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Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Dear questioner, we would like to thank you for the great confidence you place in us, and we implore Allah Almighty to help us serve His cause and render our work for His sake.
The Beijing Platform for Action is a policy statement, not a binding convention, which does have good points, for it aims to give women rights to equal pay for equal work, equal education, health care, nutrition, social benefits, rights to own property and inherit, and so on. It also aims to protect them from violence and exploitation.
However, the Platform for Action also contains items that promote immorality.
To begin with, Islam prohibits any premarital or extramarital sex, and all means that could lead to it. As for the immorality that the Beijing document promotes, Islam rejects it totally and fights it resolutely. As for the equality of men and women, they are equal in rights and duties, but not in their functions.
In this concern, Dr. `Ali Jum`ah, Mufti of Egypt, states:
Among the blessings with which Allah has endowed Muslims is the prohibition of adultery and fornication, immoral acts, and practices. Allah Almighty says, (And come not near unto adultery. Lo! It is an abomination and an evil way) (Al-Isra’ 17: 32). In this noble verse, the Almighty forbids us even from drawing near to whatever could lead us to such a grievous sin as adultery or fornication. That is why Allah has commanded us to lower our gaze by saying, (Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be modest. That is purer for them. Lo! Allah is Aware of what they do) (An-Nur 24:30).
Thus, Muslims have been interested in clarifying the legal rulings pertaining to the sexual aspect of human life, and this clarification is the basis of sex education at any stage in life, up to the stage right before marriage and to those who will be married soon. Hence, if this international declaration asks Muslims and others to apply a program for sex education, then we will apply what our righteous predecessors used to follow and according to the rulings of our religion. This will be done by educating Muslims on the juristic rulings related to sex.
According to the above, we should teach our children that practicing sex outside marriage is prohibited and that there are rulings pertaining to adultery/fornication concerning the young, the old, the married (or previously married), and the unmarried. Moreover, teaching children and teenagers in schools and by mass media how to practice sex “safely” and suchlike topics is prohibited; it contradicts principles of Islam. Thus, it is also prohibited to distribute contraceptives among children and teens (as the document calls for), for this leads to sexual chaos.
As for abortion, it is basically prohibited according to the consensus of Muslim scholars. However, abortion can be resorted to in exceptional cases when there is a medical necessity [that is, when the pregnancy will inevitably endanger the life of the mother].
When it comes to the similarity of the genders, Islam rejects and prohibits it, for man and woman are equal in Islam in rights, duties, obligations, and humanity, but those rights and duties are not necessarily identical due to the biological differences of the sexes. You can also read:
The Status of Woman in Islam
Cyber Sex & Zina
The Prohibition of Approaching Zina
Developing Sex Education Curricula
Sex Education from an Islamic Perspective
Beijing Platform for Action
UN Reviews Implementing Beijing Declaration on Woman
Beijing Document Never Created Abortion Rights: UN
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