Islamic Fundamentalism and the Subjugation of Women
On September 27th, 1996, the extremist militia, the Taliban, seized control of the capital city of Afghanistan, Kabul. Up until that day, women and girls in Afghanistan could go to school, work, and walk freely. Then the Taliban issued decrees banning woman and girls from receiving education, entering the workforce or leaving their homes without a close male relative as an escort, wearing a burqa. The Taliban violently plunged the occupied territories of Afghanistan into a brutal state of gender apartheid in which women and girls have been stripped of their basic human rights. The Taliban claims religious reasoning behind this gender apartheid, using the Muslim faith as their backing, though many critics denounce this logic, saying that The Qur'an condones no such thing. Woman in Afghanistan have become but a shadow of real people. Not only can they no longer enter the workforce or attend school, they cannot choose what they wish to wear, or call to friends in public for fear of being beaten, stoned or killed. The female sex has truly been enslaved by the Taliban, however what rarely comes to light, is that males in Afghanistan have also had strictures of dress and conduct imposed on them. These conditions have roused quite a varied response from the Western World. Western-born Muslims who practice Islam identify with some of the Taliban's strictures, even wearing the burqa or hajib in Canada. Others who do not know the Muslim faith, are outraged that woman can be subjugated so completely and that the rest of the world can sit back and watch it happen complacently. Human rights atrocities are committed towards women everyday by the Taliban in the name of their religio...
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Rumors spread to Najmah that “woman wearing henna on their fingertips had their fingers chopped off”(Staples 12). When Najmah heard the clink of bangles under a woman’s burqa and the click of her heels on the pavement, the sound created an unsettling sensation within her. Suddenly, Najmah recalled how the “Taliban would whip women whose shoes made a sound on paving stones (Staples 180).” She wanted to warn the woman, for her mother had told her that “women risk their lives by hiding their jewelry” (Staples 180). As for Nusrat, notwithstanding the fact that she just moved to Pakistan not long ago, she was extremely vigilant and prudent when the Taliban was around. One time, a servant of Nusrat’s disappeared. Nusrat sent someone to search for her and discovered that “she had been badly beaten and was held without charges” (Staples 99). From this incident, the unfair treatment towards women helped Nusrat to learn more about the Taliban’s rules in Pakistan. Given the facts above, it is very apparent that Taliban’s cruelty toward women is depicted precisely and vividly through the different stories of two
The women in Afghanistan during this time period, were shielded from the outside world, and the outside world was shielded from them. Women became nobody’s and their life was unimportant. Burqas kept the women from being who they were, and being more than just a wife. They were not known or judged for the women they used to be, but for the wives they had become. Whether they could cook well, keep a house clean, or even bear children (particularly boys), it never mattered. What mattered was that they obeyed their husbands and the rules of the Taliban. “You will not, under any circumstance, show your face. You will cover with a burqa when outside, If you do not, you will be severely beaten.” (pg. 278). Before the Taliban forced women to wear burqas, women were already being diminished. Women were raped, beaten and even killed just by walking outside their house. That doesn’t even start to describe what happened behind closed doors. Women were already losing their rights, but burqas took away who they were. Burqas affected Mariam and Laila in a big way. Mariam was barely a teenager when she married Rasheed, and had grown up with a strong, independent, man-hating mother. Mariam was never taught that she
It is difficult to realize the harsh standards and obligations imposed upon women of different cultures. It is especially disappointing to note that women whom may seek to relieve themselves of such discriminatory practices, face little to no government support in terms of fighting inequality. Such as distinguished in text The War Against Feminism, women of Algeria must fight against patriarchal and incredibly sexist political movements, such as the “Islamic Salvation Front,” which although was banned, had won an election and the promotion of their platform’s ideas despite their notions consisting of extreme patriarchal views and their actual assassinations of individuals not compliant with their beliefs. I also strongly agreed with the United Nations decision to aid individuals from fear of the Taliban, in their stating of refusing to continue aid to Afghanistan if intense cruel practices were to continue. The interference of other government agencies in helping to promote the end of cruelty, such as was occurring by the Taliban, act as great movement of defiance against
