1. 1. The wisdom of polygamy legislation in Islam & its situation in Afghanistan by Nasir Ahmad Yousefi (G1419223)
2. 2. 1. Introduction There is no doubt that only Allah is the creator and He knows the needs of His creation. However, all rulings and orders are to achieve his servants to prosperity. This paper is not put together in defence of polygamy for Allah has already confirmed its validity as clearly stated in the Noble Quran: Marry of the women that please you, two, three or four, but if you fear that you will not be able to deal justly with them, then only one. Moreover, the Prophet (PBUH) demonstrated in detail how polygamy should be put into practice by his divinely guided lifestyle. Nowadays, polygamy is usually viewed as a right that man has but should not take, or as a law that is outmoded and in need of being abolished. Polygamy in Islam is a favourite topic for the critics of Islam and its message. The so-called secular and western global domination has maligned the subject to the extent that is impact is felt worldwide. Some so called modern Muslim scholars have succumbed to the propaganda.
3. 3. 1.2 DEFINATION OF POLYGAMY 1.2.1 polygyny a man marries more than one woman. limited polygyny is permitted 1.2.2 polyandry a woman marries more than one man. completely prohibited
4. 4. 2. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF POLYGAMY. Islam did not invent the system of polygamy. It existed long before Islam came into the scene of world events. Many holy personalities of the Bible had many wives or concubines at the same time. Abraham had Sarah and Hajar. Abraham was first blessed with a son through Hajar whom he named Ishmael, and then he was blessed with another son through Sarah whom he named Isaac. Look at the example of Jacob; he had four wives and concubines: Leah and Rachel (both were Jacobs cousins), and he also had Bilhah and Zilpah (both were slave-girls gifted to Jacob by his wives). It is from these four ladies that Jacob had twelve sons who became ancestors of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. David, known in Arabic as Prophet Dawd, had at least eight wives whose names are known and he had many others whose names have not been recorded.
5. 5. Con In eastern parts, multiple marriages have been a common custom. In Iran during the Sasanis dynasty, the custom of multiple marriages was a common thing. Besides having married women, men had some unmarried wives with them. There were mistresses and captive women too, and they were called servant ladies. According to Ferdawsis Book (Shahnama), Baharam Gur had 930 wives. Among the Sparts, men could get married for the second time only in a particular situation. However, women could get married more than men according to their wish or tendency.
6. 6. 2.1 Polygamy in age of ignorance (Jahiliyyah): Prior to the emergence of Islam, the Arabian Peninsula was characterized by a wide range of marriage practicesboth polygynous and polyandrous alike, as well as monogamous. about the time of the birth of Muhammad (circa 570)--the woman remaining with her tribe, where the man could visit or reside with her, and the children belonging to the mother's tribe--as well as polyandrous and polygamous marriages. Before the revelation of the Holy Quran, or almost 1450 years ago, Polygamy was a custom and unlimited.
7. 7. 3. POLYGAMY AND ISLAM (3) If you fear that you cannot treat orphans with fairness, then you may marry such women (widowed) as seem good to you: two, three or four of them. But if you fear that you cannot do justice, marry one only. Islam did not prohibit polygamy tradition before it was popular among Arabs and non-Arabs, but it was limited to four, Islam versus unlimited polygamy among Arab men and was enforced to prevent the violation of women's rights. Under Islamic marital jurisprudence, Muslim men are allowed to practice polygamy, that is, they can have more than one wife at the same time, up to a total of four. One of the commandments given in the Quran as a matter of social organization concerns polygamy that is permission for a man to marry up to four women:
8. 8. 3.1 Regarding to this Sentence, The religion of Islam did not eliminate the custom of Polygamy, but rather reformed it. The reform was as follow: ControlthePolygamy Polygamy was unlimited before Islam,, but Islam identified the maximum limit for them and according to such limits a man cannot have more than four wives. Justice Discrimination among wives and their children is never allowed. Justice was not considered a condition before Islam as the Judaism used to consider economy the basic condition for Polygamy. RemovalofDiscrimination The third reform that Islam made was the removal of discrimination among women and children.
9. 9. 3.2 The prophet Muhammad (PBUH) marriages. singleFrom birth to age 25 married to one wife, Khadija.- From age 25 to age 50 married ten wives. From age 50 to age 63 To Providing Protection 1. Lady Sawdah bint Zamah 2. Lady Zaynab bint Khuzaymah 3. Lady Umm Salamah. To Set the Slaves Free. 4. Lady Juwayriyyah bint al-Hrith To Forge Friendly Relations for Sake of Islam 5. Lady isha bint Abi Bakr. 6. Lady Hafsah bint Umar ibn al-Khattb 7. Lady Umm Habibah, daughter of Abu Sufyan. The Desire 9. Lady Maymunah bint al-Hrith al-Hilaliyyah To Break a Taboo 10. Lady Zaynab bint Jahsh.
