abu yahmed
31-05-00, 09:49 AM
Beijing Plus Five: The United Nation's Advance on Islam
Imagine this scenario: a Muslim country letting homosexuals marry,
promoting
abortions for all in any condition and the destruction of Islamic laws
like
those pertaining to inheritance and marriage.
‘I just don’t think Muslims would tolerate that’, a Muslim remarked.
But
given the silence about a United Nations conference, it seems Muslim
countries are ready to let all this happen.
June 5 to June 9, 2000 is when the United Nations General Assembly will
hold
a special session nicknamed Beijing Plus Five (formally titled, Women
2000:
gender equality, development and peace for the twenty-first century) in
New
York.
This meeting will review how far countries have progressed in
implementing
the UN’s agenda of secular, feminist gender relations, population
control,
sexual rights (including gay rights) since 1995. That was when these
demands
took shape in the Platform for Action, a result of the UN’s Fourth
World
Conference On Women in Beijing, China.
"It is the greatest challenge to the supremacy of Shariah that the
Muslim
world has ever faced collectively. If we fail to challenge it this
time, we
may have to pay the price for that lapse over the next decades or
centuries." warns an April 26 action alert for the Islamic ezine
Albalagh
(www.albalagh.net), about the conference.
Gender equality: How the UN treated Muslim women in 1995
The latest conference claims to uphold the rights of women through the
empowerment.
But its agenda is clearly the imposition of a secular, feminist
understanding of the position of women and women’s rights on the world.
The
way a number of Muslim women were treated at the UN’s 1995 conference
made
that very clear.
"We found in some workshops people would get up and say things like,
‘what
are all these fundamentalist women doing’, ‘Why are they running around
in
scarves’, ‘Religion was not on this agenda’," said Khadija Haffajee, an
Ottawa, Canada,-based Muslim activist who was part of the Muslim
women’s NGO
(non-governmental organization) at Beijing. The NGO was comprised of 60
women from about 12 different countries.
"We were saying [at the conference] that our faith is very fundamental
to
who we are. No matter what we’re discussing, we are discussing it
because we
believe in a certain way of life," she explained in an October 1995
interview.
Haffajee found no dialogue on women’s rights and issues from different
perspectives. The voices of Muslim women speaking from an Islamic
perspective were clearly shut out. She said she attended workshops
presented
by women who were not Muslim on Muslim women’s issues. Muslim women in
the
audience were not given the opportunity to respond to them. "They were
talking about us but we were not allowed to present and counterbalance
what
they were saying," she said.
Gender equality in the June 2000 preparatory document
Almost five years later, this same imposition of a specific view of
women’s
rights and roles is being promulgated, and set to be enshrined in
international law.
The streamlined version of the June 2000 conference preparatory
document is
quite clear in its aims and objectives. When it comes to gender
equality,
the focus is on emphasizing women’s employment outside of the home,
with
scant importance given to what it terms "traditional" responsibilities,
such
as motherhood and responsibilities within the home.
The sex-based division of labor is frowned upon in the document, to say
the
least, and equality, in UN speak, essentially entails getting women out
into
the labor force, pursuing "non-traditional" career fields, with a few
clauses in the preparatory document addressing the issue of child care
in
this scenario.
Development: Gay rights, anti-Islamic laws and "the condom culture"
"Development" is another theme of the June conference and in the past
it has
clearly meant the implementation of policies through the UN that are
clearly
anti-Islamic. The current document and the possible outcome, are no
different.
Here’s what it had to say about homosexuality (clause 102 h): "Develop,
review and implement laws, practices and procedures to prohibit and
eliminate discrimination on the basis of sex, race or ethnic origin,
religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation."
On a practical level, this would happen in the following way according
to
clause 102 j: "Take action to end discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation; review and repeal laws that criminalize homosexuality,
since
such laws contribute to creating a climate which encourages
discrimination
and violence against women who are, or are perceived to be, lesbians;
and
address violence and harassment against them."
