Muslim women most affected by Quebec's secularism law, Court of Appeal hears
New
Age Islam News Bureau
09 November 2022
•
Young Muslim woman joins several progressives in the fight to turn Delaware a
deeper blue
•
Taliban crackdown on Afghan universities to curb women's protests
•
Muslim employers ensure Christian domestic workers attend weekend church
prayers
•
US woman detained by Saudi officials after saying she has been trapped there
since 2019
•
‘I Hope Our Threads of Hope Do Not Fray,’ Says the Kankor Highest-Scoring Girl
Student
•
Turkish actress BirceAkalay dedicates award to slain Iranian women
•
'Sisterhood' of Muslim women are uniting football and faith in London team
•
Top women golfers set for Aramco Series Challenge in Jeddah
•
World Cup has 3 women set to referee matches in Qatar
•
Statistics on Kuwaiti women married to Expats
•
GCF2022: Inclusion of women in cyber security workforce is the need of the hour
•
How a Turkish-induced water crisis is affecting female farmers in northeast
Syria
•
Saudis detain American woman seeking to leave with daughter
•
Golfer, Racer, Boss: Young Women Aiming High In The Middle East
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
--------
Muslim
women most affected by Quebec's secularism law, Court of Appeal hears
Steve
Rukavina
Nov
08, 2022
Protestors
against Bill 21 gathered on the steps of the Quebec Court of Appeal Monday as
the court challenge to Quebec's controversial secularism law got underway.
(Steve Rukavina/CBC)
-----------
As
the court challenge of Quebec's secularism law — commonly known as Bill 21 —
continues this week before the Quebec Court of Appeal, groups contesting the
law argued Tuesday Bill 21 overwhelmingly discriminates against Muslim women.
The
Quebec government and several civil liberties groups are presenting arguments
about a Superior Court decision last year, which upheld most — but not all —
provisions of the law.
Enacted
under the Coalition Avenir Québec government in June 2019, the secularism law
prohibits public school teachers, police officers, government lawyers, a host
of other civil servants and even some politicians from wearing religious
symbols at work.
The
province pre-emptively invoked the constitutional notwithstanding clause when
drafting the legislation, in order to protect it from potential court
challenges.
That
means lawyers arguing against Bill 21 are trying to present arguments about
provisions of the Constitution that generally cannot be overridden by the
notwithstanding clause, including the right to gender equality.
Only
Muslim women have lost jobs over Bill 21
PerriRavon,
the lawyer representing the English Montreal School Board, argued Tuesday that
Bill 21 was designed to target one group in particular: Muslim women who wear
the hijab.
"The
expert evidence in this case accepted by the trial judge establishes that Bill
21 is likely to increase the prejudice faced by Muslim women more than any
other group," Ravon told the panel of three judges.
Ravon
noted that in the EMSB, eight people have lost jobs or been denied employment
due to Bill 21. All were Muslim women.
At
the largest French-language school service centre in the province, the Centre
de services scolaire de Montréal, Ravon noted that the human resources director
was unable to provide an exact number of people who'd lost their job, other
than to say 100 per cent of cases dealt with the hijab.
Ravon
said she could find no examples of anyone in any organization across the
province losing their job due to Bill 21 other than Muslim women.
"Who's
losing their job because of Bill 21? What symbol is drawing negative attention?
The hijab, every time," Ravon said.
Ravon
said it was clear through statements from the CAQ government about gender
equality that Bill 21 was designed in large part to target the hijab and that
the original trial judge accepted this argument.
Julius
Grey, the lawyer representing the Quebec Community Groups Network and the
Canadian Human Rights Commission, agreed.
"The
centre of this law, the jewel in the crown for the government, is the
hijab," Grey told the court.
Grey
and Ravon, along with the lawyer for a prominent women's group, the Fédération
des Femmes du Québec, argued that Bill 21 should be struck down because it's
clear it discriminates based on gender and that the guarantee of gender
equality cannot be quashed by the notwithstanding clause.
Government
argues law doesn't discriminate based on gender
The
lawyer for the attorney-general of Quebec said its position is that the right
to gender equality is a "general guarantee" that is not necessarily
protected from being overridden by the notwithstanding clause.
Amélie
Pelletier-Desrosiers also noted that most teachers are women, and so it's not
necessarily discriminatory if Bill 21 affects women more than men in the
teaching profession. She argued that any rule or code of conduct involving
teachers will disproportionately affect women.
Christiane
Pelchat, the lawyer for another feminist group, Droits des femmes du Québec,
argued that rather than discriminating on the basis of gender, Bill 21 was in
fact a safeguard against such discrimination.
"The
state can't associate itself with a religion that suggests a woman cannot
appear in public without being covered in some way," Pelchat said.
Bill
21's impact on freedom of religion
Also
debated Wednesday was whether Bill 21 infringes on the constitutional guarantee
of freedom of religion.
Luc
Alarie, a lawyer for the secular group MouvementLaïque Québécois, argued that
Bill 21 protects freedom of religion.
Alarie
noted that parents have a constitutional right to educate their children about
religion according to their own beliefs and thus the state has an obligation to
maintain religious neutrality in schools.
Alarie
argued that the behaviour of teachers has an enormous influence on their
students and that religious symbols worn by teachers might communicated
"moral values" that would affect students and thus deprive parents of
their constitutional right to freedom of religion.
"The
state has an obligation to religious neutrality, regardless of the consequences
that might have," Alarie said.
Molly
Krishtalka, a lawyer for a group that opposes the bill, Coalition Inclusion
Québec, countered that individual actions of state employees do not necessarily
represent the views of the state.
"My
colleague thinks that a teacher, by wearing a cross, is demonstrating that the
entire state is adhering to the Catholic faith," Krishtalka said.
"It's
not every single action by a representative that is going to bind the state to
a religious view. The wearing of a religious symbol does not constitute the
endorsement by the state of that religion," she said.
The
arguments will continue until Thursday, with an additional day set aside next
week in case the panel of judges has additional questions.
Source:CBC
--------
Young
Muslim woman joins several progressives in the fight to turn Delaware a deeper
blue
Brooke
Anderson
08
November, 2022
Madinah
Wilson-Anton at a café in her home district in Newark, Delaware. [Brooke
Anderson/TNA]
-----------
Madinah
Wilson-Anton is one of several progressive in Delaware's state legislature who
has ousted establishment Democratic incumbents and is now working to push
through progressive policies.
As
the daughter of two African-American Muslim converts in Newark, Delaware, she
grew up in an international environment in a community with Muslim immigrants
from different parts of the world. At an early age, Israel and Palestine were
always part of the conversation.
Her
diverse upbringing led to her wanting to work for the United Nations. She
studied languages (Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and French), and then turned to
international relations. Her interest in policy eventually led her to turn to
local politics.
Her
language skills would prove useful when she ended up running for office and
doing grassroots campaigning.
"Language
is really helpful. When someone tries to meet you where you are, it means a lot
to people. It makes a difference with how you're able to start a relationship
with someone," she tells The New Arab.
After
completing her master's degree at University of Delaware, she worked for a
state legislator, John Viola. When he talked about retiring, she saw an opening
in 2020. And then when he changed his mind and decided to run again, she ended
up in a tight race against her former boss, eventually winning by just 43
votes.
"It
was definitely awkward," she says about running against her former boss.
But once she'd decided to run, she didn't think about turning back. Seeing the
process up close made her think about the movie The Wizard of Oz, when the
curtain is pulled back to show a regular man.
"If
it's a Republican or a Democrat, they're people just like you and me," she
says. "If it can be him, it can be me. It should be the person with energy
and drive."
"One
thing I try to remind people of is that it's bigger than our personal
relationships. It's a duty. Whoever's doing it should be doing it a hundred
percent," she says.
Wilson-Anton
entered that first race at the beginning of the pandemic. She describes her
strategy at the time as throwing everything at the wall in terms of phone
banking, holding virtual events and using social media to engage voters.
In
her latest primary in September in the solidly blue District 26, she won
against her Democratic opponent by a 30-point margin. She is on track to win on
8 November in the general election. And this last time around, she says her
former boss was helping her Democratic primary opponent.
She
says the main issue that stirred her to run for office was education inequity,
something she became familiar with as a legislative staffer. She has also seen
it as she goes through neighbourhoods at graduation time when the signs of
different school names line the streets, a result of school lottery programmes
that send students across town instead of to the local neighbourhood school.
She
sees Delaware as a microcosm of the country, noting that the north is very
Democratic, while the southern part is more rural with conservative values.
"Delaware
is pretty cool," she says. "What's really cool about the 26th
district is there's the microcosm in one. The neighbours are from all over.
There's the old and the new. It's where I grew up. I'm partial to it."
"We
have a lot of diversity. A lot of people are surprised at the options. We have
some great Middle Eastern restaurants. We have everything in this tiny
state," she says.
It's
unsurprising to hear Delaware touted, not just because Wilson-Anton is a
politician representing the state, but because it's often overlooked. It's a
state with stunning scenery on the east coast that many people pass through en
route from Washington DC to cities in the northeast, but where few stop to
visit.
In
fact, one can take commuter trains all the way down the coast from Boston to
Washington, DC. But the chain breaks in Delaware, where infrequent buses are
the state's only means of affordable public transportation.
Joe
Biden, who started his national political career as one of the youngest US
senators in US history at the age of 29, just one year older than Wilson-Anton
is now, has arguably put the state on the map more than anyone. As senator, he
was well known for his commutes between Delaware and Washington, DC. And as
president, he takes regulars trips to his home in Wilmington and to speak at
the university.
While
studying for her master's in public policy at the University of Delaware, she
joined the Biden Institute upon its establishment. There, she had brief
encounters with Biden, whom she describes as down to earth and approachable. In
one instance, she offered to make him coffee, but he insisted on doing it
himself.
She
says that as president he's more progressive than she expected, though she also
understands there are limits to what he can do given the make-up of the House
and Senate.
She
sees the country's turn toward right-wing extremism as well as progressivism as
a response to failed neoliberal policies, including her state's longtime role
as an international corporate tax haven.
"A
lot of neoliberals are not delivering to working class people," she says.
"If that's not working, people will go to the other side. People are
turning to fascism."
"A
lot of people look at both parties and don't see anything different," she
adds.
In
Delaware, she says people are lucky to have options. In this election cycle,
she is one of several progressives, all women, who has beaten a Democratic
incumbent and is expected to win in a solidly blue district. She says the
Working Families Party in Delaware has been instrumental in supporting
promising progressives in the state.
She
says she plans on staying in state politics because being part of a small state
assembly allows her to have a louder voice than she would in national politics.
Emgage-Action,
a Muslim American advocacy group, endorsed Wilson-Anton in her first primary
and has continued to do so with each race.
"We're
actually e very proud of our endorsement," Mohamed Gula, Emgage-Action
advocacy director tells TNA. The group typically gives candidates a survey to
fill out on their policies. Gula says she included policies in her responses
they hadn't thought to ask about.
"I
really love when they're grounded in their local communities," he says.
"I think her future will be that, especially if she continues working as
she has been. We'll be there every step of the way."
Source:
The New Arab
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/news/how-muslim-woman-turning-delaware-deeper-blue
--------
Taliban
crackdown on Afghan universities to curb women's protests
Nov
09 2022
In
the latest incident, the Taliban beat dozens of female students who staged a
rally on October 30 outside their university in the northeastern province of
Badakhshan.
----------
Kabul,
Nov 9 (IANS): Afghanistan's universities have become a hotbed of resistance to
the Taliban, with female students staging protests against the militant group's
sweeping restrictions on women.
In
response, the Taliban has cracked down on several university campuses across
the country, violently breaking up demonstrations and expelling students
accused of political activism, RFE/RL reported.
In
the latest incident, the Taliban beat dozens of female students who staged a
rally on October 30 outside their university in the northeastern province of
Badakhshan.
The
incident came after a group of women were barred from entering the campus
because of their appearance, RFE/RL reported.
Weeks
after seizing power in August 2021, the Taliban had imposed a new dress code
and gender segregation for women at universities and colleges across the
country.
The
Taliban's Education Ministry ordered that all female students, teachers, and
staff must wear an all-encompassing burqa or an Islamic abaya robe and niqab
that covers the hair, body, and most of the face.
Classes
must also be segregated by gender -- or at least divided by a curtain. Female
students must be taught only by other women.
The
order was condemned by activists, who said it would create fear and a culture
of discrimination against women and girls.
Source:DaijiWorld
https://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay?newsID=1018053
--------
Muslim
employers ensure Christian domestic workers attend weekend church prayers
09-11-2022
By
BinsalAbdulkader
DUBAI,
9th November, 2022 (WAM) -- An Ethiopian priest recalls that his first
surprising experience after joining a Dubai church, a decade ago, was receiving
phone calls from Muslim families employing Ethiopian female domestic workers.
“A
woman on the other line would ask the prayer time and location of the church,
saying she wants to drop her domestic worker at church for prayers. Being a
Muslim she is not familiar with it and asks, ‘can you please tell me when I can
I take her back after prayers?’” reminisces Father DerejeJimma, Administrator
of St.Michael and St.Arsema Church in Dubai.
Most
of those women employers are Emiratis and other Arab nationals such as
Egyptians, Lebanese, Syrians and Jordanians etc. and his church still receives
such calls, reveals the priest who is also the General Manager of the Ethiopian
Orthodox Tewahido Church in the Middle East.
Weekly
off, church prayer as a blessing
Of
an estimated 200,000 Ethiopians living in the UAE, around 50 percent are Christians,
he says. “Most of these Christians are single women, mostly domestic workers. A
weekly off and an opportunity to attend church prayers are a great blessing for
these women who have left their families back home,” says Father Jimma.
Of
course, he says, it is a known fact that the UAE leadership is keen about
progressive legislation for welfare of all employees in the country, especially
domestic workers who are entitled to get a weekly off. Beginning with Sheikh
Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the UAE’s founding father, all leaders have been
advocates of religious tolerance as well, the priest points out.
“However,
the real challenge is how effectively such legislations are implemented and
whether such ideals of tolerance and co-existence are ingrained into the
grassroot level – into the hearts and minds of the people,” he asserts.
The
phone calls from Muslim employers have convinced Father Jimma that the UAE has
been successful in tackling these challenges.
“If
you visit my church during the weekend and see Muslim employers and their
Christian domestic workers coming together in their car, you will also be
convinced. It is a beautiful scene you can witness at any church in the UAE.”
Churches
across Emirates
When
a Christian domestic worker gets a weekly off, she spends her morning for
church prayers and evening for personal and social interactions, which are
essential for one’s spiritual and personal or social life, the priest says.
“They are blessed to have such a privilege in the UAE.”
The
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church does not have own building in the UAE, but
it conducts prayers in other churches in all emirates, except in Ajman.
“Our
first church building will come up in Abu Dhabi in near future.” He says it is
the community’s dream to have own church buildings in all emirates.
Source:WAM
http://wam.ae/en/details/1395303099890
--------
US
woman detained by Saudi officials after saying she has been trapped there since
2019
9
Nov 2022
An
undated handout image released by the Morris family showing US citizen Carly
Morris in Saudi Arabia. Photograph: MORRIS FAMILY/AFP/Getty Images
-----------
A
34-year-old American woman has been detained in Saudi Arabia after she posted
on Twitter that she and her young daughter had been lured to the kingdom and
trapped there since 2019.
Carly
Morris told relatives three years ago that she was planning to travel to Saudi
Arabia for a brief period so that her eight-year-old daughter could meet her
paternal grandfather. However, Morris then became locked in a years-long
struggle to take her young daughter back out of the kingdom over the objections
of her Saudi ex-husband. Morris’s efforts to leave have been made more
difficult by Saudi Arabia’s strict male guardianship laws.
US
officials on Tuesday confirmed to the Associated Press the detention of Morris,
a native of California. Spokesman Ned Price said: “Our embassy in Riyadh is
very engaged on this case, and they’re following the situation very closely.”
Morris
was detained after being summoned to a public prosecutor’s office on Sunday in
connection with an allegation that she was “destabilising public order”,
according to an official document seen by the Guardian. The document states
that Morris is American and lists her occupation as “housewife”.
The
summons followed Morris’s publication of a lengthy statement on Twitter, in
which she warned other women and children against visiting the kingdom. In the
statement, she said she and her daughter had been held “against our will” in a
hotel under “extreme and dire circumstances”, where they faced “extended social
isolation” since 2019.
The
whereabouts of Morris’s daughter, who is also an American citizen, are unknown.
The
Saudi embassy in Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not
immediately respond to an email from the Associated Press seeking comment.
The
case marks the latest instance of a dissident or critic of the Saudi government
being detained or convicted for using social media. Human rights activists at
the Freedom Initiative, which has followed Morris’s story, said she was the
third American being held in detention in Saudi Arabia.
“Morris’
detention means that we’re now aware of three Americans behind bars in Saudi
Arabia, yet another sign that Saudi simply does not value the US as an ally,”
said Allison McManus, the Freedom Initiative’s research director. “Before we
hear any more reference to Saudi’s strategic partnership, we need to see an end
to the abuse of American citizens. We need to see an end to the abuse of women
and children whose only crime is their gender.”
In
another case, a 34-year-old mother named Salma al-Shehab, who was completing
her PhD at Leeds University but returned to her native Saudi Arabia for a short
vacation, was convicted and sentenced to decades in prison for following and
liking tweets by some Saudi dissidents while she was living in the UK.
In
her Twitter statement, Morris said: “We have spent the past three years under
these conditions and deprived of our basic human rights and our lives stolen
from us. For over three years I have attempted to seek help from every
government office and authority. My situation has downplayed, neglected, and
mishandled.”
In
her warning to others, she said: “You will be stripped of your dignity, honor,
and rights. You will be placed under dehumanizing circumstances. And anyone, at
any point, can do anything to you, and you will not receive the desperate help
that you need, and there will be no justice. In fact, you will be blamed and
criminalized in return.”
Morris’s
case began receiving attention in August, when her situation became known to
some human rights defenders who spoke to the media.
In
an interview with the Guardian, Morris’s mother, Denise White, said Morris had
decided to take a short vacation to Saudi Arabia so that her daughter could
spend time with her father’s family. Morris is divorced from her daughter’s
father, who is Saudi. The former couple met while he was living in the US,
White said.
White
said she had expressed concerns to her daughter at the time about her travel
plans. “She kept saying ‘we’ll be back before you know it,’” White said.
Morris
later told her mother that her passport and her daughter’s passport had been
taken by her ex-husband after she arrived. More recently, Morris told her
mother that she had been banned from traveling and that she was “scared
something is going to happen”.
“She
did tell me she felt like she was trapped there,” White said. “She met with the
US embassy and Saudi officials, there was some kind of meeting, and during that
meeting she said she felt there was no solution.”
White
said she last spoke to her daughter a few days ago, but then got a notification
from a human rights defender that Morris was being held.
White
said Morris recently called Morris’s husband on his mobile phone to tell him
she had been arrested but did not know what the charges were. She was calling
from prison, she said.
Another
American, Saad Ibrahim Almadi, 72, who was returning to his native Saudi for a
vacation, was arrested in November 2021 and recently sentenced to 16 years in
prison for tweeting critically about the regime.
Source:TheGuardian
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/09/american-us-woman-carly-morris-detained-saudi-arabia
--------
‘I
Hope Our Threads of Hope Do Not Fray,’ Says the Kankor Highest-Scoring Girl
Student
By
SaqalainEqbal
November 8, 2022
Girls,
who have been the subject of the Taliban’s draconian restrictions, are not at
the top of the highest-scoring students in contrast to prior years, on the
Kankor university entrance exam, which sparked reactions on social media.
Concerns
have also been expressed on social media about the 38% decline in the number of
applicants for university admission exams since the Taliban took power.
ElhamNabizada,
a girl student from the Mawlana Abdullah Hatefi high school in Herat province
in northwestern Afghanistan scored 348 points in the Kankor exam, making her
the highest-scoring girl in Kankor 2022.
In
an interview with Khaama Press on Monday, November 7, Elham said that the girls
did not score particularly well on this year’s entrance exam: “I have a very
bad feeling.”
Nabizada
said that although she had taken the exam the year before and received a 302,
making her eligible to study computer science, she had declined to do so due to
the reasons she hesitated to mention in the interview.
By
retaking the exam this year, she passed with a score of 348 and is accepted to
a medical university. Nabizada is delighted that she can pursue the field of
her choice.
ElhamNabizada,
the doctor-to-be, expressed optimism and voiced hope that the current situation
in the country, with all the restrictions and measures, does not make their way
to success impossible and create obstacles for them.
“I
hope our threads of hope do not fray,” Nabizada said.
Unlike
prior years, when girls topped the exam, this year, girls did not make it to
the top 10 list, according to the results of the Kankor released on Saturday,
November 5 by the National Examination Authority of the Taliban.
On
the other hand, the Taliban has forbade girls from choosing some academic
fields of study, including veterinary, medicine, agriculture, and many others.
Human
rights organizations assert that Afghanistan has become the worst possible
environment for women after over a year of Taliban rule.
These
concerns have sparked discussions on social media, and some people have claimed
that the Taliban impeded the girls from succeeding despite the possibility that
they were able to place among the frontrunners for the entrance exam despite
the challenges.
Source:
Khaama Press
--------
Turkish actress BirceAkalay dedicates award to slain Iranian women
November
08, 2022
LONDON:
Turkish actress BirceAkalay has dedicated an award won at the Distinctive
International Arab Festivals Awards to the women killed during recent
government crackdowns in Iran.
Akalay
won the International Actress of the Year Award at DIAFA 2022 in Dubai last
week.
Wearing
a stunning off-the-shoulder navy gown with a ruched bodice and pleated skirt,
Akalay expressed her dismay at events in Iran. She said: “Women are being
killed only for what they wear,” Iran International reported.
Anti-government
demonstrations in Iran erupted in September after the death of Kurdish woman
MahsaAmini, who had been detained by morality police for allegedly flouting the
Islamic Republic’s strict dress codes.
One
of the biggest challenges to Iran’s clerical leaders since the 1979 Islamic
Revolution, the nationwide demonstrations have continued for eight weeks
despite a tough security crackdown and severe warnings from security forces.
People
from all walks of life have taken part in the protest movement, with students
and women playing a prominent role, waving and burning headscarves.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2196021/lifestyle
--------
'Sisterhood'
of Muslim women are uniting football and faith in London team
NOV
08 2022
On
a soccer pitch in a central London park, Sisterhood Football Club - a Muslim
women's team – ismaking a substitution. "Your hijab, tuck it in. It can't
get in the way," a teammate calls out as thereplacement player runs on.
Despite
the warmth of the afternoon, all of Sisterhood's players are clothed from head
to foot in theFounded in 2018, Sisterhood has doubled in size to almost 100
players, allowing its members to enjoyplaying football without anyone querying
their Muslim dress code or asking why they refrain fromsocialising in a pub
after their games.
"It's
a football club for Muslim women to come and feel free and relaxed and be able
to play in theirattire," Kamara Davis, 30, said.
She
converted to Islam at age 17 and felt that she would never play soccer again
because it seemedincompatible with the religion's traditional dress. But when
she heard about Sisterhood, she jumpedat the chance to join.
"Honestly,
it just feels so good, it's like a release. It feels really nice when I am able
to shoot the ballwith power," Kamara said.
The
club also offers a chance to Muslim women to enjoy a break from traditional
roles that many sayare expected of them.
Fatima
Ali, 26, said some families struggled at first to understand why their young
women memberswanted to play sport. "I think a lot of people have approved
of it," she said. "But it is still going to taketime, it's not just a
one-step process."
"Even
your brothers might be like what's the point of you going all the way from west
London to southCollege whilst a student.
"They
could not believe that they were seeing a girl that wears a hijab and saying
that she playsfootball," Abdullahi, a 30 year-old professional fashion
model, said.
So
she set up the club as a way to reconcile the interest in playing sport among
many Muslim womenand their adherence to their faith. To underscore the point,
Sisterhood's club badge features theimage of a hijab, which was barred by
soccer's world governing body FIFA on safety grounds in 2007.
The
ban was only relaxed in 2012, with the hijab fully permitted in 2014.
Like
many of Sisterhood's players, Abdullahi is excited about the upcoming World Cup
in Qatar. "Whatcomes with the World Cup is such a beautiful experience,
watching matches with your family and yourfriends."
But
like other club members, Abdullahi drew the contrast between the funding for
the England men'steam compared with the national women's team which won the
Women's European Championshipthis year for the first time.
"If
they'd had equal investment and equal opportunity, where would the women
be?," she asked.
Unsupportive
school
Sisterhood
runs a weekly training session and its first team competes in the Ladies Super
Liga for 5-and 7-a-side teams.
Sara
Taleghani said she struggled to reconcile her faith and her hopes of playing
sports when she wasat school in Ireland.
"I
constantly had coaches trying to compromise my religion," Taleghani, who
works as a social mediamanager for a public relations agency, said.
Teachers
used to say that her head scarf posed a hazard and they insisted that she wore
shorts. "Ithink that's the reason I stopped playing sports at
school," Taleghani said.
For
FaezehDeriss, 23, who recently completed a degree in child psychology, being
able to wear whatshe wants while playing is vital.
"I've
been to a couple of other football places but there weren't any girls who
looked like me," sheThere was no such conflict at Sisterhood. "I feel
confident saying to the team that I am just going to goand pray. It's not an
issue," Deriss said.
Taleghani
said she was encouraged to see other Muslim women's football teams but she had
a senseof regret that some players of her generation will never fulfil their
potential, given how recently theywere given the chance to play.
"If
there had been spaces like this when we were growing up, I know a few girls who
would have madeit as pros," she said. For Abdullahi, Sisterhood's founder,
the most important achievement of the clubis the sense of togetherness among
its members many of whom have become friends.
"I
think the thing that honestly brings tears to my eyes is the fact that we've
actually built our littlecommunity," Abdullahi said. "The name
Sisterhood FC, it's not by accident like we have literally built
asisterhood."
Source:
DeccanHerald
--------
Top
women golfers set for Aramco Series Challenge in Jeddah
SALEH
FAREED
November
08, 2022
JEDDAH:
A world-class field of 108 women golfers from 26 countries will contest this
weekend’s Aramco Team Series in Jeddah.
Previous
winners are back, including Charley Hull, Georgia Hall, Olivia Cowan and
reigning individual champion PiaBabnik.
They
will be joined by this year’s Aramco Team Series London individual winner,
Bronte Law, and 2021 Aramco Team Series Sotogrande individual winner, Alison
Lee.
Solheim
Cup Captain Suzann Pettersen is also among the names, as are Moroccans
MahaHaddioui and Lina Belmati.
The
event will include an individual 54-hole stroke play tournament and a 36-hole
team contest. Each has a prize pool of $500,000 (SR1.9 million).
Speaking
in Jeddah on Tuesday, Georgia Hall, the English winner of the Aramco Saudi
Ladies International held in the city in March, said: “I am very excited to be
back to one of my favorite golf courses and looking forward to another
challenge.”
Meanwhile,
German golfer Cowan said she was looking forward to replicating her recent
success as winner of this year’s Hero Women’s Indian Open
“I
don’t think I am under any pressure after my win In India. I had a good weekend
there and came up on the top,” she said. “What I want to do this weekend here
in Jeddah is just enjoy playing and see what happens.”
Both
Hall and Cowan said that Saudi Arabia was doing great things promoting golf in
the region.
Haddioui,
the first Arab woman with playing privileges on the Ladies European Tour, said
she was looking forward to her fifth consecutive year in Jeddah.
“To
be part of the Aramco Series Challenge is incredible. I’m always happy to play
in Saudi Arabia and hope to make a good result this weekend,” she said, adding
other players were looking forward to competing in the Kingdom.
Her
fellow countrywoman Lina Belmati, who is returning to Jeddah for the second
year in a row, said that she was ready for an exciting weekend.
“This
is my second year and it has been a great experience to play among the best in
Europe,” she said. “Hopefully I and MahaHaddioui, the only Arab golfers to
play, will make a good impression and make our Arab world proud.
“I
am very happy with the development of golf in the Arab countries. I hope for a
better future and for Arabs to participate in golf. I thank the Aramco Team
Championship Series for giving us this opportunity and providing the best
possible organization for the championship.”
The
Aramco Team Series is a new concept and the first team event series on any
professional tour, where the world’s best compete in concurrent team and
individual contests. This year’s event takes place between Nov. 9 and Nov. 11
at the Royal Green Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City,
Jeddah.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2196011/sport
--------
World
Cup has 3 women set to referee matches in Qatar
November
08, 2022
TOKYO:
Japanese referee Yoshimi Yamashita knows that being one of three women picked
to officiate matches at the World Cup — the first time a woman will be in charge
on the game’s biggest stage — is not simply about soccer.
Stephanie
Frappart of France and SalimaMukansanga of Rwanda must be of the same mind.
They are in a pool of 36 referees listed for Qatar — the rest are all men. FIFA
has also named three female assistant referees in a pool of 69: Neuza Back of
Brazil, Karen Diaz Medina of Mexico and Kathryn Nesbitt of the US.
Yamashita
is aware that her selection put the focus on Japan’s low ranking on most
measures of equal pay for women, and in global studies of gender equality.
“I
would be very happy if women could play an active role in sports in this way,
and if sports and especially soccer could lead this,” Yamashita said in an
interview with The Associated Press. “In Japan, there is still a long way to go
in the world of soccer (regarding participation of women), so it would be great
if this could connect to the promotion of female participation in different
ways, not only in soccer or in sports.”
All
three have worked men’s matches, and their World Cup debut comes in a Middle
Eastern country where the role of women is closely prescribed.
Frappart
is the best known and has already worked men’s games in World Cup qualifying,
and the Champions League. She also handled the 2019 Women’s World Cup final,
and refereed this year’s men’s French Cup final.
Yamashita
has worked games in Japan’s men’s league, and has also been in charge of the
Asian equivalent of the men’s Champions League. She was also a referee at last
year’s Tokyo Olympics.
Earlier
this year, Mukansanga became the first woman to referee an Africa Cup of
Nations match, leading an all-female officiating team.
“As
always, the criteria we have used is ‘quality first’ and the selected match
officials represent the highest level of refereeing worldwide,” said FIFA
referees committee chairman PierluigiCollina, who worked the 2002 World Cup
final. “In this way, we clearly emphasize that it is quality that counts for us
and not gender.
“I
would hope that in the future the selection of elite women’s match officials
for important men’s competitions will be perceived as something normal and no
longer as sensational.”
Yamashita
said the difference in the men’s and women’s game was, of course, speed. But
not simply that some men might run faster.
“It’s
the speed, but not just the players’ speed,” she told the AP. “Not the ball
speed. It’s just the game speed. It means for me I have to make quicker
decisions — more speed.”
Then
there’s the stress, the largest stage, and the attention she is certain to
generate at the World Cup.
“Of
course, I think the pressure is huge,” she said, “and I think I have a lot of responsibility.
But I am really happy to take this duty and pressure, so I try to take it
positively and I try to be happy.”
Though
it’s likely that all three will be in charge of games, it’s not a given. They
could also be used as “fourth referees” on the sideline. However, they cannot
be used as assistants.
Like
many referees, Yamashita said her job was to stay out of the way and let the
game shine.
“One
of the big goals as a referee is to bring out the the attractiveness of
soccer,” she said. “I do my best for that, and I will do what I should at that
time toward that end. So if I need to communicate with the players, I will do
that. If I need to show a card, I will show a card. Rather than control, I’m
thinking about what to do toward the big goal of bringing out the appeal of
soccer.”
Yamashita
conducted most of the interview with the AP in Japanese, but said she would use
English and “facial gestures, body gestures” when communicating with players in
Qatar.
