31 May 2010, NewAgeIslam.Com
Child Brides Escape Marriage, but Not Lashes
Indonesian
ethnic dresses showcased
TV Soap Dramatizes Islam's Cultural Clashes
Two Female Priests Buried as Church
Outsiders
Women worry Afghan peace jirga will harm
rights
Al-Jazeera anchors quit in clothing spat:
Reports
Freedom fighter’s daughter acid burnt
Six-month-old girl married off in Swara
incident
Woman gunned down at her house by
‘brother-in-law’
Woman seeks NSHR help to reunite with
husband
Businesswoman calls for more Saudis in jobs
Saudi women step forward smartly
Sex and the Sharia
If I were a woman, would have ‘reveiled’ a
little
Indonesia bans ‘tight pants’ according to ‘Sharia
Law’
Islam grants women due status: CII chief
Photo: Sumbol, 17, a Pashtun girl who was
kidnapped
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Child Brides Escape Marriage, but Not
Lashes
By ROD NORDLAND and ALISSA J. RUBIN
May 31, 2010
KABUL, Afghanistan — The two Afghan girls had every reason to expect
the law would be on their side when a policeman at a checkpoint stopped the bus
they were in. Disguised in boys’ clothes, the girls, ages 13 and 14, had been
fleeing for two days along rutted roads and over mountain passes to escape their
illegal, forced marriages to much older men, and now they had made it to
relatively liberal Herat Province.
Instead, the police officer spotted them as girls, ignored their
pleas and promptly sent them back to their remote village in Ghor Province.
There they were publicly and viciously flogged for daring to run away from their
husbands.
Their tormentors, who videotaped the abuse, were not the Taliban, but
local mullahs and the former warlord, now a pro-government figure who largely
rules the district where the girls live.
Neither girl flinched visibly at the beatings, and afterward both
walked away with their heads unbowed. Sympathizers of the victims smuggled out
two video recordings of the floggings to the Afghanistan Independent Human
Rights Commission, which released them on Saturday after unsuccessfully lobbying
for government action.
The ordeal of Afghanistan’s child brides illustrates an uncomfortable
truth. What in most countries would be considered a criminal offense is in many
parts of Afghanistan a cultural norm, one which the government has been either
unable or unwilling to challenge effectively.
According to a Unicef study, from 2000 to 2008, the brides in 43
percent of Afghan marriages were under 18. Although the Afghan Constitution
forbids the marriage of girls under the age of 16, tribal customs often condone
marriage once puberty is reached, or even earlier.
Flogging is also illegal.
The case of Khadija Rasoul, 13, and Basgol Sakhi, 14, from the
village of Gardan-i-Top, in the Dulina district of Ghor Province, central
Afghanistan, was notable for the failure of the authorities to do anything to
protect the girls, despite opportunities to do so.
Forced into a so-called marriage exchange, where each girl was given
to an elderly man in the other’s family, Khadija and Basgol later complained
that their husbands beat them when they tried to resist consummating the unions.
Dressed as boys, they escaped and got as far as western Herat Province, where
their bus was stopped at a checkpoint and they were
arrested.
Although Herat has shelters for battered and runaway women and girls,
the police instead contacted the former warlord, Fazil Ahad Khan, whom Human
Rights Commission workers describe as the self-appointed commander and morals
enforcer in his district in Ghor Province, and returned the girls to his
custody.
After a kangaroo trial by Mr. Khan and local religious leaders,
according to the commission’s report on the episode, the girls were sentenced to
40 lashes each and flogged on Jan. 12.
In the video, the mullah, under Mr. Khan’s approving eye, administers
the punishment with a leather strap, which he appears to wield with as much
force as possible, striking each girl in turn on her legs and buttocks with a
loud crack each time. Their heavy red winter chadors are pulled over their heads
so only their skirts protect them from the blows.
The spectators are mostly armed men wearing camouflage uniforms, and
at least three of them openly videotape the floggings. No women are
present.
