CAUTION:
TO ALL,
As the post below is not of the popular rah-rah chant type against Moslems in general, you might want to click NEXT.
But if you would care to read on, you will perhaps begin to see that, contrary to popular misconception, Muslims are not all "automatons" that blindly follow and obey their religious teachers/theologians/leaders.
Last year, a documentary "Beneath the Veil" was televised to show the world that Islam mistreats and abuses its womenfolk horribly. But, of course, for the sake of the propaganda value of the TV program, no mention was ever made that the TV program was about extremist Moslems only --- the Taliban. I find it very amusing and laughable that some folks who knew next to nothing about Islam suddenly became instant experts after seeing "Beneath the Veil."
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Muslim women who stand up to ulamas
Outspoken Malaysian rights advocate's push for more humane interpretation of Islam pits her against religious leaders
By Reme Ahmad
SHE does not wear the tudung. She does not speak Arabic. And in a religious field dominated by men, she speaks her mind.
The controversial Ms Zainah is one of Malaysia's most outspoken advocates on Islam and women's rights. -- THE STAR/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Meet Miss Zainah Anwar, one of Malaysia's most outspoken advocates on Islam and women's rights.
She is also one of the most controversial.
While her role as a defender of the rights of Muslim women had attracted many admirers, her shrill calls for a 'more humane' interpretation of Islam have stepped on the toes of religious scholars accustomed to obedient acceptance of their edicts.
She is the executive director of Sisters In Islam, a group of 17 people whose influence goes far beyond their tiny number.
In a country where the increasingly public role of Islamic laws is being hotly debated, Sisters is among a core group that stands up to the ulama, or Muslim theologians, to debate issues.
And to openly disagree with them.
'When religion is being used to punish me and govern my private and public life, then I have every right to say whether I like such laws or not,' the 40-something Ms Zainah told The Straits Times.
That view, while applauded quietly by non-Muslims and some Muslims, has embroiled her group in public fights with the wide swathe of traditional ulamas from both within and outside government circles.
Mr Fareed Zakaria, a Muslim editor at Newsweek magazine, said recently that women's groups such as Sisters could help Muslim societies interpret and reinterpret Islam in the light of modern circumstances, as they are unlikely to vote away their rights by supporting extremists.
But in Malaysia, it is the scholars who command the respect of the Muslim masses from both sides of the Umno-PAS political divide.
Muslims who support the views of Sisters mostly prefer to nod their approval well in the background for fear of attracting harsh stares.
'They are not well versed in the religion but take the bits and pieces that they like,' said a retired Mufti, the top government-appointed ulama in a state.
'That's why their views are not acceptable.' He was referring to the Sisters.
In February, seven groups led by the Ulama Association of Malaysia wrote to the Council of Rulers, the official guardians of the religion, to ask them to take action against Ms Zainah and five other individuals for allegedly insulting Islam.
Ms Zainah had written in a Malay newspaper that the interpretation of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, is not the sole domain of the ulama.
The fact that she does not wear the tudung, know Arabic or have at least some Islamic qualifications is sometimes used to say she is not qualified to talk about religion.
She lived in the United States for five years, earning Master's degrees in journalism and international affairs at Tufts University's Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
She is one of the commissioners of the government-appointed Malaysian Human Rights Commission.
But calling her group 'moderate' or 'progressive' would be the kiss of death, as such labels are often associated by Islamists here with Westernised Muslims and those who have 'sold out'.
'We do not consider Sisters a 'moderate' group because it implies they have compromised their beliefs,' said Ms Ivy Josiah, the executive director of Women's Aid Organisation.
'We think they are sincere in looking at the spirit of Islam that is just, peaceful and which renders rights to women.'
Controversy is not the group's sole road to fame. Sisters won accolades for helping women through messy divorces through the Syariah (Islamic) courts and sexual-abuse cases.
'We appreciate their fight to raise women's rights. But I feel they don't have religious grounding and tend to speak without basing issues on the path laid by past scholars,' said Islamic scholar Puan Seri Sohair Abdal Moneim.
Ms Zainah's reply: 'The fact that we don't wear tudung or speak Arabic has been used as excuses to say we are Westernised and elite. To me these are just strategies used by my detractors.' |