In 1997, the Taliban made a law banning girls from ages 8 and up from going to school and forced all girl’s learning facilities to be shut down, according to Explora. Some girls still tried to go to school regardless of the Taliban and one of those girls is Malala Yousafzai. Her family did not hide their feelings toward the ban of girls in school to the public, when Malala was twelve she began blogging for the British Broadcasting Corporation about what life was like under the Taliban rule anonymously, and she also campaigned publicly for girls education rights, this enraged the Taliban. As a result, On October 9, 2012 when Malala was riding home from school, her bus was stopped by 2 Taliban members and they fired 3 shots at Malala, thankfully none of them killed her but she was seriously injured by this, as declared by NobelPrize.com. Furthermore, this is not the only harsh rule of the Taliban to women. Women were forced to wear a head-to-toe covering known as a burka, they were not allowed to leave the house without a male, and they made it a rule to publicly stone women who were convicted of adultery, as stated in The Other Side of the Sky, by Farah Ahmedi. Arguably, you can see their was a definite bias in sexes in the Taliban that is very unfair to women
The Islamic Revolution of 1979 placed an ideological wedge that created an increasingly pervasive rift in gender equality that is now only gradually being successfully challenged and correct upon.
The Taliban also require all women to wear a chadri (a veil that covers the woman's head, face, shoulders, and arms). In addition to veiling, which Lerner's book talks about, it is mandatory that women are accompanied by a man at all times when they are out in public. Also, women cannot wear brightly colored clothing or make-up under their chadri. In further attempt to keep women out of the public eye it is forbidden that women work. This is almost like what Mintz talks about in her book where in the 1950's women are not supposed to hold jobs or get a college education. In the 1950's it is for more of a social reason rather than law, but the same idea applies. Men frown upon the thought that their wives are more educated than them or that their wives have a job. Women are supposed to stay home and keep house.
One of the main controversies in this book is the plight of women and men’s struggles. Although both experienced different kinds of inequalities, women were the target of the Taliban. In 1978, women in Kabul were demanding their rights during the Afghan Women’s Year. The president who was in charge then was president Daoud, and he decreed, “The Afghan woman has the same right as the Afghan man to exercise personal freedom, choose a career, and fins a partner in marriage” (53). This decree was absolutely invalid when the Taliban expelled a humanitarian organization that was run by women, and because of that, the Taliban took over Kabul. Women were not allowed to work outside of home. Because of that, Latifa mentions that women in Kabul usually just bake bread, do embroidery,
Governments often claim that they are helping women gain equality when they invade and impress their values on other cultures. In “Feminism as Imperialism”, Katharine Viner states that “Bush cut off funding to international family planning organizations [and then claimed he] bombed Afghanistan to liberate the women from the burkas” (1). However, the problem with wars claiming to “save” women is that the majority of the time women are just becoming victims of western misogyny as opposed to eastern misogyny (Viner, 2). Just because some women choose to wear head coverings doesn’t make them repressed, “liberation for [Afghani women] does not encompass destroying their identity, religion, or culture and many of them want to retain the veil” (Viner, 2). Therefore, using women to justify war is counterproductive because it still represses women and ignores what the women actually
Hazaras tend to be on the bottom of what we would call the Afghanistan “food chain”. This means that these certain people are not well respected or liked in Afghan society. Most Hazaras like to live in Hazarajat and Hazaristan where they will be more respected than their relations from Afghanistan. Hazaras are said to come from many different backgrounds but the one that makes the most sense is they tend to be “direct descendents of Mongolian soldiers that previously came to Afghanistan with Genghis Khan’s expeditionist army” (Emadi Par. 3) This particular theory is always under critics thought, but most support this theory. However, some think that the Hazaras are half Mongolian and Half Turk. The religion of the Hazaras are scattered depending on where you find the tribe. Most are apt to be Shiite, but some are known to be Sunni Muslims. The population of this ethnic group is 6-7 million. Even though Hazaras are low in the social scale of Afghan society, they can hold quite respected positions in their tribes. The H...
