Islam and civil rights

Civil Rights of Muslim Women
The topic of the civil rights of Muslim women has been a topic of great controversy. Since the September 11th attacks, Islam has been in the limelight a great deal. This information, however, has been misconstrued into false statements. The west holds the idea that Islam is oppressive to women, truth be told, Muslim men and the society they live in that are the ones who have been oppressing Muslim women. Many Muslim women are not aware of the rights they posses as Muslim women, thus deprived of their rights and privileges bestowed upon them by Islam. This lack of knowledge is making it very difficult for them to exercise their obligations and rights as mothers, wives and as human beings. (The Rights of Women in Islam, Bai Cabaybay D. Abubakar) No other religion has bestowed women with the rights that Islam has. The Law of the Creator, “Which has no resemblance, and no one, no organization and constitution has the authority to withdraw such rights from women because they are an integral part of the Islamic Faith. Women are recognized by Islam as a full and equal partner of man.” Arguing this view, Abubakar, cites the following passage from the Qur’an. (The Rights of Women in Islam, Bai Cabaybay D. Abubakar)
Allah States: “O mankind! Verily we have created you from single pairs of a males and a female, and made you into nation and tribes that you may know each other.” (Qur’an49:13)
The following are The Rights of Muslim women (these are just a few; more information can be attained from the reference):
1. The right to life and dignity:
The right to life has been given to man as a whole because Islam recognized such rights for all human beings. Arguing this view, Abubakar, cites the following passage from the Qur’an. (The Rights of Women in Islam, Bai Cabaybay D. Abubakar)
“Whosoever kills human beings (without any reason) like manslaughter, or corruption on earth, it is though he has killed all mankind.” (Qur’an 5:32)Furthermore, “Do not kill soul which Allah has made sacred except through the due process of law.” (Qur’an 6:151)
Daughters are raised with the best care from their parents; they are to support them until they are married and have moved onto their husband’s house. In Islam, women are not to be treated as workers, to serve others. If they do work, however, it is to work at home and to fulfill their feminine duties voluntarily. With this type of treatment, women feel dignified and feel as an equal part of society. (The Rights of Women in Islam, Bai Cabaybay D. Abubakar)
2. The Right to be Educated:
Parents in Islam are obligated to educate their children in agreement with Islam. A proper education can be an enormous gift to provide their children with. This allows them to become a functioning part of society. Through education, they feel as equals and want to do better with their lives.
3. The Right to Choose a Husband:
Sadly this right has been revoked by society from women. As the ancient story states,
“Al-Bukhari reported that Khamsa bint Khudan was given marriage by her father. She did not like her husband chosen by her father. So the prophet (SAW) repealed that marriage.”(The Rights of Women in Islam, Bai Cabaybay D. Abubakar)
The rights of a woman in marriage go as such: a previously married woman must be married without her approval and a virgin must not be married without her consent. . (The Rights of Women in Islam, Bai Cabaybay D. Abubakar)
4. The Right to a safe, quiet and happy life with the Husband:
Allah (SWT) has given the right to be married so the husband to be kind to his wife. He is obligated to provide her with a safe environment and provide her with the necessities she needs within his power. He is to be polite, noble and teach her about Islam. Muslim women have been blessed with a great place in Islam, as the Prophet (SWT) states, “Be kind to women.”
5. The Right to ask for a Divorce:
If a woman feels her marriage does not seem like it will do more good than harm, she has the right to ask for a divorce.
On the topic of marriage, by religious law, a Muslim man has the right to polygamy, though the Prophet (SWT) only mentioned this right on a certain occasion. During the battle of Uhud out of 700 men who went into battle only 70 made it back to their wife and children. Thus, leading to great numbers of widows and orphans who needed to be supported after the war. Marriage was one way to alleviate their problem. Marriage, he said, was one way to look after these widows and children. This should, however, only be done if the husband can treat all his wives equally, both in the respects of love and material prospects. The Prophets (SWT) words were misinterpreted and a male dominated society has made polygamy a prevalent part of their lives. (Muslim Women and Civil Rights, by Shobha Anuja)
Jihad Beyond Islam
Some people think Islam asks Muslims to kill non Muslims, but accourding to the holy Quran Muslims should fight only when it comes to self-defense and to maintain their right to worship.
According to Marranci, Gabriele in his book Jihand Beyond Islam, page 18 "All Muslims agree that the Quran Allows Muslims to fight in two main circumstances: self-defense and to maintain their right to worship."
That shows how ISlam is about love and peace not hate and war. Islam is an arabic word and it means peace. Even during the wars Muslims must look for justice, since their fighting of the name of allah(God). Marranci, Gabriele in his book Jihad Beyond ISlam,page 18 "I am not surprised that the majority of Muslims say that ISlam is peace loving, since the Quran gives them supportive evidence on preserving civilians. One of my respondents told me that even in the case of war, Muslims have to restrict their aim to 'justice' because "those who believe fight in the cause of Allah, and those who reject Faith, faight in the cause of teh Evil" (Sura 4:76).
Marranci, gabriele also claimed in his book, page 73"Osama bin Laden had kept his promises. Although terrorist action did not hurt Stephan's family or his friends, he felt as if he had lost all of them. A mixture of depression and anger over whelmed his mind the day after. Stephan blamed Muslims, all of them."
That shows how many people hated Islam and Muslims after 9\11. What happen in 9\11 is against Jihad in Islam, because it killed inescent people and its not a self-defense or to maintain their right to worship. What happend in 9\11 could be a Political action as well so 9\11 is not a reason to hate ISlam or Muslims. In addition, mass media doesnt show everything; sometimes the media has an impact on opinions and ideas. As Marranci, Gabriele in his book Jihad Beyond Islam, Page 74"Yet they often have a tense relationship with the mass media. So, since the Rushdie affair and the 1991 Gulf War, Muslims have shown an increasing mistrust in the Western mass media representation of Islam and Muslims,. Many of my respondents, who came from different Muslims countries, believe that this misrepresentation is in reality an attack on Islam for the sake of political interest. they, as we shall see, argued that the Western mass media hide what the Arab Satellite channels have shown openly; Muslim childern, women and elderly people being killed."

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