A British Muslim group has told its members that women should not be able to go further than 48 miles without a male chaperone. Blackburn
Muslim Association stipulates that it is ‘not permissible’ for a women
to go more than 48 miles, roughly three days walk, without her husband
or a close male relative.
The
statement is on a question and answer section on the group’s website
which offers ‘solutions and
answers’ to religious, social or financial
matters according to Sharia teaching.
The group
claims to have received local government funding and is listed as an
affiliate of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), the Telegraph reported.
The website also states that men must grow beards and advises women to cover their faces.
Justine
Greening, the International Development Secretary and equalities
minister said the advice had ‘no place’ in modern Britain branding it
‘disgraceful’.
Miss
Greening’s intervention came following a question from Tory MP David
Davies in the Commons who asked if efforts to improve sexual equality
‘would be made easier if organisations like the Blackburn Muslim
Association were not putting out information to people that women should
not be allowed to travel more than 48 miles without a chaperone?’
Miss Greening replied: ‘Frankly the view that they expressed on it is disgraceful and unacceptable.
Justine Greening
‘It has no
place in Britain and is contrary to our British values and I think the
Blackburn Muslim Association should very clearly and publicly withdraw
those comments.’
The Blackburn Muslim Association and the Muslim Council of Britain were unavailable for comment last night.
Dr
Sheik Howjat Ramzy, an Oxford-based scholar and former head of the
MCB’s education committee told the paper: ‘I believe this is offensive
in this day and age that such a restriction should be placed on any
woman against her wishes.
‘This
practice was a very old tradition which had been followed by some when
there was no security for women and when women were at risk of being
abducted when travelling alone. - this was a tradition at the very
beginning of Islam.
‘I
would think no Muslim man has the right to impose these restrictions of
movement. Women should be free to go where they please.
‘I
believe they should withdraw this statement and not degrade women.
Islam gives great freedom to women – travel is part of that freedom.’
Lord
Green, the founder of the think-tank Migration Watch UK, said: ‘There
is no place in our society for restrictions of this kind on the freedom
of women.
‘Muslim leaders would do well to encourage their followers to integrate with our society rather than cut themselves off.’ -mailonline
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