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dana
Canada
27 Posts |
 Posted - 06/17/2005 : 12:59:20 AM
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Nayla Moawad has tried....and others may just dare to as well.
I'm interested to know how the men and women of this forum feel about the following:
1. A female running for the position of President of Lebanon
2. Voting for a female Presidential candidate if her goals for the country were aligned with yours?
3. Do you think that having a female President would impact the political, economical, and social structure in Lebanon?
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Rabih Lubnan
12 Posts |
Posted - 06/18/2005 : 9:29:51 PM
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I for one do not mind the gender of the candidate as mush as I mind their program.
The example you gave however is not what I would look for in a president be it a woman or a man. My choice would be someone who has made for herself or himself a political path based on clear principles, someone with a cool head on her/his shoulder, a true leader with a modern vision. Unfortunately, Nayla Moawad is none of the above. She is in politics to preserve her husband's seat for her son. No agenda, no policies, no vision. The same can be said about many of the other ladies in the Lebanese parliament or on the political scene. Many if not most are in politics after a brother, a husband or a father (e.g. Bahia Hariri, Solange Gemayyel, Setrida jeajea, etc.). None of them existed as an independent political entity without the man in their life. As such I fear they would displace a worthy man or a woman more deserving of the people's support.
1. The presidency (ies, all 3) in Lebanon is not, unfortunately, a post to which candidates can run. It is more of an arrangement between the power brokers on the Lebanese scene. So what does it matter who runs, I as an individual have no say.
2. I would support her but again there is nothing I can do to make her win.
3. I think we should start by having a Lebanese president then we talk about gender. In all honesty, I do not see us electing a female to the presidency in Lebanon before the US can elect one. I personally felt that Bahia Hariri was going to assume her brother’s poltical mantle after her speech on March 14 and all the activities she was doing after his assassination. Her clan saw otherwise; they come from a culture (Arab) that says that the son supersedes the sister, even though he may be of limited experience in the field and of developing maturity to lead. She was marginalized.
So socially a large part of the country is not ready yet to have a female president in any presidential post. Would a female president impact society and culture? I think the question to be asked ought to be would any president be allowed to impact society and culture. Once we elect them by popular vote and give them the freedom to rule by popular mandate, they will all have their impact. |
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Jean
Lebanon
50 Posts |
Posted - 06/20/2005 : 11:36:58 AM
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| I vote for Haifa, I think she is the most appealing to the youths and has a way of getting what she wants. |
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Truth Squad
114 Posts |
Posted - 06/20/2005 : 6:07:21 PM
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I like very much the idea of a lady running for president, but I agree she must be the right person not just one for the sake of having a woman in office.
As a matter of equality and equal opportunity, the door should be open to women as it is for men. However, let us not forget that we are talking about Lebanon here, not Switzerland! In Lebanon, if you are not Maronite, you should not even think about it. Here you are, we excluded about 70% of the population. So an argument of equal opportunity may not be the best in this case.
Second, as a matter of social acceptability, I am not sure that the country is ready for a woman leader yet. Look at the number of women in the Cabinet or Parliament! You have the most populous sect in Lebanon without a single woman representative. But again, if Bahia Hariri was backed up by her family the way her nephew Saad was, perhaps we would have seen the first woman Prime Minister.
Third, as a matter of sophistication of the voter, I am not sure the people in Lebanon have what it takes to rationally differentiate between candidates. The people tend to vote for anyone the leaders tell him to vote for. The last elections are the best example. So they would vote for a woman if a woman is thrown at them and they would vote for a man the same way.
Would a woman president make a difference though? For sure she would. In a Middle Eastern Society, she would commend more respect and deference than a man would do and she may be able to get what she wants in terms of policy better than many of the most astute and diplomatic guys in the field. Add to that a gentle touch and a more feminine approach to matters of reform, health care, child care, education and even war and peace.
If you come across such a candidate, she has my vote. |
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lebanon419
United Kingdom
19 Posts |
Posted - 06/28/2005 : 11:49:03 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by dana
Nayla Moawad has tried....and others may just dare to as well.
I'm interested to know how the men and women of this forum feel about the following:
1. A female running for the position of President of Lebanon
2. Voting for a female Presidential candidate if her goals for the country were aligned with yours?
3. Do you think that having a female President would impact the political, economical, and social structure in Lebanon?
Nothing like MR margret tatcher please! And btw, the day this happens, is the day of utter peace. We ladies, with the gentle touch, will end world disasters! ;)
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dana
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 06/28/2005 : 4:28:48 PM
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Interesting posts everyone! Especially from the men - the kind of posts I'd luv to share with some of the non-arab men & women who seem to generalize arab men's mentality on the subject of female involvement in politics or any other legal/business/gov't issue.
It's interesting to note though, that many women don't vote for each other. Several years ago in Jordan, not a single woman elected a female. Women seem to want men to rule.
There have been many successful female presidents in Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Israel, Finland, UK, and others....interesting how the United States with all their talk on "liberating other countries" and giving "rights to women", have never had 1 single female as President. What's up with that?! 
