High court rules Cairo University can restrict use of full veils

Salwa Samir February 10, 2020

REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
A woman wearing a niqab stands near a hieroglyphic mural in el-Dokki 

district of greater Giza, south of Cairo, Dec. 22, 2012.

After five years of public debate, Egypt's top court has settled the issue: Cairo University, one of Egypt's oldest higher education institutions, can ban its professors from wearing full-face veils, or niqabs, inside lecture halls. The ban does not apply to the rest of the campus.

The High Administrative Court ruled Jan. 27 that, while a person's choice of attire is among the personal freedoms guaranteed by the constitution, this freedom is not limitless and should not contradict public morals. The court noted that the Regulation of Universities Law doesn’t require staff members to don uniforms, but does demand that they abide by university traditions. With its ruling, the court rejected the appeal by some 80 of the schools' teachers who challenged the ban.

The next day, Cairo University media adviser Mahmoud Alam Eddin told CBC News that the niqab ban in lecture halls would be implemented by Feb. 8, the start of the second semester. Professors who don't comply won't be allowed to teach, he added.

Ain Shams University quickly followed suit, with President Mahmoud al-Metiny announcing Feb. 4 that his school would implement a ban immediately.

The controversy arose five years ago when Gaber Nassar, former president of Cairo University, called for the prohibition. Nassar said back then that the veil hinders clear communication with students, especially during academic lectures.

Egyptian parliament members have attempted numerous times to prohibit niqabs.

In 2018, legislator Ghada Ajami proposed a draft law that called for banning all women from wearing the niqab in public places such as restaurants, universities and parks and called for violators to be fined 1,000 Egyptian pounds ($63) or more.

Ajami described the niqab as a source of sedition in society, as it reflects the extremist ideology of ultraconservative movements. She said the ban would help combat terrorism. But after backlash over the proposal, Ajami gave up the effort, acknowledging a ban might cause divisions in the country.

That same year, Mohamed Abu Hamed, another lawmaker, called on the prime minister to ban the full-face veil in state and educational institutions, similar to action taken in Algeria. But many parliamentarians rejected his call, saying it would restrict personal freedom.

Cairo University is not the first institution to succeed in barring its staff from wearing the niqab. Al-Azhar, Egypt's top religious authority, made the call in 2009.

The former grand imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Mohammed Sayyid Tantawi, issued a decision to ban female staff and students from donning the niqab at the university, even in dormitories. Tantawi said the full-face veil is a sign of radicalism and has nothing to do with Islam.

There are supporters and opponents of the ban at Cairo University and in the general public. The Revolutionary Socialists, a movement established in 2011 after the January 25 Revolution, rejected the court's decision.

It said in a statement on Facebook, "We must defend women's right to choose their clothing." The university should pay attention to "factors that actually affect the educational process and the ability of a faculty member to deliver knowledge, not her appearance."

Lawmaker Dalia Youssef hailed the recent ruling and called for extending the ban to include students as well, to help shape Egyptian society’s way of thinking.

“I asked the minister of higher education [and the Ministry of Health] to issue a decision that applies to all universities," she said by phone on an al-Haya TV talk show Jan. 28. "The matter doesn’t require a draft law, as there is already a court ruling.”

Shaimaa Mousa, an assistant lecturer in Greek and Latin studies at Cairo University's School of Arts, told Al-Monitor she totally agrees with the ban.

“Actually, I am against the niqab, whether in or outside the university. How can I communicate with a person who is fully veiled except for her eyes?” Mousa said. “The face and body language are among the most important tools of communication."

However, Mousa noted that niqab wearers may find ways to circumvent the ban, as one ultraconservative Muslim recently suggested. Sameh Abdel Hamid, former leader of the Salafist Nour party, said Jan. 28 on Facebook that niqab-wearing staff at Cairo University should instead wear medical masks in lecture halls. He claimed the masks have many benefits, like avoiding the coronavirus. “The law will not prevent the use of masks,” Abdel Hamid said.

Salwa Samir, an Egyptian journalist, has been writing about human rights, social problems, immigration and children's and women's issues since 2005.




Read more: https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2020/02/egypt-cairo-university-ban-niqab-religion-freedom.html#ixzz6EqPoGmlE

KENNEY LIES

Alberta premier denies supporting niqab ban despite past public statements

© Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is denying he ever supported a ban on niqab or face veils worn by some Muslim women.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is denying he supported a ban on niqabs even though he issued a directive in 2011 banning women from wearing them during citizenship ceremonies when he was the federal minister of citizenship and immigration.

Kenney made the remarks during a news conference following the virtual Western Premiers Conference on Tuesday.

"I've never supported a proposed ban," Kenney said.

