CaS e-book.pdf - Women Living Under Muslim Laws

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Control and Sexuality C
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The Revival of Laws in Muslim Contexts o
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ControlÊandÊSexualityÊexaminesÊzinaÊlawsÊinÊsomeÊMuslimÊcontextsÊ a
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criminalisationÊofÊsexuality,Êgender-basedÊviolenceÊandÊwomenÕsÊrightsÊ

activism.ÊTheÊViolenceÊisÊNotÊOurÊCultureÊCampaignÊandÊtheÊWomenÊ S
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LivingÊUnderÊMuslimÊLawsÊnetworkÊpresentÊthisÊcomparativeÊstudyÊandÊ
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feministÊanalysisÊofÊzinaÊlawsÊasÊaÊcontributionÊtoÊtheÊbroaderÊobjectiveÊ u
ofÊendingÊviolenceÊinÊtheÊnameÊofÊÔcultureÕ.ÊItÊisÊhopedÊthatÊtheÊ a
publicationÊwillÊhelpÊactivists,Êpolicy-makers,ÊresearchersÊandÊotherÊcivilÊ l
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religionÊareÊinvokedÊtoÊjustifyÊlawsÊthatÊcriminaliseÊwomenÕsÊsexualityÊ
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ÒItÊisÊmostÊtimelyÊthatÊthisÊpublicationÊshouldÊemergeÊwhenÊissuesÊofÊcultureÊandÊ
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CM andÊgirls.ÊAllÊharmfulÊpractices,ÊregardlessÊofÊprovenanceÊandÊjustification,ÊmustÊ
MY beÊeliminated.ÊAllÊhumanÊrightsÊareÊuniversal,ÊindivisibleÊandÊinter-related.ÊItÊisÊmyÊ
hopeÊthatÊbyÊbuildingÊuponÊtheÊprogressive,ÊequitableÊandÊjustÊaspectsÊofÊcultureÊ
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CMY theÊpromotionÊofÊrights,ÊunderÊlawÊandÊcustom.Ó
K FaridaÊShaheed,ÊUNÊIndependentÊExpertÊonÊCulturalÊRights
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M
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Women Living Under Muslim Laws n
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ić The Revival of Laws in Muslim Contexts

Ziba Mir-Hosseini and Vanja Hamzić
Control and Sexuality
Zina
The Revival of Laws in Muslim Contexts
Women Living Under Muslim Laws
Control and Sexuality
The Revival of Zina Laws in Muslim Contexts
Ziba Mir-Hosseini and Vanja Hamzić
First edition
Copyright © Women Living Under Muslim Laws 2010
All rights reserved.
Part of this book may be quoted or used as long as the authors and publisher are acknowledged. No
part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes without prior
written permission from the copyright owner.
Published by:
Women Living Under Muslim Laws
PO Box 28445
London N19 5NZ
UK
[email protected]
www.wluml.org
Printed by:
The Russell Press, Nottingham UK
Design:
Kika Sroka-Miller
Cover art:
Vanja Hamzić
Page layout/typesetting:
Nandita Dutta
WLUML Publications Officer
ISBN: 978-1-907024-08-5
Publications of the international solidarity network, Women Living Under Muslim Laws, aim to provide
information about the lives, struggles and strategies of women living in diverse Muslim communities
and countries. WLUML publications are meant to make accessible to a wide readership the broadest
possible strands of opinion within varied movements or initiatives promoting greater autonomy of
women living in Muslim contexts. The publications seek to inform and help share different experiences,
strategies and interpretations.
The information contained in WLUML publications does not necessarily represent the views and
positions of the publishers or of the network Women Living Under Muslim Laws, unless stated.
Contents

v Acknowledgements
vii Glossary
1 Foreword
3 Preface
5 Introduction
19 Criminalising Sexuality:
Zina Laws as Violence Against Women in Muslim Contexts
49 Indonesia
81 Iran
117 Nigeria
153 Pakistan
181 Turkey
215 Conclusion
227 About the Authors
229 Index
iii

Acknowledgements
This book has been inspired by the writings and actions of countless individuals and
groups who have paved the way for feminist analyses of the factors that perpetuate
violence against women, including in the fields of law and culture.
We would like to extend special thanks to those who have directly contributed to this
initiative: Homa Hoodfar, who suggested and encouraged this area of research, and the
authors of this book. Ziba Mir-Hosseini’s chapter ‘Criminalising Sexuality’, which was
previously published as a policy paper by the VNC Campaign, provided the conceptual
framework for the book; she also wrote the country chapter on Iran. Vanja Hamzić wrote the
Introduction, the chapters on Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria and Turkey, and the Conclusion.
We are also grateful for the research input of Zara Saeidzadeh. We express our gratitude
to the expert reviewers for the country chapters: Ayesha M Imam, Sohail Akbar Warraich,
Vivienne Wee and Seval Yildirim. The contribution to the Indonesia chapter from
colleagues in Solidaritas Perempuan, Koalisi NGO Ham in Aceh and Farid Mottaqin has
been invaluable. The authors of the book are also deeply grateful to Richard Tapper, Safet
Hadžimuhamedović, Muhammad Khalid Masud and Lynn Welchman for their support,
incisive comments and editorial help.
We also wish to acknowledge Aisha Lee Shaheed, Deputy Coordinator of the WLUML
International Coordination Office, who initiated the project, co-ordinated the publication,
and reviewed and commented on the manuscript at various stages; and Edna Aquino,
Campaign Manager of the Violence is Not Our Culture (VNC) Campaign, for her insightful
comments and advice drawn from her distinctive lens as a feminist and human rights
advocate, and for managing the writing and reviewing process until its completion. Thank
you also to Shaina Greiff for her style-editing contributions within a short time frame, and
to Carolyn Barnett for her invaluable all-round assistance on the final stages of the book’s
production.
We appreciate the generous support from two anonymous grants, which have supported
the research, production and distribution of this publication.
We dedicate this publication to people around the world for their relentless efforts to claim
their rights and those of others, and for affirming that upholding and promoting cultures
must be founded on fundamental principles of respect, dignity and justice for all.
v

