Women’S Access To Justice In The Middle East And North Africa Region, Phase Ii

1. BACKGROUND: The Women’s Access to Justice in the MENA region project Phase 2 is a 3 year project proposed to be implemented by Oxfam GB in partnership with six NGO partners in Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen and Egypt (pending approval from relevant authorities for the latter). It is designed to build upon the successes of Phase 1 (April 2011 – March 2014) and Oxfam’s other legal protection work.   Women’s rights in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have been linked to the broader changes in the region that started with the Arab uprisings of 2011. The unstable political environment and unsteady transition however have toned down the optimism among women’s rights advocates. Among many today there is a realisation that fostering women’s rights in a region of weak institutions, male-dominated social and cultural sphere, and limited space for women’s participation, is a long-term process requiring action at multiple levels. The post-uprising developments have brought mixed results for the status of women in MENA. While in Algeria, Tunisia and Libya women won unprecedented number of Parliamentary seats, in Egypt and Yemen the election results were less encouraging (2.4% of MPs in Egypt’s last Assembly were women, and only one woman was elected in Yemen). In Egypt, only four female ministers were appointed in a cabinet of thirty-four, two in Tunisia and Libya and three in Yemen. Recent proposed or ratified constitutional changes in Tunisia and Egypt have also raised concerns among activists that women’s rights are not well protected. This was also coupled with growing number of cases of violence against both veiled and unveiled women in Egypt’s public space, without “serious attempt by the government to intervene and halt, or deter the practice”[1]. The four countries that this project will target – Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, and Lebanon – all face significant challenges with achieving gender justice. With the exception of Lebanon that ranks 78th out of 148 countries in terms of gender equality, the rest fall within the bottom one third of least equitable countries[2]. All four countries have ratified CEDAW, though with reservations on the articles relating to nationality (all countries except Yemen have reservations), marriage (all countries except Yemen) and equality before the law and the principle of discrimination (all but Jordan and Yemen). The Civil and Penal codes in the countries targeted by the project contain several discriminatory provisions. Domestic violence is either not penalised by law (noting that Lebanese Parliament's general assembly has approved and endorsed the law protecting women and family members from domestic violence on 1 April 2014), or legal provisions are not effectively enforced. Personal status laws are widely seen as one of the primary sources of discrimination against women in legislation and practice. In Lebanon the lack of a unified personal status law subjects citizens to the rule of sectarian status laws and the religious courts that interpret them. The Syrian crisis has put additional pressure on women, primarily Syrian and Palestinian displaced by the conflict to neighbouring countries. The majority of refugee women face harsh living conditions often paired with discrimination from the host communities. Gender-based violence; forced marriages and prostitution are on the rise among the refugees.[3] CSO activists from Jordan and Lebanon also observe a negative impact of the refugee crisis on Jordanian and Lebanese women from underprivileged communities, who see the Syrian women as competitors both for scarce jobs and local suitors. Instability and street violence in Egypt and Tunisia and the military overtake of power in Egypt have shifted the focus from reform to security issues. In Lebanon, as a reflection of the unfolding crisis in Syria, a designated Prime Minister has been unable to form a Cabinet for over 11 months, and general elections postponed. All these developments point to the lack of legitimacy of political institutions and the complex challenges on the way to justice sector reform. Main findings of research conducted in Phase 1 of the project[4] relate to barriers to women’s access to justice in Lebanon, Jordan, Yemen and Iraqi Kurdistan[5]. Absence of legal education and lack of needed administrative structures within religious courts to assist women who initiate legal procedure are key impediments. With the exception of Lebanon, religious courts have no social worker or assistant to help women as they attend court. High court registration costs and/or extremely high lawyer fees pose additional barriers, and no country subsidizes the cost of lawyers. Significant delays in legal procedures including delays in implementation of court sentences are also factors that sometimes discourage women from following legal procedures. Social pressure was found to be one of the leading reasons that prohibit vulnerable women from access to justice.   The key problem this project will address is the limited and inequitable access of poor and vulnerable women to justice. The underlying factors are described in more detail below. 1)      Limited capacities of women to claim their rights due to limited ability to make well informed decisions related to one’s rights and limited affordability of legal services and litigation for women. 2)      Women are socially deterred from accessing the judicial system. 3)      Formal and informal justice systems are perceived as gender biased/ discriminating against women. 4)      Limited impact of CSO advocacy on women’s rights and access to justice.   Designed by Oxfam GB and partners, the proposed project seeks to work at the personal, community and systemic levels while fostering stakeholders’ engagement and influencing decision makers at all levels. According to the theory of change the Project seeks change at different levels that will cumulatively create an environment in which women are able to claim their rights through the judicial institutions. [1] Human Rights Watch, World Report 2013,  http://www.hrw.org/world-report/2013/country-chapters/egypt?page=3 [2] Jordan ranks 99/148, Egypt 126/148 and Iraq 120/148 according to the 2012 Gender Inequality Index. http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/gii/ [3] Shifting Sands: Changing Gender Roles among Refugees in Lebanon, ABAAD Resource Centre for Gender Equality and Oxfam, September 2013 [4] Women’s Access to Justice in the Middle East, Challenges and Recommendations, Fares El-Zein, August 2013. [5] As it was indicated earlier, due to deterioration of security situation in Iraq and limited absorptive capacity of an identified partner organization i.e. Women’s Empowerment Organization (WEO), who is currently involved in the response to the influx of refugees and IDPs, Iraq will not be included in the Phase II of the proposed Action. TOR Attached