Muslim Women

[Scarlett O'Hara]

So in France they have now officially banned the Burka. If a woman is to wear one she will be charged $500. Is this against their rights? Do these women have rights with or without burkas in Eastern countries? Do they know any better than what they've always lived in and been brought up to believe?

Do you think this is fair? Some may argue yes due to the ongoing threat of terrorism and the ability for suicide bombers to have anonymity by wearing these burkas. Others might say no as it is stereotyping those wearing burkas and is against their rights as a human being.

My next question is, do you think it is fair how Muslim women are treated by Muslim men? How much do you actually know of their culture? A lot of women appear to be very keen to wear burkas by respectfully covering up according to their faith, but is this really what religion dictates or is it what men want? From what I understand, men are considered too tempted by women who show flesh and cannot control their urges. Therefore the women must cover up either completely or only leave their face uncovered in order to not encourage men. This is partly due to the rule that a man may not be alone in a room with a woman unless he is wed to her.

I ask western men here, how would you feel about being in that situation where you cannot see the women you are to be with until after you've wed? In the west it is all based on dating and judgement on looks and personality but over there the couples have very little chance to get to know each other. In a nut shell, you will be marrying a stranger who you haven't seen apart from the face/eyes at most.

Now I may be slightly off in my understandings but have this knowledge from dating an arab man myself, which was not the easiest thing to do. I do realise that there will be another side to all this and it is hard to understand a situation without living through it yourself and it becoming personal.