28th October 2008
CMEC Hosts an Event on Women and the Middle East

The Conservative Middle East Council (CMEC) hosted a briefing at Parliament entitled "How Women are transforming the Middle East". The event was chaired by Anne Milton MP, Shadow Minister for Health. The speakers were Baroness Afshar of York University, Zeina Al-Khalifa, Political Counsellor at the Bahrain Embassy and Sandra Al-Gudady, Director of the StratReal Foundation.

The role of women throughout the Middle East has changed greatly in the past few decades. Whether as political actors, in business or at school Arab women are bringing about positive changes. However, there have also been some major concerns and setbacks in the areas of human rights which come from local cultural traditions and the misapplication of the Koran. Each panellist gave a short speech before the discussions were opened up to the floor for a lively and thought-provoking debate.

Baroness Afshar started by debunking the myth that women in the Middle East are subdued and submissive. She argued that the current debate on issues such as religion and secularism and the requirement for Muslim women to wear the veil were divisive and suggested that women worldwide would be wiser to work together. She supported the idea of the ‘sisterhood’ and argued that when women are vocal they can use tools such as public diplomacy and international reputation to their advantage.

Sandra Al-Gudady highlighted the role of women in business in the UAE and the strong role models in the region such as Queen Rania of Jordan. She also questioned the western perception of “the veil” as a sign of subordination and called for a more open minded approach. She argued that at times the West even causes harm with its approach to the issue and stressed that whilst the role of women in the West and Middle East are culturally different, Arab women are still at the forefront of public life and emphasised the vital role they play as mothers of future generations.

Zeina Al-Khalifa drew largely on her own experiences in Bahrain where women's involvement in politics has increased extensively and where today women make up 8% of the Parliament and 25% of the Shura Council. She stated that they may be small steps but they are important and bode well for the future. She also drew attention to the increasing role played by women in the labour force which rose from 5% to 34% between 1971 and 2001. Zeina finished by highlighting the importance of education in ensuring continued equality for women in the region.

There was no shortage of topics to consider when the Chair, Anne Milton MP, opened up the discussion to the floor. Baroness Warsi, Shadow Minister for Community Cohesion and Diverstiy, championed the need for strong female role models and cited Pakistan as an example of where women are making enormous inroads in domestic politics. She expressed hope that the diaspora communities in Britain would be inspired by these women to play a greater role in public life in the UK. Baroness Morris, the Shadow Minister for Women in the House of Lords, asked the panel whether the UK was getting the tone wrong in its support of women in the region and questioned if the West would be wiser to let them take the lead on the issues instead of making inaccurate assumptions.

To read a report about the event in the Gulf States Newsletter please click here