The Little Girl
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Islam secures the right of women from the moment the baby girl is born. She
should be received with happiness and pleasure, in contrast with the Arab tribal
and combatant society that used to determine individuals’ place in the society on
the basic of their ability to fight.
“And whenever any of them is given the glad tiding of (the birth of) a girl, his face
darkens, and he is filled with suppressed anger. He is avoiding all people because
of (the alleged) evil of the glad tiding that he has received, (and debating with
himself): Shall he keep this (child) despite the contempt (which he feels for her), or
shall be bury her in the dust? Oh, evil indeed is whatever they decide.”(16:59)
God accepted Mary, mother of Jesus, for a sacred mission; differently form her
people’s thinking that only a man should be chosen for it:
“And God was All Hearing, All Knowing when a women of (the House of) Imran
prayed: O my Lord! Behold, unto you do I vow (the child) that is in my womb, to
be devoted to your service. Accept it, then for me: Verily, you alone are allhearing, all-knowing.
But when she had given birth to the child, she said: O my Lord! Behold, I have
given birth to a female- the while God had been fully aware of what she would
give birth to…And thereupon her Lord accepted the girl-child with goodly
acceptance, and caused her to grow up in goodly growth, and placed her in the care
of Zachariah. Whenever Zachariah visited her in the sanctuary, he found her
provided with food….” (3:34-3:37)
The female child’s family and the society as well are responsible for securing the
physical and educational growth of the girl according to her abilities and talents.
She has the right to work and enjoy full economic rights and independent legal
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personality. However, the husband is legally responsible for what the whole
family (his wife and their children) needs, even through the wife can always share
freely in family expenses if she so chooses.
