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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 Old woman, new woman
By Farida El-Naqqash *
Had there not been a strong women's movement in Egypt, the recent amendments to the procedural Personal Status Law would have been impossible.
The controversy triggered by the amendments, however, revealed both the depth of the conflict and the fragility of democracy and enlightenment. Conservative forces, on the other hand, are backed by the power of religion and the Constitution, which stipulates that Islam is the state religion and the Shari'a its primary source of legislation.
Specialists in Islamic jurisprudence agreed virtually unanimously that the amendments conform with the principles of the Shari'a. The debates also showed that the Shari'a has never been the issue. The issue is the patriarchal/class desire for control exhibited by most men. Even university professors and lawyers were enraged by the possibility that women could share men's right to divorce. The discourse of ownership overrode considerations of justice and equality that make up the ethical framework of the Qur'an.
The ruling class has always been tempted to use women as a scapegoat for the unemployment problem. Political Islam's fundamental misogyny is the other side of the coin of economic recession.
The ruling establishment, however, had to take into consideration the 1.5 million divorce cases that have been filed, some dragging on for a decade. The government also has to present its report on its efforts to improve women's status five years after Beijing. Activists also pressed for change.
All this has taught us that women's equality is still the pivot of the conflict between old and new.
* This week's Soapbox speaker is a writer and women's rights activist.
