Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Afghan law on women brings societal conflict onto world stage
Outside the gates of Kabul University, young Shiite women in fashionable black jackets and scarves hopped off city buses each morning last week, then strolled to biology and law classes alongside clusters of male students, chatting about career plans.
But in a carpeted mosque a few blocks away, the Shiite imam admonished male worshipers to keep close watch on their wives and daughters, saying it is "Satan's work" when women visit public places such as shrines wearing attractive clothing. Behind a curtain, female worshipers enveloped in burqas listened in silence.
Like Afghan society at large, the country's Shiite Muslim minority is grappling with conflicting pressures between a strong tradition of male family dominance and a gradually evolving acceptance of women's modern rights. Usually, this struggle takes place out of the public eye, within families and religious communities.
To read the full article, click here..
To read the ePaper, visit: http://www.newsindia-times.com
But in a carpeted mosque a few blocks away, the Shiite imam admonished male worshipers to keep close watch on their wives and daughters, saying it is "Satan's work" when women visit public places such as shrines wearing attractive clothing. Behind a curtain, female worshipers enveloped in burqas listened in silence.
Like Afghan society at large, the country's Shiite Muslim minority is grappling with conflicting pressures between a strong tradition of male family dominance and a gradually evolving acceptance of women's modern rights. Usually, this struggle takes place out of the public eye, within families and religious communities.
To read the full article, click here..
To read the ePaper, visit: http://www.newsindia-times.com
Labels: afghan law, Afghanistan, burqas, kabul university, muslims, religious communities, shiite imam, shiite muslim minority, shitte women
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