"To the contrary, I've always said that Canada is a country that protects and respects religious freedom and pluralism, and the government has no business regulating what people wear unlike in certain European and Middle Eastern countries that do have bans on face coverings," he added.

"That has never been proposed. I've always opposed that."

Kenney is facing new questions about his record in light of recent comments by Tim Uppal, the Conservative MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods.

Uppal, who became the spokesperson for the niqab ban as the minister of state of multiculturalism in the Harper cabinet, apologized in a Facebook post Sunday for not pushing back harder against the policies of his former government which he said "alienated Muslim Canadians and contributed to the growing problem of Islamaphobia in Canada."

Uppal said he decided to publicly account for his past actions after four members of a Muslim family were struck and killed by a man driving a truck in London, Ont.

The accused is now facing terrorism charges in addition to four charges of first-degree murder and one charge of attempted murder. One family member, a nine-year-old boy, survived the attack.

Uppal's caucus colleague, Calgary-Nose Hill MP Michelle Rempel Garner, also apologized for her inaction.

Despite his denial on Tuesday, Kenney continued to take responsibility for and defend the policy as recently as 2015, when the ban was struck down in court.

Kenney was also a member of cabinet when the Conservative government led by former prime minister Stephen Harper proposed a hotline during an election campaign to report so-called "barbaric cultural practices."

© CBC Edmonton-Mill Woods MP Tim Uppal, seen here in 2015 when he was minister of state for multiculturalism, became the spokesperson for legislation to ban face-coverings at citizenship ceremonies.

Uppal, who appeared on CBC Radio's Edmonton AM Tuesday, deflected questions about whether he felt Kenney should apologize as he was accounting for his own actions as the minister of state for multiculturalism.

"[Kenney] has a very good relationship with a lot of people in the Muslim community," Uppal said. "This is something that I have seen myself first-hand."

Kenney left federal politics in 2016 to run for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta, the first step in his successful drive to unite the PCs with the Wildrose Party.

Jasvir Deol, the NDP MLA for Edmonton-Meadows, called for Kenney to apologize. The premier was not in Tuesday's question period to take Opposition questions on the issue.

IN THE CLOSET CONSERVATIVES

Burqa isn’t choice

Ayesha Ijaz Khan

Published September 26, 2021 - 

The writer is a lawyer based in London.


SEVERAL years ago, when I started working as a lawyer in Karachi, as I was walking to my office inside a large building, which housed several offices, a man from an adjacent office, who looked like he could be my father’s age, stopped me and said, “Beta, dupatta kidhar hai?”

“It’s none of your business whether I wear a dupatta or not,” I retorted, and he backed down apologising. However, the incident stuck with me. The idea that a complete stranger could tell me what to wear wasn’t alien to me. I had grown up in Saudi Arabia, where an entire brigade of men called the mutawa, were tasked with going around town to check how many strands of hair were showing from women’s hijabs and admonish them and their next-of-kin males accordingly.

However, when I am told that women choose to wear a hijab, niqab or burqa, I find the notion completely fanciful. Some may certainly be choosing it, but a large number are not. Particularly those who live in Muslim-majority countries, where free choice has never been part of our ethos.

In Pakistan, for instance, isn’t it quite common for parents to decide who their children should marry or which profession they should pursue?

Free choice has never been part of our ethos.

One hundred per cent free choice doesn’t exist anywhere in the world, as there are always some norms and bounds that society dictates. For instance, nudity isn’t considered acceptable in public places and a University of California, Berkeley, student who attempted it back in 1992 was promptly arrested. Nevertheless, the amount of leeway one is given in choosing one’s life path, activities, and indeed dress is far more restrictive in our societies than it is in Western ones.

A cousin who moved from the US to UAE once told me that she had more freedom organising and attending Islamic religious lectures (dars) in the US than she did in the UAE, where the subject was strictly regulated by the state.

One only has to compare university campuses in Western countries with those in Pakistan to find how much freedom young adults have in terms of how freely they can come and go from campus or organise for a political cause. Many girls will tell you their dads do not allow them to wear sleeveless shirts or dance at functions where both men and women are present, while boys may be told that they need to marry off their sisters before they can think of marrying themselves.

So free choice plays very little role in our culture and society. This then brings us to the question — why do women wear the hijab, niqab or burqa? Primarily, it is because they are told that this is what their religion requires of them. But also, some young girls have told me that wearing a hijab leads to less familial constraint on their comings and goings, as male family members feel they have become religious and hence doubt them less. Others feel the extra clothing may fend off unwanted stares and advances.

