Research report South African Muslim women: sexuality, marriage and reproductive choices

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Periodical article

Title:	Research report South African Muslim women: sexuality, marriage and reproductive choices
Authors:	Shaikh, Sa'diyya Hoel, Nina Kagee, Ashraf
Year:	2011
Periodical:	Journal for Islamic Studies (ISSN 0257-7062)
Volume:	31
Pages:	96-124
Language:	English
Geographic term:	South Africa
Subjects:	women Islam gender roles
Abstract:	While there has been considerable debate about Muslim women in various countries, few empirical studies have been conducted on the lived experiences of South African Muslim women. The purpose of the present study was to understand the opinions, perspectives, and experiences of marriage, spousal relationships, and sexual and reproductive decisionmaking of Muslim women in South Africa. Based on insights from feminist theory, the authors examined the lives of 262 married Muslim women in Cape Town between October 2008 and June 2009. The findings suggest that the participants in the study generally engaged in various negotiations and contestations of patriarchal understandings of Islam. Some women echoed traditional and patriarchal views of marriage, while others had clear views of Islam as gender-egalitarian. While there may be traditional Islamic understandings of gendered financial roles amongst some women, these gender roles are not necessarily reflected in their actual lives and relationships. Notes, ref. [ASC Leiden abstract]