RAHAMATHUNNISSA A., is National Secretary, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, and Chief Editor of Aura e-magazine. She is also Chairperson of The Women Education and Empowerment Trust (TWEET). In an interview with MOHD NAUSHAD KHAN, she said, “Our ultimate goal is to create a society where morality is cherished and freedom is achieved for everyone.”
What is the basic objective of the nationwide campaign on Morality is Freedom?
The campaign aims to promote the understanding that living a moral life is essential to achieve true freedom and bring into public discussion the common moral values in every culture and the root cause of the present-day degeneration. Our ultimate goal is to create a society where morality is cherished and freedom is achieved for everyone irrespective of caste, colour, gender and region through living a life of purpose and responsibility.
A general awareness is to be created among people that morality is the foundation of freedom as it allows individuals to make choices that bring happiness and prosperity without harming others and it enables individuals to reach their full potential. We aim to warn people on the dangers of the pursuit of happiness outside marriage and the importance of morality as the guiding rule in human relationships. We need to educate on the duties of every individual in guiding the younger generation in the right path and remind on the dangers of the false notions of freedom and liberty and highlight the importance of modesty, chastity, and self-control to achieve true freedom.
The campaign aims at making people, especially the youth, understand the importance of marriage and promoting family as an important and basic social system and the need to strengthen family ties in order to establish a morally upright society.
Through the campaign, we also want to remind the Muslim Society on their duties as ‘KhairUmmat’ in bringing into public discourse the concept of freedom and moral values taught by the Qur’an and Sunnah. This they can do only by studying and understanding them and adopting them in all areas of life. What we need now is practical examples. This can be possible only by instilling in our lives the Islamic morality and ethics and eventually developing into good personalities. The Ummatshould focus on strengthening their moral character and become role models for others. The campaign also aims to remind the community leaders of their duty in guiding the Ummat in this regard.
Why do you think such kind of campaign is necessary at this juncture?
We felt the need for this campaign mainly on two reasons. First, in the name of liberty and freedom there is a widespread following of many ideologies and isms which advocate freedom from all types of moral and ethical values. This has resulted in the increase in the number of drug addicts, spread of pornography, extramarital and unnatural relationships, many types of communicable diseases, mental illnesses and suicides. Family, as a system, is declining, paving way for irresponsibility and confusion in human relationships. ‘My life, my choice’ sort of slogans leadsthe youth to more chaos, loneliness, frustration and stress which mar their productivity and progress. The worst part is, whatever had been considered immoral is now getting normalised and what people used to do in the darkness or hiding away from people is now being done publicly with no sense of guilt or shame. The governments also frame laws in favour of such relationships and actions which result in the rapid spread of evils in society.
Secondly, the Muslim society which has the asset of clear guidelines from the Almighty that is relevant for all nations and all times, instead of upholding them and spreading the message of Islam to all, is getting affected by the trends and neglecting its duty as khairummat. Every believer is supposed to work for enjoining good and stopping evil. A believer can’t lead a selfish life and ignore the evils in the society in which they live. (The Qur’an 9:71) So, the campaign aims to remind Muslim men and women of their duty and prepare them to be the torchbearers of moral values for a happy and peaceful living of not only Muslims but every brother and sister in the Indian society.
Needless to say, this campaign is necessary at this juncture because Indian society is facing an unprecedented crisis of moral values. The increasing objectification of women, sexual violence, and exploitations are all symptoms of a deeper issue – the erosion of moral boundaries. As a socio-religious organisation, we feel that it is but our duty to hold this campaign to establish and maintain a healthy society.
What are the challenges before women and organisations working for women, keeping in mind the prevailing atmosphere and the campaign theme?
Women and organizations working for women face numerous challenges, including societal and family pressure, harassment, sex abuse and even violence in this materialistic society which values everything in terms of profit and loss. Our campaign will address these issues by promoting Islamic values of respect, modesty, and self-control, and by educating on the importance of moral boundaries. Mainstream media promotes more of nudity and deals with women’s body as a commodity not only in advertisements but even in news stories. Another challenge is the sensitivity that has been created in dealing with gender issues through LGBTQA+ movements. This can be addressed only scientifically by bringing into public discourse the scientific evidences on what is natural and what is artificially created for vested interests.
Women and organisations working for women also face the challenge of visibility and promotion. Positive and productive engagement of women and women organisations are given the least visibility and are of no value in the media industry. So, reaching out to the masses and spreading the message of any type of goodness is a big challenge. Hence, we aim at utilising more and more of the alternate media to promote these values.
How do you think this campaign will address the issue of social and moral decadence where sometime freedom overshadows core values?
Yes,it is in the pursuit of freedom that people select immoral activities. But in reality, they end up becoming the worst kind of slaves. For example, a person starts using alcohol or drugs, thinking that it is ‘My life, my choice’. Our campaign will address this issue of social and moral decadence by highlighting the Islamic perspective on freedom – that true freedom lies in submitting to Allah’s will and living a life of moral responsibility. We will show how the pursuit of fleeting desires can lead to enslavement, while living a life of moral discipline leads to true liberation. The greatest bondage is the bondage of guilty feeling. By leading a morally upright life, one can feel free from the haunting of such guilty feelings. Even if the entire society is against it, if an individual is aware that he/she is always under the surveillance of the Creator and is answerable to Him for every minute act whether it is okay as per the rules of the land or societal norms, he/she feels greatly relieved of the burden of guilt and can lead a peaceful life (The Qur’an 99:7-8). So, the problem can be addressed only by instilling in people’s minds this belief and making them aware that the surrender to the will of the Almighty who is the sole authority as the Creator and Sustainer to give moral and ethical rules, will save individuals from all types of slavery in this world.
What according to you should be the way forward to serve the purpose of this campaign?
The way forward is to engage on a regular basis in dialogues about the importance of morality, involving scholars, community leaders, educationists and influencers from all walks of life. Seminars, workshops, and social media campaigns are to be organised to raise awareness and promote moral values. We also need to work with schools and educational institutions to incorporate moral education into the curriculum. The Islamic madrasa education system also needs a drastic change. They should focus on practical application of Islamic teachings and educate young minds on how relevant they are in modern times as they always have been. There should be more researches and studies on the ill effects of legalising immoral activities and governments should be advocated to change such rules in favour of moral values. Muslim community leaders should play an active role in stopping the believers from getting influenced by such isms and ideologies that promote immorality. The mohalla system and the pulpits of masjids should be utilised for bringing changes at grassroots level involving women and the youth.
There is a need for more literature of all genres for children and adults to replace pornographic or misguiding literature and stop their ill effects. Cinemas and dramas are to be created to enlighten and influence people in favour of moral and ethical values instead of promoting all vulgarities. More social media platforms and alternate media are to be established to promote moral values.