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Al-Ahram Weekly 16 - 22 March 2000 Issue No. 473 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 16 - 22 March 2000 Issue No. 473
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Special Focus Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Free in the real world
Women's liberation movements are essential components of any renaissance in a people's history. A society cannot renew itself unless this is accompanied by a movement to liberate women.
In the early Islamic period women were equal to men, whether in poetry competitions or on the battlefield.
Our contemporary history offers many instances of women's liberation accompanying a general movement toward social regeneration. The 1919 Revolution infused Egyptian society with a progressive spirit that developed alongside powerful demands for the fulfilment of women's aspirations. This effervescence continued until the 1930s; among its supporters were Salama Moussa, Taha Hussein, and the other literary figures of the enlightenment. During this period, Qasim Amin's books on women's liberation were reprinted. The same years saw Huda Sha'rawi's most intense activity, notably the establishment of the Egyptian Feminist Union.
The 1952 Revolution also gave women many social and political rights of which they had been deprived. This was the first time women were appointed to the posts of minister and ambassador.
Women's liberation is not limited to equal rights and duties: it also implies their full participation in the political and economic as well as the social and cultural spheres. I remember women demonstrating in the 1930s, not only to demand their rights but essentially to call for an end to the political occupation. In the same way, we cannot exclude half of society from our shared development efforts.
This is why I am a staunch supporter of the new National Women's Council, especially since its establishment comes at a time when half of society is being locked away from daily life.
Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy.
