Florence Massena
Since the new year, several Lebanese rights groups have
been demanding that the government established by Prime Minister Saad
Hariri on Dec. 18 implement a quota of 30% of seats for women
in the May parliamentary elections. Women's rights organizations had
expressed dissatisfaction over the appointment of a man to head the new
Ministry for Women's Affairs, Jean Ogasapian.
Hariri's newly appointed government is
composed of 29 men and one woman, and a ministry for women's affairs
was implemented for the first time in Lebanon. Led by Ogasapian, a
parliamentarian from the Future Movement and consultant for private and
public institutions on social cohesion and women's empowerment, this
ministry will have the task of advocating for new laws and amendments
favorable to the advancement of women in Lebanese society.
“The new government shows that politicians intended to keep women
away from the government because the male intellect is still dominant in
themselves and their minds,” the press release read. “As for the
Ministry for Women's Affairs, we stress that our main problem is not
with the minister who was appointed, because we originally did not ask
for the establishment of a ministry for women's affairs.”
The release went on, “There have already been women in the ministries
of education, finance and social affairs, and no one can deny their
ability to fill such positions. Our main demand for the government is to
respect the right of women to full citizenship through active
participation in political life and in the management of the country
equally with men.”
Other groups like FE-MALE
are not against such a ministry, but worry about its possible
efficiency as a nascent entity with no pre-defined budget. “The idea of
having a ministry for women's affairs is positive because women's issues
need a lot of work and struggle in Lebanon. So it is good to have a
specialized entity to work on this topic,” FE-MALE co-founder Hayat
Mirshad told Al-Monitor.
“But I am afraid that it is a kind of opiate to say the government
did what we wanted but in the end there will be no action. If we
consider these numbers — 3.1% of women in parliament and only one female
minister — we can see clearly that political parties do not support
women to run in elections, even in smaller ones like the municipal elections,” she added.
Mirshad said that this ministry is “not a primary one, like the
defense or foreign affairs ministries. It doesn't have its own budget or
system, so it is an incomplete step.” She added, “I am not sure about
its efficiency, so we have to wait now to see what will be done.”
Ogasapian said that studies about the ministry's strategy, vision,
core values and the current situation of Lebanese women have already
been conducted, and the next step is to properly apply their findings.
“We are already in the process of recruiting relevant people who have
experience in women's issues and coordinating with United Nations
organizations in order to receive funding and international expertise on
the subject,” he told Al-Monitor.
“Our first focus after that is to establish a 30% quota of [women's]
participation in the political world, in parliament, the government and
inside the ministries themselves,” he added.
The quota initiative was announced by Hariri
on Jan. 3. The next focus should be to work on amending laws
discriminating against women in Lebanese society, Ogasapian
said, adding, “For example, we need to address discrimination regarding
work and social security. Our goal is to bring women and men [together]
as equals.”
Asked about a man being picked for the minister position, Mirshad
said, “First, I think no one can feel the suffering of women as much as a
woman. A man can be a supporter of the cause but can't possibly feel
what women go through."
She noted, “It is also a question of power dynamics. We have to
create spaces for women to have a voice and act, as they are directly
concerned, so the [leadership] of these spaces shouldn't be for men.
Plus, picking a man for this ministry is like saying that political
leaders couldn't find a single woman able to lead it, and this is quite
insulting, patronizing even.”
Ogasapian does not see his gender as a problem. He said, “The
question of women's rights is not limited to the struggle of women,” but
the responsibility of society as a whole. He asked, “Why couldn't a man
carry responsibilities and defend [women's] rights in order to reach
equality? The question of fairness and justice is the duty of a man
too.”
Two of the main struggles feminist organizations in Lebanon have been leading for years are the right for Lebanese women to [pass on] their nationality to their spouse and children, and amending the domestic violence law to improve protections for women.
“The fact that women cannot pass their citizenship to their children
is not fair. They contribute to society" and their families
should benefit from it, Ogasapian said, adding, “We have to work on it,
but many Christians are concerned about the confessional balance of the
country if this becomes the case. For the domestic violence law,
amendments are possible and we can work on it with the organizations
that are asking for a change.”
Some Christian leaders
believe that if women could pass on their nationality, it would mostly
benefit Muslim foreigners — although there are no figures available to
support that point — and if Lebanon becomes more heavily Muslim,
Christians could lose political space in the country.
Ogasapian reported meeting with women's rights groups to learn about
their demands and projects. He said, “So far, they did a lot and reached
some success. They should continue doing so. My work is not to replace
them. Instead, I will help them by lobbying in parliament and in the
government in order to support their demands.”
He continued, “The main thing the minister can do is to raise the
voice of women in public and between politicians, and to show support
for women’s causes.”
The Ministry for Women’s Affairs seems like a good idea on paper for
Lebanese women, but it will need to take concrete actions in the next
few months to prove itself.
"Al-Monitor" (www.al-monitor.com), January 26, 2017
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