Rights of Muslim Females This is a very important issue to address; it shows how the great religion of Islam views

woman, and how it pays great respect and attention to them. First of all, I would like to re-affirm that, the almighty Allah has created everything as He reveals to us in Quran Suwrah Alzomar, Allah has created everything and He is in control and in charge, in command of everything. The almighty Allah has the power to create and has the authority to order His creations, as He says in Quran Suwrah Alaaraf, "Allah alone is the Creator and the Lord." Allah shows us that He has created two genders in the human race male and female; two different kinds of beings man and woman, as He says in Quran Suwrah Alnagm, And He the almighty Allah has created both male and female from single drop of semen, and to Him shall we eventually return. There are some very important facts that we must keep in mind: 1. The physical creation of male is different from the physical creation of female, and the differences exist because the Creator intended for them to be physically different. 2. The physical creation of each sex is suitable and fits for the purposes, responsibilities and
roles the Creator intended for each gender.

The physical body of the male is created to suit his roles and responsibilities; and similarly the physical body of the female is also suitable and fits for her roles and duties as a woman. Consequently, according to our Creator and the teachings of Islam, the roles and responsibilities of each sex are different. This does not mean that they are not equal in the eyes of the Creator; it simply means that they were created for different purposes. Each of them is in fact equal in their obligations to their Creator Allah, such as praying, fasting, and being kind to their parents; they both have similar obligations to their relatives and neighbours. As Allah tells us in Quran Suwrah 2, Women have their rights exactly same as they have responsibility; and men have over degree in responsibility. Allah is Mighty, Wise.
Islam reveres all women and demands that every man think of women either as a mother, aunt, sister, daughter, wife, or grandmother. Each of these social designations demands the respect, attention, and appropriate treatment from all men.

Let us study the status of women in societies before the advent of Islam.
In the past, women were degraded and generally used as objects of desire. The followings are examples from history, which illustrate the fact that the status of women in earlier civilizations was very low, to the extent that they were denied basic human dignity:

A. Babylonian Civilization Women were degraded and denied all rights under the Babylonian law. If a man murdered a woman, instead of him being punished, his wife was put to death.

B. Greek Civilization Greek Civilization is considered the most glorious of all ancient civilizations. Under this very glorious system, women were deprived of all rights, and were looked down upon. In Greek mythology, an imaginary woman called Pandora was the root cause of misfortune of human beings. The Greeks considered women to be subhuman and inferior to men. Prostitution became a regular practice amongst all classes of Greek society. C. Roman Civilization When Roman Civilization was at the top of its glory, a man even had the right to unjustifiably take the life of his wife. Prostitution and nudity were common practice amongst the Romans. D. Egyptian Civilization The Egyptians considered women to be evil and a sign of the devil. E. Pre-Islamic Arabia Before Islam spread in Arabia, the Arabs looked down upon women. And very often, when a female child was born, she was buried alive. When Islam came, it uplifted women and gave them equality and expected them to maintain their status. Islam raised the status of women and granted them their just rights 1400 years ago. In Islam, a woman has the basic freedom of choice and expression based on recognition of her individual personality. In Islam, a woman is free to choose her religion, as Allah says in Quran Suwrah Albaqara, No compulsion in religion, because truth stands out clear from error. In Islam, women are encouraged to contribute their opinions and ideas. There are many traditions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) which indicate that women would ask questions directly to him and offer their opinions concerning religion, economics and social matters. In Islam, a Muslim woman chooses her husband, and keeps her name after marriage. In Islam, a Muslim woman's testimony is valid in legal disputes. In fact, in areas in which women are more familiar, their evidence is conclusive. According to our great Islam, the female has four primary functions, duties and responsibilities: 1. Being a mother and having babies. This is of course done through the proper and legal contract of marriage between herself and her husband according to the guidelines of Islam.

