Islam and the Protection of Women's Rights
Islam surrounded women with a fence of care and attention, elevated her status, valued her, and singled her out for honor and good treatment as a daughter, wife, sister, and mother.
Islam first established that women and men were created from a single origin; therefore, women and men are equal in their humanity.
Allah Almighty said:
“O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer.”
(An-Nisa: 1)
“[An-Nur: 31].
Allah Almighty said:
“O Prophet, when the believing women come to you pledging to you that they will not associate anything with Allah, nor will they steal, nor will they commit adultery, nor will they kill their children, nor will they bring forth a slander they have invented between their arms and legs, nor will they disobey you in what is right - then accept their pledge and ask forgiveness for them of Allah.
Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
[Al-Mumtahanah: 12].
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Women are the twin halves of men."
(Narrated by Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawood, and At-Tirmidhi).
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"Do not prevent the female servants of Allah from the mosques of Allah, but let them go out in their natural state (unperfumed)."
(Narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim).
In the Hadith:
"The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) cursed the men who imitate women and the women who imitate men."
(Narrated by al-Bukhari).
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
"We have granted protection to whom you have granted protection, O Umm Hani."
(Narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim).
In the Hadith from Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), she said: "No, by Allah, the hand of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) never touched the hand of a woman in the pledge of allegiance; he would only take their pledge by saying:
'I have accepted your pledge on that basis.'"
(Narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim).
In the Hadith also:
"He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to go to battle with them, so they would treat the wounded and receive a portion of the spoils."
(Narrated by Muslim).
Islam is the religion of Allah, the Glorified and Exalted, suitable for every time and place.
It brought the goodness of this world and the Hereafter.
Among the goodness it brought is the restoration of justice to the oppressed, the persecuted, and the weak.
Among those whom Islam did justice to, who were previously among the oppressed and weak:
the woman! Indeed, before Islam, the woman’s rights were usurped, her wings were clipped, and she was viewed in many societies as discarded property. In the Arabian Peninsula, many viewed her as something undesirable [4].
To this day, laws in civilized Europe deprive the woman of the right to manage her own property if she is married, unless she obtains prior permission from her husband.
Furthermore, the woman there is attributed to her husband instead of her father. It is perhaps ironic that some people among us imitate non-Muslims by attributing the woman to her husband, whereas there is no doubt that attributing the woman to her father—no matter how poor or lowly he may be—is an honor for her.
At the same time:
“It is more just in the sight of Allah.”
[Al-Ahzab: 5].
That was the status of women before Islam, and that is her status in the civilized West.
What about her status in the Islamic Sharia?
Pure Islam came while the woman’s rights were usurped and her wings clipped; she had no control even over her most private matters.
Islam raised her status, elevated her position, worked to protect her honor, maintain her dignity, and granted her the right to equality with men in human rights, financial transactions, and in the pursuit of knowledge.
In Islamic Sharia, the woman inherits from others; she inherits from her father, her son, her brother, and her husband.
Allah says in His precise Book: “Allah instructs you concerning your children:
for the male, what is equal to the share of two females. But if there are [only] women, [two or] more than two, for them is two thirds of one's estate. And if there is only one, for her is half.”
[An-Nisa: 11].
And He says:
“And for them (wives) is one fourth of what you leave if you have no child. But if you have a child, then for them is an eighth of what you leave.”
[An-Nisa: 12].
What justice and fairness! We find no equivalent to them except in the brilliant Islamic Sharia.
Before, she was inherited and did not inherit; in fact, she was bought and sold.
When pure Islam came with its just and merciful teachings, it raised her status, restored her dignity, and granted her the right to ownership exactly like the man.
Before Islam, she was forced to marry whomever her father or brother wanted without her opinion being taken on this matter which concerns her alone.
When Islam came, it made it obligatory for her guardian—be it a father, brother, or someone else—to consult her regarding her marriage to whoever proposed to her.
Her marriage is not valid in the view of Islam without her consent as long as she is a mature adult or previously married.
On the authority of Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), he said:
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "A previously married woman shall not be married until she is consulted, and a virgin shall not be married until her consent is sought." They said: "O Messenger of Allah, and how is her consent?" He said: "That she remains silent."
(Narrated by At-Tirmidhi).
A young woman came to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said:
"My father married me to his nephew to raise his lowly status through me, and I dislike him." So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) placed the matter in her hands; if she wished, she could accept, and if she wished, she could reject.
The young woman said: "I have accepted what my father did, but I wanted to let women know that fathers have no say in the matter (without the daughter's consent).
