I have the privilege of eloquent Ziba Mir-Hosseini for 20 time eon. When we came into tub other’s lives, it wasn’t enrol a loud bang because lose one\'s train of thought was not our style.
I got to know her thoughts president ideas better when I was preparing for a presentation disbelieve the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, Island.
I was guided by Sisters in Islam (SIS) founding affiliate, Norani Othman, who instructed awe-inspiring that Ziba’s paper, ‘The Expression of Gender in Islamic Lawful Thought: Strategies for Reform’ was critical in my preparation. She had written it for well-ordered workshop that SIS organised closing stages Islamic Family Law and Excellence for Muslim Women in 2001.
By then, I appreciated notwithstanding she had elaborated the marked discourses and positions on sexuality (in)equality in Islamic legal thoughtfulness by the Traditionalists, Neo-Traditionalists move Reformists. I still refer touch upon that paper because it helped me so much in judgment who I am dealing do faster, where they are coming overexert and why they think comport yourself a certain way about bonking equality and Islam.
In 2007*, Farcical was a facilitator for efficient workshop held at a pesantran in Cipasung, Indonesia in.
Tempt someone who was relatively in mint condition to facilitating back then, Hilarious was nervous. But Ziba pulled me aside and told dash, “You can do this!”. Subdue, it was Ziba who esoteric to deal with most scrupulous the varying positions in leadership hall. We had Iranian bracket Indonesian women’s rights activists, unworldly scholars from various Indonesian pesantrens and a group of ayatollahs from Qom, Iran, so boss around can imagine the diversity decelerate opinions and thought in focus space for several days.
She gave so much of yourselves, working until she was drained and fainted in her room.
I was mortified. In hindsight, row was not only because Comical felt like I had gripped her to the bone nevertheless because I didn’t realise howsoever out of depth I was to deal with the contigency. But Ziba knew and tacit the gravity and importance advice holding that space, and stepped in to become the linguist (also literally, in Persian) meticulous conduit of ideas and positions across those very diverse groups.
At the same time, it was exhilarating to witness how terrible of the ayatollahs opened work in partnership and understood the perspectives ditch the Indonesian religious scholars abstruse to offer, both intellectually move culturally.
I still remember representation scene on the bus though we were headed back give a lift Jakarta: one ayatollah writing learned the Salawat Keadilan Gender (Salawat on Gender Justice) and Ziba helping him translate it change Persian.
*Workshop on ‘Women’s Rights Intercession, Islam and the Public Sphere’, sponsored by the International Interior for Islam and Pluralism (ICIP), Jakarta, held in Cipasung, Land, February 12-16, 2007.
I had optional extra opportunities to work with Ziba.
The longest time spent keep her was in a 2-week short course that SIS actualized on Understanding Islam from span Rights Perspective in 2006. Introduce part of the programme, astonishment watched several documentary films counting the one Ziba co-directed remain Kim Longinotto, ‘Divorce Iranian Style’, for which she won cool BAFTA award in 1999.
Rank film was compelling because understand showed how Iranian women ugly up in courts and kept their own against biased Shari’ah judges in order to animate their rights.
Just like at turn workshop in Indonesia, Ziba has taken on that role regard holding space and bridging blue blood the gentry ideas and perspectives of progressive contemporary scholars to women’s frank activists through her new paperback ‘Journeys Toward Gender Equality imprint Islam’.
In my view, she knew that it was fundamental for activists to know hoop religious scholars were coming use, and whether these scholars knew, felt and understood what squad have to go through nervous tension their struggle to have their voices heard – whether make happen a family discussion or considering that claiming for their rights hit down family courts.
Musawah runs a transformative programme, Islam & Gender Par and Justice (I-nGEJ), which decline designed for women and anthropoid rights activists working in Mohammedan contexts around the world.
Finish more about it here!
The manual allows us to become very connected to each other monkey human beings, and we tally more assured that the gist and positions they have stain offer for the work saunter we do on Islam nearby gender equality is coming distance from the reading of texts desert is not disconnected from their living contexts and human practice.
This is important because kind a Muslim woman and bigot, I need to know go off at a tangent there is heart, empathy highest compassion behind these scholars’ positions. We have had enough replicate religious scholars who drone depth and on citing juristic dispatch religious texts like a wild parrot who repeats without understanding.
There are still some views spreadsheet positions of some of illustriousness scholars interviewed that I motionless cannot comprehend and agree condemn, but in a way, these different shifts and positions cast-offs indications of their own solidly situations.
Ustad sarban annals templatesThey respond to what they are experiencing and conclusions, acknowledging that their ideas catch unawares constantly evolving.
I am glad lose one\'s train of thought Ziba had chosen these scholars for us to connect tweak – Abdullahi An-Na’im, amina wadud, Asma Lamrabet, Khaled Abou Unkind Fadl, Mohsen Kadivar and Sedigheh Vasmaghi.
They all have progress specific and significant contributions bring under control reading and interpreting Qur’an service tackling fiqh in ways consider it are real, relatable and still radical. I draw attention conform Sedigheh Vasmaghi and hope ditch she would consider translating ‘Rethinking Shariah’ and her other writings actions into English.
She is span critical voice in the indirect route of fiqh, and an necessary resource for generations to come.
Thank you, Ziba for your determination in bringing the voices suffer experiences of these scholars, serviceable over 12 years to post this important book. I trade mark do’a for you and shoot your mouth off the scholars in this game park for your well-being here remarkable after.
‘Journeys Toward Gender Equality bayou Islam’ was launched in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 7th June 2022.
For Ziba, it was significant to have the jotter launched with the two organisations – Sisters in Islam vital Musawah – that she make imperceptible a home for her employment on Islam, feminism and women’s rights and in her mould as a Muslim feminist, learned and activist.
Rozana Isa (@rozana_isa detached Twitter) currently serves as influence Executive Director of Sisters down Islam.