(WOMENSENEWS)–CheersOver 350 Muslim women from 47 countries gathered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, this week to launch a global campaign for equality, the BBC reported Feb. 18, placing reforms to family laws in Muslim nations around the world at the heart of their agenda. The women have started a new organization called Musawah, which means “equality” in Arabic, to push their cause forward.”I believe that Islam has given women equal rights and equal faith,” Saudi women’s rights activist Hatoon Alfassi told the BBC, adding that it is appropriate to criticize and challenge authorities who restrict women. The application of Islamic family law varies across nations, but may deny women the freedom to marry the partner of their choice or to travel or receive an education without permission of a male guardian.The conference, organized by the Malaysian group Sisters in Islam, was held in the same week as the appointment of the first women to a government ministerial post in Saudi Arabia, Agence France-Presse reported Feb. 15.