Women’s rights organizations launch Hurra Coalition to pave way for family law reform in the MENA region
Inequality in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is being perpetuated by family laws that curtail the legal rights of women and girls in areas such as marriage, divorce, custody, and wives’ financial rights. To end this gender-based discrimination, leading women’s rights organizations from countries MENA have gathered in Doha for the public launch of the Hurra Coalition, which aims to reform family laws at the national and regional levels in compliance with international human rights standards.
Discriminatory family laws
While diverse in culture and history, MENA countries share common ground in penal codes governing family issues. This encompasses a complex tapestry of civil, religious, and customary laws and practices that regulate many aspects of domestic life and relationships. Often rooted in traditional and conservative religious interpretations, many family laws in the region reinforce harmful gender roles and perpetuate inequalities by discriminating on the basis of sex.
When the law renders women and girls subordinate, it reduces their decision-making power and curtails their professional, financial, and political opportunities, leaving them more vulnerable to human rights violations, including domestic abuse and sexual and gender-based violence. The harmful consequences are far-reaching, hampering countries’ development by thwarting the ability of women to reach their full potential and contribute fully to society’s progress.
Hurra Coalition
The Hurra Coalition empowers members to develop and implement campaigns to reform family law in areas such as child marriage, male guardianship, distribution of marital wealth and alimony, and child custody.
The seeds of the Coalition were sown in 2019, when international NGO Equality Now organized a convening in Lebanon bringing together a diverse group of women’s rights organizations interested in joining forces to lobby for change in their respective countries in the MENA.
Since then, the Coalition has grown into a dynamic group fostering a robust, diverse, inclusive, and collaborative women’s rights movement. Equality Now has been voted in as Secretariat of the Coalition and has been supporting and reinforcing members’ capacities in various aspects, including in campaign strategy, legal and media advocacy, engagement with policy and decision-makers, and development of active participation amongst young activists from marginalized communities.
The Coalition works in collaboration with the Global Campaign for Equality in Family Law, which unites feminist organizations from around the world advocating for governments to ensure equality in law, policy, and practice for all women, girls, and other marginalized groups. This applies to every matter relating to the family in all its diverse forms, regardless of religion and culture.
Dr. Dima Dabbous, MENA Representative for Equality Now, explains, “Women in the MENA face severe discrimination in many aspects of their personal lives, including being limited in their ability to consent to marriage and divorce, retain custody of their children after divorce, and access their fair share of wealth in matrimony and inheritance. Progress in family law reform has not only been very slow but has been reversed in some countries. We sincerely hope that the Hurra Coalition will give all members a safe space for the exchange of knowledge and expertise, and the necessary support and feeling of solidarity to address and overcome challenges of reforming family laws in the MENA.”
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