http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=32657
Daily Star, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Published On: 2008-04-18 Front Page
National Women Development Policy
Review body opposes equal rights for women
Recommends deletion of 6 provisions, change in 15
The ulema committee formed to review the National Women Development
Policy has strongly opposed equal rights to women, recommending
deletion of six sections of the policy and amending 15 others as they
said these sections "clash" with the provisions of the Quran and
Sunnah.
There are several sections in the policy which are "very
objectionable", said Mufti Mohammad Nuruddin, acting khatib of Baitul
Mukarram National Mosque who headed the review committee.
"A woman cannot enjoy rights equal to a man's because a woman is not
equal to a man by birth. Can there be two prime ministers--one male
and one female--in a country at the same time?" Nuruddin told The
Daily Star after submitting the seven-page report to Law and Religious
Affairs Adviser AF Hassan Ariff yesterday.
The 20-member committee asked the government to clarify the phrase
"women's equal rights to earned movable and immovable properties" and
follow Islamic provisions on inheritance if the earned properties
include inherited properties.
Suggesting inclusion of guidelines "in the light of the Quran and
Sunnah" while taking any decision regarding women's rights, the ulema
recommended abolishing the section that suggests steps to implement
the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women (CEDAW).
Asking the government to withdraw Bangladesh from the convention, they
said many sections in it go against the belief, spirits and culture of
the Muslim ummah.
The ulema committee also opposed and asked the government to eliminate
the provision for keeping reserved seats for women in parliament and
local government bodies and direct elections to those.
"This policy has strongly hurt the pious Muslims of the country since
many sections of it clash with the Quran and Sunnah...It does not go
with Bangladesh's constitution, religious traditions and culture," the
report concludes.
Adviser Hassan Ariff expressed hopes that the recommendations will
remove the "language or interpretation gap" created surrounding the
Women Development Policy.
The committee members did not support the attempts by a section of
opportunists to create chaos by taking advantage of the situation, he
told reporters.
THE RECOMMENDATIONS
The committee said 15 sections of the National Women Development
Policy are against Islam and should be revised or corrected while six
sections should be eliminated.
The Islamic scholars said not only is it impossible to establish equal
rights for men and women in the country, but in some cases, giving
women equality would deprive them of their rights in many sectors.
They proposed replacing the phrase "equality, equal rights and
affirmative action" with "just rights".
The committee also said the ambition of eradicating "existing
disparities between women and men" is unclear and should be replaced
by the phrase "existing disparities between women and men in light of
the Quran and the Sunnah".
On the section that asks for giving women equal human and fundamental
rights such as political, economic, social and cultural, they said
"just rights" should be ensured for men and women in light of the
Quran and Sunnah.
They said the government must ensure participation of ulema and muftis
alongside women's law experts while drawing up or eliminating or
amending any "existing discriminatory" law.
They proposed inclusion of religion experts in a committee to resolve
any inconsistency regarding women's interest arising from
misinterpretations of provisions of those religions.
They also opposed the provision of a child's being identified by both
the mother and father, saying it "encourages sexual abuse" and pre-
marital cohabitation. They recommended identifying a child by "legally
married" parents.
The committee observed that the policy's proposed penalty for child
marriages is not in line with Islamic policy as the legal marriage age
of 18 should not apply here because Islam states that a girl can be
married as soon as she has "come of age".
It recommended replacing the phrase "child marriage" of the section
concerned with "discourage underage marriage".
The committee opposed inclusion of women in peacekeeping missions,
saying it would make women insecure and it could tarnish Bangladesh's
image. The ulema proposed cancelling the provision.
They also opposed the provision that women "must be given equal
opportunities and participation in wealth, employment, market and
business", saying it clashes with the Quran's teachings. They proposed
giving women equal opportunities and participation in these sectors in
light of religious dictums.
The committee specifically said one's inheritance rights should be
determined by their own religions.
The ulema asked the government to cancel the initiative to reserve one-
third parliamentary seats for women to increase women's participation
in parliament and its application in local elections.
A few Islamist parties started staging demonstrations immediately
after the chief adviser announced the National Women Development
Policy 2008 on March 8.
On March 11, the law adviser told the ulema that the caretaker
government had not passed any law regarding inheritance and there is
nothing that contradicts the Quran and Sunnah.
The next day, Women and Children Affairs Adviser Rasheda K Choudhury
asked people to refrain from unnecessary criticism of a progressive
document like the policy without going through it.
On March 27, the government formed the 20-member committee to identify
inconsistencies in the policy as per Islamic rules and suggest steps.
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