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Muftis and Islamic Women in 17th Century Ottoman Society

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Women's rights in Ottoman society were not completely abandoned and repressed. During the 17th century, learned scholars referred to as”muftis” were responsible for protecting their rights and ensuring that they were not taken advantage of by men. Table of Contents The Muftis Arranging Marriages Divorce and Annulment Violence Against Women The Muftis Islamic women in the Ottoman Empire were protected by legal rights which were endorsed by a complex court system conformed of judges referred to as qadi (Alfred and Overfield, 64) These qadi were in charge of analyzing each case presented to the court and interpreting it in terms of the Islamic Law. Although they used the Quran and the Hadith to make the decisions, they also took into account the legal opinions or fatwa (Alfred and Overfield, 64) of the muftis (Alfred and Overfield, 65). The muftis play a central role in this decision-making process because as learned scholars, their opinions about a certain case were recorded and could affect the judge's decision. A judge or any other individual could request the muftis' help in legal matters. Depending on the standing of a mufti, his fatwa could overrule the judge's decision in certain cases. Kayhr al-Din Ramli (1585-1671, from Ramla, Palestine, was a famous mufti who studied in Cairo at al-Azhar which was one of the best schools for Islamic studies. He began writing fatwas as a student in Cairo, but by the 1650s when he was back in Ramla, he had become very famous and respected (especially by the judges) throughout Syria and Palestine. He provided many legal opinions related to the position of women in Islamic society regarding marriage, divorce, and violence. These issues were very important since once a Muslim reached adulthood, he or she was expected to become part of the institution of marriage. Since the Islamic law embraced the idea that "no social good was served by continuing defective or unhappy marriages"(Alfred and Overfield, 65) respected muftis such as Ramli, served as protectors of the legal rights of women. Established rules dictated the way marriages were arranged in Islamic Society. Usually, the marriage was arranged by a legal guardian even before the woman reached puberty, but once she did, she was handed to the husband by the legal guardian (father or grandfather). However, if the marriage was planned when the woman and man were already legal adults, they had a say in the decision. Divorce was also a possibility for unhappily married men and women. The following are the different opinions provided by the mufti Ramli about various issues concerning the position of women in Islamic society. They not only provide an insight into gender relations, but also demonstrate the important role of muftis in resolving legal issues of both men and women. Arranging Marriages One of the cases presented to the mufti Ramli was about a girl who, being a minor, was married off by her brother and once she reached adulthood wanted to annul her marriage. However, her husband argued that she wasn't able to do this because her brother "had acted as an agent to her father"(qtd. In Alfred and Overfield,66). She, on the other hand, claimed her brother had married her off while her father was away on a journey. In response to this situation, Ramli expressed that "if her husband proved his claim, then her choice is cancelled"(qtd in Alfred and Overfield,66). However, if her father had authorized the brother to arrange the marriage, then she was not able to annul the marriage. She only had a choice if the marriage was arranged with her brother as a guardian because "only the father's and grandfather's marriage arrangements cannot be cancelled"(qtd. in Alfred and Overfield,66) Another case regarding the arrangement of marriage was about a virgin who being an adult was kidnapped by her brother who married her off to an "unsuitable man" (qtd. in Alfred and Overfield, 66). In response, Ramli expressed that the father had the right to separate the marriage due to the unsuitability of the husband even if the marriage was consummated. The conditions being, however, that the woman was not pregnant or had given birth to children, or had received the dower. However, if the woman was married off without consenting to it, she could just choose to divorce her husband without her father's intercession since her brother was not a proxy. Divorce and Annulment Ramli received a case in which a poor woman was abandoned by her husband and suffered from him leaving her with no support or legal provider. "She therefore asked the Shafi to annul the marriage" (qtd. in Alfred and Overfield, 66) and as proof brought two witnesses to support her claim. Her marriage was annulled and she went on to remarry. However, the first husband appeared again and wanted to cancel the judgment. To this, the mufti answered that once the whole process was done, the annulment was reasonable and nobody could nullify it. Ramli also received questions that dealt with the issue of consummation. A man claimed that his adult wife, who was supposed to be a virgin, had been "deflowered"1 (qtd. in Alfred and Overfield, 67) which he found out after having intercourse with her several times. Ramli's legal judgment in this case was that the dowry was required and that her personal testimony in reference to her virginity was enough to prove her chastity prior to the marriage. Punishment and the negation of his testimony could also apply to the husband for accusing her without any evidence. If he accused her of adultery, he had to support his argument (is she requested so) by having four witnesses testify. Failure to do so could cause him legal penalties. Violence Against Women Ramli was also approached with cases about peasants. A man kidnapped a woman who was married to someone else and took her to the shaykh2 (qtd. in Alfred and Overfiled, 67) of the village who gave them hospitality. There, the man "consummated the marriage" (qtd. in Alfred and Overfield, 67) with the argument that relations existed between him and the woman.This case was considered to be a serious crime and according to Ramli both the kidnapper and the shaykh deserved a beating and extensive imprisonment. Ramli even conceived the idea of execution for these men because they had completely disobeyed God. Ramli also expressed that people associated with this type of crime would be punished by God. On another legal issue related to violence and women, a legally married person captured a virgin and deflowered her. She was able to escape from him and returned to her family, but then he wanted to forcefully take her away again. Ramli's opinion was that he should be prevented from doing this, but if he claimed shubba 3, there would be no haad4 (qtd. in Alfred and Overfield, 68) punishment and he would just have to pay the dower. If he didn't claim shubba, and his actions were proven, a punishment would have to be applied to him. If the man was a muhsan,5 (qtd. in Kamali) then he would have to be stoned. In the case that he was not a muhsan, he should be flogged. Furthermore, Ramli also added that if the haad was cancelled, a dowry had to be paid. Sources Alfred, Andrea and Overfield, James. “Women and Islamic Law in the Ottoman Empire”. The Human Record. Fifth Edition. V.II: Since 1500. Boston, 2005. p. 64-68. Kamali, Mohammed Hashim. “Punishment In Islamic Law: A Critique Of The Hudud Bill Of Kelantan, Malaysia”. The Fiqh.Org . 