Religion and Society
Dual Imperialism and Muslim Women in Bangladesh
This paper deals with the idea of dual imperialism and its effects on Muslim women in Bangladeshi society. The paper will focus on endogenous imperialism (the non-negotiable position of significant number of Muslim ulama as this pertains to issues regarding Muslim women), as well as exogenous imperialism (the promotion and attempt to establish the western hegemonic idea of female liberation in the Muslim society). The aim of the paper is to explore the situation of Muslim women in Bangladesh within these dual imperialist perceptions.
Farjana Mahbuba has completed her Bachelor and Masters from IIUC (International Islamic University Chittagong), Bangladesh. Being passionate about studying Islamic gender issues, she started doing her PhD at UWS last year. She has had more than four hundred articles published in her native language in various Bangladeshi national newspapers, along with her three story books. Her writings mostly deal with the issue of Muslim women. Her current research is designed to understand the social, economical and political development of Muslim women in post-war Urban Bangladesh and to explore their gender perceptions. It will also focus on secularist and Muslim feminism in the context of Bangladesh and the cohesiveness of the prevailing gender perceptions with actual principles and teachings of Islam.
