• Download the entire Home Truths: A Global Report on Equality in the Muslim Family in English (2.56 MB) or in Arabic (2.95 MB).
• Download the Introduction to Home Truths: A Global Report on Equality in the Muslim Family in English or in Arabic.

Musawah is built on the idea that equality and justice in the family are necessary and possible in all of our communities, regardless of the type of legal system, the status of Muslim family laws and practices, or the nature of courts or tribunals in which the laws or practices operate. Many of the laws and practices that exist in our countries are unjust and do not serve the needs of the people. However, this situation is not unalterable: the reform of laws and practices for the benefit of society and the public interest has always been part of the Muslim legal tradition.

With this in mind, Musawah invited national level organisations for their views, based on their experiences, on why equality and justice are necessary and possible in family laws and practices in their countries. Their ideas were sent to Musawah in the form of short reports, sometimes accompanied by longer articles or resources. These national reports and resources can be found on the Musawah website, http://www.musawah.org.

The information in this Global Report is derived from the contributions submitted by national level organisations and activists. These national profiles are meant to be illustrative of the situations in each country, and are in no way comprehensive. However, taken together, they provide a picture of what needs to be changed in our family laws and practices to ensure equality and justice for all people, and what opportunities are available at the national level to help make this happen. Hopefully, they also depict some of the realities of families’ lives on the ground and why issues relating to family laws and practices are so important.

Musawah would like to thank the women and men from Afghanistan, Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Canada, Egypt, Gambia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Palestine 1948 (Israel), Philippines, Sierra Leone, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom and Uzbekistan who have contributed their ideas, expertise, knowledge and stories. It is through the struggles of these people and organisations that equality and justice in Muslim families will be achieved.  

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
February 2009