One girl I recently spoke to told me that she wore a burqa when she went to study in China, thinking that it will make her safer as this is what she had been conditioned to believe in Pakistan. However, after a while she realised that the burqa was attracting undue attention in China and yet not serving the purpose it was supposed to. She said she soon realised that women in China were generally safe without wearing the burqa so she too took it off.

So the crux of the matter is making women feel safe in a public space. The questions to ask are: in societies where a large number of women are veiling, are women safe to walk on the streets alone? Are they safe at bus stops or driving cars alone or are they participating fully in public life? Or are they holding back, still fearful of unwanted advances from men, and yet not realising their potential?

I must add here that the hijab, a head covering alone, does not constrain women from doing most things that women without a hijab can do, but a niqab and burqa certainly do. They make public interface much more difficult. How many of us would be comfortable with a doctor or a nurse or a lawyer who veils her face? The idea of the face veil is to relegate women to a position where they have minimal public space.

This is not only detrimental for women but society at large. Emphasis on veiling often leads to calls for segregation of the sexes, which simply isn’t feasible in most real-life work situations. Saudi Arabia has learned this as it tries to diversify its economy and has reversed stricter veiling policies it promoted earlier.

As the Taliban take hold of Afghanistan and impose harsh conditions on women, it is more important than ever for other Muslim countries to speak out against such regressive interpretations of our religion, which are incompatible with modernity.

The writer is a lawyer based in London.
Twitter: @ayeshaijazkhan
Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2021

ANOTHER INTERNECINE LEADERSHIP RACE

Poilievre pitches to new immigrants, as Brown attacks him over 2015 niqab ban bill

OTTAWA — Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown and high-profile Conservative Pierre Poilievre spent Monday battling over a seven-year-old election promise to prohibit face coverings during citizenship ceremonies — a sign of what could be the makings of a tense rivalry between candidates in the Tory leadership race.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Brown, who launched his bid on Sunday, blasted longtime Ottawa-area MP Poilievre over his actions back in 2015 when the party promised to create a "barbaric cultural practices" tip line and require people's faces to be visible during citizenship oaths.

The attack came as Poilievre spent the past few days meeting with cultural community leaders in the Greater Toronto Area and promising to cut red tape for immigrants wanting to access the necessary licences they need to work in regulated industries. Among those he met with were members of the Armenian, Muslim and Pakistani communities as well some of the party's candidates from the area.

Regardless of who is chosen as leader Sept. 10, Conservatives know they must make inroads with immigrants and racialized Canadians if theyhope to pick up seats in the region as well as other major cities and suburbs, considered key to defeating three-term Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Poilievre pledged Monday to revive similar programs that were in place under the last Conservative leader who did well in communities of visible minorities: former prime minister Stephen Harper, at least prior to 2015.

He promised toincentivize provinces to require occupational licensing bodies to decide on an immigrant's application within 60 days of receiving their paperwork, rather than forcing them to wait for months.

As well, Poilievre pitched offering small loans to immigrants who might need to take extra courses to gain a professional or trade licence to work in their respective field.

As Poilievre made these pledges, Brown, who is positioning himself as the candidate who stands for religious freedoms, released a statement saying the MP lacks credibility on any policy that impacts minority communities given his role in the Conservatives' 2015 election campaign.

It was during that race when the party, then led by Harper, promised to create a tip line for so-called "barbaric cultural practices." Conservatives at the time said it was meant to report things like forced marriage.

During that election, Poilievre was running for re-election as a candidate. He was also a member of Harper's government when it introduced a bill banning people from wearing face coverings during citizenship ceremonies. That was ultimately struck down in court. The promise was also included in the party's election campaign, when Harper also mused about possibly extending it to federal public servants.

Brown said Monday that Poilievre has never spoken out against these measures. The MP also has Jenni Byrne on his team, who was the party's national campaign manager in 2015.

"This is the same campaign which platformed those two abhorrent policies, and lost the Conservatives the 2015 general election," Brown's statement read.

"Even if he attempts to distance himself from his silence today, it would be a hollow gesture in an insincere bid to gain votes."

Poilievre responded Monday by calling Brown a "liar," accusing him of mischaracterizing what Harper was doing.

"There was no niqab ban," he said in a statement released on social media.

"I would never support that, nor did Mr. Harper. What Mr. Harper proposed was that a person's face be visible while giving oaths at citizenship ceremonies."

Poilievre, whose statement didn't address the past proposal of a "barbaric cultural practices" tip line, added he would continue to support immigration and equality.

In response, National Council of Canadians CEO Mustafa Farooq tweeted that "leadership requires accountability" and pointed out some of Poilievre's fellow MPs have apologized for what happened in 2015.

