THE SILENT GENOCIDE

THE SILENT GENOCIDE.

By- Fatemolla

Riddle (1) :- Where "Divorce" occurs before "Marriage"?
Answer :- In English dictionary, and right here, in my article.

Blame me for putting the cart before the horse. I am going to examine not all systems of divorce of Islam, but some of their basic characteristics, and the marriage-system latter. Purpose? Simple. Islami divorce systems are extremely cruel and inhuman towards Muslim women. The root cause is: Islam gave all men a deadly weapon of divorcing their wives at will, without ensuring the morality of men. And, we better imagine what "divorce" practically, financially, socially, etc. means to a women.

OK, having said that let us get into the business. The very basic relationship between man/woman in Islam widely practiced and strongly/clearly defined is: -

Men are guaranteed a higher degree of right over women. (2:228).

Men have authority over women on account of God given qualities with which he is to excel over her (4:34).

Women are deficit in many ways. (Sahi Bokhari, many Hadises).

In each and every Islamic law, this male right/authority/superiority is rigidly maintained and never bypassed. All of us know the infamous Islamic divorce-systems of tin-talaq. Here in this sketchy article, let us see how far Islam allows men to go regarding women, aided by the strength of divine authority. A Muslim-man has the absolute authority to divorce his wife/all 4 wives :-

Anytime. Because the tie of marriage in his right ( Sura 2:237).

He may not show any cause to anybody including all the Maolanas or all the Islami Organizations of the world.

Nobody, including all the Maolanas and all the Islami Organizations of the world, can claim/demand to know the reason or the excuse of divorce.

No court, no witness, no document, not even the presence of the wife is necessary for such a grave decision about her life. (According to Sharia).

Nobody has the right to stop him.

If utterance is not possible, a sign language is good enough. (according to Sharia, in conflict with a hadis of Sahi Bokhari).

If the husband is not "Baaleg" (adult), his parents are good enough to throw the wife by divorce. (Sharia).

There is a scope of a middle-man for an effort to reconcile the husband-wife during the "waiting" period after the first and second utterance of Talaq, but it ultimately/necessarily depends on the sweet will of the husband. Practically, not too many husbands are sweet.

Even if in the Qur'aan there are clear instructions (a) of some "waiting time" ( Iddat), and (b) to utter the word "Talaq" with a time gap, many a times it is easily bypassed and the divorce is completed in uttering Tin-Talaq at one time. How? Please read on......

When a Sahabi uttered three "Talaqs" at the same time, the Prophet (SA) became extremely angry and said "You started playing with the Qur'aan while I am still alive!". ( Nasai - Ref- 1. page-127, Ref-6. page 51). Also when Abu Yazid uttered three Talaqs at the same time and became sad, the Prophet (SA) said " All three counts as only one. If you want, you can revoke it". (Fathul Bari 9/275, Ref-5-page- 109 ). But our village-Maolanas impose Talaq with three utterances with or without the intervals. Because as Khalifa Hazrat Omar (RA) validated this type of Talaq effective for dissolving the marriage instantaneously. But "It is a matter of Islamic historical record that when any such person was brought before Omar for having uttered the word "Talaq" three times in one occasion, he held this to be a rebellious conduct and would order him to be flogged on the back." (Fathul Bari-9/275- Ref-5. page- 110). The criminal was punished but the crime was accepted. The fate of the wife only worsened, loosing the already slim chance of reconciliation. It is her life, and she had no say in it! Also, if the husband accuses the wife for adultery and cannot prove it, the marriage is dissolved immediately after both curse each other. Who can stop the husband from doing that?

In the social/familial affairs, the structure/ presentation/selection of words and construction of some sentences ( in favour of women) of the Qur'aan and Hadis are such that they were/are bound to be misused. To be abused and to work as a tool for vested male interest against women are only definite destiny of those laws of divorce. Look at this. The Qur'aanic advice of the divorced wife to get her expenses (only basic expenses, for a limited time only! Who decides the amount? The husband himself? That is great! ) is only an instruction without much effect. Because this is merely an instruction without punishment if violated. What if the husband does not pay? Nothing, absolutely nothing. To go to the court? Oh, you know the poor lady cannot afford the expenses and hassle. Of course the women can also dissolve the marriage. But that is not Talaq. Those are "Khula" and "Mubarat". Surprisingly, she has to pay money to the husband to dissolve the marriage! Poor women! Inherits half than their brothers do, no scope of employment in general until recently, remains occupied by the kitchen and by "Baby-making" for years and months, none of these are taken into account by the Islamic law.

