This Is How Brunei Just Screwed Their Women Over

The country of Brunei just announced that starting May 2014, they are gong to implement Sharia Law in the entirety of their country.

By

Shutterstock
Disclaimer: Let me start by saying, Islam is nifty. It’s a religion, like all religions it has flaws, but it also has followers. The problem here is not Islam as a whole. The problem is a restrictive set of laws forced upon people against their will. Islam is cool, Religion is cool, and Violence is not cool.

The country of Brunei just announced that starting May 2014, they are gong to implement Sharia Law in the entirety of their country. While this law may unfortunately affect thousands of people, the Rupert Colville (The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights) has stated that he believes this law will be specifically harmful for women in the country.

The law is going to be rolled out in waves, and the entirety and specificities of the law have not been made public.
Shutterstock
Shutterstock

1. Children born out of Wedlock

To be fair, this could affect men and women. Anyone found guilty of having a child out of wedlock is subject to jail and/or fines. The situation is, that it’s easy for someone to see if a woman has a child out of wedlock, she obviously becomes pregnant. However, even in America it’s (sometimes) hard for women with children out of wedlock to legally name the father of their child (Maury anybody?), can you imagine how the situation would be in Brunei?

2. Adultery

Anyone found cheating on his or her spouse could be subject to stoning. This is already seen in other countries that have adopted Sharia Law such as Iran. At one point three men (in Iran) were convicted and stoned, as opposed to 12 women who suffered the same fate. Since women are not allowed to leave the house without having a male escort (husband or not) accusations of adultery are easier to be brought upon against women.

3. Dress Code

Clothing is an important part of this law. Modesty is important in Islam, and that is highlighted in these laws. Women may be required to wear a burka, niqab, or hijab.

  1. Hijab covers hair only
  2. Niqab covers the face (minus the eyes)
  3. Burqa covers the whole body.

To reemphasize, these laws aren’t necessarily an accurate representation of Islam. There are many Muslims who don’t adhere to these concepts in their everyday lives, and wouldn’t dream of enforcing any religious laws on anybody. (People like me bro!) The situation is that these laws tend to skew unfairly towards treatment of women, and this is something we should not only take note of, but also actively resist. Thought Catalog Logo Mark