Among those is Edmonton MP Tim Uppal, a co-chair on Poilievre's campaign, who has apologized for his role as a minister in promoting the ban on niqabs during citizenship ceremonies.Before the leadership race, Uppal said the party was still dealing with the fallout from racialized communities because of the 2015 campaign.

A post-mortem from the Conservatives' 2021 election loss submitted in January came to a similar finding, according to three sources who spoke to The Canadian Press on the condition of anonymity.

Melissa Lantsman, a newly elected Ontario MP who is also supporting Poilievre in the race, shared on social media last fall that while she was stood in favour of banning the niqab during citizenship ceremonies in 2015, her "view has since evolved."

Michael Diamond, a campaign strategist who, among other campaigns, worked on Peter MacKay's 2020 Conservative leadership bid, said Brown's attack over the issue and targeting of Byrne is a "proxy" attack on Harper, who is highly respected among the membership.

"It seems like folly to me to attack the last campaign of the man who remains the most popular figure in this party."

He added it's still early days in the race and cautioned that the debates playing out between the campaigns and on social media were occurring in an "echo chamber."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 14, 2022.

Stephanie Taylor, The Canadian Press

Nowhere to hide: Abused Afghan women find shelter dwindling




According to the UN, 87 percent of Afghan women have experienced some form of physical, sexual or psychological violence 

(AFP/Elise BLANCHARD)

Elise BLANCHARD
Sat, January 1, 2022

Married off at seven to a man old enough to be her great-grandfather, Fatema endured rapes, beatings and starvation until she could take no more and tried to kill herself.

Through tears she recalls the beatings she received -- like the time, aged 10, she was flung against a wall and "my head crashed against a nail... I almost died".

Today the 22-year-old is living in one of the few shelters for battered women still open in Afghanistan since the Taliban's August return to power, but is fearful she could lose her place at any time.

If the refuge closes, Fatema will have nowhere to go. She has lost touch with her own family, while in-laws have vowed to kill her for dishonouring their name.

Fatema's plight is shared by millions in Afghanistan, where patriarchal tradition, poverty and a lack of education have held back women's rights for decades.

According to the United Nations, 87 percent of Afghan women have experienced some form of physical, sexual or psychological violence.

Despite this, the country of 38 million had only 24 shelters dedicated to their care before the Taliban's return -- almost all financed by the international community and frowned upon by many locals.

- 'Start from scratch' -

Some NGOs running shelters stepped up their work long before the Taliban takeover.

The director of one organisation told AFP she began moving women away from shelters in unstable provinces in advance of the US troop withdrawal.

Some were sent back to their blood relatives in the hope they would be offered protection from vengeful in-laws. Others were sent to shelters in bigger provincial capitals.

As the Taliban onslaught continued the situation became desperate, and around 100 women were transferred to Kabul -- only for the capital to fall.

"We have to start from scratch," says the director, who asked not to be named or the organisation identified while they navigated how to operate under the new regime.

The Taliban insist their strict interpretation of the Koran provides women with rights and protection, but the reality is very different and they are slowly being squeezed out of public life.

Most secondary schools for girls are shut, women are barred from government employment apart from select specialised areas, and this week new guidelines stated they cannot undertake long journeys unless accompanied by a male relative.

There has been some glimmer of light.

Earlier this month supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada denounced forced marriage, while Suhail Shaheen -- the Taliban's would-be ambassador to the UN -- told Amnesty International that women could go to court if they were victims of violence.

The regime has not made any formal pronouncement on the future of shelters, although the refuges have not escaped their notice.

Taliban fighters and officials have paid several visits to the one housing Fatema and around 20 other women, according to employees.

"They came in, looked at the rooms, checked there were no men," said one worker.

"They said this is not a safe place for women, that their place is at home," said another.

Still, it gave one woman hope.

"It was much better than we expected," the first worker told AFP.

- 'Accused of lying' -

Even before the Taliban takeover many women in abusive households had little recourse.

Zakia approached the Ministry of Women's Affairs -- since shut down by the Taliban -- for advice on how to escape a father-in-law who had threatened to kill her.

"They didn't even listen to me," she said, and told her that her situation was not that bad.

Mina, 17, who ran away from an abusive uncle seven years ago with her younger sister, had a similar reception.

"The ministry accused me of lying," she told AFP.

And it is not just the women seeking shelter who are vulnerable, with Amnesty International saying shelter workers also "risk violence and death".

Several staffers said they had been threatened over the phone by people claiming to be Taliban seeking the whereabouts of women who had fled their households.

Cases of abuse are likely to rise with the virtual collapse of the economy bringing soaring unemployment, a cash-flow crisis and mounting hunger.

"When the economic situation worsens, men are out of work, and cases of violence increase," one shelter worker said.

