Response to Khuliady’s article:”There must be violence against women” [Archives:2008/1119/Community]
By:Atif Durrani
[email protected]
First of all let me with all sincerity congratulate you on all your accomplishments, including being the first female editor of a newspaper in the Middle East. And that being a newspaper which is founded on supporting press freedom, respect for human rights, gender equality, political pluralism and democracy, while promoting the flourishing of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other forms of civil-society.
Your late father, Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf, a leading economist and human-rights activist himself, laid the groundwork, may God bless his soul. In your paper's mission statement, he wrote that: “we use the Yemen Times to make Yemen a good world citizen.”
Within that context, it is with tremendous disappointment that I write this letter. Being a father of two young girls and a husband to my beloved wife – I learn from them everyday and I attempt to instill in them an understanding of Islam which embraces gender equality and opposes any attempt to encourage any form of violence, including violence against women. I can only assume you are getting countless letters from others who disagree with Majed Thabet Al-kholidy's perverse opinion in his editorial “there must be violence against women”. I would urge you to counter his editorial with a piece which strongly advocates the opposite – “there must never be violence against women”.
I know I don't have to lecture you on the rights of women in Islam. Islam has to be viewed in its entirety and not piece meal. If you look at the example of the Prophet Muhammad (may peace be upon him), you can't help but be awe struck by his absolute love for the women around him, his devotion to his wives, to his daughter and his very open and active advocacy of women's rights, from the banning of female infanticide; to the advancement of the rights of a wife over her husband; to the promotion of women's roles in many aspects of leadership. The best example in this regard is the Prophet's love for Khadija, his wife of 25 years. She was a leader in her own right, a strong woman who the Prophet respected without question. He never laid a hand on women, and following in his footsteps, neither should we.
In his article Majed writes “dear readers – especially women – don't think that I hate or am against women; rather, I simply mean to preserve the morals and principles with which Islam has honored us.” But he is hardly preserving the morals and principles of Islam, he is perverting them. This is not the legacy of Islam.
Perhaps he needs to be reminded that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said “the best of you are those who are best to their wives.” Beating your wife, your daughter or anyone else, is hardly a part of the morals and principles of Islam – it is so far removed from the principles practiced by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) that it should be viewed with disgust and discontent by any practicing Muslim. Unfortunately Majeds article serves to confuse Muslims already weak in their faith and discourage non-Muslims from exploring the beauty of Islam.
Rather than focusing his attention on the promotion of violence, of which the Muslim world has seen more than its share, Majed would be better to focus his attention on confronting and discouraging violence, whether it be domestic or foreign.
Your paper under your leadership has been awarded the NPC's International Award for Freedom of the Press, as well as the prestigious Gebran Tueni award and the Pulitzer Prize for the Arab world. I hope its reputation is not tarnished by this warped and misleading editorial, which does nothing to advance the goals your father fought so hard to instill in his paper and in the press in general.
Majed's article is making its rounds, as such articles often do, in all sorts of right wing forums which are the breeding grounds for Islamaphobia and the advancement of violence against Muslims. Articles like Majed provide the fodder to those who wish to promote violence and war in the Middle East, while suppressing the civil liberties of Muslims living in the West. Although I respect Majed's right to write this article and your paper for publishing it, I would strongly urge you to provide a counter opinion and let the world know that the majority of Muslims do not advocate or accept his warped opinion and neither did our beloved Prophet.
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