The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1934-10-11
NEW WOMEN IN OLD ASIA
By JOSHUA KUNITZ

an in Tashkent, Mozol Kolontaroy,
who had given birth to six girls
in succession. Mozol felt terribly !
guilty before her husband. After !
an interval of seven years, she had
another opportunity to redeem her,
self. Frantic with fear and mis-
giving, she kept on reiterating that
she would much rather die than
have another girl. Fate was un-
kind TO her; she bore a girl once
more. When she beheld the newly
born infant, Mozol died of grief.
According to both the common
law code (adat) and the religious
code (sheriat), a woman may be
bought ard sold and transferred
from one man to another without
herself being in any way consult
ed. According 10 the sheriat, the
husband has right to punish his
wife's disobedience by keeping her
incarcerated in the house and by
direct use of corporal punishment.
Cruelty, torture, and even maimir G
are not sufficient grounds for di-
vorce. According to the old law,
the ties imony of one man is equiv
alent to that of two women. The
woman is rarely permitted to leave
her home without a male escort
While at home, she is confined to
the ichkari-woman's section OF
the house-where she remains
whenever her husband entertainS
visitors in the mans section. II
the street, a woman dare not stop
or cough, or linger, or look back
she must just keep on walking
Polygamy, child marriages, anC
purchases of brides (kalym) ar,
all essen ial features of woman
status in Central Asia. She is
chattel, slave.
Yet there is evidence-often cit
ed by the emancipated Tadjiks an
Uzbeks-that the woman had no
1 always occupied such an abjeC
place in the social scheme of thes
peoples. Numerous legends an
} myths preserved by some Tadji
Y mountain tribes make mention c
$ heroic women and of brave an
y wise female rulers. There is til
q story of Queen Tamiris, of no
$ she and her nomadic subjects ha
q won a mighty victory over tt
/ great Pension ruler Cyrus. The
is the memory of Queen Khatu
e the wise ruler of Bokhara, WI
% reigned during the troublous yea
IS of the early Arab invasions of Cel
l. trail Asia.
Z 1t was, indeed, with the comi1
"a of the Arabs and the gradual tt
d umph of Islam that the posi- ion
s. the woman among the Aryan a
er origines of what is now known
u Tadjikistan began to decline, lie
c rapidly among the nomads in t
or steppes and the peasants in t
d mountains, where the woman W
an important economic factor
the family organization; more "a
e. idly among the settled urban pc
es ulation-merchants, mullahs, of
a Gals, etc.-where the woman W
m economically unimportant al
Ii where the influence of the N
rs hammedan religion had taken
ct. firmer root.
Oh This process continued duri
I'm and after the Tiurko- Mongolian
no vasion. However, originally, Il
er' is before they surrendered the M
is lem influences, the Tiurko-M,
IN golian nomads, too, had known
ne no special disabilities for WON
On Like the Aryan folklore, Turk
O folklore has references 10 her
OF women. There is the legend,
instance, of a detachment of
ne; male warriors who had fought
my valiant battle of the walls of &c
is Teppe. Also there is the beauti
ISL Turkish legend about the won
ant musician Khelai-Bakhshi who
the triumphed over all her male riv
her especially the celebrated music
a Ker-Kejali, who had challenged
a to a contest. Khelai-Bakhshi =,
,m- with child then. Her labor ps