POMED Notes: Stories from the Frontlines of the Civil Liberties Struggle in the Middle East
July 3rd, 2008 by Adam
On Thursday, the American Islamic Congress (AIC) featured a presentation by Dalia Ziada, Director of AIC’s Egypt Office and prominent Egyptian reformer. She discussed the appalling condition of human rights in Egypt and relayed her own personal experiences regarding restrictions on women’s rights and press freedoms. She also briefly discussed her perceptions of the United States and efforts for democratic reform.
For POMED’s complete notes on this event, click here.
Posted in Event Notes, Human Rights, Journalism, Women | Comment »
POMED Notes: What Women Want: Voices From the Middle East
June 25th, 2008 by Adam
On Tuesday, the Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) and the Heinrich Boll Foundation hosted a panel discussion regarding the role of women in the Middle East and strategies that could be pursued to improve their participation in society. Panelists included Rama Chakaki, Founder and CEO of the Dubai-based Baraka Group, Lama Hourani, Advisor to the PLO Secretariat General and former Gaza Branch Coordinator of the Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development in the Gaza Strip, Rahma Hugaira, Co-Founder and Chairwoman of the Yemeni-based Media Women Forum and former President of the Yemeni League to Defend Journalists, and Laura Schulz, Civil Society and Rule of Law Manager in the Office of the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) at the State Department. Andrew Albertson, Executive Director of the Project on Middle East Democracy, moderated the discussion.
For POMED’s full notes, click here.
Posted in Event Notes, Events, Reform, Women | Comment »
Foundations of Women’s Rights in Morocco
June 12th, 2008 by Sarah
Daniel Williams of the International Herald Tribune explores divisions in Morocco’s women’s movement by highlighting the work of Saida Idrissi and Nadia Yassine. Idrissi, a secular activist, says Islamic tradition must not be allowed to influence laws governing social issues like marriage and divorce. She worries that Islamists, “‘want to base law on the Koran, something we think will inhibit women.” Yassine, counters that Islam, when applied correctly, is the real basis for women’s rights. “Secular feminists live in a separate world,” she says. “The fact is, we are Muslims here. How else can women see rights except through Islam?”
Posted in Morocco, Political Islam, Reform, Women | Comment »
Strengthening Afghanistan
June 12th, 2008 by Sarah
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s National Security and Foreign Affairs Subcommittee will convene next Wednesday to evaluate current U.S. efforts to train and equip Afghanistan police and strengthen the justice system in the country. The Center for American Progress recommends that the U.S. and international community implement anti-corruption measures, provide more military trainers for police, establish civilian mentors for the force, recruit more women, and support a national judicial sector strategy.
For the full recommendations, click here.
Posted in Afghanistan, Democracy Promotion, Military, Reform, Women | Comment »
Human Rights Developments in the Middle East
June 10th, 2008 by Adam
Babylon and Beyond mentions the recent criminalization of female circumcision by the Egyptian parliament. Furthermore, women can now register their children even if the identity of the child’s father is unknown. This is seen as a small step for women’s rights in Egypt. On another human rights related note, there is an increasing tolerance for gays in Lebanon.
Posted in Egypt, Lebanon, Women | Comment »
Political Expression in Egypt
June 2nd, 2008 by Adam
Liam Stack in the Christian Science Monitor looks at a theater program in Cairo that attempts to empower women and bring attention to gender issues in Egypt and Middle East. The women’s defiance is embodied by one participant’s statement, “My liberation won’t come from the one who has oppressed me – bringing me democracy? You think you’re really gonna send Condi to tell me how to be free?” Aside from the theater, Sherif Mansour at the Los Angeles Times provides insight into how Egyptian activists look to Facebook as an avenue of free expression, drawing the ire of the Mubarak government. Also, Alaa Abd El Fattah on PostGlobal finds that blogs are “at the heart of Egyptian cyber-activism, and citizen journalism through blogs remains the one consistently free source of information available.”
