Divorce and Violence in Egypt (Blog 7)

An article published on InformedCommnet by Rana Allam, former editor-in-chief of Daily News in Egypt talks about gender inequalities in Egyptian law. Although it would seem like Egypt would be more advanced in terms of gender equality because it is not strict about following Sharia law, it is ranked as the worst Arab state regarding women’s rights. While the country does not strictly follow Sharia law, it does incorporate some laws based off the Sharia that are highly discriminatory towards women. Allam states that even in legislation, women do not have equal rights. The atmosphere is one of hostility and intimidation towards women, with violence being prevalent.

The divorce laws in Egypt are a reflection of this inequality. If a woman wants to divorce, she must go through a three month waiting period before she can get remarried. According to “Circles of hell: Domestic and State Violence Against Women in Egypt,” men who wish to divorce do not have to go through this period and may file for separation without providing justification. Women, on the other hand, must give up their financial rights, go through a long and costly process, and prove that their husband harmed them. Allam goes on to explain that Egypt’s “Obedience Law” gives men the right to file an obedience complaint when their wife leaves home without his permission. A woman can then file an objection explaining her reason for “failing to obey,” but a judge may rule against it. If she does not file an objection, then she’s considered “deviant” and denied her financial rights during a divorce process.

Laws about adultery are also very discriminatory. For example, men will only be charged with adultery if they commit the crime in his marital house but women are penalized regardless of the place. Men are charged with six months in jail, but women are put in prison for two years. The married men who commits adultery in a married women’s marital house is not guilty of anything. If both man and woman are unmarried and engage in sexual intercourse, the woman is charged with prostitution. Finally, if a man catches his wife having an affair and decides to kill her and the other man, he will not be charged with murder and may only get a sentence of 24 hours. However, if a wife catches her husband having an affair and kills him she will be charged with murder.

The article “Circles of hell: Domestic and state Violence Against Women in Egypt,” states that sexual violence and harassment against Egyptian women is common and legislation protecting women against this does not exist. The article written on January 2015 states that various initiatives have been made to criminalize sexual harassment and President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has committed to tackle the issue, but change has not taken place and authorities do not acknowledge the severity of the problem. Some sexual assaults happen in public, specially around Cairo’s Tahrir Square. Women are groped, stripped naked, and dragged through streets being beaten with sticks, knives and belts by mobs. Domestic violence is also very common, and survivors that report being abused are faced with many obstacles. Support is merely non-existent. Domestic violence and marital rape are not explicitly criminalized in the law, which leads many women to suffer silently.

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