The International Conference on “Women in Islam: Status and Empowerment” concluded its proceedings on 8 November 2023. The Conference was organized by the OIC General Secretariat, and graciously hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Chair of the 14th Islamic Summit, under the generous patronage of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Deliberations during the Conference resulted in twenty recommendations that were included in the Final Declaration. These recommendations highlighted the advanced rights granted by Islam to women and the status of women in Islam. They also addressed the challenges and opportunities related to women’s rights and the enhancement of their role in society across various fields and at all levels.
The Conference also produced “The Jeddah Document on Women’s Rights in Islam.” This document is designed to serve as a comprehensive official reference on women’s rights in Islam, for Member States, decision-makers, jurists, researchers, experts, and thinkers. It will be submitted for adoption at the forthcoming Islamic Summit, scheduled to be held in Gambia at the end of this year, and subsequently presented to all relevant international fora.
In his address at the Conference’s closing session, the OIC Secretary-General, H.E. Mr. HisseinBrahimTaha, affirmed that women’s empowerment issues would remain high among the OIC’s priorities. He pledged that the Organization would launch and support numerous efforts and initiatives designed to advance the status of women in Muslim societies.
The Secretary-General noted that the “Jeddah Document on Women’s Rights in Islam” serves as an intellectual and practical reference that can be adopted by legislative institutions and human rights organizations in Member States and all Muslim societies when considering the rights of Muslim women.
He expressed hope that those who cast doubts about Islam’s fairness toward women would consider women’s rights as set out in this Document, and not through some isolated social practices in some Muslim societies that in no way reflect the sublime vision and universality of Islam and its teachings.
The Secretary-General highlighted the OIC’s efforts to support Palestinian women and announced that the Extraordinary Islamic Summit to be held next Saturday in the city of Riyadh, at the invitation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, will discuss Israel’s aggression against the Gaza Strip, its repeated violations of international norms and all humanitarian principles, and its brutal targeting of innocent children and women.—PR