The mullah, whose name is not known, strikes the girls so hard that
at one point he appears to have hurt his wrist and hands the strap to another
man.
“Hold still,” the mullah admonishes the victims, who stand straight
throughout. One of them can be seen in tears when her face is briefly exposed to
view, but they remain silent.
When the second girl is flogged, an elderly man fills in for the
mullah, but his blows appear less forceful and the mullah soon takes the strap
back.
The spectators count the lashes out loud but several times seem to
lose count and have to start over, or possibly they cannot count very
high.
“Good job, mullah sir,” one of the men says as Mr. Khan leads them in
prayer afterward.
“I was shocked when I watched the video,” said Mohammed Munir Khashi,
an investigator with the commission. “I thought in the 21st century such a
criminal incident could not happen in our country. It’s inhuman, anti-Islam and
illegal.”
Fawzia Kofi, a prominent female member of Parliament, said the case
may be shocking but is far from the only one. “I’m sure there are worse cases we
don’t even know about,” she said. “Early marriage and forced marriage are the
two most common forms of violent behavior against women and
girls.”
The Human Rights Commission took the videotapes and the results of
its investigation to the governor of Ghor Province, Sayed Iqbal Munib, who
formed a commission to investigate it but took no action, saying the district
was too insecure to send police there. A coalition of civic groups in the
province called for his dismissal over the matter.
Nor has Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry replied to demands from the
commission to take action in the case, according to the commission’s chairwoman,
Sima Samar. A spokesman for the ministry did not respond to requests for
comment.
Forced marriage of Afghan girls is not limited to remote rural areas.
In Herat city, a Unicef-financed women’s shelter run by an Afghan group, the
Voice of Women Organization, shelters as many as 60 girls who have fled child
marriages.
A group called Women for Afghan Women runs shelters in the capital,
Kabul, as well as in nearby Kapisa Province and in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif,
all relatively liberal areas as Afghanistan goes, which have taken in 108
escaped child brides just since January, according to Executive Director Manizha
Naderi.
Poverty is the motivation for many child marriages, either because a
wealthy husband pays a large bride-price, or just because the father of the
bride then has one less child to support. “Most of the time they are sold,” Ms.
Naderi said. “And most of the time it’s a case where the husband is much, much
older.”
She said it was also common practice among police officers who
apprehend runaway child brides to return them to their families. “Most police
don’t understand what’s in the law, or they’re just against it,” she
said.
On Saturday, at the Women for Afghan Women shelter, at a secret
location in Kabul, there were four fugitive child brides. All had been beaten,
and most wept as they recounted their experiences.
Sakhina, a 15-year-old Hazara girl from Bamian, was sold into
marriage to pay off her father’s debts when she was 12 or
13.
Her husband’s family used her as a domestic servant. “Every time they
could, they found an excuse to beat me,” she said. “My brother-in-law, my
sister-in-law, my husband, all of them beat me.”
Sumbol, 17, a Pashtun girl, said she was kidnapped and taken to
Jalalabad, then given a choice: marry her tormentor, or become a suicide bomber.
“He said, ‘If you don’t marry me I will put a bomb on your body and send you to
the police station,’ ” Sumbol said.
Roshana, a Tajik who is now 18, does not even know why her family
gave her in marriage to an older man in Parwan when she was 14. The beatings
were bad enough, but finally, she said, her husband tried to feed her rat
poison.
In some ways, the two girls from Ghor were among the luckier child
brides. After the floggings, the mullah declared them divorced and returned them
to their own families.
Two years earlier, in nearby Murhab district, two girls who had been
sold into marriage to the same family fled after being abused, according to a
report by the Human Rights Commission. But they lost their way, were captured
and forcibly returned. Their fathers — one the village mullah — took them up the
mountain and killed them.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/31/world/asia/31flogging.html
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Indonesian ethnic dresses showcased
May 31, 2010
ISLAMABAD: The French Speaking Group (FSG) of Islamabad showcased the
ethnic dresses of Indonesia during its monthly meeting held at the home of Katie
Simon, wife of Dominique Simon, the Counsellor for Economic and Commercial
Affairs, Embassy of France, who offered her hospitality for the
occasion.