10. 10. 3.3 Opinions of classical Islamic scholars on polygamy. Disagree polygamy provision was for a specific period and a solution for temporary problem. that the rule of polygamy has abolished and its implementation during this period will be considered violation of women's rights. to the conclusion that Islam is against the polygamy due to the inability of man to justice between wives. Agree 1-establishment of the rule of polygamy.2- menopausal women The condition exist for polygamy in Islam is that the Muslim man should have the insurance that he would be able to apply justice in his relation to his wives "Polygamy is an age-old institution, but it was an unorganized chaos before Islam. It was liable to fancy and enjoyment, but Islam made it a means of excellent life.
11. 11. 4. INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW AND POLYGAMY In general, polygamy is legal in about 25% of countries, some countries only legally allow polygyny in their Muslim population. A majority of the world's countries and nearly all of the world's developed nations do not permit polygamy, and there have been calls for the abolition of polygamy in many developing countries. Polygamy has been described as a form of human rights abuse. Many international human rights organizations, as well as women's rights groups in many countries, have called for its abolition. In 2000, the United Nations Human Rights Committee considered polygamy (probably limited to polygyny) a violation of the internationally binding International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) on the grounds that it violates the dignity of women, and recommended it be made illegal in all states. Polygamous marriages are recognized civilly in nearly fifty countries, either dominated by Muslims or in the African continent.
12. 12. 4.1 A Map Regarding Polygamy Around the World
13. 13. 5. POLYGAMY IN AFGANISTAN BETWEEN LAW AND ACT Polygamy in 1355 civil law of Afghanistan: In article 86 of this law it is mentioned that: Polygamy can be taken place after the following conditions are fulfilled: 1. When there is no fear of injustice between the wives. 2. The person has financial sufficiency to sustain the wives that is when he can provide food, clothes, suitable houses and medical care. 3. When there is legal expediency that is when the first wife is childless or when she suffers from diseases which are hard to be treated . Afghanistan as an Islamic country with almost 99% Muslim population, is expected to be a good place to observe Islamic rules, especially in women and children rights. Unfortunately, in the field of legislation and actions of people in Islamic law, has been less attention to respect to the public and private law, therefore for the various reasons, the Islamic laws are not implemented nicely and even was abused.
14. 14. 5.1 Factors of polygamy practicing in Afghanistan 5.1.1 Factors for polygamy in relation to Men Number Factors Percentag e 1 Tribal competitions 26.23 2 Insecurity 9.13 3 Not having a child 11.1 4 Not having a son 6.00 5 Sickness of wife 13.25 6 Wealth 7.32 7 Power and status 6.82 8 Traveling 1.11 9 Custom and tradition 14.12 10 Differences and inexistence of agreement between husband and wife 4.97 5.1.2 Factors related to the women consent in marrying a married men Tribal& regional competitions Need for safety Childlessness Sonlessness
15. 15. 5.2 Factors related to the women consent in marrying a married men. Maternal disease Strong economy Power & position travels Custom & tradition Differences between husband & wife
16. 16. 6. polygamy in other Islamic counties Turkey was the first country to legally ban polygamy in 1926. This decision was not based on religious reasons, but rather was an entirely secular ban. Tunisia was the next country to ban polygamy through legislation passed in 1956 and restated in 1964. Some countries, including India, Iran, Iraq, Bangladesh, Algeria, Lebanon, Morocco, Jordan, and Kuwait, allow women to include a clause prohibiting polygamy in marriage contracts. Other countries, such as Iran and Pakistan, require that a man get permission to take a second wife from his first wife, and then show the court proof of his first wife's consent.
17. 17. 6.1 Malaysia Malaysia states that a man must get permission from both his wife and from the government religious authority in order to take a second.
18. 18. 7. Conclusion Based on the discussion above, a few conclusions can be made namely: 1. Polygamy bears witness of the perfection of the Islamic Law because it is able to prevent human beings from adultery (zina) and the practice of keeping mistresses and girl friends which are obviously cruel to one self and to women. 2. polygamy is allowed to be enjoyed and taken advantage of with full responsibilities. 3. The measurement of responsibilities has been outlined so clearly through the practice of fairness. Being fair here refers to taking turns, provision of nafkah physically and sexually, food, clothing, security assurance and accommodation. Thus, it is forbidden for men who cannot fulfil the conditions to become polygamous. 2. Polygamy is not pioneered by Islam as certain Muslim and non-Muslim societies have claimed. It has been practiced for generations by the Chinese, Greek, Christian and Jews communities. 3. The deformation of polygamy is not at the concept level, but at the practice level by men who have deviated from the Shariah guidelines. This is proven from statistics whereby 80% of those who complained of having marital problems are the women. This indirectly gives the understanding that marriage crisis are caused by the husbands negligence . 4. The stringent rules provisioned in Islamic Family Laws are not aimed to deter polygamy. They are created to uphold peace in a marriage and to protect the wives from the husbands oppression and violation.
19. 19. POLYGAMY & Dr. AHMAD DEDAT