Bismillalh
as salam alaykom
Reading on this borad and other sites, I observed how strongly non Muslims are occupied with waging fierce criticism campaigns against Muslim women, in some cases, they even go to the extend that they accuse us of not being able to realise how oppressed, not respected, put in a low level we are. I wonder, and I will take this on good will, they must be of course concerend for us. However, I never see, or may be I m short sighted, those media campagins, organised platforms, or other forms of communication channels introduce the status of widows for instance in many religions/cultures/ethnic groups. Sobhan Allah, just one example; i.e the Sati practice in India:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suttee#Law_books
I m not sure no one expresses an exagerated alarm just as they do when talking about how much the Muslim woman is degraded for having to cover, be obedient to husband, recieve half the the inheritance compared to a male, two women are required for testimony in cases of debt, might be subjected to polygany, and and. What you are about to read is really disturbing and alarming. Alhamdulelah I m a Muslimah whose rights were well protected and preserved by Allah the Creator.
http://www.deathreference.com/Vi-Z/Widows-...ld-Nations.html
Laws, Customs, Tradition, and Religion
Across cultures, religions, regions, class, and caste, the treatment of widows in many developing countries, but especially in the South Asian subcontinent and in Africa, is harshly discriminatory.
Patriarchal kinship systems, patrilocal marriage (where the bride goes to the husband's location), and patrilineal inheritance (where succession devolves through the male line) shore up the concept that women are "chattels" who cannot inherit and may even be regarded as part of the husband's estate to be inherited themselves (widow inheritance). Where matrilineal kinship systems pertain, inheritance still devolves onto the males, through the widow's brother and his sons.
Disputes over inheritance and access to land for food security are common across the continents of South Asia and Africa. Widows across the spectrum of ethnic groups, faiths, regions, and educational and income position share the traumatic experience of eviction from the family home and the seizing not merely of household property but even intellectual assets such as pension and share certificates, wills, and accident insurance.
"Chasing-off" and "property-grabbing" from widows is the rule rather than the exception in many developing countries. These descriptive terms have been incorporated into the vernacular languages in many countries, and even (e.g., Malawi) used in the official language in new laws making such actions a crime.
The CEDAW or "Women's Convention" and the Beijing Global Platform for Action require governments to enact and enforce new equality inheritance laws. Some governments have indeed legislated to give widows their inheritance rights. But even where new laws exist, little has changed for the majority of widows living in the South Asian subcontinent and in Africa. A raft of cultural, fiscal, and geographical factors obstructs any real access to the justice system. Widows from many different regions are beginning to recount their experiences of beatings, burnings, rape, and torture by members of their husbands' families, but governments have been slow to respond, their silence and indifference, in a sense, condoning this abuse.
In India, many laws to protect women have been passed since independence. But it is the personal laws of each religious community that govern property rights and widowhood practices. The world knows of the practice of widow-burning (sati), but little of the horrors widows suffer within the confines of their relatives' homes, how they are treated by their communities, or their fate when abandoned to the temple towns to survive by begging and chanting prayers. There are approximately 20,000 widows in Vrindavan, the holy city; Varanasi; Mathura; and Haridwar.
Common to both regions are interpretations of religious laws, customs, and traditions at the local level that take precedence over any modern state or international law. Widows in any case, especially the millions of illiterate widows living in rural areas, are mostly ignorant of the legal rights they have.