Grand imam of Egypt´s Al-Azhar calls polygamy an ´injustice´

Grand imam of Egypt´s Al-Azhar calls polygamy an ´injustice´ https://ift.tt/2tquErD CAIRO: The grand imam of Egypt´s famed Al-Azhar institution, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, has described polygamy as an "injustice" for women."Polygamy is often an injustice to women and children," said the influential cleric, in quotes published on Twitter late Friday by Al-Azhar, Sunni Islam´s most prestigious seat of learning.The practice is the result of "a lack of understanding of the Koran and the tradition of the Prophet," he added.Tayeb also addressed the issue in a weekly Friday television show, telling viewers: "Those who say that marriage must be polygamous are all wrong".He added the Koran says that in order for a Muslim man to have multiple wives, he "must obey conditions of fairness -- and if there is not fairness it is forbidden to have multiple wives".After the grand imam´s comments sparked fervent debate on social media, Al-Azhar on Saturday clarified that he did not call for polygamy to be banned.In his Friday comments, Tayeb called more broadly for the way women´s issues are addressed to be revamped."Women represent half of society, if we don´t care for them it´s like we are walking on one foot only," he said in the remarks published on Twitter.The grand imam´s approach was welcomed by Egypt´s National Council for Women."The Muslim religion honours women -- it brought justice and numerous rights which didn´t exist before," said the Council´s president Maya Morsi.

March 02, 2019 at 01:57PM