Empowered Muslim Women

The Oscar win of Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy a few weeks ago for her short documentary "Saving Face" comes as a breath of fresh air, since she and I are both Muslim women and natives of Pakistan. I applaud her for taking the courage to speak out against the heinous act of acid burning of women in our native country. Sadly, most attackers are either their husbands or other male figures in their lives.

The AP reported that in 2010, at least 8,000 acts of violence against women were recorded, including acid attacks, forced marriages and other abuses, as observed by The Aurat Foundation, a local Pakistani nonprofit.

Just a few months ago, the winning of the Nobel Peace Prize by a Yemeni Muslim woman, Tawakul Kamran (shared with two other women) also came as a welcome surprise. She had played a key role in Yemen’s revolution to remove President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

In recent years, the late Arfa Kareem of Pakistan became the world’s youngest Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) at the age of 9. MCP is a program of Professional certifications awarded by Microsoft to software developers, and all kinds of IT professionals.

Then there have been others like late Benazir Bhutto, who became the first female Prime Minister of Pakistan. She was also the first woman prime minister of the Muslim world. Sheikh Hasina and Khalida Zia of Bangladesh and Megawati Sukarnoputri of Indonesia also became prime ministers of their respective countries.

And just a few days ago, The Daily Beast announced its "150 Women Who Shake the World." Interestingly, out of these fearless women, around 25 are from Muslim countries including those from Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Libya, Iran and Pakistan.

Pakistani Ambassador to United States Sherry Rehman made the list for her career-long efforts to push for human rights and free speech. She braved death threats for trying to remove the death penalty in the controversial blasphemy law, even forced into a self-imposed house arrest.

Manal al-Sharif is a women's rights activist from Saudi Arabia also on the list, for helping start a women's right to drive campaign in 2011.

Other Libyan women who made the list this year are Iman al-Obeidi and Sarah Maziq.

Al-Obeidi is a Libyan law student who made headlines in 2011 when she burst into Tripoli’s Rixos Hotel and told the international press corps that Gaddafi’s troops had beaten and gang-raped her. She became a symbol of defiance against the brutal regime of Gaddafi.

Sarah Maziq is a Libyan young lady who quit her job in investment banking in Dubai and returned to Libya to help overthrow Gaddafi. She found the Libyan Aid Relief Effort, a charity that helped bring doctors, medical supplies and other aid to Libyan cities fighting Gaddafi forces during the revolution.
Maziq also co-founded the Libyan Civil Society Organization.
She is also advising the interim government on issue of transparency and ending financial corruption.

Recognition of these women is bittersweet, since on one hand it is a celebration of women empowerment, but on the other hand it is a reminder of the social injustice that exists and surrounds them. While they are getting the spotlight for their extraordinary efforts, there are others belonging to the same faith, getting labeled as "victims of oppression," an image that totally goes against how Islam looks at a Muslim woman.

Islam respects women in every role they play, be it of a daughter, a wife, or of a sister, but the utmost respect is reserved for mothers since they have the power to make or break a society by the way they raise children. This is why the prophet of Islam, Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) has repeatedly emphasized the role of women as mothers and once stated that, “Paradise lies at the feet of the mother” implying that anybody who desires to go in heaven should be kind and respectful to their mother, and mothers in return have the responsibility of raising God-fearing children.

So I think that over the centuries, Muslims have wandered away from the true teachings of their faith. Their practices have become distorted which are not only abusive to women but take away from their rightful status in society given to them by Islam. That is why today, Islam has become synonymous with honor killings, stoning to death and other violations of women rights.

Sharmeen is a beacon of hope not only for the victims of acid attacks but a great symbol of woman empowerment. In her acceptance speech, she dedicated the award to the Pakistani Women working for change and asked them not to let go of their dream. What makes her achievement extra ordinary is the fact that during the filming of the documentary she was able to meet with members of parliament and as a result the Pakistani government passed landmark legislation, increasing the punishment for acid attacks, with attackers facing imprisonment for 14 years to life, in addition to fines of around $12,000, according to the BBC.

My prayer is that Muslims will recognize the ugliness of all such actions and ensure that women in their lives are treated equally, fairly and respectfully as prescribed by their faith.