In the weeks leading up to Monday’s historic election in Egypt, WLP talked with leading Egyptian women’s rights activist Amal Abdel Hadi about the upcoming elections and the future of women’s rights in the country. The following is a portion of our conversation. .

Tahrir Square (cc) Maggie Osama

WLP: Since the Revolution, there have been serious concerns regarding the future of women’s rights in Egypt. Many feel that while women were out on the streets and in Tahrir Square, playing a key role in the protests that led to the ouster of Mubarak, they have since been excluded from the political process.

Amal Abdel Hadi: Women were not just participating in the revolution, but in all the preparations and work that was done before the revolution: the unions fights, the protests…part of activism with social media, Facebook etc., part of the public strike on the first of April, and women were in Tahrir, as everyone knows. But then, women were really excluded – and I say excluded – it’s not just somebody didn’t notice. This is an exclusion… The whole unsettled situation is really impacting women’s participation. Now, because of the previous regime – everyone is against the previous regime – there is an orchestrated campaign against all legal gains for women under the slogan that these changes were imposed on the people by the Mubarak regime….

Democracy is like Pandora’s Box…But that is part of the process…It’s not an easy thing, democracy – “The regime is toppled and you get the democracy you want” – no. We will fight, and we will fight very strongly for it, just as we were fighting for the freedom of association and from oppression by the Mubarak regime.

WLP: One of the challenges facing women’s rights activists in Egypt is a perception held by some Egyptians that women’s rights is a “Western” issue and it is seen to be representative of the old regime.

Hadi: Let me clarify two things – Western and imposed by the regime. The term Western is not as strong as it used to be, for example, in the 80s. But it is [used by opponents of women's rights] when using the stigma of the regime. And no one really liked the National Council of Women – they did nothing for us. They [conservative forces] are using that, and it is not a new agenda for the fundamentalists. But they are using it as a new argument. It is a winning card you can play with.

WLP: Could you explain why this is the case and the steps that activists have been taking, or should take, to change the perception that women’s rights are linked to the former regime?

Hadi: My organization came, all of us, from the students’ movement in the 70s – political activists – so it is not easy to accuse us of being “Westernized.” Plus we work with women workers, laborers, marginalized women, so though we are not a grassroots organization, there are a lot of people who know this is our agenda, not an imposed agenda. We were always opposed to the regime. And there are many other groups who have similar foundations…
The regime just ignores what the women’s movement did. The regime was not working for women… They wanted to promote an image of themselves as a democratic country that’s pro-women. But, actually they were not. They were not listening to Egyptian women’s demands.

WLP: Some have said with all of the transitions taking place that this is not the right time to be focusing on women’s rights and that there will be time for that after a new government is in power. What would be your response to those who hold this view?

Hadi: We are always not in the right time. Women’s rights are always not in the right time. Whenever you speak about women’s rights there is always that ready argument, “that’s not the right time.”… If women do not get their rights, this is not a democracy. No democracy without women’s rights… If we are not there in the ministry and in the other committees how will the constitution come? – It will come against women. It will come against women.

WLP: What viable party do you think will best uphold and advance women’s rights?

Hadi: It won’t be fair because I am supporting — although I am not still a member, I have my differences– I am supporting the Egyptian Social Democratic Party. The women’s committee is strong. It has many activists and academic feminists and average women who are interested in women’s rights. They spoke about having 30% quota. They have been asking women to be part of their constituency.

Actually the most organized use of women’s votes are Islamic [parties]. The other parties, they won’t really get real representation in parliament. They are very nuanced. They were just formed after the revolution. This election is going to be for the Islamist groups and the NDP, unless a strong position is taken to forbid those who were part of the regime and the decision-making bodies of the past five years to be allowed to go as candidates. Otherwise it is those who are the most organized, the ones who have money to buy votes, to organize to make big campaigns. But the most important thing, and I think we should be looking at a long term perspective – short term as women we will not make any victories. But these elections, we are working for the next five year elections. Insisting on having programs and insisting on trying to secure women’s demands within these programs.

WLP: There has been much discussion about the future political role of the Muslim Brotherhood – whether the moderate face it is trying to put forth is a façade; is it the most powerful faction; and what would a politically empowered Muslim Brotherhood mean for women’s and minority rights.
What is your opinion on these issues? Do you think fears regarding the Brotherhood are overblown? And what role do you anticipate they will have in the future government?

Hadi: Since day one, the different [religious] groups – I will speak of a spectrum from the Salafist to what you call the moderate or centrist, the Muslim Brotherhood, they are speaking about implementing Shari’a – the hijab and so on. Some of them are speaking about not having equal citizenship with non-Muslims. When you are not in power you speak modestly and moderately. But, when you are in power, this is something completely different.

Still, we have been thirty years under Mubarak using this straw man to make us afraid- which is if you topple Mubarak’s regime, you will get the Islamists. And actually this message has been sent to the West and also to the liberal and the leftists in our party…if you don’t want Mubarak you will get the Islamists and the Salafis. But, I am willing, I am willing to get whomever these elections brings, because we are at the beginning. We have to go through the democratic process and learn. And people in general learn. At first they will elect the Muslim Brotherhood or the moderate Islamists or the Salafists. And then they will see how they deal with their issues. It takes time. In democracy you have to pay for it. I think I am willing to take the risk even if the Muslim Brotherhood comes or the Islamists come, and we’ll fight. But, this country has to be political. And this with this revolution it became political.

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