Indeed the Qur'aan and the Hadis (Ref-2) have many good sayings about women. But those are only sayings and advices, not rules/laws with the strength of any punishment. Our women do not live in a theological sweet world of "saying", they live in real homes of "doing". And she works hard for it, day and night without weekends. But this home may not become "her" home in her whole life; she may live here lifelong without the right, dignity and authority she deserves and can be thrown out of it anytime. It is a cruel systemic aggression against innocent women. Who are they? They are none but your sisters, my sisters.

It is a serious lifelong emotional blackmailing; the village-women know it very well. And what happens after divorce? She is already financially weak. Apart from financial problems, a divorce kills her socially as well for the rest of her life. If she is young, " Porimol Lov-e Oli Aashia Jutilo" or "Aapna Mangshe Horini Boiri". Society never protects her; rather she often becomes a victim of the village-"Matobbars". The big mass of Muslim men in the millions of villages of the world are not educated, do not/will never have a high spirituality, and work hard to make their living. Islamic laws never addressed this hard reality. After a long tiring day of hard labour these men are definitely vulnerable to get irritated with insignificant matters like not enough salt in the curry. Many husbands are aggressive, illogical, abusive, wife-beating, insulting, womanisers, drinker, drug-addict and what not! In fact most of the crimes of the world were /are done by male! And still this ever-ready divine cannon of divorce is given to men, without ensuring their morality, to shoot at their wives any time they want. This is indeed dangerous. And insulting to women. And makes the wives slaves, as Imam Gazzali wrote in clear words.

Except for a few rich, most of the newly married couples start their lives humbly. Days go by, they get kids, acquire properties. As a norm of most of 3rd world countries, all the properties are registered under the husband's name. Then if for any reason there is a divorce, the wife is thrown on the road, only to beg. In front of her eyes the husband continues enjoying the fruit of their combined labour of those years. Place yourself in that situation and try to feel her broken heart. I have seen it in our villages, many many times. There IS an Islami instruction, ever defeated, of the parents/brothers/relatives to take the burden of the divorced women. But who in old age can take the responsibility of the women and their children? Can you? And again, if you can and do not, the system of punishment or enforcing the instruction is simply not there. Advises cannot replace laws, never.

When the law of maximum 4 wives at a time was revealed, some Sahabis had more than 4 wives. Then the prophet (SA) asked Sahabis to divorce other wives keeping 4 of them. I ask, where was the human right of those divorced wives? Why in one second they were deprived of their homes, their loving kids, husbands for no fault of themselves? May be their expenses were born by the Baitul Maal, but where were their nests of dreams which they built little by little for years? After all, wo/men do not live by bread alone! Today, while the process of divorce sizes/shapes/punishes/tortures women's life, they have absolutely no say in it. Pathetic, unjust and indeed strange!

It is the same Islam, which before 1500 years brought the status/dignity of women practically from a "substance of enjoyment" to human being. It is all recorded in history, women for the first time could retain their parental name, could say "NO" to an unwanted marriage, could inherit, own her earning and property, etc. (human civilization took until `1890/92 in England to make laws on the last 2 ).

Riddle (2) :- Islam is really so torturous to its own women today. But why it did so much for them 1500 years ago? It could have easily kept women as "a substance, a great property of men to enjoy without any commitment" under his boots as was the norm of that time. Why do you think it did not?

Sources:-
1. The holy Qur'aan - Maolana Muhiuddin Khan.
2. Sahi Bokhari.- Md.Mohsin Khan, Azizul Huq Sb, Abdul Jalil.
3. Ihya'Ulum al-Deen - Imam Gazzali.
4. Islamic Laws. -Ayatulla al Uzama Syed Ali Seestani.
5. Woman in Islami Sharia - Maulana Wahididdin Khan.
6. Women's Rights in Islam - Md. Sharif Chaudhry.

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Published in NFB: http://www.bangladesh-web.com/news/jan/11/gv4n450.htm#2