This article examines the rarely talked about subtleties of Moroccan reform in the realm of women’s rights and its inadequate fulfillment of obligations to international human rights standards. The Preamble to Morocco’s post-Arab Spring 2011 constitution follows the example of its 1996 version, in which the state declared its “determination to abide by the universally recognised human rights.” However, while the state is often hailed in the international forums and media as a true trendsetter in the realm of women’s rights in the Middle East and North Africa region, this analysis of the much celebrated Family Code and its two main goals-“doing justice to women” and “preserving men’s dignity”-and of the regime’s ambivalent discourse on gender equality as defined by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) paints a more realistic picture. Both of these cases indicate that the state is failing to ameliorate the legal position of women and to consider women as autonomous and individual human beings with intrinsic rights not contingent upon first fulfilling their customary obligations. I contend, therefore, that the way the reformed Family Code has formulated its goals and the way that the law and the state continue to conceptualize a woman go against the main principle of individuality contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and CEDAW to which Morocco has continually committed itself, at least on paper.
The Arab Spring seems to represent a new era of emancipation for women in the Arab world. Yet, it remains to be seen whether women will be afforded the opportunity to play substantial roles in the futures of their respective countries, or whether they will be marginalized, secluded and silenced. In this paper, I try to examine and chronicle roles played by Arab women during Arab Spring, the concerns and challenges they face and what strategies women should adopt to ensure their rights, in post-revolutionary periods. The researcher also argues how the new model of young women leaders like Ms. Karman and Asmaa Mahfouz deconstructs the prevalent narratives concerning the representation of Arab women which centers upon notions of women’s sexuality, reductionist interpretations of religion and Orientalist representation of women to justify women’s subordination. Finally, this paper concludes with the fundamental questions which need to be answered and the strategies which should be adopted regarding whether and how Arab women will indeed benefit from the ongoing change in the Middle East.
This Article examines women’s rights in Tunisia after more than six years since a popular uprising forced longtime autocrat Ben Ali to flee the country, which allowed Tunisian democracy to begin to take hold. Further, it explores what, if any, broader implications Tunisia’s women’s rights movement has for other states in North Africa or the Middle East. Part II reconsiders the Arab Spring through a critical perspective, while also assessing how Tunisian exceptionalism and the Islamist Ennahda party situate Tunisia in this larger dynamic. Part III discusses Islamic feminism and examines how this innovative school of thought contributes to the struggle for advancing women’s rights and achieving gender equality throughout Islamic and Muslim majority states. Finally, Part IV explores women’s rights in Tunisia, both before and after the 2010–2011 revolution, and assesses how these rights relate to Tunisia’s legal tradition, historical legacy, and significant legal developments that occurred after the revolution.
Contrary to popular media coverage, the Arab Spring was not the first time Arab women took on leadership roles in populist uprisings. As far back as the 1919 Egyptian revolution against the British occupation, women in the Middle East have played pivotal roles in both political movements and mass protests. Indeed, women constituted a significant proportion of street protesters during the 1960s Algerian revolution, the Iranian revolution of 1979, and in Palestine during the First Intifada. This article posits that the biggest challenge facing women in Arab Spring countries is transforming their leadership and attendant influence during the revolutions into high level governance positions, both elected and appointed, after the revolutions. Despite their involvement in past revolutions, whether against native dictators or foreign occupiers, women in the Middle East have yet to attain the degree of political representation that reflects the scope of their contributions in deposing regimes. As soon as the conflicts end and the revolutionary fervor is over, society reverts back to traditional gender roles wherein women are expected to stay out of the political process beyond exercising any voting rights they may have. Their social and political positions remain largely unaffected notwithstanding their sacrifices. Without women’s participation in social and political institutions, nations are unable to develop healthy and sustainable democracies. And as a result, democracy repeatedly eludes the nations of the Middle East.
What will differentiate the Arab Spring revolutions from past ones is the degree to which the political revolution triggers a social revolution wherein women have meaningful access to and representation in political institutions. Notwithstanding their increased participation in the public sphere as workers, women’s interests have been woefully underrepresented in the political process. Thus, women’s participation in the formal workforce, albeit at disproportionately lower rates than men, should not be mistaken for political representation and equal treatment before the law.
Accordingly, those concerned with achieving substantive equality, as opposed to mere formal equality on paper, should focus on the following three key objectives: 1) amend election laws to increase the proportion of women represented in local, state, and national politics; 2) increase access to high level employment opportunities for women; and 3) reform public education curriculums to highlight the role of women in the revolutions and the various professions to counter perceptions of women’s inability or disinterest in roles outside of the home and to communicate to the youth how sustainable democracies depend on equal participation by women. In combination, these objectives increase the likelihood of a more equitable society wherein women are sufficiently empowered to minimize gender disparities and meaningfully contribute towards the nation’s progress.
The 2011 “Arab Spring” sparked optimism that there would be profound democratic change in the Middle East, a region dominated by autocratic and oppressive regimes. The lack of rights and fundamental freedom for women in the region was one of the most egregious manifestations of these abusive governments. While women’s rights should be a primary focus of the most prominent human rights NGOs, specifically Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW), these organizations have not directed sustained attention to women’s rights in this area of the world. HRW and Amnesty have allowed ideology and politics to prevail at the expense of true freedom for women.