Beirut Designers’ Week with the participation of 70 women designers and a call for elimination of discriminatory laws against women

A group of pioneer women as well as women active in parliamentary, government, economic, cultural and social sector attended the inauguration of the second edition of the Beirut Designers’ Week organized last week by GATA Events & Promotions s.a.r.l in collaboration with the Ministry of Economy and Trade.  Some 70 women designers showcased their products and innovations which included fashion clothing, jewelry, furniture, vintage items as well as household crafts.  
In her keynote address, Lawyer Regina Kantara reminded the audience of the importance of international convention on rights which address women’s rights namely the international human rights convention, CEDAW and the Beijing Platform of Action.  She added that Lebanese women have proven that they possess leadership skills in many fields however, administrative, economic and political decision making remains in the hands of men especially given existing discriminatory laws.  Kantara called for concluding the process of ridding the Lebanese legal framework from all forms of discriminatory laws at the social and economic levels, namely by guaranteeing women’s rights to transmit their nationality and introducing a single civil family law, as well as adopting decentralization measures as stipulated in the Taef agreement.
Source: Al-Nahar, Al-Safir 13 May 2014