25 - 31 January 2001
Issue No.518
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 25 - 31 January 2001 Issue No.518 |
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Asserting girls' rights
Despite the great strides made recently in promoting women's rights, female children, especially in Upper Egypt, are not nearly as well treated as their male counterparts. That was the gist of discussions at the conference presided over by Mrs Suzanne Mubarak entitled, "Girls' needs in Upper Egypt." Organised by the National Council for Motherhood and Childhood (NCMC), the meeting focused on discussing the proceedings of a three-day workshop -- held just prior to the conference -- in which the problems faced by girls in Upper Egypt were outlined and recommendations were made for solving them.
Attending the conference -- held at the historic Old Cataract hotel in Aswan -- were the governors of Beni Suef, Assiut, Fayoum, Aswan, Minya, Sohag, Giza, Qena, Al-Wadi Al-Gadid and Luxor. Concerned ministers, representatives of non-governmental organisations, female members of parliament and a number of schoolgirls from Aswan also took part.
"Our gathering here today comes after nearly a year has passed following the launch of the Second Decade of the Child (2000-2010), which carries on the work of the previous decade and confirms the commitment of our political leadership towards achieving a qualitative shift in the protection and development of our children," Mrs Mubarak said.
Offering a brief evaluation of the first decade of the child, Mrs Mubarak highlighted the considerable achievements made in the fields of health, education and culture, in addition to complementary efforts by the media and in the legislative domain. She said steps have also been taken to establish specialised institutions that cater to children's needs, referring to the NCMC.
As a result, according to Mrs Mubarak, "People's awareness has been raised on issues such as the handicapped, child labour, the needs of rural children, homeless children, orphans and juvenile delinquents."
At this point, Mrs Mubarak declared the necessity of giving a high priority to the problems faced by female children, especially girls in Upper Egypt. "It has been proven that caring for girls has an enormous effect on advancing economic conditions, raising the general level of health and achieving social peace and stability," Mrs Mubarak said.
A number of the social and economic problems faced by girls were outlined at the conference. Considered inferior to male children, girls often face discrimination in terms of nutrition, education and health care. Girls also face violence, not only through physical abuse, but with circumcision and the imposition of early marriage and early motherhood. Female children are also frequently deprived of their basic right to express their opinions, whether relating directly to them or on other issues. And handicapped girls are hardly given any care or attention whatsoever.
As for economic obstacles, young girls are often forced to work in homes and fields without adequate pay or care. They are illiterate for the most part and are deprived of opportunities for any training that could enable them to earn a decent living for themselves. Their access to sources of funding to start their own small businesses tends to be severely limited. In addition, the private sector is inclined to favour men over women for employment.
Several recommendations were offered to improve the situation of girls in Upper Egypt. First, mothers' awareness should be increased about child-rearing techniques which uphold equality of treatment between the sexes. Second, girls should be protected from economic exploitation and their position improved by guaranteeing them opportunities equal to those of boys. Third, harmful practices such as circumcision should be eradicated by raising mothers' awareness of their detrimental effects. Fourth, society's awareness should be raised concerning the harmful health, social and psychological effects of early marriages for girls. Fifth, the number of single classroom schools should be increased. Sixth, social awareness should be raised about the dangers of early employment for female children.
One point stressed more than once by Mrs Mubarak was the necessity of setting mechanisms to eradicate illiteracy in five-year' time, in accordance with the directives of President Hosni Mubarak during the social development conference.
Mrs Mubarak concluded by saying that this conference was only the first step -- albeit an important beginning -- on the road to protecting female minors from a wide range of social ills. The gathering , she said, marked the start of a comprehensive national movement that aims at respecting in full the rights of all girls in Egypt.
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