Women Leading Change
US Islamic World Forum
Feb 18-20, 2006 – Doha, Qatar
As the first woman ever elected to head an Islamic nation, I feel a special responsibility regarding issues that relate to women.
Women rights must be promoted both by the US and the Islamic countries.
The Quran and the Traditions of the Prophet are the sources from which every Muslim derive their rights and duties.
Today people say that the women’s liberation movement began in the 20th century.
Actually- although it is not reflected in Muslim societies – the women’s rights movement is as old as Islam.
The Quran is insistent on the full participation of women in the society and the equality of men and women.
Men and women perform Haj, the Muslim Pilgrimage side by side.
In Islam, neither gender can be superior because it would be a contradiction of equality.
Women are also encouraged in Islam to contribute their opinions and ideas. Bibi Khadeja, the wife of the Prophet (PBUH) was the first witness to Islam. She was a working woman, a business woman.
A Muslim woman chooses her husband and keeps her name after marriage.
In terms of human rights, the Quran makes no distinction between men and women.
Islam does not forbid a woman from holding important positions in government. Abdur-Rahman Ibn Auf consulted many women before he recommended Hazrat Uthman to be the Caliph.
The Prophet of Islam (PBUH) preached equal rights for women; now the task before us all is to restore them in the Islamic World.
The fact that four Muslim countries (Pakistan, BanglaDesh, Turkey and Indonesia) have had five female heads of government gives assurance that the problems of women in Islamic societies can be seriously addressed.
To me, there is nothing more unIslamic than discrimination.
There is nothing more unIslamic than violence against women.
And above all, there is nothing more unIslamic than terrorism – the killing of innocent men, women and children.
It is not easy for women in modern society, whether it’s in Dhaka, Doha or Dallas.
Even though women’s representation has been steadily increasing in parliaments since 1990, women still only occupy a total of 16 percent of seats worldwide.
In the US Senate there are only 13 women Senators, while there are only 3 to 4 women Governors.
In the corporate world, there are currently only 8 female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. Women hold only 12% of seats on Board of Directors of Fortune 500 companies.
In the Islamic World, there is the perception that a good leader is inherently masculine. This is because men tend to evaluate men more positively and women more negatively. Only recently, there has been representation given to women in Parliaments of certain Islamic countries. Women will be optimistic if there are more women role models in leadership.
Key challenges for women in the next five years.
There needs to be more of a shift in investing in programs that help more women get elected to office and appointed to leadership positions in government to build stronger democracies.
First Education:
Education leads to job opportunities – opportunities that are critical to the empowerment of women.
Second Judicial Representation:
Gender equality is essential to the dispensation of justice.
Third Law Enforcement:
We need women in the police force and also police stations entirely run by women to address the difficulties and social stigma women face when wishing to report crimes against them.
Fourth Media:
Many women are ignorant of their rights. An advertising campaign can inform women that violence against them by their family members is illegal.
Fifth Hostels for Women:
Women’s hostels are important so that women have a place of shelter if abused by members of their family.
Sixth: Availability of child care centers to facilitate women who wish to work.
Seventh Credit for Women:
Women need access to credit to establish business of their own.
My Government opened a woman’s bank, run by women for women, — although men could keep their money in it too if they wanted – because we believed that economic independence is the key to social equality.
This is the model of an Islamic society that must be sustained as one billion Muslims reach a critical path in development.
There is a choice.
Education or ignorance.
The past or the future.
And central to this fork in the road is the status of women in Islamic societies. Because where opportunities for women flourish, extremism withers.
And at this critical time, this time of crisis, I see signs of change that make me optimistic about the future.
The model to expand rights for women has been embraced by several young, progressive, reformist leaders — KingMohamed VI of Morocco, King Abdullah of Jordan, Sheik Hamad of Qatar and the leaders of the United Arab Emirates. These leaders are engaging in the delicate exercise of pushing women forward to jump start societal change.
Step by step, empowerment cannot be denied.
Economic empowerment,
Legal empowerment,
The right to vote.
The right to hold office.
The right to lead.
Do women lead differently.
And I do think that women lead differently.
Maybe it’s stereotypical, but I think that women leaders are more nurturing and sensitive to the social needs of society. Invariably, women’s rights lead to further modernization of society as educational, housing and health needs are finally met.
The US and the Islamic world can accelerate this process by making democracy and pluralism a center piece of bilateral relations.
But let us be frank. Democracy — alone — is not enough.
Empowerment is not only the right to become a Prime Minister.
Empowerment is the right to be economically independent.
Empowerment is the right to be educated and make choices.
Empowerment is the right to have the opportunity to select a career.
Empowerment is the right to own property, to start a business, to flourish in the marketplace.
Empowerment is the right to rationally plan and balance profession and family.
So, ladies and gentlemen, the task of women over the next decade is multidimensional.
The next decade cannot be a decade of confrontation and contention.
It cannot be east vs. West.
It cannot be men vs. women.
It cannot be Islam vs. Christianity.
That is what the enemies of dialogue want.
We can succeed by remaining true to the values of equality, democracy, pluralism and development.
I thank the Amir of Qatar and the Brookings Institute for bringing us together here in Doha to exchange views on the future.