Posted in Egypt, Technology, Women | 1 Comment »
Kingdom of Saud
May 16th, 2008 by Pasha
Grant Swank of The Conservative Voice plugs a website decrying honor killings, mistreatment of women, and other atrocities. He notes a “case focused particularly on a woman who was tortured to death by her employer,” which a Saudi official described as “‘the will of Allah,’ with no apology given.”
As President Bush exchanges “civilian” nuclear technology for oil, Gal Luft at Middle East Strategy at Harvard speculates that the Saudis are truly aiming to counterbalance potential Iranian hegemony in the region. Speaking of speculators, Luft dismisses the Saudis blaming rising oil prices on speculators as “utter nonsense.”
Posted in Human Rights, Oil, Saudi Arabia, Women | Comment »
Obstacles to Women Advancement in Saudi Arabia
May 6th, 2008 by Sharlina
The Economist highlights a new report released by Human Rights Watch that argues the biggest obstacle to women’s advancement in Saudi Arabia is “the imposition of male guardianship over adult women.” The article notes that in terms of women’s rights, “despite having signed various international charters for women’s rights, the Saudi government has done little either to modify the system or to enforce the minor reforms it has sponsored.”
Posted in Human Rights, Saudi Arabia, Women | Comment »
Feeding Egypt
April 21st, 2008 by Amanda
Jackson Diehl at the Washington Post believes that for Egypt, “the link between food and freedom — or the lack of it — has never been clearer.”He says that Mubarak’s regime is in trouble as “Egypt’s latest bread crisis comes on the heels of a pro-democracy movement” and people take to the streets in protest over wages and political oppression, not just a hike in grain prices.
Riots are being stomped out but strikers continue to reorganize, and as Eman S. Morsi at babelmed interestingly points out, “most of these events were led or initiated by women,” defying social norms to voice their frustrations. Visit 3rabawy for photos on the most recent sit-in by 500 workers at Misr Dairy Products Company in El-Amiriya.
At the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, David Schenker provides detailed analysis of the current economic and political situation in Egypt, the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in recent elections, and the relationship between the United States and the Mubarak regime. Schenker notes that “Washington faces an uphill battle on certain key issues” as Egypt faces “a political transition on the horizon.”
Posted in Egypt, Islam and Democracy, Muslim Brotherhood, US foreign policy, Uncategorized, Women | Comment »
Saudi Restrictions on Female Athletes
April 15th, 2008 by Sharlina
Faiza Saleh Ambah at The Washington Post writes of restrictions female athletes endure in Saudi Arabia. Specifically, Ambah discusses the frustrations of teams like Jeddah United that want to represent their country abroad and compete internationally, but are not able to because of Saudi laws restricting women from performing.
Posted in Freedom, Human Rights, Saudi Arabia, Women | Comment »
POMED Notes: Women Trafficking in the Muslim World
April 1st, 2008 by Sharlina
American Islamic Congress (AIC) hosted a panel discussion examining why are women trafficked, particularly in the Muslim World, who are the traffickers, and what are the global advocacy strategies to stop traffic. Dr. Mohammad Mattar, Executive Director of The Protection Project at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, Sanam Anderlini, Independent Consultant on Gender, Peace, and Security Issues, and Wenchi Yu Perkins, Vice President, Human Rights Programs, Vital Voices Global Partnership gave remarks. Zainab Al-Suwaij, Executive Director, American Islamic Congress, moderated the discussion.
For notes on this event, click here.
Posted in Human Rights, Women | Comment »
Reported Abuse in Iraqi Judicial System
March 27th, 2008 by Sharlina
Los Angeles Times’s Kimi Yoshino observes the lack of protection of constitutional rights for hundreds of Iraqi women, describing in detail the varieties of human rights violations that go undetected every day. Meanwhile, Shaun Waterman analyzes in the Middle East Times the latest from the U.S. military saying that “it is taking steps to alleviate conditions at the Iraqi-run city jail in Fallujah after recent visitors found a filthy, overcrowded facility where prisoners had to provide their own food.” Waterman argues that this “demonstrates how far Iraq’s judicial and penal institutions still have to go under U.S. tutelage before they meet minimally acceptable standards.”