Indonesia is known for its cultural diversity. Many islands that
constitute the country have different ethnic costumes, all of them bright;
colourful and wonderfully put together, with matching jewellery. Though all of
them could be not shown at the meeting, eight very glamorous ones were chosen
and displayed by models, not only from the French community but also from other
countries.
Katie said a few words about the show and the dresses, while another
FSG member Dominique Stemmelen announced each model and the region of the dress.
Besides the main outfit, which comprises a skirt, a top and a scarf, the
headdress is also part of some of the costumes and these are either simple or
imposing. One of the dresses reminded that of the native Indians of the US wear,
a beaded band with two feathers, ones with ‘veils’ of beads, flowers and other
embellishments, but the most glamorous one was the gold headdress worn for a
wedding.
There was a prolonged photo-shoot as all the invitees wanted to have
a picture with the models. Refreshments were also served to guests and it was
more of a lunch menu than snacks. The guests enjoyed this special meal of
Indonesian specialties.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\05\31\story_31-5-2010_pg11_3
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TV Soap Dramatizes Islam's Cultural Clashes
By Rima Abdelkader
31 May 2010
"El Clon" is a tele-drama about a young woman's effort to span her
cultural and personal identities across modern and traditional Muslim societies.
One New York fan says it offers great fodder for cross-cultural
exchange.
NEW YORK (WOMENSENEWS)--Most weeknights, 21-year-old college senior
Alia Dahhan has rushed home to tune in to "El Clon" to watch her favorite
character Jade on the Spanish-speaking network Telemundo.
"As a Muslim woman, I feel it is almost a duty to watch the show, not
only for entertainment purposes but to be able to discuss my opinions with other
non-Muslim and non-Arab viewers of the show," said Dahhan, who attends Pace
University's Lubin School of Business in New York and is president of the Muslim
Student Association at the university.
She's been able to tune in to the show recently since Telemundo began
airing the program in New York in Spanish. Dahhan said her Mexican mother and
her father, who is of Syrian and Egyptian descent, both enjoy the
show.
"It is especially interesting for me to see how the Mexican side of
my family is quite captivated by the story. The Arab side of my family does not
follow the story but this is most likely because of the language barrier--the
show is in Spanish," she said.
Telemundo, owned by NBC Universal, provides English subtitles for
every weeknight show for English-speaking audiences to
follow.
"It's extraordinary to encounter an audience of multiple
nationalities who follow our telenovelas by English subtitles," said Roberto
Stopello, one of the show's writers, in an email
interview.
"I remember last year the subtitles were eliminated and there were
numerous calls, letters, emails and communications from the general public," he
added. "That became overwhelming, requesting us to go back and subtitle the
novellas, and that is what we did."
Shandra Anaid, 35, a cardio belly dance instructor and performer in
Connecticut, is also a fan of the show. "The most enjoyable for me is the belly
dance scenes," she said.
The show is called "El Clon" because the death of a central character
raises the possibility of an effort to bring him back from death through
cloning.
But the plot mainly belongs to Jade, a young Muslim woman caught in a
forbidden love with Lucas, a non-Muslim man.
Juxtaposition of Different Worlds
Jade started her life in Miami, but after her mother's death was sent
to live with her uncle in Morocco.
The two worlds offer chances to juxtapose different worlds and
contrasting stereotypes about women, with scenes of Muslim women seductively
belly dancing for their husbands jostling against bikini-clad women on Miami
beaches.
The 150-episode, one-hour drama also treats such controversial
matters as irreverent attitudes towards Islam, alcoholism and
machismo.
Cross-cultural attitudes towards virginity come up on Jade's wedding
night, when her conservative family stands outside the bedroom door waiting for
the newlyweds to produce a bloody sheet that proves her virginity. Her husband
knows she is not a virgin and cuts his hand and uses his own blood to protect
her.
