Virginia Review of Asian Studies
PAKISTANI WOMEN: RELIGION, STATE AND SOCIETY
NasreenAkhtar[1] International Islamic University
Daniel A. Métraux Mary Baldwin College
Much has been written in the international press in recent years concerning the difficulties facing Pakistani women today. Islam itself stresses that women have significant freedoms and rights and the Pakistani constitution guarantees equal treatment for all of its citizens. Pakistan has signed many United Nations treaties guaranteeing the equality and fair treatment of women. But the reality is very different. Most women in Pakistan face a hostile male-dominated environment where they have little or no choice in their lives and face the prospect of harsh violence directed against them. Some international journalists have written that Pakistan is one of the most dangerous places anywhere for women. The reason for this tragedy is that archaic tribal customs and attitudes remain a dominant force in many areas of the country.
Pakistan was expressly created as an Islamic state, but many Pakistanis have not followed Islamic teachings concerning the treatment of women. The teachings of Islam provide full protection and security for women, but many Pakistani women are suppressed and victimized by their own family members. Although there are clear provisions both in Islam and in the 1973 Pakistani constitution to provide respect, safety and equal rights for women, Pakistan remains a male-dominated society where women still struggle to achieve their basic rights. Male officials in Pakistan can point to the nation’s constitution which guarantees equality for all people, the nation’s ratification of international treaties that are meant to enhance the status of women, and laws and directives that are designed to protect women. All these items may well exist on paper, but they are rarely if ever actually implemented. Old customs and traditions almost always prevail over modern definitions of human rights. There are many women who demand equal rights and protection based on the laws of the land and there are enlightened and educated men who sincerely believe in the inherent rights of women, but their voices are too often drowned out by the forces of reaction.
Pakistan provides a clear case study of a society where traditional tribal customs and practices at times clash directly or indirectly with the teachings of Islam pronounced by the prophet Muhammad or found in the Quran. Islam has long been the dominant religion in the region that is now Pakistan, but traditional attitudes that place women in a very secondary position in society differ somewhat from Islamic ideals that provide for a more prominent role for women in society. The result is that many Pakistani women can face severe discrimination in their daily lives and have very little choice in defining their own lives.
Pakistani Women and Society
Today Pakistani women can be classified into three groups: elite class women, middle class women, and lower class women. Each of these classes receives different treatment. Honor killings, forced marriage, and unprovoked violence against women are common in many areas. This treatment even extends to women who are elected to the national parliament where they are often humiliated by male parliamentarians.
Pakistani women have the potential and capacity to excel in every field of endeavor, but they very often cannot exploit their talent in this chauvinistic male-dominated society. Those few elite women who are safe, protected, and have established themselves in their professions are fortunate to have the strong support of their family members. However, these few women cannot change the mindset of society at large nor are they able to become major pillars of the nation.
We cannot generalize about the independence of women without knowing their rights in the Quaranic teachings of Islam. In an ideal Muslim state women are to be economically empowered, socially strong, and are protected by the state. In Pakistan the elite class of women can in fact live good lives. They are entitled to a number of meaningful economic, political and social rights. Today there are a few women are free to choose their professions and livelihoods, but women in rural and Tribal Areas face problems and challenges within their families. Their economic rights are interpreted and defined by their male family members. These women are treated in an inhumane manner.
Although Pakistan emerged as an Islamic State, its leaders have ignored even the most basic Islamic teachings about the treatment of women. Islam is a faith which teaches its fellow Muslims to be good human beings, tolerant and kind. Tolerance is the basic principle of Islam[2] and kindness is its beauty. Many Pakistani husbands do not treat their wives properly and many do not hesitate to beat them. Women are considered personal property by their husbands and family thus negating the true teachings of Islam which give equal respect to women whether they are a daughter, sister, mother, or a wife. Islam does not allow men to treat their women as an object or as property. Kindness[3] towards wives is particularly stressed by the Prophet Muhammad who said in his last address, “Treat your women well and be kind to them, for they are your partner and committed helpers.” [4] Thus, women’s dignity, respect and honor have always been defended in Islam which is a dramatic difference in the way women were treated before the coming of Islam.
A Muslim woman is considered well off or wealthy because she has a share of her father’s and / or her husband’s property and she cannot be forced to give what she earns on her own to help her husband or her family. Unfortunately, a majority of women in Pakistan still do not have their share of property as defined by Islam and the Quran and what she earns she must turn over to her husband. Pakistani women are not free to choose their career, life partner, and live an independent life as a human being. If a brave woman strives to break the social curfew, she faces grave consequences and often has to pay the high cost of her freedom, independence, and choice.
