Introduction
The systematic violation of women’s rights is by no means an exclusive problem of the Arab Middle Eastern region and should not be rashly attributed to notions of culture or religion. Nevertheless, the extent to which Middle Eastern women are restricted in their life-choices, subjected to different forms of violence, and excluded from decision-making processes on all levels, is alarming.
Our Gender Democracy Programme aims to enhance the legal, political and social position of women, and improve opportunities for their participation in decision-making processes. Key focus areas of our work are issues of women’s empowerment and combating violence against women
Although some progress had been made in terms of the empowerment of women, the improvements have not altered the overall subordinate position of women in society and gender inequality remains entrenched in all aspects of life.
Violence against women has been identified as a major factor preventing women from defending and effectively exercising their human rights. Women have been systematically deprived of knowledge and skills that might better equip them to protect themselves against violence, such as knowledge of existing laws, religious texts, international human rights standards, and the demands voiced by the Arab women’s movement over the last decade. The women´s movement of the region has been exacerbated by the resurgence of conservative currents enforcing traditional attitudes that seek to limit women’s participation to their perceived ‘traditional’ roles. Discrimination is further reinforced within educational institutions, the media and the law, particularly the personal status laws.