Islamic extremism exists. The radical Islamist ideology to spread hatred and terror among the world too exists. The fear among millions of human beings to become victims of the Islamic terror organisation exists. And, the extreme practices under the garb of religious beliefs exist.
But, what does not exist is the idea to eradicate the extremist ideology of Islamism. However, there is a certain power that needs no idea and weapons to deal with this narrative. And that, you might be surprised to know, is Muslim women itself.
Islamic law and evil practices
After the Taliban took control over Afghanistan last year and implemented Islamic law, thousands tried to flee the country. Have you ever thought why? Well, if not, we have the answer for you.
The Sharia law imposed by the terror organisation led the people to flee the country.
In Arabic, “Sharia” translates to “the way” and in practice; it refers to a wide-ranging body of moral and ethical principles drawn from the Quran and the sayings along with extreme practices of the prophet Muhammad in the context of the role of Islam in government.
Sharia is a body of religious rules to guide the day-to-day lives of Muslims. It could include a role for Sharia in criminal law, a stringent code of punishment applied in very few countries. Islamic personal law governs issues like marriage, inheritance and child custody, more common across the Muslim world. Sharia provides a detailed framework as to how the followers of Islam should live.
It broadly divides crime into two: Hadd or Tazir crimes. While Hadd prescribes a set of punishments for certain forms of crimes – like cutting hands for stealing and stoning to death in the case of adultery; Tazir crimes rather rely on the discretion of Sharia judges in awarding punishments. However, not all Islamic nations implement Sharia law.
The helpless Islamic women
As per the Sharia, women are forbidden from studying and gaining employment. They are forced to wear burqas head-to-toe, face-covering garments and could face whippings if they attempt to step outside on their own without a male guardian. Man is considered “protectors and maintainers” of women and thus superior to them. Women are supposed to be “obedient” and if they persistently disobey, their male protectors, should “strike” or “beat” them. Women accused of adultery were stoned to death.
Read more: Sharia Law: What it means for Women, religious minorities and kids
The horrifying rules of Sharia law are something no one would want to face. Restrictions on behaviour, dress and movement enforced by morality police officers are bizarre and unacceptable.
Polygamy, Triple Talaq and many more
The polygamous nature of Muslim Society, where the husband can still marry four times shows unwillingness among the legislators to get rid of chauvinism and male ego in the Muslim Society.
It is necessary to allow polygamy in the Muslim Society for religious freedom, as it is not obligatory in Islam to marry four times. In fact, the Quran, the holy book of Islam from which Islamic law is derived, strongly discourages Polygamy though it does not prohibit Polygamy altogether.
Read more: Muslim Women: The Community beyond the reach of Feminism
Talaq is recognized as the sole right of the husband in Islamic law. The husband thus according to his whims and fancies can use Triple Talaq and divorce his wife without her consent. The right of the husband to divorce his wife in an autocratic and unreasonable manner without any obligation to maintain her post the period of Iddat, i.e. a fixed period of time after divorce during which the wife cannot marry another husband ensured a deplorable status for the Muslim women.
Muslim Women awakening up against the injustice
This is the era of women empowerment. Muslim women, too, are awakening up and are gradually recognizing the injustice they have been witnessing for ages. And thus, they have stepped in with the decision to give it back.
Pursuing their career in the desired fields, Muslim women are now contributing a lot to economic power. As far as their marital lives and other issues are concerned, they have now begun raising their voice to fight the extremist ideology of Islam.
Aware of their rights, they are enjoying freedom like Hindu women do. But, is this enough?
No. The Muslim Women needs to take cognizance of the fact that Islamist ideology is not only causing a loss to them but other religions as well. Their tendencies to launch terror attacks and extreme practices are leading the countries to sideline the whole Muslim community. In the aftermath, they too will have to face the repercussions.
Thus, to prevent themselves from both the evil practices followed by their co-religionists and ignorance by other countries, Muslim Women needs to fight against the radical Islamist ideology.