BEIRUT: Activists rallied in Beirut on Sunday for the inclusion of women in Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri’s new Cabinet.
Protesters in Beirut's Ain al-Mreisseh carried signs calling for 30 percent of the Cabinet to be filled by women.
"In a Cabinet of 24 ministers we want seven female ministers," one placard read.
"They are talking about a Cabinet that represents all the community, but what about women?" said Samira Maasri, a member of the Lebanese Council of Women (LCW), reading a statement on behalf of protesters.
Lebanon’s politicians have acknowledged that the women’s participation in government is low, but no significant legislation to boost their numbers has been passed.
Women in Lebanon were granted suffrage in 1953, but continue to face considerable obstacles entering politics in a deeply patriarchal society where tribal affiliations and political families hold sway.
Out of 128 lawmakers at Parliament, currently there are only four female MPs – Nayla Tueni, Bahia Hariri, Strida Geagea and Gilberte Zouein.
Protesters in Beirut's Ain al-Mreisseh carried signs calling for 30 percent of the Cabinet to be filled by women.
"In a Cabinet of 24 ministers we want seven female ministers," one placard read.
"They are talking about a Cabinet that represents all the community, but what about women?" said Samira Maasri, a member of the Lebanese Council of Women (LCW), reading a statement on behalf of protesters.
Lebanon’s politicians have acknowledged that the women’s participation in government is low, but no significant legislation to boost their numbers has been passed.
Women in Lebanon were granted suffrage in 1953, but continue to face considerable obstacles entering politics in a deeply patriarchal society where tribal affiliations and political families hold sway.
Out of 128 lawmakers at Parliament, currently there are only four female MPs – Nayla Tueni, Bahia Hariri, Strida Geagea and Gilberte Zouein.
Source & Link : The Daily Star
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