Tagged: women in Islam

Religious conservatives push to end girl-childhood at puberty

by Azra Naseem

Salafis and other religious conservatives in Male’ have openly begun pushing to have Maldivian girls declared women at puberty. This change would allow the marrying off of young children to other children or to older men, turning paedophilia into conjugal rights in the name of Islam.

The conservatives’ campaign has been launched opportunistically, on the back of the shocking news that a young girl of 11 gave birth at seven months last week.

 

Media is reporting a child has given birth. But I have no knowledge that a child can give birth…

 

 

Ey, you who claim to be Muslims! In ALLAH’s shariath a child becomes an adult when she has her periods, not when she’s 16, 18, 25

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Why so many male chauvinistic pigs when pork is haraam?

by Azra Naseem

For a place where all things pig is a big ‘Haraam, haraam’, the Maldives seems to be breeding a shocking amount of male chauvinistic pigs these days. Their numbers and presence have increased markedly since the coup on 7 February.

Maldivian women became a bold and vital part of the pro-democracy protests led by MDP, and has presented some very difficult problems for movers and shakers in the new regime:

  • Religious extremists see it as a kick in the teeth of their long campaign to turn Maldivian women into ‘submissive maidens of abject modesty’;
  • Coup-leaders see a very vocal and visible loss of support;
  • It is harder to find international support for a regime that brutalises women – they have to be removed from the frontlines of protests. All the easier to shoot, gas and violate the rest.

Hence a very public campaign to ridicule women who join politics by painting them as brainless harlots and MDP whores.

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