Here’s what the preparatory document originally had to say about some
aspects of the Shariah (Islamic law) without mentioning it in
particular:
(page 100 132 e. 63 (v)): "Discourage, through the media and other
means,
customary laws and practices, such as early marriage, polygamy and
female
genital mutilation, that increase women’s and girls’ susceptibility to
HIV
infection and other sexually transmitted diseases" (bold is our
emphasis).
After a few revisions, this has been watered down to "Encourage,
through the
media and other means, a high awareness of harmful effects of
traditional or
customary practices affecting the health of women, some of which
increase
their vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and other sexual transmitted infections
and
intensify efforts to eliminate such practices (same page and reference
number).
As well, anyone familiar with the United Nations’ agenda for women
knows
that it must include "reproductive rights" and "reproductive health
needs"
which is essentially UN speak for abortion and contraception on demand.
The
focus is on providing generously for these "rights":
"Adopt policies to ensure primary health care and reproductive health
services of the widest achievable range of scale, in order, namely, to
bridge the gap of unmet needs in contraception and promote safe
motherhood."(107 f.).
And finally, all kinds of sex are a right: "Ensure that women of all
ages
can fully realize their sexuality, free of coercion, discrimination and
violence, by inter alia, developing legislation, disseminating
information
and promoting accessible and affordable services" (108a).
The Problem with Muslim reservations
Traditionally, Muslim governments that did participate in UN
conferences
like the one in 1995, as well as one on "population development"
(really
population control) in Cairo, Egypt in 1994 asked for exceptions to
many of
the above-mentioned anti-Islamic dictates of UN documents.
But the preparatory document for the June conference does away even
with
this in clause 102d:"Ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms
of Discrimination against Women, limit the extent of any reservations
to it
and withdraw all reservations which are incompatible with the object
and
purpose of the Convention or otherwise incompatible with applicable
international treaty law."
It even sets a timetable for this: "Repeal all discriminatory
legislation by
2005" (102b).
The UN agenda is already in swing despite Muslim "reservations"
Khalid Baig is webmaster for Al Balagh, and a writer for the U.K.-based
Impact International magazine. He has sounded the alarm bells before
about
the UN and its policies. He’s doing it again and warns that despite
Muslim
reservations, the UN agenda is clearly taking root in Muslim countries,
ri
Imagine this scenario: a Muslim country letting homosexuals marry,
promoting
abortions for all in any condition and the destruction of Islamic laws
like
those pertaining to inheritance and marriage.
‘I just don’t think Muslims would tolerate that’, a Muslim remarked.
But
given the silence about a United Nations conference, it seems Muslim
countries are ready to let all this happen.
June 5 to June 9, 2000 is when the United Nations General Assembly will
hold
a special session nicknamed Beijing Plus Five (formally titled, Women
2000:
gender equality, development and peace for the twenty-first century) in
New
York.
This meeting will review how far countries have progressed in
implementing
the UN’s agenda of secular, feminist gender relations, population
control,
sexual rights (including gay rights) since 1995. That was when these
demands
took shape in the Platform for Action, a result of the UN’s Fourth
World
Conference On Women in Beijing, China.
"It is the greatest challenge to the supremacy of Shariah that the
Muslim
world has ever faced collectively. If we fail to challenge it this
time, we
may have to pay the price for that lapse over the next decades or
centuries." warns an April 26 action alert for the Islamic ezine
Albalagh
(www.albalagh.net), about the conference.
Gender equality: How the UN treated Muslim women in 1995
The latest conference claims to uphold the rights of women through the
empowerment.
But its agenda is clearly the imposition of a secular, feminist
understanding of the position of women and women’s rights on the world.
The
way a number of Muslim women were treated at the UN’s 1995 conference
made
that very clear.
"We found in some workshops people would get up and say things like,
‘what
are all these fundamentalist women doing’, ‘Why are they running around
in
scarves’, ‘Religion was not on this agenda’," said Khadija Haffajee, an
Ottawa, Canada,-based Muslim activist who was part of the Muslim
women’s NGO
(non-governmental organization) at Beijing. The NGO was comprised of 60
women from about 12 different countries.
"We were saying [at the conference] that our faith is very fundamental
to
who we are. No matter what we’re discussing, we are discussing it
because we
believe in a certain way of life," she explained in an October 1995
interview.
