JEDDAH, 11 February 2004 — The International Muslim Organization for Woman and Families has accepted a challenge in a world that seems to be targeting Muslims, particularly women.
IMOWF is part of the Muslim World League but is an independent entity mainly concerned with the affairs of Muslim women, children and families all over the world.
“We concentrate on women and their rights within the family, although our total concern is the family as a whole. It’s a comprehensive approach to the relationship between the women, men and children,” said Bahija Ezzee, the general secretary of the organization. “We are still in the setting-up stage and we are about to start implementing our projects and programs. We need a mass base and society’s support in making the organization sustainable. The problem most organizations face here is that they lack support mechanisms for establishing a comprehensive and viable organization.”
Based in Jeddah, the organization aims at increasing the Muslim family’s awareness of its rights and responsibilities and enabling it to obtain those rights and responsibilities. On the international level, the organization will represent Muslim women and children at international organizations and conferences.
As a member of the International Islamic Relief Organization and the Muslim World League, Ezzee has already participated in regional and world events such as the Women’s Conference in Beijing in 1994-95, the Conference of Religions in South Africa in 1999, the World Health Organization conference in 2001 in Cairo, the Third Preparatory Conference on the Children’s Summit at the United Nations in New York 2001, the Senior Arab Meeting on Children’s Rights in Cairo 2001, the Earth Summit in South Africa in 2002, and the Women’s Summit in Morocco in 2003.
“Islam is the only system that preserves the family unit as opposed to most Western doctrines that focus on individualism,” said Ezzee. The cornerstone of the organization is moderation and commitment to a middle approach in thought and practice, based upon the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
The IMOWF will cooperate with organizations concerned with the affairs of Muslim women and families in Muslim communities as well as exchanging expertise and information with regional and international women’s organizations in the area of internationally raised issues.
From conducting studies and research to supporting projects that promote the development of women, children and families, the IMOWF contributes to upgrading Muslim communities by raising standards of intellectual, economic, social and environmental awareness. It plans to organize the First Islamic Conference on Muslim Women and Families in 2005 with a focus on “Muslim Women and the Responsibilities of Modernization” and “Future Visions and Strategies for Building Communities.”
Among its programs and projects, the IMOWF is establishing the Al-Sayeda Aisha World Center for the purpose of disseminating awareness and developing the skills of women and families. Also, a family awareness development unit will serve to enlighten the family of its rights and responsibilities.
A key project called the Treasury of Al-Sayeda Khadijah will seek to raise financial resources for the formation of investment capital amounting to SR50 million in the first stage. This capital will be used to guarantee the continued operation of IMOWF projects and programs through almsgiving and Islamic endowments.