As Allah says in Quran Suwrah Abaqara, When you make intimacy with your wife, it is proper to intend to have baby. 2. Upbringing, nurturing and raising children. It means that a Muslim woman is not only responsible to feed and clean her children, but also she, along with her husband, has to teach them their proper roles, responsibilities, and manners as Muslims to offer love and respect to the parents, to ask for permission before entering any area closed by a door, to respect the privacy of others, to care about others, to be charitable, to maintain good relationships with their relatives, to carefully choose their friends, to respect their neighbours, and so on. As our prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) says, A man to discipline his son is better for him than to give charity. 3. Taking care of her husband. It means to take care of her husband, to love him, and to treat him with kindness and caring, to be beautiful for him whenever she can, to do her best to give him a quiet and peaceful home, to share with him her affection and thoughts, to consult with him on matters of importance, to accommodate his wishes and to recognize him as the head of household, and be frugal whenever she can to protect the welfare and wealth of her family. As Allah says in Quran Suwrah 30, That sign from Allah is that He created mates for you from your own kind, that you may find comfort in them, and He places between you love, kindness, and compassion; most surely there are signs in this for people who reflect. 4. Taking care of her household. This basically means to keep her home clean and tidy. These primary duties don't mean that Muslim woman should never ever leave her home, or that she can not go outside to do her shopping, or to enjoy a visit with her relatives, or her sisters in Islam, and so on, but it means that, these primary duties should have a high priority in her life.
In Islam, every Muslim woman should wear the garments and clothing of a woman who believes in Allah and his messenger. Allah obligates head cover upon every adult Muslim female, and He orders every Muslim woman to dress modestly, and not to show off her body or any of her adornment to any man, except her husband, because Allah has shown us that, He, as a Creator, made sexual desire between male and female. As Allah says in Quran Suwrah Al Emran, The love toward women is pure nature of men, and as Allah says in Suwrah Al Araaf, O Sons of Adam, we have provided you with garments that cover your private parts. The cover of piety is always the best of cover for you. O children of Adam, do not let Satan deceive you, as he managed to get your grandparents (Adam and Eve) out of paradise. He tore away their garments and exposed their private parts. So Allah has obligated upon every Muslim woman to cover all her body except her face and her hands, as Allah says in Suwrah Al Noor, Tell the believers to lower their gaze and protect their private parts from any forbidden sexual behaviours. That

is purer for them. Verily, Allah is all-aware of what they do. And tell the woman believers to lower their gaze and protect their private parts from any forbidden sexual behaviours, and not to show off their bodies or adornments, except their faces and hands, and to draw their head covers to cover all of their hair and breasts. Because the whole body of a Muslim woman is considered an "exposure," except their hands and faces.

The Quran says that Hijaab has been prescribed for women, so that they are recognized as being modest women, which may also prevent them from being molested. For example, suppose two equally beautiful twin sisters walk down a street. One of them is attired in the Islamic Hijaab, i.e. the complete body is covered, except for the face and the hands up to the wrists. The other sister is wearing western clothes, such as a miniskirt or shorts. Around the corner is an ignorant youth who is waiting for a catch to tease a girl. Whom will he tease the girl wearing the Islamic Hijaab or the girl wearing the miniskirt or shorts? Naturally, he will tease the girl in the more revealing dress. So the Quran rightly considers that Hijaab prevents women from being molested. The only person that is permitted to look at her body is her husband, and the following individuals are allowed to see above her breast and under her knees: her father, her husband's father, her sons, her husband's sons, her brother, brother's sons, sister's sons, other Muslim women, elderly servants, any impotent males, and infants (before adolescence). And they should not use their feet to announce or show off any of their adornments, as Allah says in Suwrah Al Noor, And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and adornments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof, and they should draw their veils to cover all their body, and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husband's fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or other Muslim women, or elderly servants, or any impotent males, and infants (before adolescence). And instruct the believing women not to use their feet to announce or show off any of their adornments, and all of you believers should repent and seek Allah's forgiveness, so that you may be successful. And as Allah says in Suwrah Al Ahzab, O prophet Muhammed, tell your wives, your daughters, and the women believers to cover all their bodies. That will be better for them to be recognized as decent women, which is more suitable for them to be known [as chaste, believing women], and away from anyone bothering them. Allah is most forgiving, most merciful. In conclusion, every Muslim woman should obey Allah and His orders, by protecting her private parts, wearing her scarf, and covering all her body without showing off her body or anything from her adornments, except to those whom are permissible for them to look at her. Western society falsely claims to have uplifted women In western countries, where liberation encompasses unlimited freedom, women are actually finding themselves living lives that are unsatisfying and meaningless. In their quest for liberation, they have abandoned the ideals of morality and stability and

found themselves in marriages and families that bear little resemblance to "real life." What is so liberating about being forced to work all day and coming home at night to housework? What is so liberating about having babies who, at six weeks of age, can be deposited in child care centres to learn their behaviour and morality from strangers? Allah prohibits us from insulting, abusing or mistreating women, but He obligates upon us to be nice, kind, generous, and mercy with them. Allah also orders us to spend and be generous to our wives to help them whenever we can, to protect her from harm to the best of our ability. Islam emphasizes the rights of woman as a wife in case of divorce.

Islam gives a woman all the right to choose her husband, and no one can force her to marry a man that she refuses to accept as her husband. Neither her father who is her rightful custodian and responsible for her, nor any body else has the right or authority to force her into marriage. In conclusion, the Muslim woman was given the roles, duties and rights 1400 years ago that most women do not enjoy today even in the West.