Only Family Courts can issue Khula divorce certificates to Muslim women, Madras High Court rules
New
Age Islam News Bureau
31
January 2023
•
OIC slams ban on Afghan women taking university exams
•
UN calls on Taliban to let women help give aid to desperate Afghans
•
House speaker urges Islamic countries to boost women's participation
•
For American Muslim women, hijabs affirm their right to choose
•
Ahmedabad man, family booked for ‘triple talaq’, say police
•
Women’s football tournament in Saudi Arabia motivates Pakistani player to
strive for more
•
Mamahood launches app to support pregnant women and mothers in Middle East
•
Afghan women’s rights: US SRA starts tri-nation trip
•
Turkey begins child abuse trial that put spotlight on sects
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
--------
Only
Family Courts can issue Khula divorce certificates to Muslim women, Madras High
Court rules
January
31, 2023
The
direction was issued while allowing a 2019 writ petition filed by a man to
quash the Khula certificate obtained by his wife. Photograph used for
representational purposes only
---------
Muslim
women can approach only Family Courts and not self-declared private bodies such
as a Shariat council consisting of a few members of a Jamaath, in order to seek
a Khula (divorce), the Madras High Court has held. It has ruled that Khula
certificates issued by private bodies are invalid in law.
Justice
C. Saravanan ordered this, while quashing a Khula certificate issued by the
Shariat Council of Tamil Nadu TowheedJamath at Mannady in Chennai. The judge
directed the estranged couple to approach either the Tamil Nadu Legal Services
Authority or a Family Court to resolve their disputes.
The
direction was issued while allowing a 2019 writ petition filed by a man to
quash the Khula certificate obtained by his wife from the Shariat Council in
2017. He contended that the council, registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies
Registration Act of 1975, had no authority to issue such certificates.
The
petitioner also told the court that he had filed a petition for restitution of
conjugal rights in 2017 and obtained an ex-parte decree too. Since the couple
had had a baby boy in 2015 after their marriage in 2013, he had filed a
petition under the Guardians and Wards Act of 1890 too, and obtained favourable
orders.
At
present, a petition for executing the decree was pending before an Additional
Family Court. Though the writ petition against the Khula certificate was pending
in the High Court since 2019, the petitioner’s wife chose to remain absent and
did not appear either in person or through her counsel.
Hence,
the judge decided the case by hearing the counsel for the petitioner and the
Shariat Council. He pointed out that a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court
had, in April 2021, dealt with the “absolute right” conferred on a married
Muslim woman to seek Khula without citing specific reasons to invoke it.
“It
further observed that if the husband refuses, she has to move the court in
absence of any other method prevalent in this country and the court is neither
called upon to adjudicate nor called upon to declare the status but simply has
to pronounce termination of marriage on behalf of the wife,” Justice Saravanan
wrote.
He
further said that only judicial forums were empowered to pass a decree to
dissolve a marriage under Section 7(1)(b) of the Family Courts Act of 1984 read
with Section 2 of the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act of 1939 and Section 2
of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act of 1937.
“The
private bodies such as the Shariat Council, the second respondent herein,
cannot pronounce or certify dissolution of marriage by Khula. They are not
courts or arbitrators of disputes,” the judge said and recalled that the Madras
High Court in the Badar Sayeed versus Union of India (2017) case had restrained
Kazis from issuing Khula certificates.
Source:
TheHindu
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OIC
slams ban on Afghan women taking university exams
January
31, 2023
Organisation
of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha. (REUTERS)
-----------
The
Organization of Islamic Cooperation has urged the Afghanistan government to
lift its ban on women writing university entrance examinations.
This
latest decree further tightens the sweeping restrictions on girls’ and women’s
access to education and public work, the Saudi Press Agency reported the OIC as
saying on Monday.
The
ban comes shortly after the OIC executive committee convened on Jan. 11 an
extraordinary meeting on the “recent developments and the humanitarian
situation in Afghanistan.”
The
final communique of the meeting called on the Afghan authorities to “strive
toward reopening schools and universities for girls and enable them to enroll
in all levels of education and all specializations required by the Afghan
people.”
The
OIC urged the Afghan government to reconsider this and other earlier decisions,
which it said would have far-reaching social and economic ramifications.
Last
month, the OIC also voiced its concern over the threat to women’s rights in
Afghanistan following a decision by the Taliban leadership to ban women from
jobs in national and international nongovernment organizations.
In
an order issued on Dec. 24, 2022, the Ministry of Economy in Kabul ordered all
national and international NGOs to suspend the jobs of female employees until
further notice.
