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MADRID, Oct 28, 2005 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Organizers of a Spanish conference of Muslim women from around the world have called for a "gender Jihad," reports the BBC.
Abdennur Prado Pavon says the struggle for gender equality in Islamic countries involves refuting chauvinist interpretations of Muslim teachings.
He and other organizers said Spain was chosen as the venue for the first such congress because they want their message to reach the growing number of Muslim women in Europe.
Prado, of the Catalan Islamic board, believes a common misconception in the West is that women's liberation is not possible in Muslim societies, the report said.
Among the delegates is Pakistan's feminist Riffat Hassan, regarded as one of the pioneers of Islamic feminist theology.
Also attending will be representatives from the international association, Islamic Feminism, which says the inferior legal and social status of women in Muslim countries is a result of misogynistic distortions of the teachings in the Koran, the report said.
URL: www.upi.com Copyright 2005 by United Press International
