FEAMLE
LEADERSHIP IN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE
Our topic:
Appointment of female leader as head of the state for the Government: Forbidden
in Islam?
It is really a hot discussing topic
among Muslims scholars. The major traditional Muslims view of this point is obviously
negative. Even till now majority of Muslim scholars do not support it.
So the questions generally come:
Are
women really subject to be subordinate to male domination n leadership? Or is
there any chance for women to be leader or can they hold the highest position
as head of the state?
However, all these questions we
search related resource materials and concerning opinions of Muslim scholars in
order to reach a reasonable conclusion within the framework of Islam. After
conducting relevant literature search journal articles, online materials and
video clips of some prominent modern Muslim scholars, now we dare to express
our opinion about the issue. To begin with, we clearly declare that our
explanation may not be hundred percent correct but we have tried our best to
explore the proper Islamic approach to female leadership according to our own
understanding of the holy Quran and Sunnah.
Leadership
Usually the leadership indicates the quality of a person for organising a
group of people to achieve a common goal. Leadership can’t be without leader.
Truly speaking, leaders are someone whom people follow, they are
the ones who guide people or direct them. Without a qualified leader no state
even no family can go well. However, in human civilization, family is the
starting step of leadership while state is the highest peak to practice.
State
and Government
Now we should turn our attention to
what we understand by the term “state” and “government”.
According
to the political science, state is a country which is considered as an organized
as an organizing political community controlled by one government. State
consists of four basic elements like population, government, territory and sovereignty.
Government is the system by which a
state or community is governed.
Government
normally consists of legislature, administrators and arbitrators.
Female
leadership through the ages
Most generally a woman comes through
various series of life in reality being daughter, sister, wife, mother and
daughter. Definitely she is the good leader in family affairs and household
managements where her counter-parts males cannot perform well. Then it doesn’t
mean that males can only show their leadership in public affairs while females
in family life only.
Female leadership in the history of politics
1.
Queen
Samsi (shamsi) of Arabia ruled her kingdom for 17 years
2.
Elizabeth
I,as a queen of England, managed to quit her catholic population with acts of
tolerance, promote government reforms.
3.
Victoria,
queen of England was the longest in England history as a ruler.
4.
Indira
Gandhi was prime minister of India
Female
leadership in Islam
Islam is not only a religion but
also it is a balanced code of life. It doesn’t say only about the life after
death, rather more importantly it emphasizes worldly affairs for Muslims.
Allah never discriminates between
men and women in terms of deeds. Whoever, he or she is judged by Allah as per
the action done by them. Therefore, men
and women are equal in Islam and equally important, though they a biologically
and physically different from one another. So all kinds of leaderships which is
given to male should give to female.
Female
leadership & Holy Quran
In the holy Quran there is no any
single verse which is directly against the appointment of a competent female
leader in head of state as president or in head of the government as prime
minister. In spite of this real truth, our traditional Muslim scholars bring
some verses of holy Quran as against of female leadership in politics and
state.
(verse:2/228: Allah said:
وَلَهُنَّ مِثْلُ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِنَّ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَلِلرِّجَالِ
عَلَيْهِنَّ دَرَجَةٌ وَاللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ (228)
“And
they (women) have right similar to those of men over them in kindness, and men
are a degree above them.” It indicates that the man is superior to woman, she
cannot rule over man.
But in response, we want to say that
this verse is relevant to the state affairs which extremely need quality to be
conducted but it says about family affairs where husband deserves some degree
of dignity from his wife.
In a family, if there are two
rulers, does family run well? Never, there always will be disputes over the
domination between them.
In this verse Allah particularly
gave responsibility for men in family affairs.
The
verse number 21/07 (where Allah said):
وَمَا
أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُوحِي إِلَيْهِمْ(7)
“And
we sent not before you, O Muhammad, except men to whom we revealed the message”
Is
also taken in disfavor of women’s rule in head of the state.
All messages were men; hence women
shouldn’t have a chance to do that which is assigned for men.
In response, we say the duties of
messages and activities of states head are not identical.
Messengers are selected by Allah for
lifelong and their main duties are to preach the messages of Allah among the
people while state’s head is usually elected by people for tenure and their
principal activities are properly running the state’s administration and
defending its border and inhabitants from outsider’s attack.
The
messengers were selected only from men not from women. But there is no direct
verse like this one that rulers were only from men not from women. So, this
verse never proves that women cannot rule the country, if they are enough
component to conduct.
Female
leadership and the prophetic tradition
The hadeeth is seriously
taken into consideration in appointment of female as head of state.
The hadeeth
is reported by Abubakar: he said that when the news reached the prophet (pbuh)
that the Persians had enthroned a daughter of the Kisra as queen over
them, he said;”Never shall a people prosper who make a women their ruler.”
In response, we say that though the
hadeeth early says so, but there is a lot of questions about the authenticity
of this hadeeth raised by Islamic scholars.
Their opinion is the narrator of
this hadeeth Abubakar, a convicted felon. He was guilty of bearing false-testimony
in an adultery case.
Hazrat
Umar (r) flogged him eighty times and never allowed his testimony. A man whose testimony
is permanently rejected cannot be believed in any narration he gives.
Therefore, there is no chance to take this hadeeth against female leadership.
Female
rulers in Muslim countries
Various Muslims communities at
various times have been de-facto ruled by women.
For example;
Malika Asma,as a strong ruler of
Yemen,rule d for 20 years (1047-1067).
Malika Arwa also ruled Yemen for 34
years.
Sultan Radhiyya,as the sultan of
Delhi from India.
Conclusion
From
the discussion made so far it has obviously became clear to us that some women have
enough leadership quality and so they are fit for the highest post of state and
government.
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