Archives: Muslim Women

Muslim Women Description

Razia Bhatti

Razia Bhatti was a Pakistan journalist whose actions and writing still resonate in the nation today. Despite of the oppressive political climate in Pakistan, Bhatti tackled issues from women’s rights to political corruption and spoke up against the injustices perpetuated by the elite. She had a hand in two of Pakistan’s leading Anglophone publications—the Herald where she was editor for 12 years and Newsline where she occupied the position for another eight years.

Under Bhatti, Newsline became a well known and well respected newspaper that covered an expansive range of stories including drug trade, corruption by politicians and financial institutions, religious persecution, and abuse of women’s rights.

Through her integrity and dedication, Bhatti contributed much to the Pakistani society. Providing a model of a capable and respected woman in the field of journalism who was as hardy (or hardier than) her male counterparts, she furthered the cause of women’s rights. She also reinforced the importance of free press and journalistic integrity in a country where honesty and free speech are often overrun by corruption and fundamentalist ideals. The example of her writing, serve as inspiration for Paksitanis to speak up against repression and question the leaders whose actions do not follow their rhetoric and who use public service position for personal gain.

In 1994, Bhatti won an International Women’s Media Foundation Courage in Journalism Award.

Zubeida bint Jaf’ar

Zubeida bint Jaf’ar was the wife of the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid, whom she wedded in 781, and was one of the leading figures during his reign. It is believed that she and her husband are the inspiration behind much of the 1001 Arabian Nights—although her husband’s mother Al-Khayzarun is seen as the key influence on the character of Scheherazade.

Zubeida was described by contemporaries as being of stunning beauty, courage, and wisdom which inspired respect and admiration. A patroness of the arts, Zubeida was a writer of poetry who entered her work into competition. Moreover, she extended her interest in the arts as a patron who offered substantial amounts of money to tempt literary figures, scientists, and poets to Baghdad.

The love her husband bore her allowed her an influential position in the court. Harun al-Rashid regularly took counsel from his wife and it was believed at the time that her decisions were always wise and correct. Among historians, it is believed that while her husband was with the army, the authority of running the kingdom fell to her and many achievements bear her name. If she did not remain in Baghdad to rule, she was at Harun’s side on his military excursions and joined him on Hajj.

On Hajj, seeing the difficulties the pilgrims had in procuring water, Zubeida ordered engineers to construct tunnels to transport pure water along the road to Mecca. This achievement is still known as “Zubeida’s River.” Moreover, due to her work, the road between Baghdad and Mecca became heavily used and known as “Zubeida’s Road.”

Despite her wisdom in such affairs, her unequivocal love for her spoiled son led to the eventual downfall of the dynasty.

Saida Ramadan

Saida Ramadan, a Sudanese journalist, began writing in exile from Egypt after the Muslim fundamentalist-backed regime of Lt. General Omar Hassan al-Bashir took power in Sudan in 1989 and began a systematic campaign against the media. At the time, Ramadan was a correspondent for the Sudanese paper Al-Alam in Cairo. The paper was shut down, her passport revoked and she was not allowed entry back to Sudan.
Ramadan began work as a staff editor at the Egyptian daily Al-Alam Al-Youm where she continued to express views against the Sudanese regime. She was blacklisted by the National Islamic Front, threatened and physically assaulted.

In 1996, Ramadan received the International Women’s Media Foundation Courage in Journalism Award.

Horria Saihi

An Algerian television producer, director, filmmaker, and reporter, Horria Saihi has fought government censorship and the threat of fundamentalism since the mid-1980s. She has been condemned to death by Islamic fundamentalists, and went into hiding in late 1994 after discovering that she was on a hit list. Saihi remains in hiding due to the continuance of the death threats against her.

Saihi’s work includes a documentary series on television censorship. Ironically, the series was canceled by the government after six months without explanation. She has also filmed testimonials with the families of victims of Islamic terrorism, revealing the impact of violence on everyday Algerians. Despite the assassination of approximately 70 journalists, including colleagues and friends, Saihi remains determined and committed to her cause.

Saihi travels throughout Algeria to produce her reports and occasionally files stories with French television stations. In 1996, she produced documentaries on the clearing of landmines in Algeria and on female rape victims. Despite the months Saihi spent obtaining the approval of the Algerian government to work on these films, both were censored and have subsequently never been aired.

 

Photo Credit To

Horria Saihi | 1995 Courage in Journalism Award

Asma bint Shihab al-Sulayhiyya

Asma bint Shihab was the wife of Ali bin Muhammad al-Sulayhi, the King of Yemen, who reigned from 1047-1067. A notable woman, she was independent and took an active role in the affairs of the state. Because of the Fatimid endorsement of equal education for both women and men, Ali entrusted her with care of the realm and she attended state councils with her face unveiled. Her name was declared alongside her husband’s from the mosque pulpits during Friday khutbas.

Queen Asma was also an active influence on the life of the future Queen Arwa for whom she acted as a teacher, and doubtlessly, an admirable role model. She also taught her son, ensuring that both he and his wife were equipped with the necessary tools to be successful rulers. Commentaries of the time indicate intelligence, the breadth of her knowledge, and her role in promoting the arts and acting as a patron for poets.

