Islam considers a woman...

Islam considers a woman, like man, to be completely free and independent, and the Noble Qur`an, by way of verses like: كُلُّ نَفْسٍ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ رَهِينَةٌ “Every soul is held in pledge for what it earns.” [^3] Or مَنْ عَمِلَ صَالِحاً فَلِنَفْسِهِ وَ مَنْ أَسَاءَ فَعَلَيْهَا “Whoever does good, it is for his own soul, and whoever does evil, it is against himself.” [^4] It declares this freedom to be for all people - men and women.

We observe that the Islamic penal code sentences both genders with the same kind of retribution, as can be seen in the following verse and other similar verses: الزَّانِيَةُ وَ الزَّانِي فَاجْلِدُوا كُلَّ واحِدٍ مِنْهُمَا مِائَةَ جَلْدَةٍ “The woman and the man guilty of adultery or fornication - flog each of them with a hundred whippings.” [^5] On the other hand, since independence is an inevitable consequence of (free) will and choice, Islam has also extended this independence to all monetary privileges, permitting women to enter into various kinds of monetary transactions and regarding her as the rightful owner of her income and investment.

In Suratul Nisa we read: لِلرِّجَالِ نَصِيبٌ مِمَّا اكْتَسَبُوا وَ لِلنِّسَاءِ نَصِيبٌ مِمَّا اكْتَسَبْنَ “Men shall have the benefit of what they earn and women shall have the benefit of what they earn.” [^6] In view of the fact that the word اکتساب (used in the verse) - unlike the word کسب - is used to denote acquisition of wealth, the use of this word conveys the meaning that the wealth which is acquired becomes associated with the person acquiring it[^7], and also taking into consideration the general rule: أَلنَّاسُ مُسَلِّطُونَ عَلى أَمْوَالِهِمْ.‏ “All the people have authority over their own wealth”, we can easily infer that Islam holds the fiscal independence of women in great esteem and does not differentiate between a man and a woman in this regard.