CAIRO,
November 30, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, the
highest religious body in the Sunni world, has released a new manual
on the rights of Muslim children.
The
guide, Children in Islam, Their Care, Protection and Development,
includes research papers, and verses from the Noble Qur’an, Hadith
and Sunnah to provide useful guidance on children's rights to health,
education and protection.
"Shari`ah
has paid due attention to the well-being of children and urged mankind
to cooperate with one another to protect children," Grand Imam of
Al-Azhar Sheikh Mohamed Sayed Tantawi said Tuesday, November 29.
The
manual, released in cooperation with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF),
underscores children's rights to linkage, naming, property, heritage,
care, nurture and education.
It
further tackles a plethora of children-related issues, mainly gender
equality and child abuse.
The
document also rejects child labor, stressing that forcing children to
undertake drudgery is forbidden under Islam and international law.
The
new manual was drawn up by a host of 13 Al-Azhar professors and 13
UNICEF experts as well as an Arab member of the Committee on the
Rights of the Child.
Bad
Traditions
The
manual also touches on bad traditions spreading across the Muslim
world, chiefly early marriage and the consequent health, social and
psychological problems.
"Marriage
in Islam is regulated by certain rules, namely, children must reach
puberty and maturity so that they can get married," it reads.
The
manual further said that the abhorrent female circumcision was
un-Islamic.
Muslim
scholars for decades have emphasized that there is no Islamic basis
for the very harmful practice, which causes many deaths among young
girls each year.
"The
guide came to make clear that Islam has been unfairly equated with
some bad traditions like female circumcision and gender
discrimination," Professor Gamal Abu Al-Sorour told
IslamOnline.net Wednesday, November 30.
The
guide urged Muslims worldwide and governments to live up to their
responsibilities and protect child rights.
"The
manual could make positive changes in the lives of millions of
children in the Islamic world as it gives detailed information on
children's rights in Islam and makes it available for anyone who wants
to make use of," said UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Rima
Salah.
More
than 600 million children across the Muslim world face enormous
challenges, from poverty and disease to lack of education and
protection, according to UNICEF.
Abul
Sorour said the new manual is a very serious effort to tackle
modern-day problems that threaten child well-being.
"New
challenges and problems that threaten child well-being, such as female
genital mutilation, child labor, child trafficking and HIV/AIDS, have
surfaced since the issuance of the first manual," he said.
An
earlier publication by UNICEF and Al-Azhar -- titled Child Care in
Islam -- was published in 1984 and focused mainly on issues relating
to the survival of young children.
The
Islamic Research Association (IRA) of Al-Azhar ratified in August of
2003 the 'Children Charter in Islam,' drawn up by the Islamic World
Council for Dawaa and Relief's (IWCDR) committee of women and
children, in response to the United Nations children charter, which
violates Shari`ah in some of its articles.
The
137-page charter consists of 33 articles that primarily tackle child
care, human rights, personal status laws and the ideal bringing-up of
Muslim children.
Also
Read…
