1. The calls to ban the burqa or niqaab prove that the West has completely lost the intellectual argument for their way of life. They have failed to convince Muslim women to leave the hijab or niqaab in favour of the dress code of Western women. The fact they feel they can only resort to bans to stop them from wearing the niqaab is truly a victory for the values of Islam over their values.
2. The noise in the media over this issue masks two things: Firstly, the status of women in western societies and, secondly, the deeply racist and xenophobic values in Europe and the UK.
On the first issue, women have been sold a lie of freedom and ‘empowerment’ in the West. In reality, Western society, as a whole, views a woman as a sexual object to be enjoyed by men. The constant sexualisation of women in Western society - through advertising and ‘entertainment’ is truly shameful, damaging to society and has lowered the dignity and honour of women. Polls have shown that:
• 66 % of women in the UK would consider plastic surgery because of concerns about their looks
• 63 % of young women aspire to be glamour models or lap dancers
• 54 % of women became aware of the 'need' to be attractive between 6 - 17 years of age
In addition, regulations on 'lads mags', video games that debase women and lap dancing clubs are extremely lax in Britain, despite evidence presented to the Home Office in February 2010 that these things pressurise girls and boys into adopting damaging attitudes and behaviour.
It has become so routine to accept women to be degraded in this way that at the 2008 Conservative Party conference delegates were shamelessly offered discount vouchers to a lap dancing club!
By contrast, Islam gave women honour and dignity 1400 years ago and prohibited the exploitation of women by men as sexual objects in society. Women are not valued according to their physical bodies but valued as equal human beings in society.
Allah Ta’ala prescribed the manner of dress and code of conduct between men and women in society so that each cannot oppress the other and deal with each other as human beings and not sexual commodities. In this way men and women become productive members of society. Islamic history is inundated with great successful women who were teachers, doctors, scholars, jurists, muhadditheen and businesswomen, interacting in society not on the basis of their physical appearance but on the strength of their intellect and taqwa. Indeed, Allah ‘Azza wa Jall gave this value and motivation equally to men and women, and illustrated how human beings should be valued in Surah Ahzaab 33 verse 35:
“Muslim men and Muslim women, and Believing men and Believing women, and devout obedient men and devout obedient women, and truthful men and truthful women, and patient constant men and patient constant women, and humble men and humble women, and charitable men and charitable women, and men who fast and women who fast, and chaste men and chaste women, and men who remember Allah much and women who remember Allah much – Allah has prepared for them all forgiveness and a great Reward.”
On the second issue, the debate re banning the niqaab exposes the intolerance of Western societies. All the talk of freedom, tolerance and pluralism is simply a smokescreen behind which lie the old European values of racism, intolerance and bigotry. Why else would a politician raise a peripheral issue like this at a time of serious economic crisis, which doesn’t even affect the area he represents?
3. This niqaab debate is part and parcel of the wider attacks on Islam, which is conducted in order to demonise Islam and Muslims so as to justify within the population their illegal and brutal occupation of Muslim lands and the continued plunder of the resources of the Muslim world.
4. The debate deliberately centres upon a matter of ikhtilaaf in fiqh because they hope that those Muslims who do not hold the niqaab as wajib will denounce the dress – so encouraging a division between ‘moderates’ and ‘extremists’ amongst Muslims. Whatever our view on the fiqh of niqaab, Muslims should respect the different opinions of the fuqaha (jurists) on this subject and not open an unnecessary debate. The real debate is how women are treated in the West and how Islam liberated the woman from being enslaved to men, to slavery to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.
Muslims in Europe need to remain united in the face of this attack; to raise their voices on this issue exposing the falsity of women’s liberation in the West and show how Islam raised the status of women in society. These issues show that Muslims in Europe need to stand for their Islam, engage in this battle of ideas and carry the message of Islam to the ordinary peoples of the West, who are fed lies on a daily basis about Islam by their politicians and media.
Allah Ta’ala says in Surah Fussilat 41 v33: “And who is better in speech than one calls men to Allah and says “I am one of those who are Muslims”?” (Ends)
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