I Twittered this two days ago:
President Sarkozy — my new hero.
And on being asked what I meant posted this link.
I then got this reply from a friend who has been teaching English in Riyadh for a while:
“He’s pathetically uninformed, as he has been on issues such as these since he took office. Forcing someone NOT to wear something is just as bad as forcing them to wear it. Many Muslim women prefer to wear it, for religious reasons or otherwise. Would you honestly rather see these women locked in their homes, Ina?”
At that point I was wondering if I had to wear a burqa for him to have enough respect for me to get my name right. Anyway, this was my not overly eloquent reply:
“I think you’re totally barking up the wrong tree. I would like men of those cultures to have enough respect for those women not to call them whores for NOT wearing big, black sacks. I would like them to be evolved enough to take responsibility for their own sexuality NOT to blame women when men rape.
There is a lot more to the burqa than meets the eye.
In Europe we used to burn witches. We got over it. Is it not time for the Arab nations to get over their hatred of women too?”
In return I got this considered answer:
“I respect that, Ine, but you assume, like most westerners (as I did) that the burqa is a “symbol” of subjugation to women for all Muslims. It is only a symbol in OUR eyes. If they believed the Christian cross symbolized imprisonment, would we? I’m not denying that men rape and beat their wives, but this occurs among all societies and religions, is … Read more a product of education and opportunities, and not what we friggin’ wear. Believe it or not, I’ve met plenty of muslim men who don’t beat their wives, who are more “evolved” than any European will ever be, and whose wives feel happy to wear the burqa because they are free to. FREE to, Ine. I’m not barking up the wrong tree, I’m saying this is complicated and Sarkozy is simplifying the issue for political purposes and nothing else.”
Hey! I didn’t have to wear a burqa for him to, eventually, get my name right after all! Progress! But that’s hardly the point here. But look carefully at his two main arguments. He asks me if I would want to see those women locked in their homes and then tells me they are FREE to wear the burqa. Um. That’s where he lost me. Because that doesn’t sound like any sort of freedom to me. Only if you are free not to wear one can you also be free to wear one. At least to my mind. So in this respect, I am the one who is free to wear one, whereas they will have to remain in their homes if they choose not to. Which is not a real choice.
I would love to hear what others have to say, but preferably not white Canadian men who teach in Riyadh… Or white Western men in general. Best of all: I would like to hear what burqa-wearing women have to say on the topic. That would be far more interesting than anything J or I — and especially Sarkozy — might have to say on the topic. Suffice it to say, I choose not to wear a burqa, I choose not to wear a hijab, but my stance on the former is 100% negative, whereas the hijab I have no problem with. After all, it is a lot more appealing than the Christian symbol of a tortured, bleeding and dying man nailed to a cross. I even think I would resort to the hijab if I were to loose my hair instead of a wig. Or I’d just have my scalp tattooed.
Sorry. Rambling. Over and out.
Hi Ine,
I think you might find the following book interesting: http://www.amazon.com/Sixty-Million-Frenchmen-Cant-Wrong/dp/1402200455/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246034087&sr=8-1
It doesn’t deal with the burqua question specifically, but it does deal with the French attitude to immigrants and immigration.
I’m not a big Sarkozy fan, but what he is doing is pretty much mainstream as far as France is concerned. To sumarize; their attitude as a nation is that, if you want to come here and live in France, you are welcome to do so, but you will do so as a French person – no allowances for where you came from or what you believe. It opens up a whole area of discussion about how codified life in France actually is (the book gives some great examples). I just find it ironic that Sarkozy is sugar coating it with a veneer of “human rights” to try to make France look better.
Just read here: http://www.peacewomen.org/news/Afghanistan/May05/burqa.html
Or here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-410376/What-really-feels-like-wear-burqa.html
Or here: http://www.q-news.com/media-DailyMail-Burka.htm
Or here: http://relijournal.com/islam/the-burqa-facts-issues/
Or here: http://www.jihadwatch.org/dhimmiwatch/archives/024098.php
You see, you’re not the only one thinking about this rather ugly piece of cloth (as we see it). And it depends who you ask but you will surely get a variety of answers within the wide range between “I wear it because of religious reasons” and “I feel imprisoned because I have to wear it”.
As you might know, the Quran does not even mention the burqa. The Quran never really tells you what to do (and neither does the bible). The Quran mainly means (and some Quran school might hate me for writing this) a quide to a healthy and longer life written at a time when hygiene was not a main thing and little was known about illnesses and cures. The Quran itself is a guide to a good living in a society that started growing together.
Quran-schools started interpreting what was written down and so there are several constructions of the “rules”. It depends in which Arab country you are and you will see rather western style as well as traditional Arabic style.
I’ve been to Kuwait several times before it was invaded by the Iraq and I can’t say that women had equal rights but they were treated respectful and never had to wear a burqa.
I know what you want. You want total freedom and equality for men and women all over the world. You grew up in a society where it is (nearly) this way (in fact is a shame that it is not this way). But many countries are still stuck in the mediaeval times (some were bombed back to it due to a crazy president’s decision). These countries struggle with their adaptation to the modern world and the only stable thing they have in a constantly faster changing world is their religion and what was left from their tradition.
Once they are ready to change these they will do, but as long as they can live with their tradition and religion AND benefit from the modern world’s “goodies”, they will remain as they are. I saw men and women driving modern cars but still going back to live in a nomad’s tent in their holidays.
One does not always has to adapt to everything (as far as I know you still do not use the native language of the country you live in), so let the ones who want to adapt find their own way out of the burqa and into western style clothing. Let these systems change from within. You can’t change them from the outside (as a former president had to learn).
Women are not weak and when they ask for their rights loud enough they will be heared. Not necessarily the very moment they speak, but they will be heared. It took these people centuries to build up their society and you can’t expect that they can completely change it within less than 50 years.