Cleric vows to end segregation in mosques

Barney Zwartz

November 22, 2008

Australia's most senior Muslim wants men and women to pray together.

AUSTRALIA'S most senior Muslim has said he will end segregation of men and women in mosques, in a bold response to Islamic women's anger at entrenched discrimination.

The Mufti of Australia, Sheikh Fehmi Naji el-Imam, said he would put his proposal to the next meeting of the Australian National Imams' Council and consider how women could share the room with men during prayers.

Sheikh Fehmi said segregated worship had been introduced long ago, as a cultural change, not a religious one, and he would argue to end it.

"It is good to hear the complaints of the sisters, and to try to find some solution to their concerns," he told The Age in an exclusive interview.

"My duty is to propose, to discuss and try to convince. I can't guarantee the outcome."

Sheikh Fehmi said that in the time of the Prophet Mohammed 1400 years ago, women were not segregated.

His announcement is likely to attract international attention and may spark fierce debate among highly conservative mosque communities within Australia.

In some mosques overseas, there are no physical barriers between men's and women's areas but in Australia almost every mosque separates men's and women's sections.

Sydney lecturer Jamila Hussain this week told a conference at the National Centre for Excellence in Islamic Studies that women found facilities at some mosques "insulting" and that they were treated as second-class citizens.

Last night, Ms Hussain welcomed Sheikh Fehmi's promise to try to end segregation.

"It's an excellent start. But I'm a bit hesitant about when or whether it will happen — it will be a while."

She said many men would oppose such a move and, sadly, some women too. Imams didn't necessarily have much say.

Islamic Council of Victoria vice-president Sherene Hassan said it was a fine initiative, and it was good to see imams being proactive. She said it was in line with true Islamic teaching.

Sheikh Isse Musse, imam of Werribee mosque, agreed that at the start of Islam men and women had prayed together, "but it's not allowed that a man stands to the right of a woman or to the left of a woman".

At his mosque, all pray in the same room, with men in rows at the front, then children in rows, then women. But he did not think this was palatable to many Muslims, especially as many new mosques gave better facilities to women in their own areas.

Several Muslim women spoke out about discrimination and disadvantage this week at the conference.

In particular, a report by the Islamic Women's Welfare Council of Victoria highlighted problems with imams, claiming some were condoning domestic violence, polygamy, rape in marriage, welfare fraud and exploitation of vulnerable women.

Sheikh Fehmi, who is also secretary of the Victorian Board of Imams, acknowledged there were problems.

"Imams are human beings, and every human being is fallible, so if one imam errs on a point we should not generalise and say all imams are the same."

Sheikh Fehmi also addressed many of the criticisms in the council report.

On divorce, he said the committee of the Victorian Board of Imams that dealt with applications always spoke to both parties before ruling, and required men to give women their full due, especially dowries that had not yet been fully paid.

On rape within marriage, he acknowledged this could be a problem and said the solution was to link legal divorce with Islamic divorce — something the board was working towards.

On domestic violence, he said imams taught that men should never strike their wives. "The prophet said, 'I never hit a wife in my life', and everybody should do the same."

On polygamy, he said Islam allowed a second wife only if the husband guaranteed he could treat both exactly alike, which almost amounted to a prohibition.

"Polygamy in Islam is not willy-nilly. There are a lot of restrictions, which sometimes make it impossible."

On a charge by educator Silma Ihram that Muslim women could speak out in the mainstream community but not in the Muslim community, Sheikh Fehmi said women should "tell us what they are going through. That's the only way we can rectify mistakes and wrongdoing." He said that if Muslims received unsatisfac- tory advice from an imam, they could consult another imam or the board of imams.

Ms Hussain said this week that provisions for women and children in mosques lagged far behind men's. In most mosques, men entered the prayer room through large front doors, but women usually had to enter a small door at the rear, often competing with traffic while leading small children.

Their space was always considerably inferior to the men's, and was sometimes entirely blocked off so that they could not see or hear the service.

Ms Hussain, who studied Sydney mosques, said that in some, women had to pray in the yard under a blazing sun while men enjoyed the cool interior, or to pray in a kitchen between stoves and sinks, or to pray in a tent in full view of a pub over the road.

The chairwoman of the Islamic Women's Welfare Council, Tasneem Chopra, said Sheikh Fehmi's response made her optimistic that better outcomes could be negotiated.

She said she had not received much critical feedback from the Muslim community yesterday, but a lot of questioning.

THE ISLAMIC WOMEN'S WELFARE COUNCIL ON … VIOLENCE

IMAMS favour preserving the family over protecting them, and sometimes advise women to endure beatings. Legal workers report that Muslim women are particularly vulnerable due to a lack of information and community backlash against women who take legal action.

Police and legal workers say Muslim women often drop charges after husbands come to court with family members and religious leaders and put pressure on them. These conversations are not in English, and police say they are frustrated that because of it, they cannot carry out Australian laws.

Some women who were legally separated but not religiously divorced reported that their husbands entered their homes and forced them to have sex, and imams said this was permitted because there was still a valid marriage. Legal workers also had concerns about allegations of sexual assault as part of under-age marriages. The report says imams must speak out against violence using Friday sermons, other public forums and the media.

THE ISLAMIC COUNCIL ON … YOUTH

MANY Muslims report instances of racism and discrimination, and one community worker says he has never known racism worse than now. Lebanese youths, in particular, feel under siege.
Women who wear the hijab (headscarf) say they are discriminated against in jobs, though not in telemarketing (where they are heard but not seen).

Government funding has moved more to African youths than Arabs but their need has not lessened, as racism and emotional trauma persist.

One community worker says: "What we save from parenting programs we may have to spend on security."

There is a shortage of facilities in northern suburbs where many Muslims live and recreation funding has dried up. Police also expressed concern about this.

A community worker says about one school: "You wouldn't put your dog in there. In an environment like that, school loses its meaning, the teachers don't care, the kids drop out and it eventually closes, having ruined the life chances of many young people."

THE ISLAMIC COUNCIL ON … DIVORCE

IMAMS apply sharia (Islamic) law selectively against women, using it to perform polygamous marriages and grant divorces but saying they cannot use it to enforce compensation to Muslim women because Australia does not have a sharia court.

When wives seek a divorce, some imams say they must leave with only the clothes on their backs, leaving their assets and children.

One imam told a woman she should not seek maintenance, saying: "It is not necessary in Australia where women can get Centrelink benefits."

Women and community workers say it is extremely difficult for a woman to get a religious divorce.

Some women say imams have declined divorces if they are intimidated by the men or are friends with them.

Imams are supposed to charge $200 to consider a divorce, but some (not members of the board) allegedly exploit women by asking a large fee, then more fees to register the divorce in the country of origin.

THE ISLAMIC COUNCIL ON … POLYGAMY

SOME imams have performed religious marriages knowing that the man was already married.
Traditionally, Islam allows a man to have up to four wives under certain circumstances.

However, because this is illegal in Australia, second wives are treated as de facto relationships and often receive welfare.

Women whose husbands took other wives have blamed Centrelink benefits for easing the way to polygamy because one wife or the other will claim it.

Marriage celebrants are required to ask whether the parties are already married, but many imams are not doing so.

Asked about this, the Board of Imams said it was the woman's responsibility to ensure the man was not already married. However, some imams say the husband does not have to tell his wife he is marrying another woman.

Source