AMMAN — Women’s empowerment is likely to be
boosted with changes to be introduced soon to some laws, a Cabinet official
said, while a political activist insisted that women’s participation in the
decision making will come only through organized political parties.
اضافة اعلان
“The modernization of the political system,
including amendments to the election and political parties’ laws will enhance
the representation of women in political parties,” said Cabinet official,
Culture Minister
Haifa Al-Najjar.
“Jordan was built on the foundations of pluralism,
partnership, respect for others, and the acceptance of different opinions,”
Najjar added.
The political activist, Abla Abu Elbeh, a
secretary-general for Hashd Party, said that women’s “participation in
political life will neither be serious, nor continuous without an organized
political party.”
She explained that political parties have a
longstanding history in Jordan, having existed in the Kingdom since its inception.
She said the first political grouping, called the Jordanian People’s Party, was
founded in 1927.
“Now, we are witnessing huge historic
transformations that organized parties have an important role in,” she added.
Both Najjar and Abu Elbeh spoke at a regional
conference, which tackled “Women’s engagement in political parties in the Arab
region”.
The two-day meeting, which opened Friday, was
organized by the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Women’s Empowerment, in
collaboration with the UN Women, the UN Development Program , and the Coalition
of Women Parliamentarians from Arab Countries. The goal is to combat violence
against women.
The gathering discussed the role of legislation and
governments in creating a suitable environment for women’s active engagement in
partisan life, the role of political parties and movements, and measures to
eliminate violence against women in politics.
UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator
Ghulam Mohammad Isaczai said that the Middle East and North Africa is the only
region where women hold less than 20 percent of seats in parliaments.
Minister of State for Legal Affairs and Head of the
Inter-Ministerial Committee for Women Empowerment
Wafa Bani Mustafa reviewed
the gender gap report issued by the World Economic Forum in 2022.
The report considered the political empowerment
index the second largest indicator that needs action, after the economic participation
and opportunities index. It said the MENA region recorded 15.1 percent on the
political empowerment index. In contrast, the proportion in the world reached
22 percent.
Participants also discussed the role of political
parties and Arab movements in supporting women in political institutions. They
called for higher women representation in political parties, and reviewed the
social obstacles and traditions that limit women’s involvement in political
life.
Saturday
discussions focused on overcoming the challenges facing women’s engagement in
partisan life, international best practices, and ways of addressing and
mitigating violence against women in politics.
Experts and
politicians from Morocco, Tunisia, Iraq, Algeria, Sudan, Libya, Palestine,
Egypt, Bahrain, Lebanon, Norway, and the UK attended.
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