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Memoirs of a Former Sister of the Muslim Brotherhood

(Egypt Independent-Al-Masry Al-Youm) Noha El-Hennawy - As the Muslim Brotherhood strives to project the image of a moderate and democratic political organization, The Memoirs of a Former Sister: My Story with the Muslim Brotherhood, by former member Intissar Abdel Moneim, has appeared. In it she describes how women are socialized to accept male dominance within the organization - and the household. "One of the areas where the Brothers have exploited the idea of blind obedience and submission is polygamy," she writes. "When the [first] wife complains, a session is held for her where other sisters would remind her of the importance of obedience, patience and submission to God's will and to [the husband]'s will." The writings of Hassan al-Banna, the group's late founder, sought to limit women to "catering to their husbands' desires and to reproduction," she writes. This outlook justifies why no woman is admitted into the group's highest bodies - the Shura Council and the Guidance Bureau. By the same critical token, the author bashes the Brotherhood's internal dynamics, arguing that it is based on nepotism rather than merit.
2012-01-27 00:00:00
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