Sheikh Ibrahim Ahmed has said that forcing females into marriage with partners they do not prefer is prohibited in Islam.
The Sheikh made the statement, delivering the Friday sermon, yesterday. Sheikh Ibrahim said that marriages are a key part of the life of women and in Islam it is given high priority.
He said that in Islam, the right to marry their preference is given to women. He added that forcing them into marriage with partners they do not prefer is forbidden in Islam.
In the sermon, the Sheikh reflected on the rights and protection given to women after marriage.
“In the pre-Islamic era, divorce was given in any manner the husband wished. In Islam, women’s rights were protected. Getting married and divorced for the sake of it was banned. Women were protected from all forms of injustice and domestic violence. Domestic violence is a relatively new concept in the Maldivian laws. However, domestic violence was banned even in the Quran,” Sheikh said.
He said that Quran instructs Muslim men to repeal the divorce in good faith and return to the marriage or to stick with the divorce. Sheikh Ibrahim said that in Quran it is strictly forbidden to hold the women in a marriage to be cruel, intentionally.
Sheikh said that any believer who refutes the commands of Allah is one who had wronged himself.
Implementing and raising awareness of the measures and punishments set in Islam is the only way to prevent and mitigate domestic violence and other forms of injustice.
Forced marriages are not prohibited in Islam: Imam
