Slap your husband back if he slaps you” – Emir Sanusi encourages daughters

The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has encouraged his daughters to defend themselves if subjected to physical abuse by their husbands.

Speaking at the National Dialogue Conference on Gender-Based Violence (GBV) at Bayero University Kano, he stressed the need to end domestic violence and highlighted its prevalence in Kano’s Shari’a courts.

The conference, themed “Islamic Teachings and Community Collaboration for Ending Gender-Based Violence,” was organized by the Centre for Islamic Civilisation and Interfaith Dialogue (CICID) in collaboration with the Development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC), with support from the Ford Foundation.

Sanusi revealed that his research into nine Shari’a courts in Kano over five years showed that 45% of domestic violence cases involved wife-beating. “This so-called light beating mentioned in Islamic law is often misused,” he said. “In reality, the violence we see involves broken limbs, knocked-out teeth, and severe physical harm.”

The Emir strongly condemned such abuse, declaring it both prohibited (haram) and a violation of human dignity. “Beating your wife, daughter, or any woman is a crime and must be eradicated,” he asserted.

He shared his stance on how he raises his daughters to respond to violence. “If your husband slaps you, slap him back. If you don’t and come home to tell me, I’ll be more disappointed in you,” he said, emphasizing that no woman should tolerate abuse.

Sanusi also called on parents to educate their sons about the impermissibility of violence and the respect owed to all human beings. “We must teach our children that harming another person, regardless of their relationship, is unacceptable,” he concluded.

The Emir’s remarks serve as a bold call for action against domestic violence and a push for cultural and educational reform to uphold the dignity and rights of women.