The Taliban are still in power in many parts of the country, denying people the rights they deserve, and committing crimes against humanity. Women’s rights are nowhere near where they should be, they are treated like property, because that is how the culture sees women, there is violent acts committed on girls when they try to stand up for themselves, and people don't speak up against this ugly truth, nearly as much as they should as fellow human beings.
Islam has influenced many cultures around the world. For centuries, Islam has had an immense influence on the Afghan culture. According to this religion, women have no rights. The men took advantage of this system by translating only what they wanted from the Koran; to enslave the women in our culture for their own desires. From the beginning, the women on no account had any civil rights or have power over their own lives, and most were uneducated and had accepted what their teachers taught in schools and mosques. My family moved to the US when the Russians invaded Afghanistan. I thank god to be one of the lucky women who did not have to live in Afghanistan and for giving me a better place to live in America. Unfortunately, this was not the case for the majority of the Afghan women. Under the cruel Taliban government the women were banned to work, and were not allowed outside their homes without being escorted by a man. The film Osama, inspired by a true story, is about Osama, a young girl who did lived in Kabul while the Taliban regime. Through Osama's story, I had a chance to see what it was like to live in Afghanistan as a woman. This is a story of a girl whose faith was in the hands of many different people: her family, the Taliban soldiers, and the city judge. Osama and I have different lives on different continents; however, we both could have had more rights and better life if we were born men.
Brown, A. Widney., and LaShawn R. Jefferson. "VI. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES." Afghanistan, Humanity Denied: Systematic Denial of Women's Rights in Afghanistan. New York, NY.: Human Rights Watch, 2001. 16+. Print
Lila Abu-Lughod’s article titled, “Do Muslim Women Really Need Saving?” takes a closer look at the problematic ethnocentric approach many have when trying to gain an understanding of another culture that may be foreign to that individual. In this analytical paper, Lughod looks at women in Islam, specifically the treatment of women and how it might be utilized as a justification for invading into a country and liberating its people. The country Lughod refers to in her article is Afghanistan, and Lughod points out the misunderstanding from the people to the Bush administration like First Lady Laura Bush who believed that intervention was necessary to free women from the captivity of their own homes. It is important to consider the role that different lenses play into all of this, especially when one’s lenses are being shaped by the media. Depictions of covered women secluded from society leave a permanent image in the minds of many, who would then later support the idea of liberation. This paper will discuss that the practice of using propaganda when referring to the lifestyle in the Middle East is not exclusive to the U.S; rather it has been utilized throughout history. Additionally, we will take a closer look on the importance of symbols, such as veils in this case; help to further emphasize the cause to liberate. Finally, we will analyze Lughod’s plea towards cultural relativism and away from liberal imperialism.
...So their Lord accepted their prayers, (saying): I will not suffer to be lost the work of any of you whether male or female. You proceed one from another ...(Qur'an 3: 195).
Women who have the misfortune of living in predominately Muslim societies often are confronted with adversities concerning their rights in marriage, divorce, education, and seclusion. Consequently, many Westerners seeing a lack of equality towards women in these societies consider it as a confirmation of their own misconceptions about Islam itself. Islam is often rejected as being an intolerant and violent religion that discriminates against and subjugates women, treating them as second-class citizens. From a Muslim’s perspective, Islam’s stance on women can be approached by two opposing views. Scholars amongst the Muslim apologists have claimed, “The verses in the Qur’an represented Muhammad's intention to improve a debased condition of women that prevailed during the Jahiliya, the time of ignorance before Islam came into being.” (Doumato, 177) If inequalities still exist between men and women, they cannot be attributed to Islam, but are a result of the misinterpretation of Islam’s true meaning. Others have entirely denied the notion of inequality between men and women in Islam, claiming that the alleged inequalities “are merely perceived as such by foreign observers who confuse seclusion and sex difference with inequality.” (Ibid.) Many Muslim apologists defend the Koran as noble for the very fact that it raises women to an equal status of men despite their inferiority.