Arab Women In Image Trap
This article shows part of the women reality in Arabic countries. It's not a complete description but it's a good introduction to this matter.
This article is from " The Rising Nepal" news:
"By Ruby Bird Discussions on issues facing women in the Arab world tend to be monochromatic, often completely overlooking the diversity in the lifestyles and conditions of women in that part of the world. The media, intellectuals and feminists - no doubt, with the best of intentions - have bought into stereotypical depictions of Arab women and viewers are told that Arab women are weak, passive and always veiled. Most Westerners are unaware that women enjoy political and social rights in many Arab countries (especially, Tunisia, Lebanon, Morocco, Jordan and Syria). Undoubtedly, many Arab countries are a long way from achieving gender equality. StereotypeBut is this not a global phenomenon, not confined to the Arab world alone? The Arab world itself is comprised of several nations (22 countries in all), with the status of women varying widely in all of them. The media, however, projects one norm - the most sexist and oppressive - onto the Arab world as a whole. There are no easy stereotypes that fit all these nations. In Tunisia, for example, wearing the veil is forbidden. However, women are yet to reach any kind of equity in the political or professional streams. The Tunisian President, Ben Ali, says that he wants to bring about a 30 per cent participation of women in public institutions by 2009. Then there is Saudi Arabia, where women are encouraged to wear veils. But these women drive cars and benefit from a wide range of possibilities in education and in their professional spaces. On many counts, Arab nations lag behind many other countries on gender issues. For example, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the international organization of parliaments of sovereign states, has said that Arab nations trail behind other nations in the representation of women in parliament. October 2005 figures put Arab nations at 7.7 per cent, the lowest figures by far. (The Pacific region places just above them at 13.9 per cent.) Most Arab countries comprise a Muslim-majority population. It is important to note here that Arab does not equal Muslim, because an ethnic group does not equal a religion. The Arab world is excessively hostage to clerics, who do not allow the codification of civil personal status laws. They interpret Islam to sanction and perpetuate many sexist practices and views, including polygamy, the requirement of wifely obedience and unequal inheritance for women. What commentators miss here is that all of these practices have at one point or another been part of Christian and Jewish civilizations as well. In fact, culture is a wider concept than religion - it incorporates not just religion, but several other factors as well.While the interpretation of Islam is in good part responsible for the inferior status of women, it is not solely to blame for the situation in the Arab world. We could consider the ritual of female genital mutilation as an example. This is a practice that has oppressed women in several cultures at different times in history. While the practice is largely unknown in most Muslim countries, it is still practised in rural areas of both Muslim and non-Muslim parts of Africa. This is an example of a practice that has no roots in religion, but is nevertheless part of a culture. While many inequities women face in the health, work and education sectors are shared across the Arab world - indeed, worldwide - certain discriminations are nation-specific..."
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