Glossary
Across Muslim countries and communities, there are multiple spellings and different words
for essentially the same thing. For example, a judge or other authority who hears cases
concerning Muslims is known variously as a cadi/kadi/kazi/kathi/khati/qazi/quazi/qadi/
qadhi. In general, the problem arises from the challenge of transliterating and translating
Arabic words into local languages. In the text of this book, we have opted for either
the version most commonly accepted or that which we believe would be most widely
recognised, without implying that there is any one ‘correct’ spelling.
Acquis communautaire: ‘Accumulated’ legislation: legal acts and case law.
Ad absurdum: To an absurd extent.
Ad acta: To archives; not actual any more.
Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi (AKP): Justice and Development Party (Turkey).
Adhan/Ezan: Muslim call to prayer.
Ahadith: See Hadith.
Ahmadi/Ahmadiyya: Islamic religious movement established in British-controlled
Northern India; a sect of Islam prevalent in South Asia, largely unrecognised by the
Pakistani state and marginalised in other contexts.
Ahwal al-syakhshiyyah: Personal matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance.
Aisyiyah (Nasyiatul Aisyiyah): Women’s branch of the major Indonesian Muslim politico-
religious organisation Muhammadiyah, representing so-called ‘modernist’ Muslims.
Al-zaniah wa al-zani: Fornication.
‘Alim: ‘One who has knowledge’; a scholar. See Ulama/Ulema.
Alkali: Judge of a Muslim court (Hausa) (Nigeria).
Analisa gender: Gender analysis (Indonesia).
Anayasa Mahkemesi: Constitutional Court (Turkey).
Aqd al-nikah: ‘Contract of coitus’; contract of marriage, religious marriage ceremony.
Askeri: Ottoman Turkish term that refers to a class of imperial administrators in the Ottoman
Empire. The term itself literally means ‘of the military’, it more broadly encompasses all
higher levels of imperial administration.
Askeri Yargıtay: Military Court of Cassation (Turkey).
Askeri Yüksek İdare Mahkemesi: Supreme Military Administrative Court (Turkey).
vii
Zina
Control and Sexuality: The Revival of Laws in Muslim Contexts
Atatürk: Lit. ‘The Father of the Turks’, exclusive surname of Mustafa Kemal, first president of
Turkish Republic, via a legal act.
‘Awra: Shameful; pudenda – for men, the area between knees and navel; for women, all the
body apart from hands, feet and face.
Badal-i-sulh: Customary compensation.
Baghi: Rebellion.
Bahá’i: Monotheistic world/global religion that originated in 19th century Persia/Iran.
Barelvi: School of thought, named after seminary established in colonial India – has
preferred an esoteric path, which is associated with the subcontinent’s numerous Sufi
orders.
Basij: Volunteer militia set up by the Islamic Republic of Iran as the vanguard of the Islamic
revolution; today they often act as Moral Police in Iran.
Başörtü: Traditional Turkish head cover for women, still worn by elderly women in rural
areas.
Bernuansa: Nuances (Indonesia).
Bhinneka tunggal ika: Motto of the Republic of Indonesia: ‘fragmented, yet one’ (Old
Javanese); unity in diversity.
Çağdaşlaşma: Modernisation (Turkey).
Carte blanche: Lit. ‘white paper’ (French); complete freedom to act on one’s wishes.
Chador: In Iran, this is a long semicircle of fabric, which is wrapped to conceal the whole
female body from head to toe except the face and worn by women as a loose outer
garment. Traditionally of many different colours and patterns, in the Islamic Republic it is
usually black. In Pakistan, it is available in all colours and made of a long rectangular cloth,
which can be of any material, such as wool in winter, cotton or other fabrics in summer.
Traditionally, it is worn loosely wrapped around the upper part of the body and over the
head. The length and width of the cloths, and therefore the extent to which it covers the
body, varies from community to community.
Chador aur char diwari: Lit. ‘veil and four walls’ referring to gender segregation, i.e. women
veiled and within the confines of the home (South Asia).
Da’awah/da‘wa: Preaching and teaching; proselytising.
Daerah istimewa: Special territory (Indonesia).
Danıştay: Council of State (Turkey).
viii