Negotiating Bliss by Cassandra Balchin, 8 March 2010

The bliss of an egalitarian and just relationship between spouses cannot be achieved through a sheet of paper. But Cassandra Balchin writes that in Muslim contexts efforts to take a fresh look at marriage contracts is certainly a step towards this goal.

Many have heard about Afghanistan’s Shia Personal Status Law which last year looked like granting husbands total obedience from their wives, in effect even permitting marital rape. Yet few have heard about the bold new Muslim marriage contract endorsed by the country’s Supreme Court. A contract that means Afghanistan’s women can demand far more than the right not to have to give their husbands sex.

In contexts as diverse as Afghanistan, the UK and North Africa, progressive Muslims and women’s groups have begun looking at the marriage contract as a practical way of negotiating marital bliss and an end to the presumed dominance of the husband over the wife. In each there have recently been major initiatives around model marriage contracts with a firm commitment to advancing equality within the family.

After the fall of the Taliban, “We decided to prioritise the marriage contract because it seemed to be a feasible and practical remedy to secure the rights of women within families. Amending the family law required complex procedures, whereas the marriage contract only needed the Supreme Court’s approval,” said Roya Rahmani, an Afghan activist speaking on the success of the marriage contract campaign.... 

READ FULL ARTICLE published on openDemocracy:  http://www.opendemocracy.net/5050/cassandra-balchin/negotiating-bliss