The Hidden Pearls

i really agree with u...
we r not first modren poeples or a modified one first we r a muslims..
purdah is not only of a coverings but also of a eye ..if a girl is wearing covering just like sherah and having no respect of their religion she just wear that purdah bcoz of her parent force n she has no interest thats is not the the rules of islam..islam is not the religion of cruelisim..n forcing each every saying to apply it...
its give u a thinking..and a new approach which makes ur mind clear n without any confusion..
u see the way of modren english society but their way we should know we r better than them if we follow the rules of islam..and specially girlz they r the hidden pearls..really every muslim girl is respected and dignified for all if she follow the ways of quran and purdah makes her innocent and different but its not mean to cut from modrenism..we also involove different activities..but the main thing is that we dont forget our limitations..
BINA SHAH u written so well and nice and i think that pamphelat is too good every girlz should read it..and i like ur writing style..n in a very simple and smooth way..
again i feeling very nice 2read ur article coz its havinga message a true concept...

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

``The Hidden Pearls``


I think the approach is not right. Women or men, they are all human alike and should have the dignity as humans. We men ,I think, have no special resposibilities towards women as they should be given all the freedom they need to live as full citizens. once we understand that rule of law should prevail and everybody is treated equal in the eyes of law, there will not be the need to advance such faulty arguments of women being pearls or diamonds. It is our nice treatment and compassion towards humanity which makes other people,man or woman a diamond.

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

Bina,

Good subject matter choice. It is important to discuss these issues. I understand your concern to promote ``freedom of choice`` when it comes to dress and other matters, presumably. The problem is that passing pamphlets around encouraging people to dress in a certain manner (whether liberal or conservative) is wrong--especially when religion is used to browbeat people into adopting a certain dress code. As an intelligent and emancipated woman, you found the pamphlet unconvincing. But it is scary the number of women that are cajoled and coerced into adopting the hijab/niqab/burqa (``HNB``). A whole host of factors may result to this, e.g., student organizations, dawah groups, in-laws, you name it...

Believe me, this is not ``freedom of choice`` as one would like to think. This is more, as you said, an attempt to make women invisible, ensuring their participation in their own oppression. This is the result of what we in the law would call ``unequal bargaining power``.

Much has been made of the French move to ban religious symbols (including the hijab) in public places. As a French speaker, I have tuned into French TV and followed the debate carefully. Did you know that large groups of women of Arab origin actually lobbied for the ban, a fact little advertized in our press. Why would they do that? Because in the less affluent parts of France, where low-income and less-educated Arab communities abound, girls who did not wear the hijab fell prey to harrassment and sexual attack. They were considered immoral and thus easy prey. This is the type of atmosphere that is created when ``covering up`` is given too much importance (``hidden pearls``, as the title of your article suggests).

HNB have never been a solution to sexual harrassment nor have they served to resurrect women`s honour/dignity. It only serves to run away from the problem instead of addressing it through punishment for the aggressor/attacker. In societies where women are constantly hidden, the male population does think less of them and is frustrated to become doubly lecherous. In Saudi Arabia, for example (where I spent several years), it was common to hear ex-pats say ``You know you`ve spent too much time in Saudi when you can tell a size 10 by her ankles``. So in reality the HNB only serve to exacerbate, not solve the problem of sexual harrassment.

The Quran repeatedly calls for moderation (which is to be interpreted according to time and place). Islam is a sensible, logical religion. And in fact the word hijab implies reserve. Islam calls for respect/reserve on the part of both sexes when dealing with each other. This can easily be done by wearing otherwise modest dress, without necessarily covering the hair or face, which has actually at times become more of an attention seeking instrument--women in Arabia, equally frustrated by the oppressive environment, have actually confessed to using the niqab to show heavily made up eyes rather than hide the face. I think we need to focus on respectable behavior on the part of both men and women rather than any strict particular dress code, which neither ensures nor promotes morality.

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

gujjubania alias shamsul #97 #98 No you are neither shamsul nor gujjubania: you claimed earlier, you half brained man, that you were in fact a brahmin masquerading as a gujjbania because you thought this would cause people to look down upon you and then you would reveal yourself.

What you are is an example of the kind of trash that chowk staff - if they were doing their job - would kick out from chowk. As they they did with 12-head (who, like you, thought he was being clever by adopting different nicks).

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

gujjubania alias shamsul #94 Ha! Ha! I have my very own admirer on chowk. Teaching me IP addresses with one head, venting his frustration at being ignored with the other head.

What do they do to you people in India that you grow up to be two-headed mutants?

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

ha! You and your family honor.

You woudnt know what it is if it bit you.

If you guys had any honor, you woudnt be talking about your desire to see women moving around nekkid.

Only time you feel ``insulted`` when someone else exposes your hypocrisy.
Besides, the hamidm really doesnt need your help, infact, you are giving him a bad name by asking him to conform to silly ideas like honor and respect for women and all that. And he is really beyond that.

Ask many white folks that live around his house and get entertained.