Impacts of Prenuptial Agreement to Islamic Women Rights

The impact of prenuptial agreement to Islamic women rights can be detected in the freedom women enjoy in terms of traveling or leaving the country and raising children. Marriage contracts set an outline for women who are going into wedlock to exercise the freedom of which they may be restricted upon with strict husbands. Many conservative women in a Muslim marriage located in Eastern Muslim countries are restricted in traveling just because their husbands forbid them to do so (Leichter 2009). They could not enjoy the sceneries of the world and could not even visit other countries because they do not have the consent of their spouses. This privilege can be attained by women through their prenuptial agreements where they can be allowed to go out on their own, with their husbands, family members, friends or even children. The marriage contract gives them the liberty to explore and discover parts of the world whether for leisure, business or medical purposes (Mills). Though Muslims in western countries tend to be open to this idea compared to their eastern counterparts still the stipulation of such desire can further clarify the attainment of freedom to travel. Another advantage of prenuptial agreements is they present to women their right to attain good education and may even proceed to further studies and acquire higher education (Mills). Though in traditional set ups like in Eastern Muslim countries this may be an issue to husbands where wives have to ask permission, the contract stipulates the God-given right of women to further enhance her intellectually in terms of schooling. In western countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom may not have difficulty enforcing such requests for educational systems are heavily promoted among the population in their fight against illiteracy, more traditional and conservative families may still adopt such practices that may hinder wives in gaining this right without the prenuptial agreement. Lastly, freedom can further be given to women who wish to raise their children in their own beliefs and methods. By stating in the prenuptial agreement that mothers would like to bring up their children in a manner they deem suitable without the interferences of in-laws, other family members and friends, prenuptial agreements gives mothers the free-hand in shaping their children on who they wish them to be (Uhlman and Kisselburg 2007). They would have the authority and prerogative to discipline their children in any way they wish, choose their children’s education and teach them manners (Uhlman and Kisselburg 2007). These three rights mentioned above about the freedom women acquire with the help of the drafting of prenuptial agreements before a woman weds in an Islamic setting impacts the women’s rights in a way since she has the authority to direct and live her life in a way she wants it to be and how she empowers, disciplines and serve as a mother to her children without interference from other individuals. The impact of prenuptial agreements has changed the course of how women in an Islamic marriage define freedom though in western countries such as the US and UK such impact is not clearly evident because the women are already westernized.

Prenuptial agreements have also impacted the financial status of Islamic women where the contract protects the wife’s finances in terms of the division of properties during death of her husband or during dissolution or marriage, retirement funds or daily maintenance expenses and also incomes earned from business ventures or jobs secured (Khan 2003). As the Shari’a states that a woman’s property, before, during and after marriage is solely hers alone and she has no obligations to support her husband, a woman’s finances is protected by the prenuptial agreement which further clarifies the implementation of such law according to the Islamic family law (Uhlman and Kisselburg 2007). The division of properties during marriage or upon separation in death or divorce, the property of the wife is still her own unless she specifies to share or give such to her husband and/ or children. The wife is also entitled to spousal support for her maintenance during marriage or in case of divorce the husband is still reliable in financing the wife as stipulated in the prenuptial agreement (Mills). These practices are common in Muslim Islamic countries of the east but may also apply to those in the west as long as agreements and clauses are clarified in the paragraphs of the marriage contract before marriage. The retirement fund of the wife will also be shouldered by the husband as stated in the Islamic family law which stipulates that he is responsible for the maintenance expenses of the wife (Mills). There are some cases during the breakdown of a marriage that the remaining dower of the wife is used for her survival and spousal support is no longer provided. These interpretations and a