"I believe the story introduces people to a world they do not
understand or are downright afraid to," Dahhan said in an e-mail interview. "It
allows viewers of different cultures to understand from a number of Muslim
women's perspectives."
Mexican actress Sandra Echeverria plays the part of
Jade.
"I hadn't seen a project where you can see more of the Muslim culture
than this one," Escheverria told Women's eNews in an e-mail. "To play a Muslim
girl and learn about the culture and this other world is completely fascinating
for me."
Upholding Devotion to Islam
Tio Ali, or Uncle Ali, a devout Muslim and a part of the religious
elite in Morocco, requires that Jade follow the culture of Morocco and religion
of Islam.
Dahhan said she deeply admires Uncle Tio. "Tio Ali is tested
throughout the story in defending Jade and upholding his devotion to God and
Islam at times of conflict," she said.
"We are making a very modern treatment of the Muslim issue and
showing the world that what makes us different is our religious beliefs," "El
Clon" writer Stopello told Women's eNews. "Other than that, we are all the
same."
"El Clon" was launched in Portuguese in 2001 as "O Clone" for the
Portuguese and Brazilian viewers and later dubbed into Spanish for the U.S.
Hispanic audience on Telemundo. Soon afterwards, it was dubbed into several
languages and aired in over 90 countries.
The Spanish-language remake that Dahhan watches is co-produced by TV
Globo and Telemundo International and has been exported to 13 countries in Latin
America, according to press accounts. Globo TV International is said by press
reports to be looking next for airtime in Europe, Africa and the Middle
East.
http://womensenews.org/story/cultural-trendspopular-culture/100524/tv-soap-dramatizes-islams-cultural-clashes
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Two Female Priests Buried as Church Outsiders
By Claire Bushey
31 May 2010
Female Catholic priests, deemed excommunicate by Rome, buried two of
their own this month, neither one in a Catholic cemetery. "They threw us away,"
says a surviving member of Roman Catholic Womenpriests, which marked its first
deaths.
CHICAGO (WOMENSENEWS)--Two funerals this month find women ordained as
Catholic priests buried outside the church they were striving to change from
within.
Mary Styne, 70, of Milwaukee, died May 12. She was ordained in 2009
by Roman Catholic Womenpriests, an organization that has been ordaining women to
the priesthood in contravention of church law since 2002.
Janine Denomme, 45, of Chicago, died May 17, just weeks after her
ordination by the same group; her funeral was May 22.
Full report at:
http://womensenews.org/story/religion/100528/two-female-priests-buried-church-outsiders
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Women worry Afghan peace jirga will harm rights
By Golnar Motevalli
May 31, 2010
Afghan women say their position in society and in politics is still
very fragile and the small advances that have been made in recent years can be
easily reversed
As Afghanistan’s most powerful men arrive in Kabul for a major
conference aimed at starting a peace process with the Taliban, many women are
worried the event could lead to a compromise of their hard-won
rights.
Afghanistan is holding a peace jirga or an assembly of powerful
leaders, tribal elders and representatives of civil society to consider plans to
open talks with Taliban leaders in an effort to end the nine-year conflict.
A possible return of the Taliban has touched off concern about the
fate of women who were banned from schools, the work place and public life
during the Taliban rule from 1996 to 2001. “I would not expect the peace jirga
to do anything good for women. My hope is that it will recognise their presence
and protect their rights equally to men, as presented in the constitution,” said
Orzala Ashraf Nemat, a leading women’s rights activist in
Kabul.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\05\31\story_31-5-2010_pg20_7
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Al-Jazeera anchors quit in clothing spat:
Reports
May31, 2010
Five female news presenters at the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera satellite
television channel have resigned over conflicts with management over dress code
and other issues, a journalist there said on Sunday.
“This collective resignation is not motivated just by the growing
pressure on the presenters concerning their dress code, which was evoked by the
media,” said the journalist, who asked not to be
identified.
“The conflicts run much deeper,” the journalist added. The news
presenters who have reportedly quit are Jumana Namur, Lina Zahreddin, Lona
al-Shibel, Julnar Mussa and Nofar Afli.
