Muslim Women's Network

'She Who Disputes - Muslim Women Shape the Debate'

Following the 2006 Listening to Muslim Women events which took place across England in Manchester, Bradford, Leicester, Birmingham and London, the Muslim Women's Network (MWN) launched it's report, She Who Disputes on 7 December 2006.

Speaking at the launch, the Rt Hon. Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Health, welcomed the report as a valuable insight into the views of Muslim women, and pledged to incorporate the health-related issues into NHS thinking:

“I think this report will be taken very seriously indeed across Government, but what we also need to do is to make sure that it is taken very seriously right across other public services; and certainly as Secretary of State for Health, I will ensure this is taken into the National Health Service.”

Click here to download the full speech.

She Who Disputes contains the direct words of over 200 Muslim women who participated in events. The women themselves set the agenda and spoke about a variety of issues, ranging from: the lack of voice and representation for Muslim women both within society as a whole and within their own communities; employment, education, the misinterpretation of Islam, violence against women and service provisions. Racism and Islamophobia was an overarching theme.

A full version of She Who Disputes (pdf 918 Kb) can be downloaded here.

For further information contact us on 020 7944 0585.

Useful links:

• Engaging with Muslim Women - A report from Prime Minister's Event on 10 May 2006 (external link)
• Muslim Women Talk (external link)
• Fatima Women's Network (external link)
• Muslim Council of Britain (external link)