The
decision comes hard on the heels of the ban a few days earlier barring Afghan
women and girls from studying at university.
OIC
Secretary-General HisseinBrahim Taha said that this move reflects a willful
policy by the de facto leadership to further limit Afghan women’s rights.
He
said that this “perplexing decision” would not only deprive Afghan women of a
source of income for themselves and their families, but also seriously affect
humanitarian and relief operations in Afghanistan.
Taha
also denounced the ban on women studying at university, saying that “it will
seriously dent the credibility of the government in place, just as it will deny
Afghan girls and women their fundamental rights to education, employment and
social justice.”
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2241846/saudi-arabia
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UN
calls on Taliban to let women help give aid to desperate Afghans
30
January ,2023
Afghan
women shout slogans during a rally to protest against what the protesters say
is Taliban restrictions on women, in Kabul, Afghanistan, December 28, 2021.
(Reuters)
----------
The
UN humanitarian chief said Monday he has pleaded with the Taliban to let women
participate in a massive effort to support desperate Afghans struggling to
survive a “savage” winter.
Afghanistan
is facing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with more than half of
its 38 million population facing hunger and nearly four million children
suffering from malnutrition.
At
least 166 people died in a recent wave of bitterly cold weather that heaped
misery on the poverty-stricken nation.
The
crisis was compounded last year when Taliban leadership banned Afghan women
from working with NGOs, forcing several aid agencies to suspend their vital
work.
In
recent weeks, the authorities have allowed women to work in the health sector
only.
But
“Afghanistan is going through a savage winter,” UN Under-Secretary General for
Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Martin Griffiths told reporters.
“Last
winter, we managed to survive. I don't know if we can do this indefinitely, not
with these bans.”
The
United Nations has pleaded with the extremists to expand the exemptions to
“cover all the aspects of humanitarian action,” Griffiths, who led a delegation
of senior NGO officials to meet several Taliban leaders in Kabul last week,
said.
He
said they were told “such arrangements would be forthcoming.”
But
when, or what those arrangements might look like was another matter.
“We
were told the guidelines are being developed by the Taliban authorities,”
allegedly providing a role for women in humanitarian operations, Griffiths
said.
“Let's
see if these guidelines do come through,” he said.
“Hopefully
we won't wait too long. Because every day that goes by without proper
functioning humanitarian aid is not a good day for the people of Afghanistan.”
Afghanistan
has been frozen by temperatures as low as -33 degrees Celsius (-27 degrees
Fahrenheit) since January 10, combined with widespread snowfall, icy gales and
regular electricity outages.
Nearly
80,000 livestock, a vital commodity for Afghanistan's poor, also died in the
recent cold snap.
Since
returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban government has rapidly squeezed
women out of public life, banning them also from secondary education, public
sector work, as well as parks and baths.
Foreign
aid has also declined dramatically since then and key central bank assets were
seized by the United States, compounding the humanitarian crisis.
Source:
Al Arabiya
--------
House
speaker urges Islamic countries to boost women's participation
January
31, 2023
Speaker
of the House of Representatives (DPR RI) Puan Maharani speaks at the 17th
Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation (PUIC), which was held in Algiers, Algeria, on January 29-30, 2023.
(ANTARA/HO-Humas DPR RI)
-----------
Jakarta
(ANTARA) - Speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR RI) Puan Maharani
underscored the issue of women's participation while speaking at the 17th
Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
(PUIC) in Algeria.
In
her written statement here on Tuesday, Maharani laid emphasis on the need for
Islamic countries to increase women's participation in various spheres of life,
including in politics.
"We
must show that women can excel in the Muslim community. I, as the speaker of
the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia, represent the
progress of women in my country, the largest Muslim-majority country,"
Maharani explained.
The
17th PUIC Conference was held in Algeria on January 29-30, 2023.
Maharani
remarked that progress in Muslim countries will be greatly influenced by
leaders' willingness to provide equal opportunities for women to contribute to
development.
"Women,
as they make up half of the global population, are a very important (factor) in
achieving modernization and development progress," she affirmed.
At
the PUIC Conference, Maharani also spoke of the long-term challenges faced by
Muslim countries over the decades, one of which is the division that makes
Muslim countries powerless on the global stage.
To
this end, she emphasized the importance of Muslim countries coming together to
play a very strategic role in overcoming global challenges that include
creating peace, improving living standards, and reducing emissions.
"Muslim
countries should not be part of the problem. We have to be part of the
solution. It is a manifestation of the Islam rahmatanlilālamīn, mercy for all
creation," she said.