The Al-Hayat daily reported today that they had resigned in the past
few days after petitioning management in January over repeated criticism from a
top company official for allegedly not being conservative enough in their dress.
Management of the Doha-based channel told AFP it would issue a response later.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/259325/Al-Jazeera-anchors-quit-in-clothing-spat-Reports.html
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Freedom fighter’s daughter acid burnt
May 31, 2010
Rozina Begum, a 20-year-old woman, was seriously injured with acid in
a frenzied attack by her husband following a dowry-related case in a village of
Badarganj upazilla on Saturday night, said the police and hospital
sources.
Rozina, daughter of freedom fighter Azgar Ali of Amrulbari Asmotpara
village, was undergoing treatment at Rangpur Medical College
Hospital.
The police said Rozina came under attack on Saturday night when she
came out of her father’s house responding to the nature’s call. Rozina’s
estranged husband Nazmul Haque, lying there in wait for her, threw acid on her
and disappeared immediately, the police added.
Full report at:
http://www.newagebd.com/2010/may/31/nat.html
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Six-month-old girl married off in Swara
incident
By Shoukat Iqbal Khattak
May 31, 2010
A “kidnapping” and subsequent love marriage with a girl by a married
man has resulted in a Jirga ordering the marriage of his six-month-old daughter
to the brother of the “kidnapped” girl.
According to sources, Alamzeb, “abducted” the daughter of his
neighbour, Naseer, from the Reri Goth area in Karachi two months ago.
The sources said that Naseer’s daughter had actually eloped with
Alamzeb as they loved each other, but the case was taken as a matter of honour
by the family members of the eloped girl, who had started pressuring the family
of the accused, inlcuding threats.
The sources said that Alamzeb, who has three children, hailed from
the Hazara region, while the girl belonged to Charsadda in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
Full report at:
http://thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=242168
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Woman gunned down at her house by
‘brother-in-law’
May 31, 2010
KARACHI: A woman was killed by firing at her house in Orangi Sector
41/2 in Mominabad police precincts on Sunday.
According to police, two suspects shot the victim Karam Jahan, 40,
wife of Mustahim Khan in Bismillah Colony near Jumma Hotel and fled the
scene.
The victim sustained bullet injuries and was shifted to the Abbasi
Shaheed Hospital where she succumbed to injuries.
Officials said the incident occurred over some old personal enmity,
adding that she was a housewife and mother of two who belonged to Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa.
However, the police have detained her husband for
investigation.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\05\31\story_31-5-2010_pg12_1
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Woman seeks NSHR help to reunite with husband
By MD HUMAIDAN
May 31, 2010
JEDDAH: The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) is considering
ways to help a Saudi mother of six whose Yemeni husband was deported to
Yemen.
The NSHR is pursuing all available options, including resorting to
intermediaries or making an exception and allow the woman’s husband who was in
the Kingdom illegally to return, said a source at the
society.
Huda married the man in Yemen some years ago after she went to live
there with her Yemeni mother after her Saudi father divorced her. Huda has six
children, the eldest of whom is 14.
“Six years ago I decided to return to the Kingdom. My husband also
came with me but he entered the Kingdom illegally. He was, however, caught 18
months ago and then deported. He then managed to sneak back in, but was then
caught again,” said Huda.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article59381.ece
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Businesswoman calls for more Saudis in jobs
By WALAA HAWARI
May 31, 2010
RIYADH: Young Saudi businesswoman Sara Al-Asheikh sponsored on
Saturday the 2nd Recruitment Forum at King Saud University's women section in
Riyadh.
She expressed her astonishment at the weak Saudi-recruitment efforts
of private sector companies and their dependence on foreign
professionals.
The event was organized by the Recruiting and Training Unit at King
Saud University.
"Saudi women are receiving support from the Custodian of the Two Holy
Mosques King Abdullah to compete in all possible and available fields of work,"
said Al-Asheikh.