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Justice For All
Lebanon
20 Posts |
Posted - 06/28/2005 : 7:12:34 PM
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Good point Dana!
Mr. Bush wants to educate us in democracy and equality by sending his army to kill our children in Baghdad.
He has never read our history or read about the legendary women in our history: from Ashtarout (Ishtar), to Elissar, to Fatimah ez-Zahra', to Nasab (mother of Fakhreddine), to Sana Mehaydly or the many modern women who make the delicate fabric of the Arab society from the Ocean to the Gulf. Yes we are now going through a regressive phase of our history, but we have had glorious days and they are bound to return.
Right now I do not see a good candidate in the Lebanese political arena. Perhaps if you offer a program and I like it, then I will give you my vote for whatever it is worth.
Nice topic though. The stereotype the west has about Arab men and women, is mostly based on what Hollywood portrays of the Arabs in SA, where every Emir has a harem full of women he calls his wives. Egyptian movies have also reinforced this stereotype. I am not sure it is totally accurate in modern Lebanese society though. Most urban and suburban middle to upper class Lebanese do not have a problem of gender equality. You may still see it in poor economic classes and rural areas.
The attitude in Lebanon can be best portrayed by a scene in the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", when the mother agreed that the man is "the head" of the household (the decision maker). But she as the mother , retained to herself the role of the neck that turns the head in any direction she wanted. Interesting analogy. True though. |
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dana
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2005 : 11:03:58 AM
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Justice for All, your reference to "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" brought back some good laughs. Ur right though...
So which Arab country would you all think is most likely to elect the first female president?
We may be surprised – Kuwait has already held elections where women were allowed to vote, and just 2 weeks ago Saudi put a proposal thru to allow women to drive (Halalooya!! Think of how long it will take them to allow women to finally vote – slowly but surely inshallah). The still water is finally being stirred, and people are starting to feel the current and react - may be not accordingly, bas at least we’re getting a reaction.
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Lebanese Jew
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2005 : 1:01:16 PM
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Arab countries most likely to elect a woman president:
We can start by ruling out monarchies, unless a woman prime minister will do. I think Lebanon, Palestine and Tunisia would top my list. Which one will be the first I have no clue. But I would say probably Tunisia: very stable government so far, no conflicts internal or foreign, medium-high literacy among males and females and a more or less homogenous society, although I do not know of any specific lady in Tunisian politics.
I admire a lot Hanan Ashrawi, the Palestinian peace negotiator; I feel she would make a good leader. She strikes me as the most vocal and poised Arab woman in politics today and she commands international admiration and respect.
In Lebanon, frankly I am not impressed with the class of politicians (male or female). I listened carefully to the speech given by Mrs. Bahia Hariri on March 14th and I felt she presented a well-balanced and carefully thought program that would have made the basis of a presidential bid (or PM). But she seems to have stepped back from the limelight for the time being.
The Jordanian king may nominate a woman prime minister in the near future but I am privy to no data on Jordan.
On the other hand, there is a nice book (more of a compilations of essays) that I came across 2 years ago entitled "Women and Power in the Middle East". I found the essays it offered to be very helpful especially in analyzing the social, political, economic, and cultural forces that shape gender systems in the Middle East and North Africa.
The essays also document empirically the similarities and differences in the gendering of relations of power in twelve countries [Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran (Islamic Rep. of course), Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Sudan, Tunisia, Turkey and Yemen); and together they seek to build a framework for understanding broad patterns of gender in the Arab-Islamic world.
Challenging questions are addressed throughout. What roles have women played in politics in this region? When and why are women politically mobilized, and which women? Does the nature and impact of their mobilization differ if it is initiated by the state, nationalist movements, revolutionary parties, or spontaneous revolt? And what happens to women when those agents of mobilization win or lose?
They also take a look at the impact of rapid social change in the Arab-Islamic world. They analyze what they describe as "Arab disillusionment with the radical nationalisms of the 1950s and 1960s" and with leftist ideologies, as well as the rise of political Islamist movements.
Indeed these essays present rich new approaches to assessing what political participation has meant for women in this region and how emerging national states there have dealt with organized efforts by women to influence the institutions that govern their lives.
Keep in mind that the target of the analysis is the Middle East Not just the Arab World (hence Turkey and Iran). |
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Rania
Lebanon
1 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2005 : 11:05:42 PM
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I think it is admirable that Nayla Moawad has tried.
but i think also that women in lebanon do not have the organization or political support to become president. Plus you have a man culture in many areas that still have a sexist attitude to refer to something as women. even if you watch comedy on TV, for example there is a program called Basmatelwatan, when they wanted to make fun of ernet shahwan, they called it irnet neswan.
we have a lot of sexist slang language: hadith neswan, for example to indicate it is unreliable, etc. I think we need to reform people way of thinking about women before a woman president can be elected and accepted.
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Reformist
20 Posts |
Posted - 07/01/2005 : 01:43:09 AM
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Gender differences should be treated like any other differences ... equally.
