Women in Egypt

THE EVOLUTION OF WOMEN'S ROLE IN EGYPT
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Abstract
Women in Egypt have straggled for a more equitable status in the society and this has marked the tremendous change in women’s position in the Egyptian society. Women have been integrated into the aspects of public life although there are controversies that still accompany this move. Moreover, little attention has been given to the public discourse regarding gender and women position in the society. Women concerns have been relegated by the male dominated institutions to a low priority by subordinating women issues to tits concerns of security. The emergence of feminists’ movement in Egypt was aimed to advocate for women rights to champion for women secularism in the public sphere. Major political forces have embraced the issue of women in building of a trendy legitimacy, which traces the origin and development of trends that resulted to important consequences for the lives of Egyptian women.
Key words: Feminism, women movement, women rights, public life, equality.
Introduction
The women position in the Egyptian society has been marked by tremendous change during the twentieth century. Women have been incorporated in the public life in the contemporary Egyptian society. Although the earliest appearance of women in public life dates back to the pharaoh era, they are ultimately enjoying equal status with men in politics and government presently. The current feminist in Egypt has sought equal rights for women in an attempt to transform the political balance by enhancing women to move from margins of power to positions where they are able to participate in society’s important decisions (Sullivan, 1987). It has been argued that the participation of women in public life Egypt has been argued as a common good for both sexes because it has the capability to strengthen families and society in increasing the number of citizens whose resources and talents are drawn. This paper deals with the context of feminism and activism in Egypt that examines the historical struggle for women rights, and the pattern of continuity and change in women’s rights organizations and strategies employed to promote resistance of their limitation to be involved in public life. The feminists’ movement faced oppositions from women and men in its effort to pursue an enlarged public forum, thereby making a variety of ideologies and specific goals. The absolute equality of women to men was opposed with a belief of protecting and enhancing separate realm of females in the public life as being preferable to a democratic world. There are those who accepted the separation of women realm through professing of equality as the ultimate goal (Guenena & Wassef, 1999). Twentieth century changes have affected the role of women in Egypt having gone through distinct phases to enter the new period in 1979. The feminists have made a niche for women in p...