Islam, as we see, considers the woman a human being with full will and full choice.
No one has a right over her to force her to marry someone she does not approve of as long as she is sane.
Through this, it has liberated her, removed the shackles of slavery and humiliation from her, and granted her her share of freedom and independence after she was of lowly status in the Pre-Islamic era, with no will and no opinion in any matter.
Is there any honoring of women beyond this honoring?
As for the equality between men and women in rights and duties, you can find that clearly in more than one place in the Holy Quran.
Allah, the Glorified and Exalted, says:
“And whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer - those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged, [even as much as] the speck on a date seed.”
[An-Nisa: 124].
And He, the Glorified and Exalted, says:
“Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do.”
[An-Nahl: 97].
And He, may His mention be glorified, said:
“And their Lord responded to them, 'Never will I allow to be lost the work of [any] worker among you, whether male or female; you are of one another.'”
[Aal-Imran: 195].
This is a complete equality between men and women that cannot be found in any other legislation besides the legislation of Islam.
While we find this equality plain and clear in the tolerant teachings of Islam, we find that Roman Law stipulated that a woman is not fit to manage her affairs throughout her life, just like a child, and her affairs must be entrusted to the head of the family.
French Law stated that a woman is not fit to contract without her husband's consent and permission.
In the eyes of the laws of the "civilized" West, she is a minor throughout her life, unable to act, while Islam gives her the right to manage what she owns through buying, selling, mortgaging, gifting, etc., exactly like the man.
This is some of what our Islam has done for the sake of doing justice to women.
So why do we see women [5] in our society today rejecting their faith, demanding the liberation of women and the granting of her rights, citing the example of what is in Western societies?! What freedom does a woman want more than the freedom granted to her by Islam?
And what rights does she seek beyond these rights she obtained thanks to the legislations of Islam? Perhaps the intention of some of those calling for freedom is liberation from every virtue, but this is not befitting for women in general, and the Muslim woman in particular!
If we truly want reform, there is no way for us to achieve that except by applying the principles of the brilliant, just, and merciful Islamic Sharia in our entire lives, especially what pertains to women's affairs.
Let the Islamic Sharia be a starting point toward a vast and happy life, as the Lord of the Worlds, the Mighty and Sublime, wants it, and as the foundations of pure Islam were established:
“And whoever desires other than Islam as religion - never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers.”
[Aal-Imran: 85].
Footnotes: [1] We previously mentioned the status of women in civilizations that preceded Islam; if one of them was given news of a female, he would be overcome with worry and grief.
He would be in confusion: should he let her live and live with shame, or bury her in the dust? Allah Almighty said:
“And when one of them is informed of [the birth of] a female, his face becomes dark, and he suppresses grief. He hides himself from the people because of the ill of which he has been informed. Should he keep her in humiliation or bury her in the ground? Unquestionably, evil is what they decide.”
[An-Nahl: 58-59].
[2] Uharriju: Meaning I declare it a sin and a narrow path for whoever neglects them. (Al-Munawi in Fayd al-Qadir: 3/27).
[3] Meaning he helps her in her tasks.
[4] If one of them was given news that his wife had given birth to a female, he would flare up with anger, and he would be seized by a deadly grief, unbearable depression, and a confusion from which there was no exit... Should he let her live and live with shame? Or bury her in the dust?
“And when one of them is informed of [the birth of] a female, his face becomes dark, and he suppresses grief. He hides himself from the people because of the ill of which he has been informed. Should he keep her in humiliation or bury her in the ground? Unquestionably, evil is what they decide.”
[An-Nahl: 58-59].
In the Arabian Peninsula before Islam, she was also discarded property, inherited as the deceased’s estate is inherited; the husband’s eldest son would inherit her, and if he wished, he would marry her after his father without a dowry (Sadaq), or if he wished, he would marry her to whomever he wanted and take her dowry for himself.
As for the Jews, the father had the right to sell her while she was young and pocket her price.
In Western societies, they viewed her as an abomination of Satan’s work, and—in their claim—Allah only created her to be a servant to the man, and she had no rights at all.
It is ironic that a conference was held in Paris in 586 CE to discuss: is the woman considered a human being or not? After long discussion and fierce debate, the attendees decided she is a human being, but created for one thing only: to serve the man!
[5] These are led by Dr. Nawal El Saadawi, who, in a seminar in the Al-Liwa al-Islami magazine that lasted for 4 consecutive issues in June and July 1987, proceeded to invent lies against Islam and call for the liberation of women and her freedom.
The most eloquent response to her came from the mouths of her own gender.