El yihad de género ' al servicio de los derechos de las mujeres
La escritora norteamericana de 44 años Asra Nomani está considerada como una destacada representante del “Yihad de género”. Para la antigua periodista del Wall Street Journal, no hay contradicción entre Islam y feminismo, tal y como afirma en la entrevista con Alfred Hackensberger. Asra Nomani, periodista musulmana indio-americana, escritora y activista:
"El Profeta Mohammad fue un feminista”
Tanto en los países occidentales como en las sociedades musulmanas Islam y feminismo se ven mayoritariamente como opuestos irreconciliables. ¿Por qué no son compatibles?
Asra Nomani: Sí, escucho siempre esta opinión en mis conferencias, pero yo creo que están estrechamente unidos y que el Islam fue en su origen una religión feminista. El Profeta Muhammad fue un feminista, como su primera mujer Jadiya, su hija Fátima y su mujer Aisha. Ninguna de ellas permitió ser excluida, y todas ellas expresaban abiertamente sus opiniones. Por ello, no creo que feminismo islámico sea una contradicción en término.
En realidad, me reúno con feministas religiosas en todo el mundo: mormonas, católicas, maronitas, judías ortodoxas, protestantes… Mi experiencia es que las mujeres tienen que luchar contra el poder masculino in Islam and face the same problems that exist in other religions.
When I mentioned your name in front of a colleague, the answer was: "ah, gender jihad." What does carry that label?
Nomani: I have to admit that something very positive. I am very proud to be a soldier on this front.
And why fight this soldier?
Nomani: For the rights of women, and at the same time, social justice. Women should not be the refuge of honor and purity or be punished for their gender to stay in the back and corners of the mosques.
Women should not be muzzled, just because lead man into temptation. All these are only instruments of control to treat women as second class citizens.
What is your opinion about the female veil?
Nomani: if you cover the face of a woman, you take away your personality. The removal of the veil is an essential element of gender jihad, because this fight ignorance.
Now we are getting support on this issue one of the highest authorities in Sunni Islam. Mohammed Sayed al-Tantawi, Grand Sheikhk Al Azhar University, has described the niqab (face veil) as anti-Islamic and has decreed a ban on this educational institution.
Nomani: indeed, it is very important to us that Al Azhar University to assume a leadership position on this issue. We need mainstream Islamic leaders to introduce a little sanity back into this religion. I am very happy that al-Tantawi is faced with an ideology that is really scary.
What's wrong with someone like wearing a face veil, even when they leave a slit to see?
Nomani: this is exactly the kind of Western political correctness to justify the niqab as an individual choice. This attitude is easy to forget that the symbol of a deeply puritanical interpretation of Islam and dangerous.
well be justified violence against women and suicide attacks allegedly literal interpretation of the Qur'an, suggesting that a Muslim should avoid by all means possible, have friends, Jews and Christians.
should remember that our churches are allowed to preach in favor of racism. Islam should be governed by the same principles. The members of the Ku Klux Klan can not get their driving licenses with hoods over their heads.
Many Muslim women will be horrified with what you say. They wear the niqab or the hijab with pride.
Nomani: The puritanical interpretation of Islam has presented the niqab and hijab as a free choice. The young American women believe they are strong and independent if they cover their hair or face. In doing so, they overlook the fact that the sexualization and demonization of women as men apparently distract from the straight path.
I heard from many Muslim women who cover their heads acts as a kind of protection against the sexual advances of men.
Nomani: In Egypt, the Center for Women's Rights published a study in 2008 showed that women who respected the Islamic dress code suffered more sexual harassment. I have experienced myself when I was in northern India, a Muslim regions more conservative in the world. My hijab did not protect me against sexual harassment. This is a myth that has spread and that women are embracing.
Al-Tantawi said that the niqab is just a tradition that has nothing to do with Islam. How did it come to associate Islam niqab?
Nomani: I'll give an example of how it works. There are translations of the Koran made in Saudi Arabia in which the passages about the niqab has been added to sell it as simply Muslim. The same applies to the hijab. It has become an obligation, but everything is based only on interpretations.
What does the Qur'an on women's dress? Is there rules about what women should wear?