Old and un-Islamic traditions in Pakistani society have had cruel and negative effects on women. In some parts of the country women are not even considered to be human beings, for as human beings they should receive the same degree of honor and prestige as men. All human beings have an equal right to live. The Quran describes, “and do not take any human being’s life, that God willed to be sacred--other than justice.”[5] Every year across certain areas of Pakistan, women are killed and slaughtered like animals. Sometimes women are buried alive in the name of honor. Islam has sharply rejected all of these old traditions. The Quran says, “and when that was buried alive is asked; for what sin was she slain?”[6] Islam therefore provides for full protection of women in society. Islam makes it clear that any man who is a husband or father is the caretaker of women in his life. He will be answerable to God on judgment day as to how well he took care of this trust. In Pakistan, however, many men have ignored these essential teachings of Islam and the oppression of women is not seen as something that is un-Islamic, unethical or immoral.
Pakistan has all of the trappings of being a modern civilized state, but it comes up short in its surreal treatment of women. Women are supposedly guaranteed equal rights to marriage, education and careers, but the reality is that most women are confined to the home where they perform nothing but household chores. It is ironic that some government ministers as well as members of parliament are more rigid and harsh towards women in their lives than the average Pakistani
Marriage or Mirage
Although both Islam and the Pakistani constitution provide women with the choice to choose their life partner, many communities in Pakistan have denied them this very basic right. Forced marriages have compelled several women to end their lives.[7] The culture of forced marriage is common in traditional rural urban middle class settings.[8] The justification for opposing the freedom of women to choose their husbands is based on a core of beliefs which totally misunderstand and misinterpret the true essence of Islam, particularly the concept of maintenance allowance. A great Islamic scholar, Imam Abu Hanifa (699-767), declared that a marriage contract that is reached without the woman’s express consent is null and void, but this concept is constantly violated in Pakistan.
Inhuman and un-Islamic traditions concerning the treatment of women and their role in marriage are deeply rooted in Pakistani society.[9] Both men and women have the right to marry with certain conditions and limitations. In addition to NikahShara’ai, traditional marriage,[10] there are two other options that exist for marriage, but NikahShara’ai is followed by the vast majority of people in Pakistan.
A few women from Sunni and Shia communities[11] go for NikahMutha[12] and NikahMisyar.[13] These marriages are not openly permitted in Pakistani society despite a decree issued by well known Islamic scholars. NikahMutha is in fact a short term contractual marriage without the consent of a legal guardian. The marriage is permitted under NikahMisyar in Sunni Islam. Both the man and the woman require two witnesses for the marriage to take place. A woman can withdraw her rights in such a marriage. Both the woman and the man live separately under such an arrangement, meeting only when they desire.
A decree was issued by the Egyptian Dar al-Ifta’ announcing the permissibility of “Misyar” marriages. A Misyar marriage is a system whereby a male is able to take a wife without being economically responsible for her and where a woman is forced to surrender all of her legal rights. Misyar marriage has been practiced both in Egypt and Saudi Arabia for many years. It was legalized by Sheikh Abdel Aziz Baz and officially made into law in Egypt by the Egyptian Sunni Imam Sheikh Mohammad SayedTantawi in 1999.[14] Such marriages do occur in Pakistan, but they are never publicized.
