Women’s Liberation Theology

Since the beginning, Islam has been targeted to be the liberation religion, especially liberation upon the women. Could be imagine, how the misogynist Arab society which frequently killed the girls, suddenly is directed to hold ‘aqiqah (an event to express thanks to God) upon the girl’s birth, although it is merely a goat for a girl and two goats for a boy.

How do the society who does not recognize the concept of female bequest and witness suddenly given the rights of inheritance and witness, even though only 1:2 for the boys. Woman who was murdered suddenly ought to get a sum of fine (diyat), even though it is merely half of what the boys get.

How the woman which was made into a myth as “complement” of the man’s desire (Adam) suddenly admitted as equal before Allah and has the equal rights and duty as the heaven’s occupant (Q.S. al-Baqarah, 2:35). How the woman (Eve) imaged as the temptator of man (Adam) suddenly is sanitised with the vindication that it was both of them who are involved in the cosmic sin (Q.S. al-A’raf, 7:20).

Islam is divine religion as well as humanitarian and social religion (Q.S. Ali ‘Imran, 3:112).  In Islamic perspective, human got two capacities, as a slave (‘abid) and God representation (khalifah), without distinguishing the sex, ethnic, and skin colour (Q.S. al-Hujrat, 49:13). The piety’s quality is not merely achieved trough the self-sacred endeavour (riyadlah nafsiyyah) but also trough the awareness upon other’s misery (Q.S. Al-Ma’un, 107:1-7). Islam since the beginning affirmed that the roles and gender relation’s discrimination is one of the human rights violation which should be removed (Q.S.al-Nisa’, 4:75)

Islam commands the human to pay attention upon the concept of balance, harmony, compatibility and unity inter-humans as well as their environment. Gender relation concept in Islam is more than merely managing the gender’s justice in the society, but theologically and teleologically arranging the relation mode between microcosmic (human), macrocosmic (environment) and God. Only trough it the human could perform his function as caliph, and only the successful caliph who achieve the real degree of abid.

Islam introduces the gender relation concept that refers to the substantive verses that are the common objective of shari’a (maqashid al-syari’ah): manifesting the justice and righteousness (Q.S. al-Nahl, 16:90), security and peace (Q.S.Q.S.al-Nisa’, 4:58), call toward the righteousness and prevent the evil (Q.S.Ali ‘Imran, 3:104). These verses made as the framework to analyze the gender relation in Al Qur’an.

Men and women have the equal rights and duties in performing the role as caliph and slave. Regarding the social role in the society, there is no Qur’anic verse or Hadits, which forbid the women to be active there. On the contrary, AlQur’an and Hadits mostly indicate the women’s permission to be active in performing various professions.

In the beginning of Islamic history, women got the independence and bright emotion milieu. Their self-confidence grows stronger so that some of them noted the dazzling achievement, not only in domestic sector but also in public sector. Unfortunately, this fact does not sustain any longer due to many factors: the more developing Islamic world moved toward the misogynist kingdom’s centres like Damascus, Baghdad and Persia. Furthermore, the unification and codification of Hadits, Tafseer and Fiqh literatures are influenced by the local culture, directly or indirectly play roles in giving the restriction upon the women’s rights and movement.

In the meantime, the anthropological politic to sustain the patriarch tradition which benefit the men is taking place simultaneously. Various values are directed and used to preserve the existence of gender relation mode which rooted to the society. Because it occurs for such a long time, that mode precipitated beneath the society’s consciousness, as if that gender relation is kodrat/nature (in Arabic: kodrat or qudrah are determined by God). It grows stronger after the power relations become the subsystem in the modern-capitalist society, which later deliver the newpatriarchy society.

The stronger the power relation mode, the greater the gender role’s disparity in the society, because someone would be measured based on his productivity value. By the motive of reproduction factor, hence the woman reproduction considered not maximal as the men are. Woman claimed as the reproduction community, which is more proper to take the domestic role, and man claimed as the productive community, which is more proper to take the public role. Consequently, a male-dominated society is created (al-mujtama’ al-abawiy).

If in the earlier period religion (Islam) was identical to the women liberation issue and notion, now there is an Islamic tendency that is identical to the restriction upon the women. In the end of this century, many Muslim countries execute revolution and reformation by taking Islamic themes. Nevertheless, what is mostly occurred post-revolution and reformation is the restriction upon the woman. A state’s Islamization means “keeping home” the women or women’s veilization. Iran, Pakistan, Algeria, and Afghanistan could be a good example for those phenomena. How Islam made as an argument to take out the government officials in some regions at Afghanistan on the base that women should not work in the public area. 

The regional autonomy in Indonesia that give greater role to the local traditional and religious figures, might lead the women to be the target and object. We are expecting so much that Islam no longer made as an ideological power that oppress a certain group or sex and on the contrary benefit certain group and sex. 

(Translated by Lanny Octavia)