Nomani: There is no decree that should cover her face or hair. There is no rule about the chador, the headscarf, veil, colors anything about whether it should be pink or black. They also say anywhere that the hands must be covered, or that she can only show their eyes. These are all male norms. According to the interpretation which I consider valid, she should just be discreet in choosing their clothing.
say that in the editions of the Qur'an made in Saudi Arabia, a country that has made a missionary campaign in mosques throughout the world during the last decade, cosas son muy diferentes.
Nomani: Sí, y como mujer musulmana me preocupa mucho todo esto. El gobierno de Arabia Saudí fue capaz de propagar a nivel internacional -prácticamente sin comprobación- un modelo rígido, inviolable y monolítico del Islam.
Por ser el país donde se encuentran los lugares sagrados del Islam, realiza las traducciones del Qur’an y las distribuye a millones de peregrinos que viajan a la Meca durante el Hajj. Las traducciones son sexistas e intolerantes.
Estoy continuamente recibiendo traducciones del Qur’an que dicen que no debería ser amiga de judíos o cristianos, que debería cubrir mi cara, excepto un ojo que puede quedar visible. Otra vía diffusion are founded mosques around the world.
So Saudi Arabia is responsible for the propagation of a narrow interpretation of Islam. One could even say it's a lucrative business, when one thinks of the war on terror and the rising price of oil, which is making Saudi Arabia a country richer than ever.
Nomani: That's absolutely true, but we're not blaming the Saudi government for its complicity in creating this dangerous ideology.
was first exported to Pakistan, which is now a haven for Islamic radicals. Faithful were later established worldwide. I do not mean to some people in Pakistan, but to my hometown in West Virginia Morgantown.
How do they work?
Nomani: are made with power in the mosques and then preach Wahhabi or Salafi ideology, and the rest of the faithful have to follow the line. They do very well. Men to grow beards a certain length because otherwise, are not considered true Muslims. And women wear veils.
But there must be something else. The propaganda is not enough. Is it a sense of community, go to fashion, to be cool?
Nomani: Of course there's more. You're cool if you practice a religion that sets aside Western interpretations. That is why young women think they are rebels to wear the hijab.
A protest movement based in a widespread fashion?
Nomani: I believe that religion here is a consumer goods industry. It's a business selling both conservative and liberal ideas within Islam. The industry also has a fashion section: an abaya (a kind of hijab, or traditional Arab robe) for $ 10,000 in a Gulf boutique clothing for pilgrims or discrete Islamic swimsuits available online.
The liberal sector, for example, this happens with shirts that are printed with slogans like: "Así es el aspecto de un radical islámico". La verdad es que no dejo de sorprenderme sobre cómo y qué se vende como producto islámico.
Actualmente es la música islámica. La cosa más divertida que he visto recientemente fue ropa interior femenina. Un tanga con la palabra 'bismillah' (en el nombre de Allah) visible en la parte de atrás.
Bien sea un movimiento o una moda, tiene que terminar en algún momento. ¿Cuánto tiempo más va a durar?
Nomani: Creo que el tipo de Islam que fuerza a las mujeres a llevar velo o pañuelo desaparecerá en 20 años. Mohammed Sayed al-Tantawi es uno de los primeros líderes en decir, indirectamente, que ya es suficiente. This is a good sign.
Will that continue to suffer until then Muslim women?
Nomani: For some time yet, certainly. But you must remember that it is only women who suffer, men are also affected. The Taliban demanded that the men had the look, think and act a certain way, or otherwise would not be considered as true Muslims. Control mechanisms are not limited to women, are becoming increasingly widespread.
The Taliban banned women sneak participation in public life. In the end, religious control ended with the destruction of statues of Buddha. Do you think Tantawi did so?
Nomani: I think he realized that this is not only to put a veil on women. To some extent, he too could become a target because it maintains the same interpretation of Islam. It is not only a danger to women, but for us all.
Interview by Alfred Hackensberger
Asra Nomani is a professor of journalism at Georgetown. She is the author of "Standing Alone in Mecca" of "Islamic Bill of Rights for Women in the Bedroom" and "Islamic Bill of Rights for Women in the Mosque."
Interview with Asra Nomani
Author: Alfred Hackensberger
Source: Qantara.de