"The situation has probably worsened... services have generally decreased," said Alison Davidian, interim representative for UN Women in Afghanistan.

One of the few shelters open -- albeit discretely -- is run by Mahbouba Seraj, a pioneer in the struggle for women's rights in the country.

After being inspected by the Taliban it was "kind of left alone", she says, but her concern is now for the women trapped in abusive households who have nowhere to go.

Zakia, at least, has shelter for now -- but for how long?

"My own father said he didn't care about me," she says.

eb/tbm/ys/fox/axn

Taliban are revoking Afghan women's hard-won rights

Initial restrictions imposed by the Taliban after their takeover mostly targeted urban women. Now, the expanded rules could affect all women in Afghanistan.


Women have repeatedly protested for their rights since the Taliban came to power in August

Since the Taliban swept back to power in Afghanistan in August, they have been enforcing their fundamentalist interpretation of Islam. In spite of trying to rebrand as more moderate, the group has imposed a slew of restrictions that revoke the liberties that Afghan women have won through a history of struggle and activism, and unravel the gains made over the past two decades.

Following al-Qaeda's September 11, 2001, attacks in New York and Washington, DC, the United States invaded Afghanistan. The justifications for the war placed prominent attention on the Taliban's misogyny. According to the administration of then US President George W. Bush, the war on terror in Afghanistan was "also a fight for women's rights and dignity."

That drew attention to the plight of Afghan women, which translated to international aid and funding for social programs and NGOs focused on improving women's lives. This enabled women in urban areas, particularly in the capital, Kabul, to participate in public life in ways that were impossible under the Taliban regime.

Afghan women have sustained their families through war and poverty

But those changes failed to reach the countryside, where, according to data from the World Bank, about 70% of Afghans live. In the two-decade war, villages across Afghanistan have been scenes of countless clashes between Taliban-aligned groups and NATO and national forces. Rural women constantly suffered night raids, airstrikes and displacement, without getting the chance to benefit from the expanded opportunities for their counterparts in the cities.


Rural women lived through the war without benefiting from the programs that were introduced

A UN report published in July quotes rural women who say the 2020 withdrawal agreement between the United States and Taliban has meant less violence in their areas, greater freedom of movement and reduced anxiety.

The first restrictions that the Taliban introduced once they regained power mostly targeted urban and middle-class women. But they are expanding into a long list of rules, which will affect Afghanistan's entire female population.


LIFE IN AFGHANISTAN UNDER THE TALIBAN
New but old dress code
Although it is not yet mandatory for women to wear a burqa, many do so out of fear of reprisals. This Afghan woman is visiting a local market with her children. There is a large supply of second-hand clothes as many refugees have left their clothes behind.
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Here are some of the restrictions that the Taliban have imposed on women so far:

Long-distance travel

Afghan women have been banned from traveling more than 72 kilometers (45 miles) without a male relative since December 26. The Taliban Ministry for Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice made it illegal for drivers to give rides to women traveling alone. A senior member of Human Rights Watch told the AFP news agency that the decree prevents women from "being able to depart if they are facing domestic violence."

TV and media

In November, the Taliban banned women from appearing on TV shows and in movies and ordered female journalists and presenters to wear headscarves.

According to a report released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in August, most female employees of media organizations stopped working after the Taliban takeover.

Women's Affairs Ministry abolished

Established in 2001, the Women's Affairs Ministry was abolished by the Taliban in September. Its office now houses the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice Ministry.

Education cut off

The Taliban has effectively prohibited girls from receiving education higher than primary school by keeping most secondary schools for teenage girls closed, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported in October.


According to the UN, girls represented some 40% of Afghan students before the Taliban takeover

According to World Bank data, the proportion of girls in primary schools in Afghanistan increased from less than 10% in 2003 to 33% in 2017, while their share in secondary schools was 39% in 2017, up from 6% in 2003.
Women banned from working

In early July, as the Taliban were seizing territory from government forces across Afghanistan, the group's fighters stormed into bank offices in the southern city of Kandahar and ordered women working there to leave.

After taking full control of Afghanistan, the group continued to eliminate women from workplaces. In September, one of the Taliban's senior figures told the Reuters news agency that Afghan women should not work alongside men. That statement was followed by another decree issued by the interim mayor ordering female employees of Kabul's city government to stay home.

Women accounted for 20% of the country's workforce in 2020, according to a report released by the UN Development Program in December, and a growing number of them ran small businesses.

Dress code, segregation

In September, the Taliban's education minister announced that gender segregation and Islamic dress code will be mandatory for universities.

All female students, teachers and staff must wear an Islamic abaya robe and niqab that covers the hair, body and most of the face, according to the regulations issued by the Education Ministry.