In
addition, she called on PUIC member states to unite in facing the magnitude of
the current challenges.
"Let
us work together to strengthen solidarity among Muslims and make this
conference contribute to the unity of the Islamic world," she remarked.
Source:
AntaraNews
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For
American Muslim women, hijabs affirm their right to choose
January
30, 2023
As
the only hijabi student at her Bronx, N.Y., school in the ’90s, Nazma Khan
faced so much Islamophobia that she contemplated dropping out. Her classmates
called the Bangladeshi immigrant names such as “ninja,” “Batman” and “Mother
Teresa.” She was shoved, kicked and spat on by students, who often waited
outside her classroom to try to pull off her headscarf.
After
9/11, as a recent college graduate living in New York City as a visibly Muslim
woman, Khan said the hijabophobia only worsened, and she was chased down city
streets and called a terrorist. Still, Khan said she loved wearing her hijab,
an “outward expression of my inner faith,” and wanted to help women and girls
like her who were being mistreated.
“I
kept on thinking about it, and I was like, ‘What if I asked women from all
walks of life to wear the hijab for one day?'” she said. “Maybe they will see
that I am not hiding a bomb underneath my scarf or that this scarf does not
have a life of its own to oppress me.”
After
three years ruminating on the idea, Khan founded World Hijab Day in 2013. The
February holiday encourages people to spend a day donning hijabs in an effort
to normalize them and upend false assumptions about the head covering. Since
its start, not every Muslim has applauded the annual event, but it has quickly
gained popularity, spreading to more than 150 countries.
For
Muslim women, wearing a hijab is an act of worship as well as a way to practice
modesty, a principle expected in the behavior and dress of all Muslims.
Although the visibility of the head coverings has made women targets of
Islamophobia, Muslim women who wear the hijab in the United States say the
decision to wear the cloth covering is a liberating one. By sharing their
diverse hijabi journeys, they say they are proof that Muslim women are not a
monolith.
When
Houston author and illustrator Huda Fahmy began wearing a hijab at 10 years
old, she felt the pressure to be perfect and live up to the piety associated
with it. As she grew older, she realized she did not need to fit a mold for the
hijab to be a meaningful part of how she practiced Islam.
“A
lot of times we are reduced to having the same experiences,” Fahmy said. But
“every hijabi has a different relationship with her scarf and with her religion
and with the way she decides to wear it and present herself.”
In
her comic books, such as “Yes, I’m Hot in This” and the forthcoming “Huda F
Cares,” Fahmy uses humor to work through stereotypes and tell stories about
nuanced hijabi characters, such as someone who loves wearing her hijab and does
not struggle with the desire to wear it, or someone who is part of a large
Muslim community.
Fahmy
has always loved comics, but she felt drawn to pursue cartooning as a career in
2016, compelled to combat Islamophobic narratives from politicians such as
Donald Trump who talked about Muslims without talking to Muslims.
Bushra
Amiwala, 25, who serves as the youngest school board member in the Illinois
town of Skokie, said she also noticed the sentiment at the time and how the
treatment of Muslim people would “ebb and flow based on the political climate.”
It
helped her make the decision to ease into wearing a hijab, as both another step
forward in her religious journey and a way to destigmatize the hijab. “My
intention of wearing the hijab was to rewrite the preconceived notion people
had for Muslim women before it became permanently ingrained in their minds,”
she said. “And I thought the best way to do so is when our thoughts and beliefs
are malleable: in high school.”
Her
plan worked. When Amiwala went to high school wearing her hijab, she fielded a
lot of questions from her classmates, such as whether she still washes her
hair, which she does. As a school board member, she also supported legislation
that addressed the lack of in-depth education about Islam and other religions
in Illinois public schools.
“I
am so grateful that I live in an area where I have the choice. That empowers me
to another level,” she said. “I can freely choose to cover my head, and that is
a choice that I am making that I can see through.”
Iman
Zawahry made the choice to start wearing a hijab during her sophomore year of
college in an effort to dispel stereotypes. Sometimes when meeting people for
the first time, she says they are surprised by her personality: boisterous and
funny, without a foreign accent.
She
hopes her work as a filmmaker can also bring more Muslim stories, ones that do
not revolve around terrorism or the oversexualization of women, to the
forefront. One of the movies she directed, “Americanish” which was released in
2021, is the first American Muslim romantic comedy made by an American Muslim
woman and has been acquired by Sony Pictures International Productions.
