Palestinian Women Gain Confidence as Family Decision-Makers

From November 2005-February 2006, the WLP Palestinian partner Women's Affairs Technical Committee worked intensively with a group of 19 women in their twenties and thirties to develop skills in participatory leadership and effective communication.

As the women came together to exchange experiences each week, a consistent theme emerged - the challenges many of them faced in the home with their husbands, children, or parents.

"When decisions arise at home, I do not speak my mind. I remain silent," said one participant. Another participant described her position, "I did not know myself well. I lacked self-confidence and was not able to participate in decisions because I felt constrained by social norms."

During the course of the workshop, participants learned vital participatory leadership skills such as negotiation, persuasion, consensus-building, and sharing responsibilities and results. Through this process, their self-confidence and self-awareness increased and they began to address the challenges they faced at home.

Rose* felt empowered to go back to her family to discuss an income-generating project they had previously opposed. She said, "When I first suggested starting a tailoring project, my family strongly opposed the idea. I was very committed to carrying out this project, but I did not speak my mind. I have now raised the subject again with my family and I feel very determined to persuade them of the value of this project. This leadership workshop has been a unique experience for me."

Faten* had struggled for a long time to communicate with her children and to share her values with them. "It can be difficult, because society makes you feel as though your children do not belong to you, but to your husband and his family. I now feel better equipped to express my point of view on how to bring up our children and participate more actively in family decision-making," she said.

Noor* felt able to talk to her husband and children about the way responsibilities were divided at home. "I used to just accept things in the home as they were because I felt unsure of myself. I now feel more aware of the way roles and responsibilities are divided and I discuss everything with my husband and children."

Participants shared their stories during weekly workshop meetings and felt empowered to continue to transform their family lives because of the encouragement and support offered by the group. Women's Affairs Technical Committee will continue to support participants to achieve their goals over the next year.

* Names have been changed in order to protect participants' identities.