Well-known Islamic scholar and author, Dr. Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi said that Islam has not differentiated in granting fundamental rights of man and woman. Also, Islam has not confined women to home; it has allowed them to do all sorts of job with the only condition that they are following Islamic principles. But one of the primary duties of woman is to bring up new generation, of course with the help of man.
“Man and Woman both are bound to bring up new generation and establish a good family. The holy Qur’ān does not differentiate in fundamental rights of man and woman. The message of the Qur’ān is equally for man and woman but sometimes it has mentioned woman specifically. The Qur’ān also does not differentiate between man and woman in granting reward of deeds,” Nadwi said while addressing a public meeting on ‘Equality of Man and Woman in Islam’ at the headquarters of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind in New Delhi on 28 January.
Shedding light on the poor condition of woman in different societies and civilizations, he said, “We all know that different religions and civilizations have different perspective about woman. Especially in the Greek civilization, which was very famous at that time, woman had been given extremely inferior position. Lower status had been given to her as her human status had been rejected. She had been taken as a tool of entertainment and luxurious life by man. Her human status had not been accepted. She was deprived of all human rights.”
Describing the history of women struggle for freedom and equality in the western world, Dr. Nadwi, who is also Secretary Tasneefi Academy JIH, said that the awareness for freedom and equality started in France in the 17th century. At that time, weaker and marginalised sections of the society started to raise voice for their rights. By taking inspiration from this, woman who was deprived of all kinds of rights also started to raise her voice for her rights. She had no opportunity to develop and she was used only as a source of sexual satisfaction. All human and fundamental rights which are now very important have not been given all of sudden. It took 300 years and it has been given one by one gradually.
Criticising the western concept of equality, the learned speaker asked whether equality means what the western world understands. Should equality be scaled with the same measurement? Researchers say that if equality is not found between two men in that sense, how is it possible between man and woman? Medical study says that every gender and living thing has a particular nature and temperament. They are granted qualities according to their nature and temperament. A little difference in their nature may cause them ineffective. Allah created every gender and species in the same way as one wants to do their responsibility. If similarity is not possible between two men, how is it possible between man and woman?
Raising the double standard about man and woman in the western world, he further said that in the way, the western world defined the equal rights of man and woman; they themselves did not give those rights to woman. There are a lot of studies and surveys available in this regard. In the USA, a woman gets 33 per cent lower pay than what a man gets for doing the same job. Woman protested against this pay discrimination in 2011. About the UK, a report says that woman has got right to cast vote long before, but for equal pay, they will have to wait one hundred years more. This discrimination is continuously increasing.
Highlighting the exploitation of woman in the modern world, he further said that when woman did not get equal opportunity in work, they assumed other profession. That is the exhibition of their beauty. Because of that, woman has been exploited a lot. As a result of which, sex industries, pornography, sexual anarchy and human trafficking came into existence.