Some Muslims are fond of condemning western morality – alcoholism, nudity, premarital sex and homosexuality often being cited as examples. But Muslims do not have a monopoly on morality. In the west, child marriages and sex with children are illegal. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for many Muslim countries.

I recently saw the documentary on the Dancing Boys of Afghanistan. It exposed an ancient custom called "bacha bazi" (boy for play), where rich men buy boys as young as 11 from impoverished families for sexual slavery. The boys are dressed in women's clothes and made to dance and sing at parties, before being carted away by the men for sex. Owning boys is considered a symbol of status and one former warlord boasted of having up to 3,000 boys over a 20-year period, even though he was married, with two sons. The involvement of the police and inaction of the government means this form of child prostitution is widespread.

The moral hypocrisy is outrageous in a country where homosexuality is not only strictly forbidden but savagely punished, even between two consenting adults. However, men who sodomise young boys are not considered homosexuals or paedophiles. The love of young boys is not a phenomenon restricted to Afghanistan; homosexual pederasty is common in neighbouring Pakistan, too. In my view, repression of sexuality and extreme gender apartheid is to blame.

And in the Middle East, it's young girls who are considered desirable and men are able to satisfy their lusts legally through child marriages. In Yemen, more than a quarter of girls are married before the age of 15. Cases of girls dying during childbirth are not unusual, and recently, one 12-year-old child bride even died from internal bleeding following sexual intercourse. In another case, a 12-year-old girl was married to an 80-year-old man in Saudi Arabia.

So why is the practice of child marriage sanctioned in Muslim countries? Unfortunately, ultra-conservative religious authorities justify this old tribal custom by citing the prophet Muhammad's marriage to Aisha. They allege Aisha was nine years old when the prophet married her. But they focus conveniently on selected Islamic texts to support their opinions, while ignoring vast number of other texts and historical information, which suggests Aisha was much older, putting her age of marriage at 19. Child marriage is against Islam as the Qur'an is clear that intellectual maturity is the basis for deciding age of marriage, and not puberty, as suggested by these clerics.

Whatever one's view on the prophet's marriage, no faith can claim moral superiority since child marriages have been practised in various cultures and societies across the world at one time or another. In modern times, though, marrying children is no longer acceptable and no excuse should be used to justify this.

I find the false adherence to Islamic principles and the "holier than thou" attitude of some Muslim societies similar to the blatant hypocrisy and double standards of 19th-century Victorian Britain, where the outward appearance of dignity and prudishness camouflaged an extreme prevalence of sexual and moral depravity behind closed doors. In those days, too, there were many men willing to pay to have sex with children – until a plethora of social movements arose that resulted in changes in laws and attitudes in society.

A similar shift in social attitudes is also required in traditional Muslim societies. Having boy sex slaves or child brides should not be seen as badges of honour. Instead, Muslims need to do more to attach shame to such practices; otherwise, acceptance of this behaviour will make them complicit in the sexual exploitation of children. I fail to understand why Muslims are so vocal on abuses by the west in Abu Ghraib, Guantánamo, Iraq and Afghanistan, but display moral blindness when it comes to children? It's about time this silence was broken, so these violations of innocence can be stopped.

A too-passive attitude in dealing with child abuse has rubbed off on Muslim communities in Britain, too. I have heard many stories at first hand of child sexual abuse and rape, which show that the issue is not being addressed at all. Those who have had the courage to speak out have been met with reactions of denial and shame. Such attitudes mean that children will continue to suffer in silence. Sexual abuse of children happens in all communities, as has been revealed by the recent Catholic church scandal. At least, they have finally started to take action. Muslim communities should learn from this and also start being more open, instead of continuing to sweeping the issue under the carpet.

I am finding that more and more Muslims feel it is their duty to criticise others for actions they consider sinful – quoting the following popular saying of Muhammad to justify their interference:

"If you see something wrong, you should correct it with your hand and if you are unable to, then speak out against it and if you cannot do that, then feel that it is wrong in your heart."

I wonder how, then, Muslims can remain silent when it comes to the sexual abuse of children?

the so called "dancing boys of Afghanistan" is cultural and was practiced in that region before Islam arrived.blaming Islam for this is like blaming Islam for juju in Nigeria practiced by some who claim to be muslims or attributing juju to Islam.

as for the so called "child brides",you have being repeatedly replied:

the below in this thread (post #5): https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-53711.0.html has being copied and pasted into the many threads where frosbel keeps spreading nonsense.but this person does not want to hear or desist from the dirty tricks all christian missionaries are known for:clinging to falsehood for the sake of gaining followers and deceiving people,leading them to hell fire.

Notes: (AISHA WAS NOT 9 YEARS OLD OR A CHILD WHEN THE PROPHET MARRIED HER)

[8] The popular version of ‘Ãisha’s youth age has been exploited by the anti-Islamic groups to attack the Prophet “for marrying a child”. The fact of the matter is that Lady ‘Ãisha was not a child when she was married in 2 AH to the Prophet. At-Tabari, the famous Muslim historian, writes that Abu Bakr’s first two wives and their children were all born in the pre-Islamic era. (Ta’rīkh at-Tabari, vol. 2 [Beirut: al-A‘lami, n.d.] p. 616.) Based on this, even if she was born a year before the commencement of Islam, ‘Ãisha would be 15 or 16 years old at the time of her marriage to the Prophet – an age in which marriage is common in most cultures. Ibn Kathīr, in his al-Bidãyah wa ’n-Nihãyah (vol. 8, p. 381) states that Asmã’ bint Abu Bakr, the sister of ‘Ãisha, was ten years older than ‘Ãisha. He also reports that Asmã’ died in the year 73 AH at the age of 100. Based on this calculation, ‘Ãisha was 18 or 19 years old at the time of her marriage.

[9] For more details on the Islamic perspective, see my article, “Adoption in Islam,” which is available on-line at www.jaffari.org (Section: Resources/ Resident Alim) and at www.al-islam.org

https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-736294.0.html

"frosbel",

I have a promise i can make to you,on the condition you say the truth.

if you say the truth i will accept Jesus,son of Mary (as),as "lord and saviour".

honestly tell me how many boys you and the pastors in your church have abused.

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-739876.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-739871.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-743341.0.html

"Killing Children Is Bible Miracle"!
https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-735998.0.html

"According To The Bible:if Your Wife Saves Your Life,you Cut Off Her Hand"!
https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria?topic=736626.msg8931460#msg8931460

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-735489.0.html

"Bible Scholars Admit To Bible Text Discrepancies"
https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-734053.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-651811.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-551599.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-550247.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-729581.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-739850.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-739934.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-732120.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-732741.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-719777.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-551584.0.html

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https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-574141.0.html

LagosShia:

"frosbel",

I have a promise i can make to you,on the condition you say the truth.

if you say the truth i will accept Jesus,son of Mary (as),as "lord and saviour".

honestly tell me how many boys you and the pastors in your church have abused.

No denying , the catholic priests have abused hundreds of thousands of boys.

Are they Christian , uhmm, NO. More like Pagans to me

frosbel:

No denying , the catholic priests have abused hundreds of thousands of boys.

Are they Christian , uhmm, NO. More like Pagans to me

LOL

and they also see you as "pagan".and both of you (catholics and pentecostals) claim to be "inspired" by the holy spirit.so how are we sure to know who is lying or whether both of you are not lying?