The following is the op-ed, in the original English: [1]
"The video clip of a Sudanese woman screaming, begging and writhing with pain while being publicly flogged by two laughing policemen has given rise to an international debate and criticism of Islam's perceived treatment of women.
"The woman, according to press reports, had been handed the sentence by a Sudanese court of law to punish her for indecent behavior and after giving her the option of either being imprisoned for two years or receiving a public flogging.
"Several Muslim commentators condemned the sentence and the way it was carried out, giving voice to many of us who do not view this incident as an indicator of how Islam, as a religion, perceives women or of how Muslims states, in general, behave towards their women.
"But reading through the public responses to the critical opinions of some Jordanian commentators, I noticed an interesting reaction among the Jordanian public, which appears to be built on the assumption that Muslims or Arabs somehow have a right to decide how they treat the women in their countries or how states conduct business, as a main ingredient of their sovereignty.
"This same thinking seems to guide the thinking of critics of civil society institutions that have tackled women's issues from a universal human rights perspective. In many cases, critics of these civil society organizations accuse them of implementing the agendas of 'foreign' agencies and therefore bringing 'alien' ideas to our culture.
"I have to admit that I find myself losing my temper every time I hear this criticism, not only because I work and have worked with many civil society organizations that have contributed to safeguarding women's rights and improving their general wellbeing, but also because I believe that this type of thinking and argument is what is giving Islam and Arabs a bad name internationally."
"Who Says That Beating Women is a 'Muslim Cultural Phenomenon' And That Working to Redress Violations of Women's Rights Is Somehow Un-Islamic Or Un-Arab?"
"Who says that beating women is a 'Muslim cultural phenomenon' and that working to redress violations of women's rights is somehow un-Islamic or un-Arab or alien to our culture? Are the critics actually crediting the Western world with being the champion of respect for women while somehow our so-called Eastern culture wants them humiliated and marginalized as part of our socially accepted and condoned culture?
"Respect for Women, Respect For Individual Human Beings, Regardless of Gender, Is a Universal Value That Is Not the Remit of the Western World Alone"
"Respect for women, respect for individual human beings, regardless of gender, is a universal value that is not the remit of the Western world alone, and any attempt to attribute abuse of women a 'cultural' or 'religious' dimension is just an attempt to use moral threat as an excuse to continue the subjugation of women and to pass it as somehow an ingredient of our culture."
"My Hope Is That More and More of Us Will Find the Courage to Voice Our Rejection of Such Practices"
"I found the video of the woman being flogged in a public space in front of laughing spectators very offensive – not only as a woman, but also as a Muslim and an Arab.
"Equally offensive I found the comments that sanction the behavior and try to intimidate critics, by intimating that criticism of the Sudanese sentence is somehow a rejection of Islamic teachings and Arab cultural norms.
"My hope is that more and more of us will find the courage to voice our rejection of such practices and to realign our cultural and religious norms with the internationally accepted universal values of respect for all beings, including women."
Endnote:
[1] Alarabiya.net, December 20, 2010