2002. March 8, 2007. http://www.lawinislam.com/article.php?id=18 Article created. Thank you for your contribution to Wikipedia!PGWG 16:25, 8 June 2007 (UTC) Cristinaboquin 07:45, 16 May 2007 (UTC)
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Roy Jones Rated pound for pound the best boxer on the planet in his prime, Jones won a cluster of world titles and was named Fighter of the Decade in 1999 by the American Boxing Writers Association. But at the Seoul Olympics in 1988, Jones copped probably the worst miscarriage of Olympic ring justice in the final. Fighting local hope Park Si Hun, Jones landed 86 punches to 32, but the judges gave the decision to the hopelessly outclassed Park 3-2. The three judges who voted against Jones were eventually suspended. The long-held assumption is money changed hands but the IOC still stands by the decision. The good part? It helped lead to a new scoring system for Olympic boxing. Wow if I was Roy Jones I would have been really upset losing this match with the numbers that he put up. Its really upsetting to see people giveing the match to the lower class player who clearly got beat. The guy has been working for this day for quite sometime and to be dishonored like this is terrible. I am glad they got suspended from the sport. Bobby Moore England's greatest soccer captain was arrested in Bogota, Colombia, en route to the 1970 finals in Mexico. He was suspected of pinching a £600 ($1580) emerald bracelet from a shop. All England was convinced it was a fit-up, and British Prime Minister Harold Wilson ensured diplomatic muscles were flexed to get Moore off. The charge was dropped but only after Moore had been held for three days. Of course the mans famous so he is going to get away with the crime at hand. This really makes me mad he clearly stole something from the store but because the prime minister watches soccer and likes him hes free to go. Oh im sorry he did do three days, you have to think if that was one of us we would have easily been convicted of the crime. Camp Staaldraad The boot camp the Springbok squad was put through preparing for the 2003 World Cup by coach Rudolf Straeuli was a national scandal and made the rest of the rugby world roll its collective eyes. Pictures of naked South African players carrying railway tracks and tractor tyres and huddling in a freezing dam were all part of Straeuli's campaign to toughen his players up. Other highlights included fitness instructors smashing eggs on players' heads. Springbok manager Gideon Sam reckoned the exercise was "mild" compared to what many African people put up with every day. "The players looked like prisoners of war. I have no problem with it," he added. Needless to say, Straeuli was a goneburger straight after the cup, in which the Springboks lost in the quarter-finals to the All Blacks. Well I guess his style didn't pay off to well. Whats wrong with doing running and regular stuff to get your team ready you have to go all out and humilate the other people. Im glad this man lost in the world cup, he used a tactic that shouldn't be used. Hopefully he learned his lesson. Fine Cotton The most celebrated racing ring-in in Australasian equine history. In August 1984 at Brisbane's Eagle Farm course, an ordinary 8-year-old gelding, Fine Cotton, was replaced for a novice handicap by a horse called Bold Personality, complete with white paint on his legs in a crude attempt to match Fine Cotton's white markings on his hind legs. Officials smelt a rat when betting on Fine Cotton dived in from 33-1 to 7-2. The horse won by a short head, but with the paint beginning to run down the horse's legs as it returned to scale and some onlookers shouting "ring-in" the game was up. New Zealand trainer Hayden Haitana shot through shortly after the race, only to be nabbed by police in South Australia and subsequently jailed along with scam organiser John Gillespie. But it involved some of Australia's big racing names, and prominent bookmakers Bill and Robbie Waterhouse were warned off the country's tracks for 14 years. And Fine Cotton? Now 30, he's believed living in retirement on the outskirts of Brisbane. Well there was no getting out of this one. You have to realize you are going to get caught if you pull something like this. People have money riding on these horses if they lose they will try to find something so they can get the money back. You can't bring a ringer in to do the race, race with what you have. I am glad that these idiots are getting caught cheating, just do it fair and maybe you will be able to pull it off. NASCAR Scandal! Toyota, Waltrip in shame, fined big time For those who haven't heard, NASCAR's season-opening Daytona 500 race this weekend has been marred by controversy from the rookie Toyota camp. On Sunday, Michael Waltrip had his No. 55 Toyota confiscated by NASCAR officials after inspectors found an odorless, Vaseline-like substance in the car's engine. Later in the week, NASCAR handed down punishment to Michael Waltrip Racing, which included the ejection of team vice president of competition Bobby Kennedy and Crew Chief David Hyder from the garage at Daytona. Hyder was also fined $100,000, the largest fine ever handed down by NASCAR. Waltrip himself was penalized with a loss of 100 drivers points and his qualifying time from pole day on Feb. 11th was thrown out. Elizabeth Waltrip, Michael's wife and the official owner of his car, was also docked 100 owners points. Waltrip really took a low blow in this one. I don't think you will find him cheating again. Not only did he loose position points but lots of money. I think next time he will take closer consideration before he decides to cheat again, that is if he's dumb enough to cheat again. Sources Declined. 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