After her husband fell victim to tribal vendetta and was murdered in 1067 while on Hajj, Queen Asma was held prisoner for a year before her son managed to free her. After he fell ill, she acted on behalf of her son Ahmed al-Mukarram. Since Ahmed was paralyzed, Queen Asma continued in her active role in managing the state. After her death, Queen Arwa assumed Asma’s place of power, continuing on the tradition of strong Yemeni queens into another generation.

Gulbadan Banu Begum

Gulbadan Banu Begum, as she was known, was the daughter of Babur, the first Emperor of the Mughal Empire, the beloved sister of the Emperor Humayun, and the esteemed aunt of the Emperor Akbar, perhaps the best known emperor of the Mughal age. Surrounded by these powerful men, Gulbadan has somewhat faded into obscurity in our own time, but in her time, she was a respected and prominent member of the court whose way with words was admired.

Married at seventeen and having given birth to at least one son, Gulbadan’s young life was spent moving between major cities in India due to her father’s and later her brother’s military campaigns. Fluent in both Persian and Turkish, she was also considered a poet of her time, although none of her works have survived.

At the age of 54, Gulbadan embarked on the Hajj, and traversed the 3,000 dangerous miles between India and Mecca with a party of noblewomen who had been generously outfitted by Emperor Akbar. The entire journey took Gulbadan a total of seven years to complete, from 1576-1582.

Mentioned frequently in the Akbarnama, Gulbadan had her own chance to present history when commissioned by her nephew Akbar to write the Humayunama about her brother. Written in clear Persian, Gulbadan related from her memory the events surrounding her brother’s life. Although the work is about Humayun, by the very nature of its author, it imparts a sense of women’s life in the Mughal harem, related by a woman. Her rendition of the story allows us insight into her mind: she was a keen observer who understood the nuances of warfare and royal politicking. The first part of the work deals with Humayun’s rule after and the travails of Humayun after his defeat. She also imparts a modicum of information about her father, Babur, although that is limited since she was only eight at the time of his death. However, the manuscript was lost for a number of centuries, only to be rediscovered under the British Raj and then in tatters with whole chapters missing.

She died at the age of 80, after having led a full life.

Sayyida al-Hurra

A Moroccan of Andalusian origin, Sayyida al-Hurra belonged to a family of Andalusian nobles who fled to north Africa after the fall of Grenada in 1492. Marrying Sultan al-Mandri, they embarked on war against the Portuguese and she ascended to power while managing her husband’s affairs. After the death of her husband in 1515, al-Hurra, although already a prefect of Tetouán, was bestowed with the title “al-Hurra” which denoted a woman wielding sovereign power. Subsequently, she had herself named governor of the city-state.

Following the death of her husband, she wed the King of Morocco, Ahmed al-Wattasi, but she requested that he travel from Fez to Tetouán for the wedding to indicate that she had no plans on abdicating her power following their marriage.

After making contact with the Turkish corsair Barbarossa, she assembled a fleet and began privateering in the western Mediterranean. It was in this endeavor that she earned for herself the title of undisputed Queen of the Pirates of the region. Perhaps using piracy to continue her first husband’s war against the Portugese, al-Hurra used piracy to wreak havoc on Portuguese shipping lines. Specifically, in 1520, her forces captured the wife of the Governor and damaged Portuguese colonial shipping.

She was deposed in 1542, by her son-in-law, ending 30 years of rule. She was stripped of her property and power and her subsequent fate is unknown.

Nana Asma’u

Nana Asma’u was the daughter of Usman dan Fodio, founder of Sokoto Caliphate which was one of the most powerful kingdom’s in northern Africa of the time. For some, Asma’u represents the education and independence that is possible for women under Islam and remains a model for African feminists into the present.

Erudite and well versed in Arabic, Greek, and Latin classics and fluent in Arabic, Fulfulde, Hausa, and Tamacheq, Asma’u was reputed to be a leading scholar in the most influential Muslim state in West Africa. She represented the number of highly educated Muslim women of the time. Bearing witness to the Fulani Jihad (1804-1810) in which her father conquered Nigeria and Cameroon, she recorded her reactions in The Journal. Asma’u also left an impressive corpus of poetry which is comprised of historical narratives, elegies, laments, and admonition, which became tools for teaching men and women the principles of the caliphate.

Later, she became her brother’s advisor when he took the caliphate and according to contemporary sources, Asma’u debated with governors, scholars, and princes.

Asma’u was also influential on women’s education during the caliphate. Beginning in 1830, she formed a group of female teachers who journeyed throughout the caliphate, educating women. Becoming symbols of the new state, these female teachers, or jajis, used the writing of Asma’u and other Sufi scholars to train women from all areas, including poor and rural regions. This educational project began to integrate the pagan portions of the newly conquered empire with the existing Muslim state and culture.

Today, in northern Nigeria, Islamic women’s organization, schools, and meeting halls are frequently named in her honor. With the republication of her works, she has become a rallying point for African women for the cause of women’s education.