More parliamentry seats for Moroccan women?

The online journal, Maghrebia is carrying an interesting article about the movement towards including more women in parliament. Author of the story, Imane Belhaj, notes that... " The Democratic Association of Moroccan Women study released on November 7th cited key points in the struggle of the women's movement since 1992 and identified remaining obstacles to women attaining leadership positions."

The study is part of a two-year partnership programme with the EU providing for the increase of women in leadership positions. The partnership includes a training programme for women wishing to run in legislative elections.

A movement to grant one-third of parliamentary seats to women in 2007 was formed in June. Its membership includes 34 Moroccan women's associations.

The movement will mobilise to resist all forms of discrimination against women and inequality in its liaisons with decision makers and political leaders to review ways to ensure greater involvement of women in the 2007 elections. It will also appeal to the media in spreading its cause.

Mohammad V University law professor Mohamed Mouaquit, who prepared the study for the Democratic Association of Moroccan Women, states political representation of women in Morocco "does not mean the number of seats designated to women as it might seem, but basically it means a profound change in mentality, which requires emphasising male domination of women as a particular form of the power relationships within societies. It also means working within a social-type framework to help deploy all means to oppose inequality and discrimination and to validate the importance of female solidarity in this struggle to achieve equality, democracy and citizenship."

Tags: Morocco Fes, Maghreb news