Haffajee found no dialogue on women’s rights and issues from different
perspectives. The voices of Muslim women speaking from an Islamic
perspective were clearly shut out. She said she attended workshops
presented
by women who were not Muslim on Muslim women’s issues. Muslim women in
the
audience were not given the opportunity to respond to them. "They were
talking about us but we were not allowed to present and counterbalance
what
they were saying," she said.
Gender equality in the June 2000 preparatory document
Almost five years later, this same imposition of a specific view of
women’s
rights and roles is being promulgated, and set to be enshrined in
international law.
The streamlined version of the June 2000 conference preparatory
document is
quite clear in its aims and objectives. When it comes to gender
equality,
the focus is on emphasizing women’s employment outside of the home,
with
scant importance given to what it terms "traditional" responsibilities,
such
as motherhood and responsibilities within the home.
The sex-based division of labor is frowned upon in the document, to say
the
least, and equality, in UN speak, essentially entails getting women out
into
the labor force, pursuing "non-traditional" career fields, with a few
clauses in the preparatory document addressing the issue of child care
in
this scenario.
Development: Gay rights, anti-Islamic laws and "the condom culture"
"Development" is another theme of the June conference and in the past
it has
clearly meant the implementation of policies through the UN that are
clearly
anti-Islamic. The current document and the possible outcome, are no
different.
Here’s what it had to say about homosexuality (clause 102 h): "Develop,
review and implement laws, practices and procedures to prohibit and
eliminate discrimination on the basis of sex, race or ethnic origin,
religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation."
On a practical level, this would happen in the following way according
to
clause 102 j: "Take action to end discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation; review and repeal laws that criminalize homosexuality,
since
such laws contribute to creating a climate which encourages
discrimination
and violence against women who are, or are perceived to be, lesbians;
and
address violence and harassment against them."
Here’s what the preparatory document originally had to say about some
aspects of the Shariah (Islamic law) without mentioning it in
particular:
(page 100 132 e. 63 (v)): "Discourage, through the media and other
means,
customary laws and practices, such as early marriage, polygamy and
female
genital mutilation, that increase women’s and girls’ susceptibility to
HIV
infection and other sexually transmitted diseases" (bold is our
emphasis).
After a few revisions, this has been watered down to "Encourage,
through the
media and other means, a high awareness of harmful effects of
traditional or
customary practices affecting the health of women, some of which
increase
their vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and other sexual transmitted infections
and
intensify efforts to eliminate such practices (same page and reference
number).
As well, anyone familiar with the United Nations’ agenda for women
knows
that it must include "reproductive rights" and "reproductive health
needs"
which is essentially UN speak for abortion and contraception on demand.
The
focus is on providing generously for these "rights":
"Adopt policies to ensure primary health care and reproductive health
services of the widest achievable range of scale, in order, namely, to
bridge the gap of unmet needs in contraception and promote safe
motherhood."(107 f.).
And finally, all kinds of sex are a right: "Ensure that women of all
ages
can fully realize their sexuality, free of coercion, discrimination and
violence, by inter alia, developing legislation, disseminating
information
and promoting accessible and affordable services" (108a).
The Problem with Muslim reservations
Traditionally, Muslim governments that did participate in UN
conferences
like the one in 1995, as well as one on "population development"
(really
population control) in Cairo, Egypt in 1994 asked for exceptions to
many of
the above-mentioned anti-Islamic dictates of UN documents.
But the preparatory document for the June conference does away even
with
this in clause 102d:"Ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms
of Discrimination against Women, limit the extent of any reservations
to it
and withdraw all reservations which are incompatible with the object
and
purpose of the Convention or otherwise incompatible with applicable
international treaty law."
It even sets a timetable for this: "Repeal all discriminatory
legislation by
2005" (102b).
The UN agenda is already in swing despite Muslim "reservations"
Khalid Baig is webmaster for Al Balagh, and a writer for the U.K.-based
Impact International magazine. He has sounded the alarm bells before
about
the UN and its policies. He’s doing it again and warns that despite
Muslim
reservations, the UN agenda is clearly taking root in Muslim countries,
ri