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Artistic exhibition aiming at revoking Article 522

24-4-2017

In the framework of civil society’s activities to eradicate Article 522 of the Penal Code which exempts a rapist from legal pursuits if he decided to marry his victim, Abaad organization held an artistic exhibition along the capital’s coastal walkway. Under the slogan, ‘a white dress does not cover rape’, some 31 wedding dresses proudly made of white lace and wrapping paper by Lebanese fashion designer Mirreille Honain hung between palm trees on the Corniche of Ain Mreisseh. To recall, the Parliament’s Administration and Justice Committee studying the amendment of the 1st Chapter of the 7th Section of the Penal Code which covers all crimes related to the violation of honor, has abolished Article 522 and submitted it to the Parliament for ratification. Honain told AFP that she designed the dresses in Paris where she lives and brought them to Lebanon. They are made out of white paper to highlight the transient nature of such marriages and of relevant laws in effect, she explained. “I hung up the dresses, because this type of law is demeaning to women,” she added. For her part, the campaign officer in Abaad, Alya Awada, stressed that during 31 days of every month and every single day, a woman could be raped and forced to marry her rapist. Abaad, Awada explained, is trying as much as possible to bring focus on the subject to tell the Parliament that the time is now to cancel Article 522. Likewise, the minister of state for women’s affairs, Jean Ogassapian, who had joined the activists, described the Article as coming from the “Stone Age”, and said that the draft law is among the items on the list of the upcoming agenda of the Parliament. (An Nahar, April 24, 2017)

Previous related news: 
Article condoning marriage of rapist to his victim abolished
Sub-committee abolish legal clause condoning the marriage of rapist to his victim
Sit-in near the Parliament to protest forced marriage of a raped woman to her rapist
Calls for full annulment of an unfair law article on VAW

 

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Promoting young women’s engagement in ICT

24-4-2017

On the annual Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) Day on April 4, the College of Sciences and Information Systems organized a seminar last Thursday at the MEA Conference Hall of Rafik Hariri University (RHU) campus in the town of Meshref south of Beirut. On the occasion, College dean, Mohamad Ibrahim Laddan, said that RHU is the only institution in Lebanon that has an academic membership in the International Communication Union (ITU) which organized the ICT day celebrated in April of each year in over 150 countries across the world. Ladon maintained that the prime objective of the said day is to create an environment that enables and inspires young Lebanese women to pursue their studies in the field of ICT. "This industry is developing very rapidly and controls every detail of our virtual daily life,” Laddan stated. A number of women students from the university and neighboring schools attended the event to learn about the experiences of pioneering women and their leadership role in the sector. (Al Mustaqbal, April 22, 2017.)

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LLWB and Torch cooperation to promote women’s integration in knowledge economy

21-4-2017

The Lebanese League for Women in Business (LLWB) and Torch Academy exchanged yesterday a memorandum of understanding to support the knowledge of economy in Lebanon. The purpose of the MoU is reportedly to strengthen cooperation between the two sides. According to Torch chair, former MP Ginwa Jaloul, the Academy will organize training programs that speed up and facilitate the integration of women in the IT economy of knowledge. For her part, LLWB president, Carmen Zgheib, considered the signing as an achievement in view of the Academy’s credibility and proficiency in training. (Al Mustaqbal, April 21, 2017)

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Judge of urgent matters unprecedentedly sides with the mother and her infant daughter

21-4-2017

In an unprecedented move, the Judge of Urgent Matters in Nabatiyeh, Ahmad Mizher, ruled yesterday in the case of Reemanda Sharifi allowing her to take custody of her infant Manisa and breastfeed her as she demanded this requiring the father to hand his daughter over to her mother under the penalty of a LBP 10 million for each day of delay in the implementation of the ruling. It should be noted, that the mother has filed the lawsuit the day before yesterday, but that the judge acted instantaneously realizing the high risk on the baby’s life. On the verdict, a human rights source told Al Modon electronic portal that the decision constituted a precedent in the Lebanese courts, where the judge of urgent matters has used the powers given him to lift the danger paused on a child’s life. To recall, in routine proceedings and hearings, the case would have dragged on, especially that the jurisdiction party in such matters is the Sharia Courts, the source stated. (Al Mustaqbal, An Nahar, April 21, 2017)

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Ogassapian pledges to improve conditions of women inmates

21-4-2017

The minister of state for women’s affairs, Jean Ogassapian, pressed yesterday the need for solidarity of all components of society to improve the situation inside women’s prisons in Lebanon and avert unwanted violence or poor lifestyle choices after the release of female convicts. During his visit to the Barbar Prison for Women in Verdun, Beirut, Ogassapian stressed to inmates his ministry’s sincere efforts to improve their social conditions starting from society which could have very well been unfair to them forcing them to end up in prison cells. He promised to upgrade the humanitarian and life standards inside detention centers with special focus on women’s needs and privacy matters. Ogassapian underlined the importance of educating women inmates during their imprisonment term through training and dialogue sessions that allow them to spell out the motives behind their unlawful acts. He promised that his ministry will step up awareness campaigns for women in the different Lebanese regions through rehabilitation courses that aim to normalize the notion of resorting to the law for resolving a dispute instead of choosing spontaneous reactionary acts, and inspire them to become morally and financially independent. This, Ogassapian noted, will strengthen a woman’s identity and self-esteem while helping her to face any attempts to abuse or humiliate her. In conclusion, the minister pledged to follow-up on the issue for the better. (Al Mustaqbal, April 21, 2017)

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Parliamentary committee passes amended personal status law for Druze community

20-4-2017

The Parliamentary Committee for Administration and Justice headed by MP Robert Ghanem approved yesterday the amendment of the personal status law of the Druze community in Lebanon. To recall, the request to modify the above legislation has been the culmination of efforts by several women Druze organizations in Mount Lebanon. These groups have lately met with the head of the Democratic Gathering Walid Jumblat, to this effect and to inform him on the provisions within the law which need modification, particularly those related to family relations. (news: http://bit.ly/2kc33o6).  The Parliamentary Committee clarified in a statement that it has endorsed the proposal as it is based on a thorough discussion of the draft and its explanatory statements, and after listening to the details from proponents, as well as, to the viewpoint of the Directorate General of Personal Status. (Al Mustaqbal, April 20, 2017)

 

Previous related news: 
Jumblat promises Druze women to support the reforms of the confessional family law

 


 

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Growing demand in Beirut for home-cooking delivery services

19-4-2017

In its edition on Monday, Al Hayat newspaper shed light on youth living independently of their parents and how they provide for their everyday meals. The newspaper spoke to a number of young people, like Nael for example, a university student who works at a bookstore and does not have the luxury or time to prepare his own food. Nael said that he depends mostly on fast food especially that the cost compared to house meals is insignificant contrary to what many people think, in terms of saving effort and time spent in cooking at home. Al Hayat pointed out that the restaurant business in the capital cannot boom if not supplemented by the service of delivery to houses or offices. Owners of bistros and restaurants, the newspaper wrote, have long realized the need to introduce food delivery services in order to cope with the fast paced lifestyle and the growing number of single people. This has prompted the development of services that meet the needs of clientele and consumers. Al Hayat also highlighted the emergence of eateries that cater traditional cuisine menus similar to meals prepared at home. The regular cost of one said meal starts from LBP 10 thousand (USD 6.5) to reach about LBP 30 thousand (USD 20), according to the newspaper. Moreover, some corporate employees rely on meals prepared by women at home and delivered in special boxes to their workplace. Such an option, Al Hayat explained, provides a genuine homemade snack that is often cheaper than eating out. In conclusion, Al Hayat wrote that preparation of meals secure an additional income for women who have no other source of livelihood, particularly that cooking at home does not require extra ingredients or skills. (Al Hayat, April 17, 2017)

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President Aoun pledges to protect rights of Ethiopian workers

19-4-2017

President Michel Aoun pledged to safeguard the rights of migrant workers from the Ethiopian nationality according to prevailing laws and has to this end instructed parties concerned to settle the status of illegal Ethiopian nationals who wish to stay or leave the country. Aoun’s statement came in response to a letter he received from the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, delivered to him through the Special Envoy of the Ethiopian Presidency, Mahmud Direr Ghadi, on conditions of Ethiopian nationals working in Lebanon without legal papers. In a related development, a delegation of representatives of the Ethiopian foreign and labor ministries led by Direr has visited the labor ministry and met with heads of involved departments in the presence of the Ethipian Ambassador to Lebanon. The two sides discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations and regulate the work of the Ethiopian labor force in the country, and disclosed that a special delegation from the African state will visit Lebanon soon to step up the signing of a memorandum of understanding on restricting illegal emigration. (Al Diyar, April 19, 2017)

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Debating forced child marriages: women’s right versus social considerations

18-4-2017

AL Hayat daily published a special feature on Thursday related to early marriage in Lebanon. The article highlighted a controversy which has sparked lately on the subject with Hizbullah’s public endorsement of early marriage and a counter campaign by Lebanese Forces which read ‘don’t pick it before it is ripe’. Besides, Al Hayat mentioned the draft law presented by MP Elie Kayrouz for the protection of children against early marriage and which set the age for marriage at 18 years in addition to related objections by feminist activists to Hizbullah’s call and its flagrant confiscation of the right of the woman to choose when to marry. Al Hayat wrote that recent demands for early marriage did not follow a slump or decline in the rate of early marriages. On the contrary, citing a report published in 1997 by Central Statistics Department on the living conditions of Lebanese households, Al Hayat has noted that the phenomenon has never retreated and is still largely common in specific rural areas. The report has shown that the marriage rate among women (aged between 15-19 years) reached 7.8% compared to 2.6% in the capital, Beirut, while pointing that describing the 7.8% rate as outspread is overstated. The newspaper went on in its analysis to say that the calls for early marriage coincide with multiple developments, according to a 2013 survey by the Immigration Policy Center. These include: delayed first marriages, expansion of celibacy among women, fighting illiteracy trends among young women aged 15 – 24 years (1.99% in 2007 according to Central Statistics figures), women representing nearly 55% of overall university students (Central Statistics, 2012), low fertility rates and ‘feminization of migration’ (close to 46% of total Lebanese emigrants). Al Hayat concluded by saying that chances are weak for the above proposed bill, suggesting a more feasible legislation requiring those who wish to marry, especially women under 18 years, to attend awareness sessions on birth control and reproductive health. (Al Hayat, April 13, 2017)

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Arab conference in Beirut to support women’s economic contribution

13-4-2017

The minister of state for women’s affairs, Jean Ogassapian, representing Prime Minister Saad Hariri, opened yesterday its 10th edition of the New Arab Women Entrepreneurs Forum (NAWF) at the Movenpick Hotel in Beirut. The event is aimed at promoting and supporting the contribution of women to the national economy as well as inspiring future generations of Arab women to actively engage in nation building. The forum which is organized by Al Hasnaa Magazine and Al-Iktissad Wal Aamal Group saw the participation of some 300 entrepreneurs, officials and representatives of multinational organization involved with women’s affairs. Ogassapian stressed on the occasion the importance of this convening in its appeal for the following: the revision of and elimination of texts in laws and regulations that are discriminatory against women; the amendment of the bigoted administrative practices as such to facilitate women’s access to economic resources, namely funds and bank credits equally with men, and the provision of technology and information through proper training and capacity building workshops that target women. For her part, the director general of the ministry of economy and trade, Alya Abbas, drew attention to the limited role of women in the public arena as a result of the dominant patriarchal culture and a political system that grants privileges based on gender, sectarianism and favoritism and other chauvinistic criteria at all levels. Abbas called for more serious and purpose-oriented work to ensure that all women know their rights and empower them to be bold enough to demand those rights, Abbas maintained. This, she added, requires an all-inclusive awareness education, involving both men and women, in addition to bringing the national policies and laws in compliance with international human rights commitments, which again necessitates the eradication of all discriminatory legislations against women. (Al Diyar, April 13, 2017)

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