Women's rights is an issue that needs great attention in Lebanon and the Arab world. Perhaps Lebanon can be the beacon in women and human rights in general that will spread throughout the Arab world, but first reforms in its own treatment of women must take place.
http://www.reformlebanon.com |
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The Whip
42 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2005 : 1:58:21 PM
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A very important topic indeed. How can this topic be addressed in the framework of the rights of Lebanese women?
I think we have to advocate women equality and freedom as a prequel to women political rights.
These rights include: right to equal inheritance, right to equal education, right to freely marry and divorce, etc.
These rights may differ from one religious community to the next in Lebanon.
How can we advocate them without offending any of these communities or its beliefs? Where do we start? |
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Reformist
20 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2005 : 12:15:34 AM
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The Whip,
I reside in Australia and the Australian Government did something extremely profound for women last year.
It embarked on a multi-million dollar campaign, including effective TV advertisements, which was titled "Australia says NO to violence against women". Essentially, it encouraged anyone and everyone who knew about domestic abuse to come forward and tell authorities. Hotlines and counselling organisations (both government-backed and privately owned) have been established.
In doing this, the Australian Government has brought awareness to this issue to the Australian public and has in a way educated the public to condemn this act as a serious taboo and act against it.
I believe the best initiative must come from the Government, because they have wide access to resources and have the ability to really enforce education and change.
However, the problem with Lebanon is that there is no coherent government. That is why we must bring awareness ourselves. Although we have limited resources, we must strive to campaign and bring awareness to the Lebanese people of women's rights.
With ReformLebanon, a section has been devoted on the website to "human rights" with women's rights being a subcategory within. We hope to embark on a series of campaigns and lobbying with other organisations in order to bring awareness to these issues. On the political level, one idea is to set up local women groups within several constituencies to lobby their MPs for greater laws to protect women. I know in Australia in the 1980s, a Sex Discrimination Act was passed which virtually changed the lives of women in Australia from simple housewives, to women with aspiring careers. We need such laws in Lebanon, and we need our women to stand up and demand these laws.
http://www.reformlebanon.com |
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dana
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2005 : 09:58:26 AM
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There are a few Arab women’s organizations out there speaking out on women’s equal rights on many levels.
I personally think that the voices of women alone, is not enough to raise awareness. We need the voices of the men in the region as well. They will be the ones to make an even greater difference when they come out in support of their mothers, sisters, aunts, nieces, friends and colleagues. Whether we like it or not, the Arab world is a male dominated society, and so we need the help of our male counterparts to help us push the message forward.
I agree with strategies such as advertising campaigns, lobby groups, petitions etc. In addition though, we need to have speaker bureaus set up all over the country with prominent speakers involved advocating the message of equality. Speakers should be a sample of men and women, from different Arab countries, and with different religious backgrounds, going out there together on a type of “road show”. I see this “road show” having major media coverage (TV, radio, print, and web based). Getting the audience involved through polling questions via the internet and/or text messaging…. would get the audience to participate, send in their questions to the speakers and get everyone involved. Creating an e-newsletter with regular updates on what’s new, with an opening editorial from the different prominent speakers involved in the “road show” and whoever else as part of a “sphere’s of influence” campaign which will multiply through friends, family & colleagues passing on the word and forwarding such e-newsletter around. Disseminating the message in the most powerful way is critical, but what’s even more important is the involvement of the right sample of men and women as the “voices” of the campaign, to get the message across to this sensitive audience.
Reformist - I agree, the govt's involvement is critical, and at least working with your local MP is a great start to push the message to the top of the agenda.
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mehio
Lebanon
10 Posts |
Posted - 07/07/2005 : 12:05:10 PM
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I do not think that women should be promoted to leadership.
It is enough that woman already work outside the house and come in contact with men in a mixed society. giving women more power will destroy our society and our way of life.
yes i protect woman and i don't want them to be hurt but i do not agree that they should run for president in Lebanon or anywhere in the muslim world. |
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dana
Canada
27 Posts |
Posted - 07/07/2005 : 5:36:08 PM
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Mehio -
With all due respect, I find your comments quite demeaning to women. Sure you're entitled to your opinion, but when you say things like "It is enough that women already work outside the house and come in contact with men in a mixed society. Giving women more power will destroy our society and our way of life"...I can't help but ask you the following:
> Why do feel that women will "destroy" society if they work outside the house? Give me an example of a woman in a leadership role where “society” was at her mercy?
> So you would never allow your sister or mother to work if they wanted to? Or would you lock them inside the house if they even dared to join the workforce?
> Do you feel that some Arab countries, including Lebanon, have gone astray in terms of the freedom given to women so far? i.e. you feel there should be inequality between men and women in the workforce at any level? Or may be having them as secretaries will keep them away from “destroying our society” as they will not have a say in the decision making process (and yes I am being sarcastic – sorry, but couldn’t help it really!)
You also mentioned that women should not only NOT run for President of Lebanon, but also nowhere else in the Muslim world. It’s obvious that you have strong convictions about the role of women in society based on extremely conservative religious views.
I disagree with you, and quite frankly very offended by your comments as I’m sure many of the women AND men (I’m sure) on this forum will be as well.
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Lebanese women running for President
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