Afghan women have protested these restrictions multiple times, despite being assaulted with rifle butts, tear gas and metal clubs.

Edited by: Milan Gagnon

WOMEN ALLOWED TO SMOKE IN PUBLIC IN SAUDI ARABIA
Ivanka Trump praises Saudi Arabia for gender equality progress at Global Women’s Forum

Kingdom and four other countries lauded by speakers at Global Women’s Forum in Dubai

US president’s adviser Ivanka Trump and heads of World Bank and IMF among those 

attending gathering

BY CALINE MALEK · 16 February 2020 ARAB NEWS, SAUDI ARABIA

Ivanka Trump, advisor to US President Donald Trump, congratulated the Kingdom and four other countries in the MENA region for instituting significant reforms over the past two years. (AFP) 

WHERE IS HER HIJAB/NIQAB

Kingdom and four other countries lauded by speakers at Global Women’s Forum in Dubai
US president’s adviser Ivanka Trump and heads of World Bank and IMF among those attending gathering

DUBAI: Ivanka Trump has commended Saudi Arabia for its efforts in empowering women by changing laws to respect women’s freedom of movement and access to credit and financial services.

Speaking on the first day of the Global Women’s Forum, organized by the Dubai Women Establishment, in Dubai on Sunday, Trump, advisor to US President Donald Trump, congratulated the Kingdom and four other countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for instituting significant reforms over the past two years.

“Progress ultimately builds upon progress,” she said. “Bahrain has introduced legislation to prevent discrimination in the workplace; Jordan eliminated legal restrictions on women’s ability to work at night; Morocco expanded women’s land rights; and Tunisia introduced critical laws to combat domestic violence.

“We all need to applaud these achievements and advancements. And yet, we won’t grow complacent because there is still so much more work to be done.”

Trump said too many women continue to face obstacles to entering the workforce, starting their own businesses, reaching their full potential and charting their own future.

In the region, on average, women have only half the legal rights of men, yet their economic equality has the potential to add $600 billion to the global annual GDP by 2025.

“This number represents far more than an economic boom,” she said. “It represents millions of lives full of promise, mothers who can provide for their children, daughters who could be the first to graduate high school, and young women who could start businesses and become job creators. This is the future that we can and must achieve together.”

She lauded the courage to shatter the barriers of inequality and blaze a new path of opportunity that gives hope to millions.

White House economists have found that if nations address the five legal barriers, namely accessing institutions, building credit, owning and managing property, traveling freely and restrictions on women’s employment, women’s economic activity could increase the annual global GDP by around $7.7 trillion.

“Imagine the lives transformed, the cities that would be built, the new schools that would open their doors, the children that could be helped, if we could come together and make these reforms a part of our future,” Trump said.

“Every woman here today has an incredible story, from brave innovators to bold entrepreneurs that are bringing greater opportunity to their home countries. You are the women who are going to imagine new industries, discover new cures, create works of beauty and improve lives around the world.”

She asked nations in the region to come together to continue to work as a whole to break new ground, to institute changes, legally and culturally, that will give every woman a chance to determine her own destiny and bring greater peace and prosperity to this region and to the world.

And, although slow, progress is happening. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the gender gap dropped to 20 percent in 2018 compared to 27 percent in 1990.

“I’m convinced the tide is turning,” said Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF managing director.

“We are finally seeing women stepping up and men supporting that because gender equality is morally right but, beyond that, it’s great economics.”

She praised women entrepreneurs, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), that are now categorically proven to be better than men. “If we want the economy to prosper, we have to create space,” she said.

“Knowing that 40 countries are growing five percent or more, but the rest of the world is sluggish, we need the boost that women can provide.”

A world with 100 percent gender equality would add $172 trillion to global wealth, according to the most recent data. “We would be a much richer world,” Georgieva said.

“The time for women is turning in the Middle East. If we are to just bring the MENA to par with the more advanced economies, over the (coming) years, there would be $1 trillion more in output for everybody to share. So, we are talking about very significant improvements.”

Beyond economic impact, women create a more diverse workplace and boardrooms, while ultimately “making better decisions. We know that what women often bring more of is consensus orientation,” she said.

“When women are engaged, then we have more peace on the planet, it’s a proven fact. So, for the wellbeing of our societies, the advancement of women is a fabulous gift.”

Furthermore, the World Bank estimates that increasing female labor force participation in the region to the levels of men could boost regional GDP by 47 percent.

“Currently, $575 billion in regional income is lost because of gender-based discrimination in laws, social norms and practices that constrain women’s rights and opportunities,” said David Malpass, president of the World Bank Group.

