Islamic law in contemporary North Africa: A study of the laws of divorce in the Maghreb

At a time when the nations of Islam are being depicted as the new specter threatening the developed world's horizons, it is crucial that informed Westerners re-examine the prejudices and misconceptions they have acquired over the years. Distorted perceptions will be dispelled not with violent emotions but rather by the chipping away of ignorance with meticulous study. This is certainly no less true in the emotionally charged field of women's studies. The role of women in Islam is as poorly understood in the West as any aspect of Muslim culture and the responsible feminist is clearly confronted with a delicate delimma; the extrication of the justified urge for universal female equality from self-seeking cultural intrusion. This is only possible through a rigorous understanding of Islam's heritage, its context, and its own defined goals.The following paper is a contribution to this expanding body of knowledge in the west. It is an analysis of the Islamic laws of divorce as manifested in North Africa. The opinions of the prevalent Maliki school are presented with the analysis of their transformation under colonization and the present trends appearing in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco.