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"Egyptian Jeanne d’Arc, diary of a young woman who challenged patriarchy

26-11-2020

On November 13, Al Akhbar spotlighted an 85 minutes Egyptian documentary entitled “Egyptian Jeanne d’Arc” or “Jeanne d’Arc Masriya” (2016), directed by Iman Kamel. The film is a diary of a Bedouin girl named Jihan who resisted the oppressive patriarchal system to become a dancer. The filmmaker traces the whereabouts of Jihan by reaching out to Egyptian artists. She juxtaposes the documentary with mythic story elements, poetic narration and dance to convey stories of aspiration and resistance by Egyptian women since the outbreak of revolution in 2011. The film was premiered at the Dubai International Film Festival, and participated in the Eurasia International Film Festival, the Arab Film Festival in Rotterdam, Malmo Arab Film Festival, the Arab Film Festival Berlin and Afrika Film Festival in Cologne, Germany. It was nominated in 2013 for the German Arab Film Award. (Al Akhbar, November 13, 2010)

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Agriculture ministry integrates gender equality into planning

25-11-2020

The caretaker minister of agriculture, Abbas Mortada, announced the agriculture sector strategy for 2020-2025 in observance of gender equality through all its programs. This requires the integration of the notion of equality within the ministry’s structure. To this effect, four women liaison officers were appointed within the Ministry’s Directorate, the Directorate of Cooperatives, the Research Authority and the Green Plan, with the aim to coordinate with the National Commission for Lebanese Women (NCLW) and form an action coordination cell that provides support and contributes to drafting national and international reports. Mortada was speaking at a dialogue meeting on the rights of women and gender equality, as well as promoting gender equality in the strategy and programs of the ministry. He stressed the continuance of similar meetings in the agriculture and food sectors with the purpose of accommodating the activities, projects and budgets of the ministry with the needs of all beneficiaries of its services, men and women. Meetings, he maintained, shall continue with the employees in the Central Administration and various regional departments to the end of strengthening the capacities of state workers and training trainers on gender equality principles in rural and agricultural areas. (Al Diyar, November 25, 2020)

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Online discussion about young women and revolution

25-11-2020

Today, Wednesday 8:30 pm, Laban Theatre Collective will hold a digital session via Zoom entitled, “Young Women’s Post-Revolution struggle”. It includes testimonies from the Laban team, in addition to video clips of previous shows and an open discussion on the subject. Recalling, that the Association has, over the past 8 months, presented performances by men and women in North Lebanon after collecting their stories and repeating the scenes through videos they shared on social media. According to Laban, there is a common approach path between the stories and the performances, which encouraged expanding discussions about common issues to incorporate a wider audience. Theatre, as a tool for cohesion and social integration, is part of the local development program in the North, implemented by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), in partnership with the ministry of social affairs, with joint funding from the EU and Germany, Laban stated. (Al Akhbar, November 25, 2020)

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Controversy in Jordan over TV song demeaning domestic workers

19-11-2020

The Jordanian children’s channel, Karameesh, broadcasted recently a song “the servant”, sang by a young girl about the domestic worker who tries to escape from the house and constantly asking for money for her sick daughter. This video has sparked wide condemnation on social media, where many considered it as laden with abhorrent racism, disrespect and incitement against domestic workers. Following the angry backlash and a barrage of denunciations, the channel took the video clip down from its official accounts after claiming to have hit six million views. It also posted an apology explaining that the content looks at the treatment of “housemaids” by a specific segment of society and some of these workers actually escape from homes. The statement went on to say, that the clip sheds light on this particular issue, especially the behavior of these “servants” in their employers’ homes. “We removed the video immediately after we saw the angry reactions of viewers,” it concluded. However, the channel made a bigger mistake when it clarified its position on the use of the term “servant” in the video, which prompted even stronger criticism and fiery comments again. Over and above, the topic is neither appropriate for children, nor it is instructive, and does not point the finger at treating domestic workers with an attitude of superiority. (An Nahar, November 19, 2020)

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Police break up prostitution ring in Amchit

18-11-2020

Within the framework of combating human trafficking, the ISF General Directorate-Public Relations Division, announced in a statement yesterday the arrest of a prostitution ring in Amchit, North of the capital, Beirut. The statement said the arrest was based on information following 2 weeks of close surveillance and tracking of one of the largest prostitution networks in the country. A special force from the Judiciary Police Unit managed to detain on November 16, 2020, the mastermind of the ring named M.A (Syrian, born in 1977), the ISF statement went on to say. It was found that the procurer had 8 search and investigation warrants involving the crime of facilitating sex work and trafficking in persons. According to the statement, police raided two apartments located in the coastal towns of Tabarja and Bouar and arrested a group of girls of Syrian nationality. As a result of initial interrogation, one of the girls, M.A, helped in facilitating sex work, confiscating the IDs of the girls and forcing them into selling sexual services. The suspects were referred to the Anti-Trafficking and Morals Protection Bureau for further questioning by the competent judiciary. (Al Diyar, November 18, 2020)

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Female artists reimaging Middle East

