Knowledge Building Brief #5: Authority in Muslim Family Laws: Rethinking Qiwamah and Wilayah

Knowledge Building Brief #5: Authority in Muslim Family Laws: Rethinking Qiwamah and Wilayah discusses the concepts of qiwamah and wilayah in classical jurisprudence (fiqh). It shows how the concepts continue to be used explicitly and implicitly to justify male superiority and authority in contemporary Muslim contexts. The Brief also outlines how the concepts impact Muslim women’s […]
Knowledge Building Brief #4: CEDAW and Muslim Family Laws (English)

Knowledge Building Brief #4: CEDAW and Muslim Family Laws argues that full implementation of CEDAW is possible in Muslim contexts, despite some arguments from non-compliant governments. This brief explains how the Convention can become an effective mechanism for States-parties to achieve gender equality. CEDAW and Muslim Family Laws is also available in Arabic, French, and Bahasa […]
Knowledge Building Brief #3: Islam and the Question of Gender Equality (English)

Knowledge Building Brief #3: Islam and the Question of Gender Equality discusses the relationship between Islam and gender equality. Because notions of gender and rights found in classical fiqh (jurisprudence) were socially constructed for that time, they no longer respond to lived realities today and conceptions of justice; therefore, we need to rethink the egalitarian […]
Knowledge Building Brief #2: Muslim Family Laws: What Makes Reform Possible? (English)

Knowledge Building Brief #2: Muslim Family Laws: What Makes Reform Possible? deals with the fact that reform is often resisted on the grounds that Muslim family laws are divine and thus not open to change. Yet change and reform have been inherent in Muslim legal tradition, which means it also provides conceptual tools and legal methods […]
Knowledge Building Brief #1: Shari‘ah, Fiqh, and State Laws: Clarifying the Terms (English)

Knowledge Building Brief #1: Shari‘ah, Fiqh, and State Laws: Clarifying the Terms discusses the differences between the concepts of Shari’ah, fiqh (jurisprudence), and Muslim family laws. Efforts towards reform need to recognise that Shari’ah is both divine and eternal (and not to be conflated with what we call Islamic laws), while fiqh and Islamic law—including […]