http://english.pravda.ru/society/stories/12-12-2011/119932-Women_in_the_Arab_and_MuslimWorld-0/

Women in the Arab and Muslim World
12.12.2011 
Infographic brings indicators on the situation of women in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, 
Yemen, Libya, Syria and Tunisia...

by Bruna Luisa Carvalho

Women have had an important role in the Arab spring. They became known during 
the uprisings confronting autocratic regimes in the Middle East and North 
Africa, marching side by side with men during the protests.

Tunisia became the epicenter of the protests when, on January14th, the 
government ended 23 years of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who resigned 
under pressure from protests that started almost a month earlier - on December 
18, 2010. The success of Tunisia has inspired protesters in Egypt, where after 
18 days of mobilization, they managed to force the resignation of Hosni 
Mubarak, after almost 30 years in power, on February 11.

Other anti-government movements gained strength, but faced resistance from 
leaders clinging to power, they headed for violent conflicts. One was in Libya 
where Moammar Gadhafi, whose Libyan Jamahiriya has remained in power for 42 
years saw an uprising begin in February which has become a bloody terrorist and 
mercenary infested invasion. In this case, women have nothing to do with the 
raping, murdering, plundering, looting foreign introduced terrorists.

In Yemen, President Ali Abdullah Saleh accepted a deal for his resignation on 
November 23, after demonstrations and violent clashes left hundreds dead since 
the start of popular uprisings in January. Saleh was in power for 21 years. In 
Syria, President Bashar al-Assad, who succeeded his father in 2000, still 
resists attacks in the streets that have left, according to the UN, more than 
4,000 killed since March.

Women who participated in the uprisings in their countries were recognized with 
international awards. On Saturday, Yemeni activist Tawakkul Karman received the 
Nobel Peace Prize, along with two Liberians, for their advocacy of women's 
rights. On October 27, the militant Egyptian Asmaa Mahfouz and attorney Razan 
Syrian Zeitouneh were part of the group of five Arab activists who received the 
prestigious Sakharov Prize of the European Parliament that promotes freedom of 
thought.

Nevertheless, there is still much to do to advance in the issue of women's 
rights in Arab countries. Indicators on women of the five countries mentioned 
above, Saudi Arabia is one of the most repressive. The kingdom, which showed 
only occasional protests for change this year, announced on September 25 that 
women could run and vote in municipal elections in 2015.

 

 

Translated from the Portuguese version by:

Lisa Karpova

Pravda.Ru


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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