“Usually
when I give a card, I say nothing,” she said, shifting to English. “But when I
give a warning, I just tell them I’m not happy. They understand.”
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2196106/sport
--------
Statistics
on Kuwaiti women married to Expats
November
09, 2022
KUWAIT
CITY, Nov 8: At a time when the issue of naturalization is being widely
discussed in the country, particularly for the categories of non-Kuwaiti wives
and children of Kuwaiti women married to foreigners, official statistics
revealed that the total number of children of Kuwaiti women married to
non-Kuwaiti men is 15,100 as of the end of June 2022.
According
to statistics from the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI), there are
19,429 Kuwaiti women married to non-Kuwaitis. This includes 17,429 Kuwaiti
women married to Western nationals, 688 Kuwaiti women married to Asian
nationals, 379 Kuwaiti women married to North American nationals, 246 Kuwaiti
women married to European nationals, 57 married to South American nationals, 49
married to African nationals, and 39 married to Australian nationals.
The
statistics revealed that the number of Kuwaiti women who are married to
non-Kuwaiti men and do not have children is 4,329.
There
are 2,552 Kuwaiti women with one child, 2,571 with two children and 2,519 with
three children.
About
2,282 Kuwaiti women who are married to non-Kuwaiti men have four children,
about 1,915 have five children, 1,249 have six children, 894 have seven
children, 527 have eight children, 324 have nine children, and 267 have more
than nine children.
The
total number of Kuwaiti women married to non-Kuwaiti men reached 20,128 as of
mid-2021. By NajehBilal , Al-Seyassah& Arab Times Staff
Source:
Arab TimesOnline
https://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/statistics-on-kuwaiti-women-married-to-expats/
--------
GCF2022:
Inclusion of women in cybersecurity workforce is the need of the hour
DANA
ALOMAR
November
09, 2022
RIYADH:
Around 94 percent of women in the Middle East would be interested in studying
cybersecurity, but a small percentage of women worldwide are active in that
field, according to a global report by the Global Cybersecurity Forum.
Women
make up only 25 percent of the global cybersecurity workforce, according to the
report.
There
has been a surge in cyberattacks in the Middle East and North African region in
recent years, with many companies suffering larger losses than in other parts
of the world. The problem is compounded by the fact that 57 percent of
organizations report unfilled cybersecurity positions.
A
weak line of defense increases a company's vulnerability to major damage, the
report added.
Speaking
to Arab News, Laila bin Hareb Al-Mheiri, founder and president of Alive Group,
Alive Medical, Alive Labs, and Alive consulting and education, said that 90
percent of successful cyberattacks are a result of human error.
“That
means someone fell for a phishing attack without knowing they were scammed or
became a victim of a social engineering scheme,” Al-Mheiri added.
She
said that women have a high level of emotional intelligence, and they have a
unique perspective on problems and cybersecurity benefits from this extra
flair.
Increasing
the number of women in cybersecurity is a smart way to enhance the field’s
capabilities and numbers. However, why hasn’t this been done? Science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines, including cybersecurity,
have long been perceived as a stumbling block for women.
Historically,
cybersecurity has attracted males who specialize in threat response, offensive
tactics, and white-hat hacking. Yet the question that remains is: to what
extent are women included in the cybersecurity sector in the Middle East?
Women
to the fore
Speaking
to Arab News, Mary O’Brien, the International Business Machines Corp. general
manager, said that throughout her journey, she was met with opportunity,
respect, and inclusion. However, as a woman, she said, “I am very aware of the
lack of women around the table and the lack of diverse thought that comes with
that.”
Al-Mheiri
also added that there is a misconception that women aren’t qualified to succeed
in a male-dominated society.
“I’ve
received praise and support from my male counterparts in Saudi Arabia and the
UAE. It’s been nothing but positivity for me,” she said.
Role
models and allies are critical to creating change, O’Brien said. The report
stated that over 70 percent of respondents said a role model encouraged them to
learn more about the industry and pursue a degree in cybersecurity.
Many
women feel more confident about pushing forward when they see another woman
moving through the ranks, she added.
Ultimately,
O’Brien suggested engaging young females in STEM early on and helping break
some of the stigmas that limit their progress.
The
GCF’s global report found that 88 percent of women in the region are aware of
cybersecurity programs at their institutions, making the region a leader in
cybersecurity awareness.
Speaking
to Arab News, Alaa Al-Faadhel, GCF’s head of initiatives and partnerships,
said: “In Saudi Arabia, a high number of the cybersecurity sector is female
with the government placing significant emphasis on education and training in
the field.”
She
also said that in the MENA region, interest in cybersecurity is high among
women.
Al-Faadhel
added that the report showed that 91 percent of women in this part of the world
are the most likely to take part in cybersecurity programs relative to the rest
of the world.
The
importance of teaching cybersecurity to women early in their education was also
stressed by Al-Mheiri.
“Women
need to know that they don’t always have to rely on their brothers or fathers
for technical answers – they have more than what it takes to do it,” she added.
Women
can become confident and lead successful careers in cybersecurity by empowering
and instilling confidence at an early age before stereotypes form, O’Brien
said.
Support
from males
“Women
supporting women is critical, but we also need the people currently sitting at
the table to help,” O’Brien explained, stressing that male intervention is
necessary at all times. Having male allies can be a true accelerator for women,
she said.
O’Brien
added that she had personally seen the benefits of strong male allies in
helping women advance to leadership positions.
In
a balanced gender discussion, she said people see a broader range of ideas and
solutions.
“That’s
an ongoing consideration for me whenever I arrange meetings or events,” O’Brien
added.
As
far as gender diversity in the cybersecurity industry is concerned, some
progress has been made, but more can be done by companies and organizations,
she said.
Al-Mheiri
pointed out that the current global cybersecurity workforce is not a true
representation of the talent that exists in the market.
“That
said, we’ve come a long way, and we still have quite a way to go in ensuring
equity of opportunity,” Al-Mheiri added.
Organizations
must assume unconscious bias when it comes to recruitment and retention. In
addition, they should set up and track metrics that reflect diversity in their
hiring and promotion processes, O’Brien said.
According
to Al-Mheiri, more than 70 percent of Alive Group’s employees are women, and
many continue to excel outside the workplace, both personally and
professionally.
“We
found that success across various spheres of life can be achieved when systemic
and historical biases are set aside,” Al-Mheiri added.
In
addition, Al-Mheiri reported that the system is changing and she has seen
progress toward involving women in decision-making.
“Several
role models have risen in the field and left footprints in the sand for others
to follow. The time has come to educate, mentor, encourage, empower, network,
and provide agency to those women who aspire to enter the field,” she added.
Al-Faadhel
said that the report proves women are ready to close the cybersecurity skill
gap.
“To
encourage women to choose cybersecurity as a profession, they need greater
support during school, higher education and through their careers. To ensure
retention, it is important to implement policies that cater to women, such as
family-friendly workplace measures, mentoring, networking, and development
opportunities,” Faadhel concluded.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2196301/business-economy
--------
How
a Turkish-induced water crisis is affecting female farmers in northeast Syria
Yiyao
Yang
08
November, 2022
As
we drive from Qamishli to the border, an endless expanse of arid land plays out
on both sides of the road. The view from our car window does not change for a
long, long time. Some scattered sunflower patches provide a brief distraction.
Northeast
Syria and its people continue to face multifaceted socio-economic difficulties.
Extreme weather and water shortages have only exacerbated the ongoing
humanitarian crisis in this war-torn land.
The
loss of jobs in the agriculture sector has heavily impacted the livelihood of
women across the region, especially in rural areas, and has led many families
to leave their homes in search of jobs in large cities.
Near
the border with Turkey, Iman Ahmed, 17, covers herself from head to toe to
“protect herself from the heat”. She is working in the eggplant fields together
with dozens of other women near Qamishli, a large industrial city on the
Turkish-Syrian border, primarily populated by Kurds but also with large numbers
of Arabs and Assyrians. She says she often suffers from nosebleeds, “as it is
too hot.”
While
we are talking, the women in the field are carrying heavy loads of harvested
eggplants to the nearby stockpiles. The scorching sun only makes the work more
difficult. “We have been here since 5 am,” Ahmed said, “we work until mid-day,
we rest a little bit and come back to the fields.”
But
the long day does not end even after getting back home. “I do the chores of
cleaning, washing, and taking care of my brothers,” she said, “I have eight
sisters and three brothers.”
As
we leave, these women return to the fields, their breathing measured and heavy
in the 40-degree heat. Behind them are the mountain ridges on the other side of
the border. Black smoke rises from the oil refineries near the local village in
Qamishli.
The
other day it was nearly 40 degree Celsius at the Washokani refugee camp in the
governorate of Al-Hasakah. The unusually hot weather was noted by the General
Directorate of Meteorology of Syria which reported that the temperature
sometimes exceeded 50 degrees Celsius.
We
finished speaking with the camp manager in the AC-equipped office of this large
camp which hosts nearly 14,000 internally-displaced people in northeast Syria.
The
Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), called Rojava by
Kurdish, is a region de facto of Kurdish control which borders Turkey to the
north, Iraq to the southeast and Iraqi Kurdistan to the northeast.
It
was the hottest hour on an August summer day. Many women and children in the
camp were carrying plastic containers to draw water from red-coloured water
tanks. A woman told us that she had to draw water five to ten times per day,
adding that “it is not clean for drinking, it is only for cleaning and washing.
”
At
one of the settlement tents we visited, the fan that was supposed to provide
relief from the heat only succeeded in blowing hot air directly into our faces.
Managing the extreme heat remains a key problem for residents in the camp, with
access to fans severely limited.
Challenges
are currently being faced both inside and outside the camp. An urgent issue is
the current water storage stemming not only from interruption to water state
operations but also from the low rainfall during the wet season which was
observed by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
Water
levels in the Euphrates, the single largest source of freshwater in Syria and
an important power source, began to decrease rapidly in early 2021. This was
accompanied by a severe decline in access to clean water and electricity as
well as a significant knock-on effect on agriculture which was noted by REACH.
An initiative of the Geneva-based association IMPACT.
Agricultural
instability
Located
in the geographical area known as the Fertile Crescent and lying mostly between
the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, NES produces several core products such as
cotton and wheat whilst also being rich in crude oil. “After Islamic States
(IS) was defeated [in 2019], the region experienced an economic boom”, said
Alan Mohmed, an agricultural engineer. He added that “the biggest challenge for
agriculture is the Turkish threat. People in Rojava don’t need help, but they
need stability.”
According
to the Rojava Information Centre (RIC), a media outlet based in NES with ties
to the self-administration, Turkey escalated its shelling and drone attacks
against the region immediately following the Tehran tripartite meeting in July
in which Iran and Russia refused to greenlightErdoğan’s calls for a new
invasion of NES. So far, Turkish attacks have caused 75 civilian casualties,
with at least seven children being killed and 27 injured.
The
US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – a defence force formed
during the Syrian civil war and primarily formed of Kurdish, Arab, and other
ethnic groups – has increasingly become the target of Turkish drone attacks.
Turkey,
a NATO member on relatively good terms with Russia, sees the YPG as an
extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) – a militant political
organisation and armed guerrilla movement, mainly based in the mountainous
Kurdish-majority regions of southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq.
Due
to nearly 40-year military campaigns in Turkey, the PKK has been designated a
terrorist organisation by the US, Turkey and the EU. Erdoğan has long stated
his aim to create a 32-kilometre-deep “safe zone” in NES in response to
perceived threats from YPG and to “relocate a million Syrian refugees to the
zone from Turkey”. In the meantime Russia, still wanting to keep a foot in the
Syrian door, maintains its relationship with Turkey.
“This
year, I think Turkey will continue a lot of drone attacks,” said DastanJasim, a
doctoral fellow at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies, stating
that “the possibility of full invasion by Turkey before its national election
will also depend on where Russia stands.”
She
argues that the only possibility of ending Turkey’s “militaristic election
campaign” in NES is with the EU and US finding a way to connect this issue with
the current economic problems faced by Turkey. In this context, she stated that
“it is not like there has never been an institutional precedent where Turkey
was forced to sit at the table to negotiate.” whilst at the same time admitting
that the EU and US foreign policy has often focused on solving things in a
short-term manner.”
According
to AANES, both ZeynepSaroxan and YilmazShero, co-chairs of the Justice and
Reform Office, were killed in a Turkish drone strike on September 27. This was
the 81st drone strike this year and, according to the data compiled by RIC,
constituted an “explicit attack” on key civilian workers in AANES’ leadership.
The
female politician ZeynepSaroxan played an important role in establishing the
Women’s Council of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the ruling party in NES.
Aram
Hanna, a spokesperson for the SDF said in an interview with The New Arab that
“the Turkish occupation is trying to discourage us by committing this crime
against our honoured female leaders. The SDF will do whatever it takes to defend
our people and homeland.” It was reported that earlier in July three female SDF
fighters had been killed by Turkish strikes, their number including commander
JianTolhildan who had won international fame in leading the fight against IS in
2017.
The
constant fear of regular Turkish airstrikes has severely destabilised the
agricultural sector, especially in the border area. According to the co-chair
of the Economy and Agriculture Board at the Autonomous Administration Salman
Baroudo, “there were 144,000 hectares considered arable land” in Ras al-Ayn of
al-Hasakah Governorate, which was captured by the Turkish Armed Forces and the
Syrian National Army during 2019.
“Our
silos and warehouses which had wheat, barley, cotton, and corn all were looted
after the [capture],” he added, stating that “farmers are always afraid of
being shot and in danger of being killed by Turkish Gendarmerie while they are
cultivating their lands.”
The
water crisis
Syria’s
water crisis has been going on for over four decades. The renewed Turkish
incursion, as well as the effects of climate change, pointed out by observers,
have only exacerbated the protracted water issue.
The
Jaghagh River in Qamishli – the large Kurdish-majority city on the
Syrian-Turkish border – stems from two rivers in Turkey. “The river’s flow has
been cut from upstream and sewage water has been dumped from Nusaybin [a
Turkish city]”, claimed the engineer Mohmed.
The
Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its General Directorate of Water
Management did not immediately respond to multiple requests for comment on the
specific allegations made by people interviewed for this article. But the
authority stated that its use of transboundary rivers is based on the principle
that each riparian state of a transboundary river system has the “sovereign
right” to make use of the water in its territory without causing “significant
harm” to other riparian countries.
The
self-administration says that Turkey has broken the Water Quota Agreement made
in 1987, between Syria, Turkey and Iraq. According to the deal, Syria is
supposed to receive “500 cubic metres per second” from the Euphrates. However,
according to the Tabqa dam manager WalatDarwish, “Turkey has cut the river flow
from upstream and the Tabqa Dam on the Euphrates only receives 200 or 230 cubic
metres per second”.
Darwish
said in an interview with The New Arab that the reason for the decline in the
water supply in Rojava was “the Turkish economic war aimed at emptying the
region of its inhabitants.”
He
explained that in the headwater region in Turkey, the river flow is expected to
exceed 35 billion cubic metres this year, corresponding to more than 1100 cubic
metres per second.
He
added that the amount of power produced by the dam is 114 Megawatts per hour.
Although it is not the region’s only power source (there is another station
that runs on gas which supplies power to the far east side of Rojava), the
entire region is still suffering from limited electricity supply which does not
exceed six hours of power per day.
In
a hot and dry area like Rojava, “electricity plays an essential role in
people’s lives in terms of securing drinking water, irrigating agricultural
lands and upkeeping fisheries,” he said, adding that “the lack of electricity
affects all aspects of life, especially in extreme heat.”
It
has been reported that Turkey and its affiliated factions in the Syrian
National Army (SNA) have been blocking water pumped from the Alouk Water
Station. This has resulted in the longest water cut-off since 2019.
The
frustrations of the water crisis are exemplified by the experience of Mariyam
Ahmed. The 24-year-old, hailing from the village of HilwaBaniSaba’a on the
outskirts of Qamishli, had moved back to her village from Damascus to a rented
house in Qamishli in 2016 because of the “dry season”. She said, “there is no
rain and every year the harvest is getting smaller.”
This
was confirmed by iMMAP, an NGO which has compared results between the summer
and winter cropping seasons in 2020 and 2021 across governorates in NES.
According
to their findings, 18 sub-districts within NES recorded losses of over 75% in
harvested crop areas, 13 of which were in Al-Hasakah Governorate. The study has
also estimated this issue to impact an estimated 60,087 people who rely on
agriculture for their livelihood.
The
dam manager said that “the lack of resources and low river levels have led to
many irrigation pumping stations going out of service. If the situation
continues at the same pace, tens of thousands of hectares of land will
deteriorate due to the lack of water and this could lead to desertification.”
He
stated that all that the self-administration could do now was to develop plans
for the operation of the dams to suit this low water intake, ensuring that the
dams continue to operate at a minimum level to secure the water necessary for
irrigation and drinking as “a priority to preserve lives.”
“The
self-administration in NES has missed many opportunities to manage its water
resources properly,” said a representative from PAX, an International NGO which
has offices in Al-Hasakah and Qamishli. They added that “the water issue is a
mixed result of policy, Turkey’s impact, and climate change.”
MarwaDaoudy,
a professor at Georgetown University and former lecturer at the Graduate
Institute in Geneva pointed out in a previous article earlier that water “was
weaponised by states and non-state actors [in the Syrian conflict] because they
all mobilised water or the infrastructures around water distribution to
leverage power over their counterparts.”
The
impact on women
Since
2011, Kurdish forces have been fighting IS while simultaneously trying to
maintain a communal-based social structure.
Women
in Rojava have been much involved in the war against IS, especially in terms of
their gender-targeted violence. “There
has also been a gender-specific resistance from women in Rojava, Jasim said.
“Out of one of the worst moments in the region for women, the empowerment of
women and girls has flourished.”
Although
the Rojava model is built on the principle of gender equality, power imbalance
and restrictive gender norms still persist. “Several institutions have been
founded in recent years which seek to offer access to education for women,”
Jasim said.
But
they face even more challenges in the summer than in other times of the
year.
RaniyahMohamad,
17, from a village in the countryside of Tirbisbyah, now works at a small
cleaning supplies factory in the industrial area of Qamishli.
“I
moved to Qamishli three months ago because of the dry season. There was no more
water for our crops,” she said. “I used to work in the fields, harvesting crops
like cotton and cumin. But we had a very poor harvest last year, so most of us
in the village decided to move to the city to work in factories” she added.
The
industrial city of Qamishli hosts many internal migrants like Raniyah. The
17-year-old Wa’ad Al-Khider, born in the village of Boyer Abo Assia on the
outskirts of Qamishli, said that all of her family moved to the city around a
year ago because of the high living costs since the crash of the Syrian
currency.
“As
a result, our work in agriculture couldn’t pay the bills anymore,” she said.
“Out of 300 families in my village around half of them moved. Some went to
Syrian coastal cities like Tartous, others to Qamishli, and some went abroad,”
she added.
According
to NizarGhane, Director of Research and Co-founder of Triangle (team leader of
a study on the impact of drought on women’s livelihood in Al-Hasakah and
Ar-Raqqa in NES), the loss of jobs in the agricultural sector in this war-torn
region is pushing women to find alternative ways to make ends meet.
Ghane
said that “distance to water is a key factor,” adding that “we have found
through 337 surveys carried out in Al-Hasakah and Ar-Raqqa that women spend
three hours on average per day in procuring water.”
He
explained that men in the two governorates also spend 3.5 hours on average per
day on this task, but they do not usually have to take care of additional
family duties”.
Triangle’s
study suggested that the more time women spend accessing water resources, the
less time they can devote to agriculture and family duties, leading to possible
tensions with their husbands.
“Climate
change and drought in Rojava affects women and men, but it has more impact on
women for reasons related to the customs and traditions of our society,” said a
spokesperson from Syrian NGO Nextep.
The
NGO explained that poverty, as a result of the collapse in farming, has
prevented many families from sending their children to schools, especially
girls because they are needed to work in the fields. The unclean water also
affects the health of pregnant women.
The
NGO further suggests that women in rural populations which rely on agriculture
are disproportionately affected, stating that “women in the cities are more
aware and knowledgeable than those in the rural areas.”
Most
of the women, including Alva Ali, a civil activist in peacebuilding, testified
that the summer heat affected them both physically and psychologically. They
reported feeling that women were more affected by the water crisis due to
physical burdens as well as extra family duties. A female researcher suggested
that self-administration is needed to improve awareness to prevent disease.
The
clinic in Washokani – a camp managed by the Kurdish Red Crescent – said that
diarrhoea is the most common case in summer, with a rate of about 20% to 30% of
paediatric patients. “There are cases of gynaecological infections among female
patients, most of which are the result of poor hygiene,” the clinic said.
Humanitarian
NGO CARE found that parents had reported increased psychological stress due to
feeling unable to feed their children, as well as stress felt by women due to
the fear of domestic violence. Its report states that the water crisis is also
impacting access to menstrual hygiene products, as well as safe access to
latrines and that higher-than-usual rates of acute diarrhoea are being
reported.
Water
shortages. Crippling heat. Drone attacks. These are only some of the torments
faced by women who are forced to leave their homes.
There
are between 140 to 160 factories in Qamishli which are estimated to employ 2500
workers in total, with most of them hailing from the nearby countryside.
Dara
Shekhmous is the manager of Omari Chips and Biscuits Co. The factory was
founded in 1995 and most of its workers are women. She said that since the
Syrian war started they have suffered extreme disruption to their business
operations.
"We
have had to shut down a couple of times since 2014, either for security reasons
or financial reasons like four months ago,” she said.
She
mentioned that the Caesar Syrian Protection Act – the most wide-ranging scheme
of US sanctions ever directed against Syria that went into effect on June 19,
2020 – had an immense impact on jobs and living costs. In an official recent
exchange rate adjustment by the Syrian government, the Syrian pound lost around
seven percent of its value against the US dollar. The last time the Syrian
pound traded at 47 to the dollar was in 2011.
"We
are functioning at only 20% of our total capacity – I have had to let many of
our workers go during the past months and I’ve kept only ten female workers for
product packaging,” Shekhumous said, adding that “there is no support for our
business from AANES.”
The
unavailability of raw materials, doubly-charged custom fees and an unstable
currency, together with sanctions challenge the very survival of these
factories, where many women had migrated from the countryside to seek better
employment opportunities.
The
way forward
Humanitarian
actors have repeatedly warned the international community of the rapidly
deteriorating conditions in the context of the Syrian conflict and water
crisis. However, international attention, as well as funding, is shifting
towards other more high-profile wars, like the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The
camp of Al Hol, which the self-administration accuses of being a “hotbed” for
IS, hosts more than 55,000 people, with 90% being women and children.
The
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – which runs the field hospital
with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in this camp, told The New Arab that “in the
summer, temperatures can reach more than
45 °C and the feeling of heat is hardly bearable even for a few minutes.
The muddy ground turns hard and parched, and the wind brings gusts of dust into
everything.”
“Families
stay in their tents, even if it is uncomfortably hot inside, to avoid the
scorching sun; children sit under the stands holding the water tanks just for
some shade. It’s unimaginable that people live like that day in and day out,”
said a spokesperson from ICRC.
All
the NGOs interviewed testify that war-torn countries like Syria lack the
capacity to collect related data systematically, which makes assessing the
impact of environmental issues more difficult.
Daoudy
earlier stressed that it is also important for policymakers to understand that
the most dangerous environmental stresses and scarcity outcomes in the region
are caused by short-term decisions and actions taken by powerful individuals
and institutions, while the effect of climate change is hard to control.
“It
is in the end not a humanitarian issue, but a political issue,” Jasim
commented. “None of the issues can be tackled only nationally but
internationally.”
The
new city-dweller Raniyah wants to stay in Qamishli. She said “in the city, we
are more independent and we are learning new skills,” adding that “I will not
go back to the village because the service and quality of life are better
here.”
In
spite of the process of urbanisation in NES, the large population of this
region still relies heavily on farming, cultivating livestock, and fishing.
Mohmed
suggested that new types of crops adapted to local conditions were being
developed by the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry
Areas (ICARDA). He said that the vast majority of the region’s irrigation needs
come from rainfall, with only a small fraction being met by wells.
Digging
the wells – a process which relies on the heavy fuel consumption of digging
machinery – is even more difficult in light of the current fuel crisis. “We
need to develop some types of crops which are more resistant to blight and in
need of less water,” he added, adding that “in the meantime, we should depend
on alternative energy sources such as solar.”
When
asked “what does the Euphrates river mean to you”, 32-year-old Nader Hamid
responded “My whole life.” He now has to walk an extra 5 to 10 km to access
areas where grass grows to feed his buffalo. His family, including his wife and
mother, are helping him with the small business. The buffalo milk and buffalo
cheese will be sold at the market.
In
this region where conflicts exacerbated the pre-existing gender inequality and
vulnerabilities, improving the infrastructures and government support for
vulnerable farmers and enhancing the rural communities’ resilience is more
urgent than ever.
Although
the Kurdish women’s movement is striving to empower women, the gender imbalance
experienced by different populations is not the same. “There is no gender
equality here,” said the 17-year-old Iman. In light of the continued willing
and forced migration, the inadequate support system may increase the risk of
traumatic experiences, especially for women.
The
queue at the border crossing of Semalka-Fishkhabour between Kurdistan and NES
becomes longer during European holidays. Kurds who live in Germany, Denmark,
and many other European countries come back to Rojava to visit their families
during these periods.
The
travellers’ often oversized luggage is loaded onto a truck. On the other side
of the crossing, the greasy oil dripping from a cheese container leaves stains
on most of the suitcases.
This
border crossing will probably remain open as an important outlet for transport,
trade, and the provision of aid. On the other side of the checkpoint lies the
place where people are allowed to reunite with their families, to work, and to
live a life.
Those
who do not have the means to leave are forced to remain in Syria, now in its
11th year of war.
Yiyao
Yang is a freelance journalist and photographer based in Beirut. She writes on
politics, contemporary art, and the climate in Lebanon and the region.
Source: The New Arab
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/features/how-turkish-led-crisis-affecting-syrian-female-farmers
--------
Saudis
detain American woman seeking to leave with daughter
November
9, 2022
Saudi
Arabia has taken into custody an American woman who has been locked in a years
long struggle to take her young daughter back out of the kingdom over the
objections of her Saudi ex-husband, according to U.S. officials and a
U.S.-based advocacy group Tuesday.
Carly
Morris was summoned to a police station in the north-central city of Buraidah
on Monday, and has yet to be released by Saudi authorities, according to the
Washington-based Freedom Initiative. The group advocates for people it believes
wrongfully detained in the Middle East.
U.S.
officials said Saudi authorities had confirmed the detention of Morris, whose
efforts to leave the kingdom with her now 8-year-old daughter have been made
more difficult by Saudi Arabia’s strict male guardianship laws. Morris in
recent months had spoken to reporters and tweeted about her circumstances.
“Our
embassy in Riyadh is very engaged on this case, and they’re following the
situation very closely,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said in
Washington on Tuesday.
The
Saudi Embassy in Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not
immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Saudi
Arabia under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman increasingly has been including
U.S. citizens and Western-based Saudis in a general crackdown on those the
government sees as rivals or critics.
In
August, a Saudi court gave a 16-year prison sentence to a 72-year-old
Saudi-American, Saad al Madi, for critical tweets he had posted over the years
from his home in Florida.
Morris
had traveled to Saudi Arabia in 2019 for what was intended to be a short stay
to allow her daughter, also an American citizen, to meet the family of the
Saudi father, said Bethany Al-Haidari, Freedom Initiative’s Saudi Arabia case
manager.
Saudi
Arabia’s code of male guardianship served to keep the daughter in the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia allegedly placed Morris herself under one of its widely imposed
travel bans, barring her from leaving the country.
Morris
recently tweeted warnings to other women with children abroad about Saudi
Arabia, al Haidari said.
President
Joe Biden had vowed as a candidate to isolate Prince Mohammed, the kingdom’s de
facto ruler, over rights abuses. The Biden administration hopes now to persuade
the kingdom to pump more oil for the global market, and has worked to close the
rift between the two strategic partners.
The
American woman’s detention was “yet another sign” that Saudi Arabia simply does
not value the U.S. as an ally, said Allison McManus, the Freedom Initiative’s
Director of Research.
Source:
IndianExpress
https://indianexpress.com/article/world/saudis-detain-american-woman-morris-8257587/
--------
Golfer,
Racer, Boss: Young Women Aiming High In The Middle East
November
09, 2022
Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia: The Arabian peninsula is known for its conservative traditions
but rapid social change is opening up new possibilities for women -- especially
younger generations.
In
a video project dedicated to young people in the Middle East, where more than
half of the population is under 30, AFP interviewed women from Saudi Arabia,
Yemen, Qatar and Bahrain.
The
first part of the series focused on artists in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the Gaza
Strip, Israel and Iraq.
'Start
from zero'
Clad
in black and red overalls, EsraaAldkheil is the only female on the karting
track in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, where some repressive policies
are being rolled back.
By
day, the 28-year-old works as a biophysical chemistry researcher to fund her
dream: becoming the kingdom's first motorsports world champion.
By
night, she races her male competitors, speeding around the track in a country
where women were banned from driving until 2018.
"I
see a beautiful future for me in Saudi Arabia," says MsAldkheil, who also
clocks up two to three hours at the gym, five days a week.
MsAldkheil
finishes fourth in the race, just off the podium -- but afterwards, she grins
and points to the top step, where the winner stands.
"When
you start from zero, there are enormous challenges to overcome to reach this
level," she says.
"I
keep working towards my goal. I want to be an example for all girls who are
insecure."
'I'm
the director'
Kafaa
Mari dreams of becoming Yemen's first female education minister and rebuilding
her country, shattered by eight years of war.
Ms
Mari, 28, heads a body promoting "women's development" in the
Hadramaut province of her deeply conservative homeland.
Driving
up to her workplace in Seiyun, a soldier posted at the entrance stops her.
"I'm the director here," she informs him proudly.
"I
want to take part in making decisions, especially those that concern
women," Ms Mari tells AFP, adding that women are still a long way from
being considered "partners of men" in building their community.
The
war has brought to light women's essential role in society, says Ms 1Mari, who
hopes to restore the image of a country once known to the Romans as
"Arabia Felix" ("Happy Arabia").
'Fast
progress'
In
an air-conditioned cafe in Doha, Jawhara Al-Thani is working on her "Women
of Qatar" website, which aims "to uncover the rarely witnessed but
ubiquitous roles of women in Qatari society".
Featuring
portraits of successful and aspiring women on her website, Al-Thani -- a
competition-level archer -- hopes "to help inspire many generations to
come" in the conservative, gas-rich state.
"My
personal experience varies drastically from other women in Qatar, I believe,
and Qatari women in general," says the 27-year-old, who is among hundreds
of members of the gas-rich kingdom's reigning Al-Thani family.
"I
am very aware of my privilege and my fortune to have grown up in an educated
family and in a family that supports one another regardless of gender."
Al-Thani
is encouraged by the success stories, which she says are testament to the
"very fast progress" in Qatar.
"If
you look at who's on top, you see a lot of Qatari women," she says, but
concedes they are "maybe not as much as we would like to see".
"As
I said, very fast progress, very fast changes in a very small amount of
time."
'We
can win first prize'
Aged
just 18, Habiba Maher is the first woman to play golf for Bahrain.
After
practising on a manicured course in the capital, Manama, she returns home and
shows off her collection of trophies and photos taken with Bahraini royalty.
"My
dream is to take part in international championships... against female
professionals from all over the world," says Ms Maher, who studies
computer science at the American University of Bahrain.
"I
dream of winning first place, of waving our national flag high and proving that
we Bahraini women can win first prize."
Source:NDTV
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/golfer-racer-boss-young-women-aiming-high-in-the-middle-east-3503314
--------
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