17-11-2020

Mark Hachem Gallery is organizing a “Modern to Contemporary, Female Artists from the Middle East” show on Artsy website, presenting works for women artists from various countries in the region, namely, Helen Khal (1923-2009), Leila Nseir (1941) aside contemporary artists like Mona Trad Dabaji (1950), Zeina Assi (1974), Sara Shamma (1975) and Daisy Abi Jaber (1961). In a press release, Mark Hachem Gallery said art in the Middle East was initially a male-dominated industry, however, reality is transforming rapidly with a growing number of female artists entering it. Notorious as a zone for conflict, war and oppression, the Middle East is also renowned by its rich culture and traditions, which contributed to cultivating women’s talents seeking to influence the situation from within and highlight the injustices through so called activist and engaged art works. The statement also stressed the essential role of women through the provision of an alternative perspective to the once male-restricted industry. Female artists, it noted, have used this adversity as a challenge to be overcome by introducing a provocative and innovative art. They contribute to the evolving cultural scene in the region by utilizing diverse mediums, and tackling personal, as well as local and universal issues. The Gallery statement concluded, saying: “Creating art allows these women to speak and reflect on social issues.” The above exhibition, to remind, will run through November 28. (Al Akhbar, November 17, 2020)

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Women in Lebanon on the verge of economic collapse

16-11-2020

An Nahar reported Saturday on a paper published by UN Women entitled: “Women on the verge of an economic breakdown: Addressing the differential impacts of the economic crisis on women in Lebanon.” According to the study, a 25% contraction rate in real GDP from 2017 to 2020 is expected thus increasing women’s unemployment rate from 14.3% before the crisis to 26% in September 2020. This translates the 63% increase, from 81,200 to 132,500 in the number of unemployed women, equivalent to 51,300 unemployed women in June 2020 compared to 2018-2019. The study cited a conservative estimate of the female exit from the labor force, that is women who are no longer in the lookout for jobs, which anticipated the number to reach nearly 40,000 by October 2020, and noted that the number can be expected to drop by 22%. However, the overall effects of predicted job loss, in parallel to the rising economic inactivity experienced by some women, (those who exited the labor market), has risen by 106,750 jobs. Speaking to An Nahar daily, UN Women representative in Lebanon, Rachel Dore-Weeks, stressed that the impact of unemployment on women and families, has dire consequences on households, local communities and the country at large. (The complete study can be found on the following link: (https://bit.ly/3lAq5nL). (An Nahar, November 14, 2020)

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Mooneh thrives to become a source of livelihood for many households

13-11-2020

In its edition of today, Al Diyar spotlighted the traditional mooneh which recorded a powerful comeback amid the financial crisis in the country, especially with many Lebanese households becoming dependent on it for subsistence. After a fierce struggle against dominant consumption pattern, traditional mooneh today has become a popular hashtag on social media platforms with rapidly increasing accounts for families seeking to sell home-made items from various Lebanese regions, mainly from Akkar, the South and Bekaa. In this respect, Al Diyar cited the story of “Umm Elias” who created an account for marketing mooneh brands. It began in 2011 when Umm Elias and her family embarked on preparing mooneh and promoting them via social media sites which contributed to a significant increase in sales, as she boasted. Umm Elias revealed that the tradition of making mooneh is increasingly becoming profit-generating and a source of income for households. Work is divided equally among family members, and this includes planting, preparing mooneh foods and managing social media accounts, she explained. Al Diyar also highlighted the story of “Umm Samir” who used to prepared mooneh provisions for house consumption despite the objection from her children for that matter. But with the skyrocketing prices and the shortages of many merchandise, her children gave her a boost helping her out, and she started to sell online contributing to the household expenses. (Al Diyar, November 13, 2020)
 

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WLC urges women entrepreneurs to invest 

13-11-2020

The president of the Women’s Leaders Council of Lebanon (WLC), Madiha Reslan, disclosed in an interview published in Al Diyar today, that less than 5% of women are business owners. Most often women serve as the façade for their male partners to use the name rather than exercise efficiency and make impact, Reslan said, stressing that the WLC seeks to change that reality. Due to the continuing slump in Lebanon’s GDP, the presence of women has become a pressing need to promote investments, generate new jobs and strengthen the economy, especially that women are known to be creative workers, innovative and a peace makers. Furthermore, Reslan maintained, Lebanese women rally today around enterprises active in social affairs, a field where they largely excel and do well, thus contributing to the welfare of their communities. Speaking about the goals of the Council, WLC head said they involve enhancing the image of women in society and integrating them in economy, sustaining that today is the right time to start investing amid the deepening financial crisis. National currency has lost nearly 70% of its value, which requires women entrepreneurs and business owners to invest in the country since prices are now competitive compared to neighboring countries. With the government’s efforts to fine tune the lifestyle of its citizens amid the coronavirus pandemic, combined with the political stability, Lebanon can once again attract tourists. In conclusion, Reslan wondered who will compensate the private sector the losses incurred by the repeated lockdowns, when they can no longer afford to pay the salaries of employees. She hoped the sector can be exempted from specific taxes to continue.  (Al Diyar, November 13, 2020)
 

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UAE “normalizes” personal status legislation

11-11-2020

After normalization with Israel, the United Arab Emirates took steps to harmonize the normalization process internally by amending some personal laws and civil transactions. In details, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan announced on Saturday amendments to the personal status laws, civil transaction and penal and criminal procedure bills. These include notably the following: the abolition of the article that provides mitigating excuses for so-called honor killings, hence subjecting them to provisos related to murder crimes in the penal code; decriminalizing acts in the penal code that do not cause harm to others; allowing non-citizens to choose the laws that apply to them in relation to inheritance in the personal status law; scrapping penalties for the consumption, sales and possession of alcohol for those 21 and above, and allowing cohabitation of unmarried couples. The amendments also toughened penalties for sexual harassment and set the death penalty for “rape of a minor” crimes, while decriminalizing suicide and attempted suicide acts. The amendments, which come as part of efforts to develop the legislative and investment environment, promote tolerance, and build a safe social and economic environment, become effective immediately, the Emirates News Agency reported. (Al Diyar, November 8, 2020)

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