http://www.smh.com.au/world/women-challenge-islamists-over-equality-20120814-246sy.html Women challenge Islamists over equality Date, August 15, 2012 a.. Fighting for their rights … Tunisian women march during a protest against a proposed article included in a new draft constitution which they say is an Islamist ploy. Photo: AFP
TUNIS: Thousands of Tunisians have demonstrated in the capital for women's rights in the biggest show of force by the opposition since April as the Islamist-led government faces growing dissent. Two demonstrations on Monday, one authorised and the other not, were held to support the withdrawal of a planned article in the constitution backed by the Islamists that refers to ''complementarity'' and not equality of the sexes. Thousands assembled opposite the parliament building in Tunis after the breaking of the Ramadan fast, while several hundred defied a ban to gather on the main city centre, Habib Bourguiba Avenue. Another demonstration was attended by about 1000 people in Sfax, 260 kilometres south of the capital. The gatherings in Tunis were the biggest by the opposition movement since a banned march was violently broken up on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in April. The demonstrators, mobilised by feminist groups, human rights and opposition organisations, were celebrating the anniversary of the promulgation of the Personal Status Code in 1956 under Tunisia's first president, Habib Bourguiba. Tunisian women are rising up against the proposed article in the new constitution, seen by many as an Islamist ploy to reverse the principle of gender equality that made Tunisia a beacon of modernity in the Arab world when it was introduced nearly six decades ago. The National Constituent Assembly, elected after the downfall last year of dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, is drafting a new national charter. The NCA parliamentary committee adopted last week a proposed article that activists say would compromise rights enshrined in the CSP. The article must still be ratified at a plenary session of the interim parliament. The 1956 code was the first of its kind in the Arab world. It abolished polygamy, under which Muslim men are allowed to have as many as four wives, and the practice of repudiation, under which husbands could divorce simply by saying so three times. At the same time, it instituted not only judicial divorce but also civil marriage. It is a system now deeply rooted in Tunisian society, where women are active in all sectors of society. While none of these principles would be lost under the proposed article, activists fear that its language represents a step toward rolling back their rights. Agence France-Presse Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/women-challenge-islamists-over-equality-20120814-246sy.html#ixzz23Xy0rgY1 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