"The forum aims at guiding young female graduates by arming them with
necessary tools and skills to obtain better job opportunities and pave the way
for them to better communicate with establishments, companies and ministries of
concern."
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article59383.ece
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Saudi women step forward smartly Jafar Alshayeb
31 May 2010
After years of stymied efforts, reform in Saudi Arabia is focused on
women’s rights. A recent survey by the Researchers Center for Women’s Studies in
Riyadh examining Saudi newspapers and websites showed that from mid-January to
mid-February 2010 some 40 per cent of articles in print media and 58 per cent of
articles on websites addressed women’s issues.
Empowering women has become a priority for local activists and
various initiatives are springing up to secure basic women’s rights. The most
recent and ambitious of these efforts is a national campaign, driven by local
actors, calling for women’s participation in municipal elections scheduled for
autumn 2011.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/opinion/2010/May/opinion_May185.xml§ion=opinion&col=
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Sex and the Sharia
Kyle Smith
31 May 2010
The shabbiest, smirkiest, most unbearable moment of "Sex and the City
2" arrives when the girls sing "I Am Woman" on a karaoke stage in Abu Dhabi ' a
country still run under Islamic Sharia law that officially subjugates women. The
"Sex" soft pedal is only part of a disturbing turning point in how the United
States sees Sharia. Last month, the American Academy of Pediatrics, in the name
of cultural diversity, condoned the deliberate harming of the genitals of baby
girls. Genital mutilation was wrong, it said, but a "ritual nick" is OK. And the
plan to build a
http://www.newmediablog.com/2010/05/sex-and-the-sharia/
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If I were a woman, would have ‘reveiled’ a
little
May 31, 2010
What if I were a Muslim woman 36 years old? If I was good-looking and
educated, yet contemporary enough to hold that what lies inside my head counts
more than what covers it?
Would I allow men to drink in the beauty of my locks, beautiful and
bouncy? (Everything else is unwanted hair — to be lopped off like weeds among
the grass.)
Today, the veil appears to be a purely Islamic construct, standing
for modesty. Veiling, a sharply polarising issue, stands at the very heart of
the conflict between Islam and modernity. For me, it is as much the locus of
tension between Muslim women and Islam. Take it from a
woman.
Full report at:
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Indonesia bans ‘tight pants’ according to ‘Sharia
Law’
Aishwarya Bhatt
May 31, 2010
Meulaboh, May 30 (THAINDIAN NEWS) Authorities in Indonesia have
banned ‘tight pants’. They also went ahead and also distributed a whooping
20,000 units of long skirts amongst the inhabitants of the Indonesia’s Aceh
region. The authorities also imposed a ban on the shops and barred them from
selling tight dresses. They have even enforced a regulation that doesn’t allow
Muslim women from wearing any sort of short clothes or tight clothes as well.
The ban came into effect from Thursday, and already the Indonesian authorities
are doing their very best to enforce it strictly.
Full report at:
http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/they-call-me-muslim/2010/05/30/if-i-were-a-woman-would-have-%E2%80%98reveiled%E2%80%99-a-little/
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Islam grants women due status: CII chief
May 31, 2010
ISLAMABAD: When all other religions of the world deemed woman source
of evil, it was Islam, which bestowed upon her rights that she deserved, Council
of Islamic Ideology (CII) Chairman Dr Muhammad Khalid Masud said on
Tuesday.
Addressing a seminar on ‘Women and Islam’, organised by Quaid-i-Azam
University’s (QAU) Center Of Excellence In Gender Studies, he said that in olden
days women were treated like slaves or property of men, but Islam gave them
dignity and respect.
He said that Islam considered both men and women as equals and it
opposed any kind of gender discrimination.
Masud said unlike other religions, Islam provides all rights to women
including right to seek knowledge and education, right to own property and right
to work and run businesses within the limits prescribed by Allah (The
Almighty).
He said there were many examples of female literary figures who
contributed to Arabic literature, while in modern times we can also find Muslim
women making waves in various fields of life.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\05\26\story_26-5-2010_pg11_7
9:41 PM
Sultan Shahin
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