Muslim women human rights defenders leading global social change

Intensely personal and truly intersectional, the panelists from Malaysia, France and Sudan brought to life the specific forms of harassments faced by Muslim women human rights defenders together with actionable strategies.

Hawzah News Agency - Sisters In Islam’s (SIS’) conference on “Islam Unsurrendered: Women Rising Against Extremism” began its second day on 16 October with a thought-provoking panel session on deconstructing the struggle of Muslim women as human rights defenders.

Intensely personal and truly intersectional, the panelists from Malaysia, France and Sudan brought to life the specific forms of harassments faced by Muslim women human rights defenders together with actionable strategies.

Rozana Isa, SIS executive director, focused on the daily scrutiny of human rights activists through draconian laws and policies in Malaysia.

The Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma), Prevention of Crime Act, Prevention of Terrorism Act and Syariah Criminal Offences Act are just a few of the oppressive laws enacted against human rights defenders, in absurd perversion of the rule of law.

For the average Malaysian Muslim citizens, they are vulnerable to state religious authorities providing no accord for a Muslim person’s privacy or rights as a citizen, as is repeatedly seen in religious department’s flagrant “khalwat” raids.

Rozana shared the importance of Muslim women human rights defenders having a crisis standard operating procedure for raids, a working relationship with journalists, a strong online solidarity network, “non-state actors powerful role in society” and not forgetting, the psychological wellbeing dimension of fighting for Muslim women’s human rights under Islam.