Siti Musdah Mulia in 2007 Siti Musdah Mulia (born 1958) is an Indonesian women's rights activist and professor of religion. She was the first woman appointed as a research professor at the

Indonesian Institute of Sciences The Indonesian Institute of Sciences (, or LIPI) was the governmental authority for science and research in Indonesia. It consisted of 47 research centers in the fields ranging from social to natural sciences. With the enactment of Presidential D ...

, and is currently a lecturer of Islamic political thought at the School of Graduate Studies at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University.SPEAKERS / Prof. Dr. Siti Musdah Mulia , Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions
Siti Musdah Mulia , WISE Muslim Women
Since 2007, Musdah has served as chairperson of the

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace, which aims to promote interfaith dialogue in Indonesia. She also served as director of the Megawati Institute, a think-tank established by former president

Megawati Soekarnoputri Diah Permata Megawati Setiawati Sukarnoputri (; born 23 January 1947) is an Indonesian politician who served as the fifth president of Indonesia from 2001 to 2004 and the eighth vice president under President Abdurrahman Wahid from 1999 to 2001. ...

Early life

Musdah was born in

Bone A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...

South Sulawesi South Sulawesi () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province in the South Peninsula, Sulawesi, southern peninsula of Sulawesi, Indonesia. The Selayar Islands archipelago to the south of Sulawesi is also part of the province. The capital and largest ci ...

, in 1958, to a conservative Muslim family. Her father was a local Islamic leader who served as a battalion leader in Darul Islam, while her mother was the first girl from her village to graduate from an Islamic school.

Career

In 1997, Musdah became the first woman to receive a PhD in Islamic thought from Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic State University. From 1999 until 2007 she served as a senior advisor at the Ministry of Religious Affairs where she contributed to the 2004 legal draft challenging Indonesia's proposed Islamic legal code, recommending that it be amended to prohibit child marriage and polygamy, and allow interfaith marriage; due to violent protests, the redraft was ultimately dropped. From 2000 until 2005, she was head of the research division of the Council of Indonesian Ulema. Musdah has also written books, including ''Islam Criticises Polygamy'' (2003), ''TheReformist Muslimah's Encyclopedia: Essence of Ideas for Reinterpretation and Action'' (2004), and ''Islam and the Inspiration of Gender Equality'' (2005). In 2020, she launched an updated edition of ''Reformist Muslimah''. Musdah has expressed moderate views on Islamic issues; she has stated there is no directive demanding women wear the

hijab Hijab (, ) refers to head coverings worn by Women in Islam, Muslim women. Similar to the mitpaḥat/tichel or Snood (headgear), snood worn by religious married Jewish women, certain Christian head covering, headcoverings worn by some Christian w ...

, and has expressed LGBT-friendly sentiments. Musdah also deemed polygamy to be

haram ''Haram'' (; ) is an Arabic term meaning 'taboo'. This may refer to either something sacred to which access is not allowed to the people who are not in a state of purity or who are not initiated into the sacred knowledge; or, in direct cont ...

. She also has expressed the view that Muslim women should be permitted to interpret Islamic teachings themselves and become

ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

Accolades

Musdah received the 2007

International Women of Courage Award The International Women of Courage Award, also referred to as the U.S. Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award, is an American award presented annually by the United States Department of State to women around the world who have ...

from the

United States government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...

. In 2008, she received the

Yap Thiam Hien John Yap Thiam Hien (25May 191325April 1989) was an Indonesian human rights lawyer. Life Born in Kutaraja, Aceh, Dutch East Indies, his father was Yap Sin Eng and his mother was Hwan Tjing Nio. Yap's family, living in genteel but reduced circ ...

Human Rights Award for her work on promoting dialogue and inclusiveness in Islam.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mulia, Siti Musdah Living people Indonesian women academics Indonesian women's rights activists Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta alumni Recipients of the International Women of Courage Award Indonesian LGBTQ rights activists 1958 births Proponents of Islamic feminism Female Islamic religious leaders Women scholars of Islam