Lebanon

Lebanese women have made great strides in the private sector and are highly visible in the mainstream media as presenters and journalists. But in a country in which women make up about 53 percent of the population – more than 2 million women – their basic rights and representation has been limited in politics.
To read the full article, please visit Menassat's Website.

As Lebanon's election approaches, the country's roadsides and rooftops are awash with colour-coded billboards vying to attract voters with puns, catchphrases and even what some say are sexist ads.The campaign poster that has sparked the most debate features the face of a brunette looking seductively at the camera next to the slogan: "Sois belle et vote," or "Be beautiful and vote".

Out of the 587 candidates running in the Lebanese parliamentary elections this year, only 12 are women. If half of the female candidates make it, which, judging by previous election results and current alliances, is highly unexpected, female representation in parliament would amount to a mere four percent.Increasing female political participation has been listed on practically every single political platform, from Hezbollah’s to Future’s, but Lebanese women still show dismal numbers in parliament, something their sisters in many countries across the globe surpassed a long time ago.

In Lebanon’s June 7 parliamentary poll, women represent only two percent of the candidates, many of them with family names that have been appearing on ballots for generations.
To read the full article, please visit IPS News.

One can be born in Lebanon and live here all one's life, and still not be a Lebanese citizen. Lebanon is one of few remaining countries in the Middle East where a mother is unable to pass citizenship to her children.
To read the full article, please visit IPS News Website.

Caretaker Finance Minister Raya al-Hasan expressed her hope for national legislation on a quota for women’s representation in Parliament, the National News Agency reported Thursday. Hasan made her remarks at the opening session of the “Women in the Arab World, Africa and Asia” conference, organized by the Arab Women Forum in recognition of its tenth anniversary and held at the Lancaster House in London.

Women’s rights groups have this week celebrated the approval of several legal amendments by the parliamentary committee on justice and the parliamentary budget committee that would bring the country closer to legal gender equality if passed by Parliament.

BEIRUT: For all its virtues, Lebanese society continues to be heavily influenced by patriarchal culture, making it a daunting challenge for women to achieve political influence and power. Yet change may be in the offing.

“We need to dare to think differently,” asserts renowned Lebanese-American journalist Raghida Dergham in a telephone conversation with The Daily Star.
 

16 Mar 2012 - The Arab Spring continues to blow winds of change in the Middle East. There is no doubt the direction these countries are heading in will affect Arab societies and personal rights. But recently, the focus has been on women in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.