“It
is just a rom-com, but it is a rom-com with three Brown Pakistani Muslim women,
and they are leading the film. It is not a crazy idea, but it is something that
we have not seen,” Zawahry said. “These are the stories that I connected with
when I grew up, and I really just wanted to see it through my eyes.”
Whether
it is wearing a hijab on set or making sure hijabis are represented on-screen,
Zawahry is passionate about activism and promoting American Muslim visibility.
“This is what I want the film to do: to create awareness and change and move
people to be better community members,” she said.
Source:NewsIndiaTimes
https://www.newsindiatimes.com/for-american-muslim-women-hijabs-affirm-their-right-to-choose/
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Ahmedabad
man, family booked for ‘triple talaq’, say police
January
31, 2023
The
Haveli police in Ahmedabad Monday booked a man and his family under relevant
sections of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019, for
deserting his wife after pronouncing the invalidated triple talaq on her. Based
on the woman’s complaint, the police have also booked the accused for domestic
violence, causing voluntary hurt and for abusing the complainant.
In
the FIR, the complainant Mubassira Qureshi stated that her husband Shoaib
Qureshi pronounced the triple talaq during a usual heated argument with her
in-laws on January 25. Thereafter, the accused allegedly turned the complainant
out of her marital home and deserted her. The couple has been married since
October 2021 and have a six-month-old daughter.
In
the FIR, the complainant has stated that she had been “tortured and physically
assaulted” by her in-laws, including her husband’s paternal aunt, and also
verbally abused over trivial differences. The complainant has urged the police
to initiate a probe into the triple talaq citing the act that invalidates the
divorce.
The
Haveli police has booked Shoaib Qureshi, his parents and aunt under Indian
Penal Code Sections for domestic violence [498(A)], voluntarily causing hurt
(323), abusive language [294(b)] and under Sections of the Muslim Women
Protection of Rights on Marriage Act, 2019.
Source:
Indian Express
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Women’s
football tournament in Saudi Arabia motivates Pakistani player to strive for
more
NAIMAT
KHAN
January
30, 2023
KARACHI:
When SahibaSardil returned from playing the first women’s football tournament
in Saudi Arabia last week, an experience she says has motivated her to strive
for more, she received a hero’s welcome at home.
Sardil,
a defender of the Pakistani team, was in the Kingdom for a four-nation friendly
tournament held from Jan. 11 to 19 featuring Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Comoros
and Mauritius. The South Asian country finished the competition as a runner-up,
with the host coming out as champion.
When
she arrived home in Mauripur, a small fishing town near the seaside metropolis
Karachi, she was greeted with much fanfare. People from the community gathered
and adorned her with garlands, while others played drums and waved the
Pakistani flag as they marched alongside the football player.
“It
was a great experience. I will always remember those 10 days,” Sardil told Arab
News on Sunday.
“Saudi
Arabia and the welcome I have received here at home have motivated me to work
harder and go further.”
Sardil
said she faced many difficulties before making it to the national team.
The
21-year-old had started her football journey playing with male cousins in a
dusty space, where there was only one goalpost and another one had to be marked
with stones placed on the ground.
She
also grew up in a conservative area, where it was common for young girls to
stay within the confines of their homes. Her father initially had “strict
rules” for the women in their household but eventually gave in and allowed
Sardil to join a football academy three years ago.
“I
didn’t reach the national team and this position so easily…I had to bear so
much,” she said.
Sardil’s
father, a fisherman who would often be away for months at a time, is now her
biggest supporter.
“The
respect that I have received today, the support I have received, is because of
my father,” she said.
Now
that she is home after her first international competition, Sardil recalls the
games in the Kingdom with fondness and said she had adored the Saudi team the
most.
“To
go to Saudi Arabia, to play outside of Pakistan was a huge honor for me,”
Sardil said. “We felt really good playing against them. It felt as if we were
playing football properly.”
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2241576/sport
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Mamahood
launches app to support pregnant women and mothers in Middle East
30
Jan 2023
Mamahood,
a femtech mobile application, has launched an app to empower women in the
Middle East and North Africa with professional care, guidance, and community
engagement throughout their fertility, pregnancy, and motherhood journey.
Mamahood
offers a range of health-tracking tools, including menstrual and pregnancy
tracking, educational content by healthcare professionals, and a community
engagement for women to connect and receive support from fellow mothers and
healthcare advisors.
The
standout feature of Mamahood is its on-demand live chat, which allows women to
connect with licensed healthcare advisors in real time, 24/7.
Mamahood
app launched
This
feature provides women with immediate and convenient access to professional
care, enabling them to address their health concerns confidently and
discreetly, and prioritise their and their family’s well-being without delay or
hesitation.
