Religion, State Power, and Domestic Violence in Muslim Societies: A Framework for Comparative Analysis

Abstract

This article focuses on the issue of domestic violence in Muslim societies in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. The analytical framework is comparative, emphasizing four factors and the interplay among them: shari'a (Islamic law), state power, intrafamily violence, and struggles over women's rights. The comparative approach historicizes the problem of domestic violence and impunity to consider the impact of transnational legal discourses (Islamism and human rights) on “local” struggles over rights and law. The use of shari'a creates some commonalities in gender and family relations in Muslim societies, notably the sanctioning and maintenance of male authority over female relatives. However, the most important issue for understanding domestic violence and impunity is the relationship between religion and state power. This relationship takes three forms: communalization, in which religious law is separate from the national legal regime; nationalization, in which the state incorporates religious law into the national legal regime; and theocratization, in which the national legal regime is based on religious law.

The Nexus of Domestic Violence Reform and Social Science: From Instrument of Social Change to Institutionalized Surveillance

“…These studies have provided an important vantage point for reflection about both the wisdom of domestic violence measures in the United States and their applicability in other cultural and political contexts (Hirsch 2003, Lazarus-Black 2003, Hajjar 2004, Panda & Agarwal 2005. To a large extent, the cross-cultural perspective has brought attention to conflicts between criminal enforcement of intimate activities and the interests of marginalized communities.…”

Risk and Resilience of Immigrant Women in Intimate Partner Violence

“…The centrality of the husband's role to provide and women's obligation to obey, for example, is reflected in traditional Muslim and Roman Catholic beliefs (e.g., Bucci, 2012;Hajjar, 2004;Korteweg & Yurdakul, 2009;Lehrer, Lehrer, & Krauss, 2009;Seymour, 2005). Under the conservative Islamic laws, sexual assault and rape may be justified under the Islamic laws for men who claimed to be "deprived" of sexual relations from their wife.…”

Changing sources of support for women's political rights*

“…Within Islam, following Islamic beliefs (orthodoxy) could lead to supporting the inclusion of women in politics because the early teachings of Muhammad in the Qu'ran stated the equality of all before God and the consequent need to treat all people with justice and respect. However, traditional practices and behaviours, such as bearding, might not be associated with supporting women, because Islamic religiosity is associated with conservative cultural positions (Hajjar 2004).…”