Photo: The Guardian, Amr Nabil/AP
According to the Egypt Deputy Prime Minister, delivering the Egyptian country statement to the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York in March, the Egyptian woman’s “heroism inspires the world”! Certainly they have voted increasingly in post-revolutionary Egypt and the account stresses they are “full fledged citizens”.
This is not a view that is shared by all; recent protests opposing the new constitution drafted by current president Mohamed Morsi and increased gang related sexual violence would suggest that Egypt has taken a giant step backward. According to The Guardian report ‘Muslim Brotherhood backlash against the UN declaration on womens rights’ by Patrick Kingsley the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the most powerful political factions in Egypt, has also criticized the 2013 UN CSW draft Agreed Conclusions demanding global standards to prevent violence against women saying it would “contradict established principles of Islam, undermine Islamic ethics and destroy the family… [and] would lead to complete disintegration of society”.
Despite this we can share the official Egyptian view that the set up of a regional office for UN Women in Cairo is a positive step.
IAW Melbourne 