family. They are the real home makers – a place which is in fact the first school of human beings to nurture next generation in order to educate a prosperous healthy society. 

Compared to boys, girls are treated with more compassion, love and care in an Islamic system. They are educated like boys with special consideration to their natural physical, mental and emotional requirements. Considering their biological and psychological needs, they are prepared for their future roles and responsibilities as adults. They are not forced to marry against their wishes and choice. There are no limits and barriers to their education and they even outnumber males in higher education.2 Women are provided equal job opportunities in an Islamic system as skilled professionals such as physicians and engineers. They contribute as outstanding teachers, scholars and intellectuals in schools, colleges, universities and institutions of higher education. They are also encouraged to play important leadership roles in social, cultural and political domains. Considering all these aspects, in an ideal Islamic society, women are more powerful and influential than men as they can play more diverse roles. They rule society from its very heart – the home and family. A healthy family is not possible without women playing pivotal role in its establishment, maintenance and nurture and a healthy society is impossible without a healthy family. The religion of Islam thus provides a complete system of the rights for women.

Historically, it was Islam that first bestowed dignity to women in all spheres of life. When Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) started preaching Islam in 610 AD, the Arabian Peninsula was in the state of “Jahiliyyah” (ignorance) to the extent that a female newborn child was buried alive by some. Islam brought not only an overall ideological revolution but also specifically a social, intellectual, cultural, financial and legal revolution for the females in that pagan society. Based on teachings of Islam, daughters and mothers were highly respected, women were allowed to own property, have inheritance, do business and work, acquire knowledge as men, were not forced into marriage against their will, had right to divorce, crimes against women were severely punished, and they were encouraged to be active members of society as their male counterparts.

At that time, Europe was sunken in dark ages where there were no rights for women. Even long after renaissance in Europe and it’s continuation to modernization and industrial revolution in West, there was no system for women’s right to vote, right to voice their opinions, right to pursue higher education, the right to get a divorce, to be able to present themselves at court, to be able to receive an inheritance and to own property. Women in the United States and Europe were denied the right to own and manage property until the 18th century. Women’s suffrage movements in the US eventually led to success giving them right to vote only in 1920 by the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution.3 In European countries women were given the right to vote and legally participate with their influence in social events in after 1918.4,5 Then, after decades of political pressure, women were allowed to file petition for divorce on the same terms as men for the first time in 1937. Women were ultimately allowed to pursue university education. The first batch of women graduates passed out from the top Western universities such as Harvard in early 20th Century. 

In modern Western societies where the popular slogan of equal rights for men and women is heard and where women are considered liberal, there are still gross and oppressive inequalities in salaries and benefits – women are considered as cheap labor. Gender pay gap still exists in the US. Women were paid 38.5% less than men in 1979 in US. Currently, on average women are paid 18% less in the US, while in Europe it is up to 22.3% less than their male counterparts.6,7 In addition, their role as expecting mothers, during pregnancy, childbirth and after giving birth is neglected. For example, most of the European Union countries on average give 3.7 months of paid post-natal leave (after childbirth) to a mother. In four European countries it is from 6 to 12 months, while in nearly half of the European countries, the leave for childbirth is parental (either mother or father) given for 11 months which is not well-paid.

In the US, the federal government provides expecting mothers with only unpaid 12 weeks maternity leave, and legally any leave beyond that period leads to job termination! In a recent review published in the Harvard Journal of Psychiatry, experts from leading universities have recommended a national paid maternity leave policy of at least 12 weeks.8  (Concluding part tomorrow)

(Endnotes)

1 Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 1, p. 177; vol. 2, p. 32; vol. 70, p. 68

2 For example, females outnumber males in Iran’s 2017 university entrance exam. Tehran Times, Sept 16, 2017 <https://tinyurl.com/4bmhpnzh>  (last accessed: 2/9/2022)

3 M.J. Johnson: The Woman Suffrage Movement in the United States - Routledge (2022). 

4 After long nationwide struggle for their rights, for the first time in USA history, women were allowed to vote in Montana in 1914. For a history of women’s struggle to vote at state level in the USA, please see: Women in Congress: The Women’s Rights Movement, 1848–1917. <https://history.house.gov/Exhibitions-and-Publications/WIC/Historical-Essays/No-Lady/Womens-Rights/>. (last accessed: 2/9/2022)

5 S.L. Poulson. Suffrage: The Epic Struggle for Women’s Right to Vote - ABC-CLIO, (2020).

6 For details see: Quick Facts about Gender Wage Gap: <https://www.americanprogress.org/article/quick-facts-gender-wage-gap/>. (last accessed: 26/9/2022)

7 European Union’s Gender Pay Gap Statistics, see: <https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Gender_pay_gap_statistics>. (last accessed: 26/9/2022)

8 Niel, V. et al: The Impact of Paid Maternity Leave on the Mental and Physical Health of Mothers and Children: A Review of the Literature and Policy Implications - Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 2020; 28(2): 113-126.