“Fortunately, more countries recognize that their economies can only reach their full potential with full participation of both women and men. We are focusing on helping countries achieve good development outcomes.”

Malpass mentioned two key areas where the bank has been working hard, namely laws and regulation and broadening of access to finance. He said, historically, the region has had the lowest score in its “Women, Business and the Law” (WBL) report but, this year, it made the most progress.

“Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria and Bahrain made many reforms,” he said.

“The UAE, and Saudi Arabia in particular, made the most reforms. The UAE has pushed for legislative reforms, including equal pay and female representation in corporate boardrooms, while, in the Kingdom, laws were changed to protect women from employment discrimination and to prohibit employers from dismissing women during pregnancy and maternity leave. And there’s room for every country to improve.”

In the report, Saudi Arabia was ranked 70.6 out of 100 – a 38.8 jump since its last ranking – placing it first among GCC countries and second in the Arab world. “We have committed to double our corporate sourcing for women-owned firms by 2023,” Malpass said.

“We are helping unlock constraints faced by women. There’s still much to do and everyone can play a role.”


'Happy I can choose': New era sees Saudi women light up in public

Haitham EL-TABEI,
AFP•February 16, 2020



Some Saudi women are embracing cigarettes, shisha pipes or vaping as a symbol of emancipation (AFP Photo/FAYEZ NURELDINE)

Riyadh (AFP) - Rima settles in a chair at an upscale Riyadh cafe, looks around carefully and, seeing no one she recognises, drags on her electronic cigarette before exhaling a cloud of smoke.

"I feel that smoking in public is a part of exercising my newly won freedoms. I am happy that now I can choose," the 27-year-old Saudi who works for a private company in the capital told AFP.

Like Western feminists of the early 20th century, in an era of social change in Saudi Arabia some women are embracing cigarettes, shisha pipes or vaping as a symbol of emancipation.

The sight of women smoking in public has become much more common in recent months, an unthinkable prospect before the introduction of sweeping reforms in the ultra-conservative kingdom

The kingdom's ambitious de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has rolled out an array of economic and social innovations to project a moderate, business-friendly image.

Women are now allowed to drive, attend public sporting events and concerts, or obtain passports without the approval of a male guardian.

Rima, who started smoking two years ago, dismisses concerns about the harmful effects of tobacco, but is worried her family will find out.

She says she is prepared for a showdown.

"I won't tell them that this is about my personal liberty, because they won't understand that women are free to smoke like men," said Rima, dressed in a traditional black abaya with gold embroidery matching the hijab that covered her hair.

Najla, 26, who like Rima asked to use a pseudonym, said that despite the rapid social changes, double standards still existed, and that it was still considered a "scandal and disgrace" if women smoked.

The only woman lighting up amid several tables of male smokers, she said she intended to "challenge society" and ignore the occasional dirty looks.

"My rights will be fully respected when my family accepts me as a smoker," she said, recalling that a friend was sent to an addiction clinic when her parents found out about her smoking.

Najla started smoking while still a school student and, like her, up to 65 percent of female Saudi high schoolers light up secretly, according to a 2015 study by the medical faculty at King Abdulaziz University cited by Arab News.

- 'Everything is allowed' -

Despite the limitations, in a country where until just a few years ago religious police would chase and hit women for infractions like wearing nail polish or allowing a strand of hair to escape from their hijab, the changes have been head-spinning.

"Most of our women clients order shisha. It's something that was totally unimaginable just three months ago," a Lebanese waiter told AFP at an up-market cafe in north Riyadh.

Heba, a 36-year-old longtime smoker who sat at a table nearby, described growing up in a closed country where "everything was forbidden to women".

"I never imagined I would be able to smoke shisha in public next to men," she told AFP.

"Now, everything is allowed. Women venture out without hijab, without abaya and they even smoke publicly."

But even as the kingdom has introduced reforms, it has attracted condemnation for a heavy-handed crackdown on dissidents including intellectuals, clerics and female activists.

In 2018, authorities arrested at least a dozen women activists just before the historic lifting of the decades-long ban on female motorists.

Many of the detained have accused interrogators of sexual harassment and torture. Saudi authorities reject the accusations.

"There is no doubt that at the persona level there is more freedom," said Walid al-Hathloul, whose sister Loujain is on trial over allegations of having contacts with foreign media and diplomats.

"But the reforms in favour of women are part of a public relations campaign to improve the kingdom's human rights record," he told AFP.

"The arrest and demonisation of women activists is proof of this -- it's designed so that the reforms will not be credited to the activists."

Pierre Poilievre offers right-wing populism to the Conservatives.
Will they take him up on it? 

