WOMEN AND ELECTIONS

By Rabia Ahmed | Published: April 12, 2011

It’s very sad and I’m obviously a bad lot because I refuse to get terribly up in arms about inequities against women in countries other than Pakistan. (That’s ‘inequity’, folks, which means ‘unfairness, or ‘bias’, not to be confused with ‘iniquity’, which means ‘gross injustice’ or ‘wickedness’. English is an iniquitous language).

And so voting by women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, or its absence thereof (of the voting by women, not of the Kingdom, alas) is for me another interesting example of the short-sightedness and foolishness of the rulers of that country, and of the general batty approach to power by Middle Eastern governments (do you suppose just as too much inbreeding isn’t good for the intellect, too much ‘inkinging’ addles the brain? I dunno, it’s worth checking out). Anyway, it is so absurd, that it has to be a short-lived matter (short-lived as opposed to the grander/longer scheme of things), one that will be taken care of in time like Hosni Mubarak’s state of emergency, and the similar situation in Bashar-al-Asad’s Syria.

Let’s say that the Faiz Foundation, set up to promote the ideas of Faiz Ahmed Faiz, announced a scholarship, and its eligibility criteria excluded peasants from applying. Or that a Ghalib Trust forbade the writing of poetry, or just imagine a Yusuf Raza Gillani Literary Group which is all that needs to be said about that one, but yes, something dippy and incongruous like that. All of these examples are dreadfully ironic, not very different to that of the Land of the Two Holy Mosques, which is purportedly ruled according to Islamic principles refusing to allow its female citizens the right to vote in what meagre elections they have; municipal elections, in this case.

Not many people would neglect to recall the example of Hazrat Aisha here. She was the wife of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). One of her husband’s companions said, “If we companions of the Messenger of God (PBUH) had any difficulty regarding a matter, we asked Hazrat Aisha about it.”

Hazrat Aishah was an extremely strong willed, intelligent woman, held by scholars to be an authority on medicine, poetry, Islamic jurisprudence, education, social reform and politics. The Prophet (PBUH) is said to have directed people to learn a part of their religion from her.

And Hazrat Aisha, if she were alive today, would not have been allowed to vote? Or drive a car? She rode a camel into war once, but obviously, that’s beside the point.

Women in Pakistan, both Muslim and others have to contend with bias, as well as horrific acts of injustice and cruelty against themselves (both inequity and iniquity). Yet they have carved some kind of niche for themselves, at least earned the right to lead a life, in some places more than others. We had the respected Ms Jinnah, and a female Prime Minister who still lives to shield our Head of State behind her skirts. We have Ms Awan, who lives, and Ms Sherry Rehman who has in recent months earned my respect. We have Asma Jehangir, Naseem Zehra, Bapsi Sidhwa, Nigar Ahmed, Fahmida Riaz, Naseem Hameed and many others. There are millions more not well-known but who are greater soldiers and crusaders in their own right, bringing up large families with their toil, providing for them right along their men folk.

If these women have the right to vote, it is but their right. If they use this right, it is kudos to them. If they don’t, it is once again but their right.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia incorporates many contradictions within itself. It is an Islamic state, yet it is an absolute monarchy. Its leadership is hereditary, from within the same family, most of its government posts also being distributed among the members of this same family. The Kingdom is an Islamic state, yet it denies women equal rights to men, such as the right to vote.

It won’t be long before, along with other movements for democracy in the region, we see a movement for a sane attitude towards women (and politics) in Saudi Arabia. It won’t be long before the women of Saudi Arabia realise that their rightful power will not once again be handed to them...they have to reach out themselves to take it.

Like for men and women everywhere, it is but their right.

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