Muslim women reshape Islam's gender lens

By Prangtip Daorueng
January 4, 2000

Yogyakarta - Former Indonesian first lady Sinta Nuriyah Wahid was once quoted as saying that unfortunately, women are seen as being lower than the lowest of slaves when it comes to the rights and responsibilities of spouses as defined for Muslims in her country.

Now the wife of former president and Islamic leader Abdurrahman Wahid, along with women and academics in the world's most populous Muslim country, have come forth with a book to challenge this view - as well as gender imbalance and the use of Islam to justify it. In questioning these perceptions, they argue that for many Islamic scholars, the problem is not from the religion itself but rather, from some interpretations of it.

In November, a group of Muslim writers under the "Forum Kajian Kitab Kuning" (Study Forum for Yellow Book) launched a controversial book that criticizes relations between husband and wife as described in a part of traditional Islamic manuscripts called Kitab Kuning.

Kitab Kuning, which literally means "yellow books" because they were originally written on yellow paper, is a set of books that have long been used in Indonesia as a fundamental reference for Islamic teachings on every aspect of life. Titled Wajah Baru Relasi Suami-Istri (The New Face of Husband-Wife Relations), the book takes on the writings on the spousal relationship in a part in the Kitab Kuning called "Uqud al Lujjaynl" (Couple's Contract). This chapter was written by Imam An-Nawawy, who lived between 1813 and 1893.

Nuriyah, one of the book's authors, said that it took the team of writers almost four years to finish the 206-page book. The book has nine other male and female writers from non-governmental organization (NGO) and academic backgrounds.

The authors criticized several traditional Islamic concepts expressed in Kitab Kuning, for example the idea that a wife does not have the right to file for a divorce or that she is not allowed to refuse her husband's demand for sex.

The New Face of Husband-Wife Relations argued that while Imam Nawawy used the hadith - the collection of the Prophet Muhammad's words and deeds - the authors question the selective manner in which the hadith was interpreted.

"Kitab Kuning is like the Holy Book for the majority of Indonesians. That's why it has never been widely criticized by the majority before," said Wahid Hasyim from the Yogyakarta-based non-government group Rifka Annisa or Women's Crisis Center. Still, Wahid said, it was not surprising that Kitab Kuning had come under criticism. "[The compilation of] hadith is the work of many Islamic scholars in history," he explained. "It is like a historical record made by many people - some are subject to be questioned. If some parts of the source of information which is hadith can't be fully trusted, how can we say its interpretation [Kitab Kuning] is all correct?"

According to Wahid, himself a member of a study group on Kitab Kuning, part of the problem behind what is often seen as tradition within the religion is a technical one. Since all Kitab Kuning are written in Arabic, many people have difficulty learning and understanding it by themselves. While there have been some translations of the material into Indonesian, it still not enough to widen readership.

This problem particularly affects women, who traditionally have had less opportunity than men to study Islam. While no rules bar women from studying Islam deeply, some scholars say there is comparatively less support given to women pursuing this path compared to men. Indeed, such people as the activist Wahid say that interpreting Islam continues to be an issue for Muslims in this country, because the discussion is often monopolized by a group of people who know Arabic - and whose opinions of Islam are traditionally accepted by many.

"So when we ask why, several times many people will say, 'Don't ask, it is religion,'" Wahid added.

That is why the moves to challenge traditional views expressed in Kitab Kuning require great knowledge on Islam, experts say.

Wahid Hasyim is optimistic on this subject because after acquiring deeper knowledge in the same way men are able to, women are increasingly coming out in public with their own views on religion.

Nuriah, who is active on gender issues especially violence against women, is a case in point. Her strong background in Islamic studies harks back to her studies at an Islamic boarding school when she was young. Then, she graduated from the Faculty for Islamic Law at the State Islamic Religious Institute (IAIN) in Yogyakarta, and later received a master's degree on women's studies at the University of Indonesia.

"In fact, in the past some women studied Islam and acquired as much knowledge as the male scholars," said Wahid. "But once they got married, they could only become the assistants of their scholar-husbands. It is a good sign that this thing has begun to change now," he said.

But taking on tradition is not always easy.

In an interview with the English-language daily Jakarta Post, Musdah Mulia, chairwoman of the Institute for the Study of Religion and Gender based in Jakarta, said that criticism that contradicts popular perceptions, such as those written in The New Face of Husband-Wife Relations, requires a great deal of courage from the writers. "It is very seldom one can find writers with the courage to write a book that will predictably draw opposition from the public," she said.

But so far, local media have been reporting positive responses from groups including the ulama or Muslim scholars. Mustofa Bistri, a well-known Muslim preacher, said the book is a civil way of expressing disagreement with the views of a great ulama. He pointed out that other scholars also do not agree with the content of An-Nawawy's book. He added that it was not the main reference of students of pesantren or Islamic boarding schools, while many other Kitab Kuning were.

"A book is a cultural product, which should be written in the context of a cultural setting," added ulama Ulil Abshar of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Indonesia's largest Muslim organization with some 40 million members and which counts former president Wahid as one of its leaders. "Therefore, a reinterpretation [of traditional manuscripts] is needed."

Ulil also said that about 60 hadith quoted by An-Nawawy in his Couple's Contract were questionable.

He called The New Face of Husband-Wife Relations a "monumental work" that corrects perceptions stemming from traditional manuscripts written by great ulama, whom many local Muslim leaders are reluctant to criticize.

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