Pres. Jones Joins Islamic Women to Promote Peace and Opportunity

Women's Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality Conference meets in Kuala Lumpur

This past July, President Serene Jones joined a gathering of over 200 Muslim women from around the world in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality (WISE) Conference. Alumna Katherine Clark ’09 was also in attendance.

In light of the tragedies in Indonesia, the meeting carried significance as the women, comprised of activist, academics religious scholars, lawyers and community leaders, launched initiatives with the goals of empowering their communities and ending violence.

As a participant at the conference, President Jones spoke on an interfaith panel with Mehnaz Mona-Afridi (Muslim), Rori Picker-Neiss (Jewish) and K. Thilagawathi Kanagaretnam (Hindu). They discussed a wide range of issues, from female ordination, to violence against women, to the challenge of interpreting sacred texts. “If interfaith work is going to be about peace and justice,” Jones reflected, “women must be at the center. I am deeply inspired and grateful for my Muslim sisters, and I look forward to collaborating with them as WISE continues to blossom.”

Of the initiatives, the Global Muslim Women’s Shura Council, an all-women’s advisory council that will promote women’s rights within an Islamic framework, was created. The hope of the council is to contrast directly with those of perpetrators of the Indonesia attacks such as the bombings in Jakarta. The women of the council are committed to peace and pluralism, intending to combat the ideologies that have fostered destructive behavior recently seen in Indonesia.

The 2009 WISE Kuala Lumpur Conference was organized by the American Society for Muslim Advancement (ASMA) in collaboration with the Cordoba Initiative (CI). It is supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Dutch Foreign Ministry’s MDG3 Fund. Other supporters include the Sister Fund and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

Using the teachings of Islam as inspiration and justification, the aim of WISE is to empower the Muslim women to fully participate in their communities and nations by bringing women’s voices to all levels of political, economic, religious and social discourse. WISE aims to change the status of Muslim women around the globe by bringing Muslim women together to challenge the distorted interpretations of Islam and increasing women’s social and economic self-determination.

Muftiyya Training at Union

President Jones was also featured in the following article in The National as a participant at the WISE conference. Please note that while Jones is enthusiastic about expanding the possibilities of interfaith collaboration in higher education, explicit plans for a muftiyya program at UTS do not exist at this time. Nevertheless, President Jones is excited and committed to continue exploring ways for Union to contribute to the development of intelligent, compassionate and wise women religious leaders. Read the article.

Learn More:

Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality

American Society for Muslim Advancement

Cordoba Initiative

United Nations Population Fund

Sister Fund

Rockefeller Brothers Fund