Althia Raj - National Columnist

• Canada
•  March 2, 2022
 

Canada’s Conservative party is changing. The question is whether it goes down a right-wing populist path — as Republicans south of the border have with Donald Trump — or whether it takes a centrist approach to appeal to a wider audience. In many ways, that question reveals the cracks in the nearly 20-year-old marriage of convenience between the Progressive Conservatives and the Canadian Alliance, one that risks ending up in a nasty divorce.

The only declared candidate, Carleton MP Pierre Poilievre, is a polarizing figure with a “take no prisoners” attitude. He recently called Europe’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shockingly “weak,” embraced the so-called “Freedom Convoy,” and called COVID-19 public health measures a purposeful attempt by governments “to try and take away our freedom and give themselves more power.”

In the past, Poilievre has attacked the media, made derogatory comments about Indigenous peoples, left the door open to a niqab ban in the public service, and broken the election law. Elected at age 25, the career MP is a forceful opposition critic who has railed against elites, placed the blame for rising inflation and house prices at the feet of the Liberals, and promised more energy projects. His campaign launch through a social media video on Feb. 5 garnered more than seven million views on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. At least 26 Conservative caucus members have endorsed him.

Those who haven’t hope for a more mature candidate with a unifying message.

That’s what former Quebec premier Jean Charest, Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown and political commentator Tasha Kheiriddin want to offer. All three are current outsiders, and all hail from the Progressive Conservative side of the party.

Charest started his political career in 1984 under prime minister Brian Mulroney. He will meet with Conservative MPs — most of whom know little about him — on Wednesday in Ottawa. On Monday, Quebec’s anti-corruption unit (UPAC) ended its eight-year probe into allegations the Quebec Liberal party engaged in illegal financing when Charest was at the helm. It’s a welcome gift that clears the way for his candidacy.

Not that it will be a walk in the park. Jenni Byrne, Poilievre’s strategist, laid out the attacks against Charest on Twitter, describing him as a “Liberal who campaigned against [prime minister] Stephen Harper,” “supported the long-gun registry, raised taxes, brought in a carbon tax & worked for Huawei while the Chinese Govt detained kidnapped Canadians.” Her offensive led to an ugly public dispute on Sunday with Charest organizer and Tory MP Alain Rayes.

Brown, a vocal opponent of Quebec’s Bill 21, was a Conservative MP from 2006 until 2015, when he became leader of the Ontario PCs. Before resigning over allegations of sexual misconduct, which he strenuously denies, he sought to expand the Ontario party’s tent by supporting carbon pricing and reaching out to ethnic communities.

Kheiriddin has never held elected office, but she is well known, bilingual, and has no baggage.

Their decisions about whether to enter the leadership contest depend on the rules of the game — which could be announced as early as Wednesday. Poilievre’s camp wants a June vote and a membership cut-off of mid-May, sources said, giving any opponents little time to organize. His challengers would benefit from a longer race, with more time to sell memberships to newcomers and more time to be heard by existing members.

Charest and Brown will likely need to change the current makeup of the party — around 200,000 members — if they are to succeed. The Tories pick leaders through a weighted ranked ballot, in which every riding with more than 100 members is worth 100 points. Unless Poilievre were to win a majority on the first round, a race that includes Charest, Brown and Kheiriddin could see any of them benefit from each other’s supporters.

Poilievre is already courting down-ballot support from social conservative favourite Leslyn Lewis, the Conservative MP for Haldimand—Norfolk. Independent York Centre MPP Roman Baber, a staunch opponent of COVID-19 restrictions, is also contemplating a run.

Back in 2017, Andrew Scheer was elected leader as the compromise candidate, supported by social conservatives, Quebec dairy farmers and members who didn’t trust Maxime Bernier. In 2020, Erin O’Toole was also the compromise candidate, acceptable to social conservatives, and less centrist than Peter MacKay. In 2022, Poilievre is modelling himself as that candidate. But it’s unclear that the parts of the party he’s already alienated — namely the Quebec branch and those uncomfortable with his courtship of People’s Party supporters — will be willing to unite behind him once this race is over.

In choosing a leader, the Conservatives must ask themselves what their winning formula will be —do they want to take votes from Bernier’s far-right party or from Justin Trudeau’s Liberals?

Althia Raj is an Ottawa-based national politics columnist for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @althiaraj

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March 1: ‘If Pierre Poilievre becomes Conservative leader, I will never vote for them.’ More candidates emerge, plus other letters to the editor

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Letters to the editor: March 1: ‘If Pierre Poilievre becomes Conservative leader, I will never vote...

In today’s letters to the editor: sanctions against Russia; vaccine mandates; the Emergencies Act; the Conservative leadership; nuclear energy