By NNN-Bernama,
Kuala Lumpur : Collective action among Muslim women around the world is necessary to bring out women’s issues for serious, indepth discussion, says the executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA), Daisy Khan.
Muslim women represented half of the world’s Muslim population and therefore their issues were societal and serious, she said in an interview with Bernama here Tuesday.
Muslim women must also be educated on the rights that Islam had granted them, and understand the principle that there should not be any discrimination against them in all aspects of life.
“When a women is disengaged in society, there is an impact on society at large. You’re not utilizing the talents that women have for the betterment of society,” said Khan, who is here to attend the third international conference on “The Muslim World and The West: Bridging The Gap”.
Elaborating on the negative perception of Muslims, particularly women, Khan said: “It has been shaped by a number of issues, where several incidents have indirectly pointed at Islam as a religion that promotes violence.
“Islam is also being accused for not granting rights to women while they are also subjected to strict cultural norms and customs.”
These scenarios, she added, were contributed by the literacy rates in society, and questions arose as to whether the society was a patriarchal society, a tribal society or contemporarily modern.
“We find that the crux of the matter is that customs have begun to tramp upon religion, that customary practices have become so prominent in certain societies that they often violate Islamic law itself,” she said.
“For this reason, bringing women’s voices to the debate to articulate women’s rights within the Islamic legal framework becomes crucial to change this perception.
“What is needed now is to show that Islam has given women rights for more than 1,400 years, where in many areas women can fully participate including in politics and the economy, and be financially independent.”
Khan said in education, Islam had provided women the greatest opportunities. “Therefore, women’s participation at all levels is necessary to reshape how Muslims are viewed in the world, especially from the western mind.
“In my work, I have noticed that women’s history is one history. We have a shared parallel trajectory which women of all religions have been facing, so the struggle of women is the same in all religions.
“Some religions have tackled it hundreds of years ago and some religions are tackling it now. For instance, women have been granted rights in Islam way before Christian women were, like the right to divorce, the right to property and so forth.”
Meanwhile, Australian Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs and Settlement Services Laurie Ferguson said western nations should emulate Australia’s policies to incorporate people into its society and give them fair treatment and equal rights, including those of Muslim background.
He said the Australian Government had taken several steps to integrate the Muslim population. Among the examples that Ferguson cited was the fact that the Australian government would spend taxpayers’ money to fund Islamic schools throughout the country, and that there were a multitude of mosques spread across the land.
“We allow Islamic schools throughout the country. In my electorate, there is an Islamic school. And these receive some government money, tax payer’s money,” said Ferguson, who is also attending the conference.
Although admitting there were unemployment problems among the Muslim population in Australia, he said the government was taking steps to tackle the issue, especially since crime rates could be connected to unemployment.
“There’s a connection yes (with the crime rate), people who are angry with society, people who feel that they have been left behind,” he added.
Ferguson also explained that the unemployment problems among the Muslim population was not due to religion or ethnic-based but because of educational factor since Australia needed skilled workers to compete in today’s global economy.
“Lots of skilled doctors, professionals, IT people who are Muslims, come from India and Pakistan. I think if you go to Australia and meet a whole lot of Malaysian Muslims, you’ll find they are very successful, above average Australians,” he said.