Muslim women could be the key to ending extremism

More than 200 Muslim women leaders met at the Women’s Islamic Initiative for Spirituality and Equality (WIISE) conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, last summer to discuss the underrepresentation of women. WIISE launched the Global Muslim Women’s Shura Council, an all-women’s council that will promote women’s rights within an Islamic framework.

If such work was supported internationally, women could put their effort into solving unrest in the region.

For example, WIISE has begun training Muslim women as jurists who can offer valid legal opinions and interpret religious texts on issues such as women’s equality. By training women who have the authority to provide religious interpretation they are creating a new pool of thought leaders.

When women can offer new interpretations of religious texts such as the Koran, it allows for the emergence of moderate voices and views within Muslim society.

In most cases, giving a public voice to Muslim women’s opinions is giving voice to antiextremist perspectives on Islam. Educating women to be jurists, or supporting their participation in political decisionmaking, would not only act as leaven in societies where their ideas have traditionally been repressed, it would provide the space to help others actively challenge extremism.

If the US really wants to support Afghanistan, it should start by acting as the Afghan Women’s Network suggests and implement the policies and human rights agreements which the US has already signed, such as United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, throughout US security operations by making women equal players at all levels.

Another way to support that would be to increase the use of US female troops in the already existing Female Engagement Teams (whose mission is to engage with local Afghan women) in Afghanistan and to mobilize them consistently. That type of modeling of respect for women and show of empowerment, would dramatically improve the US ability to build positive relations with both male and female community members, and through that improve US chances at creating a more stable environment in general.

We know that Muslim women’s rights agendas vary from country to country, from conflict zone to repressive regimes. Their problems are not monolithic and require solutions appropriate to their own particular Islamic cultural, political, and social context. Policymakers working on the development and direction of funds in places like Afghanistan should draw on these women’s experience, dedication, and knowledge to increase our combined ability to come up with appropriate, culturally sensitive, and long lasting solutions to combat extremist agendas.

Sahana Dharmapuri is a gender adviser and lecturer on conflict and security issues.

IN PICTURES: Behind the veil

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