 An Islamic tribunal's ruling that allows Sunni men to marry without having to live with or financially support their wives has enraged Gulf women's rights activists who say Islamic marriage is unfair enough already.
| In the West, we call this concept "dating." |
The Mecca-based Islamic Jurisprudence Assembly announced on April 12 that so-called Misyar marriage - from the colloquial Gulf Arabic word for visitor - was permitted, drawing the ire of women in the region.
| "Yeah! Right, Buster! You're thinkin' maybe some flowers, a little perfume, then off to the Motel 6 for a weekend of debauchery! We're thinkin' serious jewelry here!" |
Kuwaiti activist Rola Dashti said the move, which skirts around Islamic rules on extramarital sexual relationships and relieves men of responsibility for their wives, "destroys the fundamentals of a family."
| It does reaffirm the fundamentals of kept women, though... |
"The rights which would be abandoned by a woman [in this kind of marriage] are essential to build a stable family," said Dashti, who also heads the Kuwait Economic Society.
| If she's thinking of an apartment in Paris, maybe this is more up her alley, so to speak... |
The edict says "a marriage contract in which the woman relinquishes [her right to] housing and support money ... and accepts that the man visits her in her [family] house whenever he likes, day or night ... is valid."
| "In terms of Islamic jurisprudence, this is called 'shacking up at Mom's house.'" |
But by giving up her rights with such a marriage, which is usually seen as temporary, the wife would not necessarily receive a penny when divorced. "A woman who is married the standard way faces enormous problems when it comes to getting a divorce, so what would her situation be in a Misyar marriage?" said Dashti.
| "Fatimeh, I've met someone else. I won't be over for dinner and a bang tonight." |
Unlike Shiite Islam's form of temporary marriage known as Mutaa, which has a preset date of expiry,
| ... often 20 minutes from the contract signing... |
Misyar marriage does not have a predetermined end. "Enlightened Islamic scholars should stand up to such radical thoughts disseminated through [Islamic] tribunes, and not abandon women to stand up to them alone," Dashti said. |