Posted in Human Rights, Iraq, Women | Comment »
The Kuran’s Support for Women’s Rights
March 21st, 2008 by Kent
At PostGlobal, Jack Fairweather tells the story of a woman who feels politically empowered by the Kuran’s support of rights for females. Fairweather reports that the Kuran does not support any women’s rights abuses such as forced marriage, marriage with children, and honor killings. He writes that Islamic feminists want to use the Kuran and Muslim traditions to buttress their case for better treatment.
Posted in Women | Comment »
Increased Women’s Freedom in Saudi Arabia
March 13th, 2008 by Sharlina
Louay Bahry at the Middle East Institute argues, “At no time in the modern history of Saudi Arabia have women enjoyed more liberties than they do today.” In an analysis of social customs like marriage and family relations, Bahry cites examples of increased freedom that “generally go unnoticed in the West.”
Posted in Freedom, Saudi Arabia, Women | Comment »
Saudi Women Urging Ease on Driving Restrictions
March 11th, 2008 by Sharlina
A Saudi woman has posted a video of herself driving on YouTube in an effort to urge the Saudi government to expand the rights of women to drive in Saudi Arabia. There is a current fatwa in Saudi Arabia that women are banned from driving in cities.
Posted in Human Rights, Saudi Arabia, Women | Comment »
Egyptian Women’s Movement
March 4th, 2008 by Sharlina
Mariz Tadros analyzes at The Daily Star the lack of a unified and visible women’s movement in Egypt, attributing it to “explicitly feminist causes” and a gap between the older generation of feminists and young women in Egypt. Tadros urges unity among the movements to effect change for women.
Posted in Egypt, Women | Comment »
The Latest on the Turkey Headscarf Debate
February 26th, 2008 by Sharlina
In an analysis of the aftermath of the Turkish Parliament’s resolution to abolish restrictions on wearing headscarves in higher education institutions, Seyla Benhabib argues against Noah Feldman’s previous comments that this resolution is one step forward for the AKP towards democracy, instead claiming that this resolution could unleash “more complicated—and more troubling” political forces. Benhabib states, “In the Turkish context, the new legal reforms can lead to a heightened debate about the illegality—as well as immorality—of all forms of discrimination in the public sphere; just as they can lead to increasingly repressive measures against non-observant Muslims and, maybe, non-Muslims in general.”
Posted in Turkey, Women | Comment »
More Rights for Saudi Women
February 25th, 2008 by Kent
At the Washington Note, Sameer Lalwani talks about the discussion between religious scholars on women’s rights under Islam in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government has permitted the media to report on this discussion, which implies consent of a public conversation on the subject. The post also cites POMED Director of Advocacy Stephen McInerney’s piece on Saudi Arabia’s human rights reform in January’s newsletter.
Posted in Saudi Arabia, Women | Comment »
The Elite of Qatari Education
February 12th, 2008 by Sharlina
Education City, a 2,500-acre campus on the outskirts of Doha and the largest enclave of American universities overseas, provides a glimpse of the potential seedbed of change, with “a profound impact on Qatar’s future and its relations with the United States — and perhaps, some Qatari parents worry, on their traditional way of life.” Education City is seen to represent “broad opportunities for women, in a nation where many families do not allow their daughters to travel overseas for higher education or to mix casually with men.”
Posted in Freedom, Qatar, Women | Comment »
Debate on Turkey’s Headscarf Politics
February 12th, 2008 by Sharlina
Fareed Zakaria at Newsweek asks the question to viewers on PostGlobal: “Turkish secularists say that allowing women to wear headscarves will result in the Islamicization and radicalization of the country. Do they have a point?” In response, Mona Eltahawy urges people to “get over this headscarf obsession and move on to women’s issues that need more attention.”
Posted in Freedom, Turkey, Women | Comment »