Misyar marriage is often defined as an official marital “relationship” between a man and a woman who do not live together and where the wife does not receive many if any financial benefits that she might receive in a more traditional marriage. The wife does not reside with her husband who may visit her on occasion. Islamic scholars in Pakistan are reluctant to talk about Misyar marriage. Sometimes women in these marriages have chosen their partners knowing full well that their families would not permit them to marry. This runs contrary to idealized Muslim values that do not allow a family to prevent a family from preventing a woman choosing her own life partner, but the husband and wife must openly declare their relationship. However, Misyar marriage does not require certain traditional conditions for marriage like dowry, maintenance fees and property rights. It is not a forced or temporary relationship that can endure as long as the couple wish
Traditionally based male ideologies almost always prevail in Pakistan. Male legislators who block legislation favorable to women always receive strong support from orthodox ,conservative ,and ignorant religious clergy, especially when it comes to the institution of marriage. Their women are most often not permitted to marry even under the provisions of Sahari’aiNikha. There are even cases where these conservatives force their women to “Marry with Quran.”[15]
“Marriage with Quran” is a cruel form of marriage which has been practiced in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It occurs when a family cannot find a suitable husband for their daughter as desired by her father and brothers and the woman remains unmarried forever. Marriage with Quran involves a ceremony where they cover the head of the young woman and literally marry her to the Quran. She must study and recite the Quran and cannot have her own life from that moment on.[16] One purpose of this custom is to preserve family money and property which might be lost if they had to provide dowry to another family in order to marry off their daughter. In this way the woman is not allowed to marry a man and is bound forever to her father’s home. The daughter can be killed if she violates these terms.[17]
Marriage too often has become a business or legal deal between two rival parties. Perhaps the most shameful tradition is Vani, involving minor girls. The custom of Vani, where women, especially minor girls, are traded to settle personal, tribal or family disputes, is often forcefully implemented on the orders of the local chief. Although the government has passed legislation[18] to prevent this practice, an incident of Vani in December 2012 that occurred in South Punjab demonstrates how the state has failed in the enforcement of this law. Two minor girls aged nine and eleven, were kidnapped and forcibly married into another family. This incident shows that some people in Pakistan are not ready to abandon their inhumane traditional practices even though the state had adopted legislation to prevent such anti-social practices.[19] In Balochistan thirteen girls were forced into Vani in DeraBugti Khan to settle a conflict between two tribes, Sanjraini and Shahwani.[20] A significant increase of 66 percent of Vani cases was registered in the Islamabad capital territory where 24 cases were reported in May 2012. Tribal areas and Balochistan also reported increases.[21]
Women are more oppressed in rural areas where they are often kept deliberately uneducated. In some places local leaders oppose the development of schools for girls because uneducated, unaware and illiterate women are more easily exploited and repressed. National leaders both civilian and military have done little to punish these local leaders because they need their political support.
The Negative Impact of the Hudood Ordinances
Pakistan’s ruler, General Zia, introduced the 1979 Hudood Ordinances as a first step in his effort to further Islamize Pakistani society.[22] Women have been seriously victimized under this Ordinance.[23] They have been targeted by their own family members and by the security forces.[24] There is considerable evidence that legislation during this period had a drastic impact on Pakistani women’s lives and made them more vulnerable to extreme violence. A majority of women in prison were charged under the Hudood Ordinance. Women’s pregnancies were considered proof of adultery. Many of these women were given the maximum sentence while their rapists remained scot free.[25] A national study conducted in dar-ul-amans (shelters for women) found that 21 percent of women in these shelters had Hudood cases against them. According to a 1998 report by Amnesty International, more than one-third of Pakistani women in prison were being held due to accusations of zina (adultery).[26]
The Hudood’s discouraging effects on rape allegations were made conspicuous in the 1983 case of 15-year-old Jehan Mina, who became pregnant and alleged that she had been raped by her uncle and his son. After filing a complaint with the police, she was charged and sentenced for illegal fornication on the grounds that she had become pregnant outside of marriage. Because of her young age, the judge reduced her sentence from 100 lashes to ten lashes.[27]
There is also the 1999 case of HumairaAbbasKhokhar, the daughter of an influential legislator who married without the consent of her parents. Her parents forced her to marry her cousin, but she renounced that marriage and instead married her close friend, Mehmood Butt. Her father opposed this marriage and filed a complaint with the court. The case was subsequently listed under the Hudood Ordinance. The case sparked the interest of the whole country when it reached the Lahore High Court. Ultimately the judge ruled in Humaira’s favor.[28]
The Hudood Ordinance impacted the whole of Pakistani society. Even actresses, news casters and television show hosts were instructed to cover their heads.[29] Several female artists even left Pakistan for more liberal climates due to General Zia’s women specific policies.
Women, Politics and Religion
The politics of religion has always had a hard effect on Pakistani women. The Quran and Sunnah do not allow men to beat women or treat them harshly. Islamic teachings in their original form are very clear on this topic. Muhammad himself categorically said, “Nobody should beat up his wife as he beats his slave. The best among us are those who behave well with their women.”[30] General Musharaff’s vision of enlightened moderation was encouraging for women in Pakistan and there was a benchmark change in women’s lives. They made important and substantive gains in the media, NGOs, the civil service, business and courts.[31] Examples of these historic gains include Mrs. ShaidaMalik of the army medical corps who achieved the rank of major general.[32]