Alina
Polyakova, founder of Mamahood, said: “During my pregnancy, I struggled to find
credible and reliable content online, often feeling overwhelmed by the
conflicting information on Google and the lack of community engagement on
western apps.
“I
knew there had to be a better way for women to access the information and
support they need during the most important time of their lives, and that’s how
the idea for Mamahood was born.
“We
are excited to launch Mamahood and provide women in the region with a long-overdue,
comprehensive, and supportive experience.
“Studies
show that many pregnant women in the MENA region hesitate to contact healthcare
professionals outside of regular office hours due to cultural and social
factors, which can lead to increased anxiety and pregnancy-related
complications.
“Our
on-demand 24/7 live chat aims to give women easy access to health advice and
act as a preventive tool to make an informed decision on time throughout their
motherhood journey.”
Mamahood
is available for download on the App Store and Google Play.
In
the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, women’s health is often not
prioritised, and many women do not have access to quality healthcare.
According
to a recent study by the Journal of Medical Internet Research, 70% of in-person
medical appointments can be conducted remotely through telemedicine.
Furthermore,
a study published in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research found
that new mothers in the MENA region experience high levels of anxiety and
depression, with rates ranging from 18% to 40%, with one of the main reasons
being a lack of social support and limited access to healthcare resources.
Source:
ArabianBusiness
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Afghan
women’s rights: US SRA starts tri-nation trip
ISLAMABAD:
The United States Special Representative for Afghanistan (SRA) Thomas West has
started his tri-nation trip to Pakistan, Germany, and Switzerland from January
29 to February 4 to hold consultation with the respective authorities on
Afghanistan’s situation and to refine a “unified” regional and international
response that reflects a collective commitment to Afghan women and girls’
rights and access to vital aid.
“Special
Representative for Afghanistan (SRA) Thomas West will travel to Pakistan, Germany,
and Switzerland January 29 – February 4 to consult with partners, Afghans, and
humanitarian relief organizations regarding shared interests in Afghanistan,”
said office of the spokesperson for US State Department in a statement.
It
added that the Taliban’s recent edicts have presented the international
community with extraordinary challenges as we seek to support the Afghan people
and protect our interests. “SRA West will work with counterparts to refine a
unified regional and international response that reflects a collective
commitment to Afghan women and girls’ rights and access to vital aid,” it
added.
The
top US envoy’s visit comes following the recent trip by Russia’s Special
Representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov to Pakistan on January 24 who held
wide-ranging consultations with his Pakistani counterpart Mohammad Sadiq on
Afghanistan’s situation and closer cooperation between Moscow and Islamabad for
a better future.
Source:Brecorder
https://www.brecorder.com/news/40223446
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Turkey
begins child abuse trial that put spotlight on sects
January
30, 2023
ISTANBUL
— The parents and husband of a woman who was forced into marriage when she was
just six years old went on trial in Turkey on Monday on charges of child and
sexual abuse, in a case that has shone a spotlight on the country’s religious
sects.
The
woman — now aged 24 and identified only as H.K.G. — had filed a complaint in
2020 against her parents and the man she was forced into marrying as a child in
a religious union. The defendants are members of a foundation linked to the
influential Ismailaga religious group.
The
incident, which was reported by Turkey’s Birgun newspaper last year, sparked
public outrage and calls for greater scrutiny of Islamic sects which have
become more prominent under Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s
government. Erdogan’s ruling party has roots in Turkey’s Islamic movement.
On
Monday, the court ruled to hold the hearings behind closed doors and imposed a
ban on broadcasts concerning the trial, the T24 news website reported.
The
husband, identified as Kadir I., faces at least 30 years in prison if convicted
of sexual abuse and abuse of a child. H.K.G.’s father, Yusuf ZiyaGumusel, and
mother Fatma Gumusel face a minimum 18 years in prison for child abuse. All
three deny the accusations.
Yusuf
ZiyaGumusel headed the Hiranur Foundation that is linked to the Ismailaga sect.
Kadir I., a prominent member of the foundation, was aged 29 when the alleged
abuse began.
Groups
advocating women’s and children’s rights staged demonstrations outside the
courthouse calling for measures to stop such abuse of minors by religious sect
members. Members of the Hiranur Foundation mounted a counter-protest saying the
foundation had become the victim of a defamation campaign.
The
best known religious sect in Turkey is the movement led by U.S.-based cleric
Fethullah Gulen, whom Turkey accuses of orchestrating a failed coup against the
government in 2016. Gulen denies involvement in the coup attempt.
Source:
Washington Post
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