Women's Rights, Religion and Legal Reform in the Maghreb

Aili Mari TrippUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison, USAVisiting scholar, Al Akhawayn University, Ifrane, Morocco

Why did Maghreb countries adopt gender reforms faster than other MENA countries?

Maghreb MENA(excluding Maghreb)

Discriminatory family code 0.44 0.65

Restricted physical activity 0.27 0.44

Restricted resources and assets 0.52 0.52

Restricted civil liberties 0.30 0.80

Overall 0.15 0.38

Women in Parliament

Maghreb overall 27%Middle East (excluding Maghreb)

10

Global 22

Algeria 31.6Tunisia 31.3Morocco 17.0

French colonial legacy Historic influences: Arab-Islamic, Berber,

French, Sub-Saharan African Military has been essential to regime survival Share legacy of Maliki Islamic and French

jurisprudence Centralized state control over legal system State control over family law but interpreted

with reference to Islamic jurisprudence

Prior to French colonization, Tunisia had more centralized state than Algeria and Morocco

Tunisia has history of more secular legislation Algeria colonized longer than others with huge

settler population (132 years) Algeria post-war legacy (1954-62, 1991-2002) Morocco and Tunisia were protectorates of

France Morocco not part of Ottoman Empire Morocco monarchy Morocco not part of Africa Union

After independence Maghreb countries adopted different legal systems: Tunisia made drastic reforms for women Algeria and Morocco adopted more conservative

laws French policy in Algeria towards tribes or

eradicating them strengthened tribal ties. French policy of divide and rule in Morocco strengthened tribal autonomy.

Tunisia: state that emerged was largely autonomous from kin groups Tunisia reformed Personal Status Code to

liberalization family law and women’s rights Morocco: tribal structure tied to state Conservative family law adopted

Algeria: state depended on support from kin groups Conservative family law adopted

1993 Reforms to the Personal Status Code, Labor Code, and Penal Code

1998 Code of Nationality reforms 2014 Constitution

2003 amendment to Morocco’s Employment Code recognizes sexual harassment in the workplace as an offence

2004 Reform of Personal Status Code 2007 Reform of nationality code 2011 Constitutional changes 2011 Quota law reform 2014 amended an article of the penal code

that allowed rapists of underage girls to avoid prosecution by marrying their victims.

2004 reform of Penal Code criminalizes sexual harassment

2005 amendment to the nationality code 2005 Family Code amended 2012 Electoral Law reform put in place quotas 2015 law criminalizes domestic violence

Michael Ross: Oil production is impediment to female representation

Critique: He does not account for quotas or women’s mobilization.

MENA countries Female Legislative Representation

Oil producers 13%Non-oil producers 14%

Ron Inglehart, Pippa Norris (2003): Religiosity and lack of democracy is impediment to women’s representation.

Critique: The adoption of quotas challenges this claim in Maghreb, Senegal and elsewhere.

Maghreb MENA

Read or listen to Quran or Bible: Always

63% 74%

Do you pray daily: Always 63 74

Are you religious person? 31 39

Source: Arab Barometer, 2013

Response:Completely appropriate

Kuwait 17.0

Palestine 11.6

Lebanon 8.7

Jordan 6.1

Iraq 5.0

Yemen 4.3

Egypt 4.2

Average 8.1

Maghreb Response:Completely appropriate

Algeria 15.2

Tunisia 6.4

Morocco 12.3

Libya 19.3

Average 13.3

Source: Arab Barometer 2013

Question Maghreb MENA

Agree: Gender equality in constitution

78% 85%

Agree: Married woman can work outside home

81 82

Disagree: Men better political leaders

43 32

Disagree: University education more important for boys

82 73

Source: Arab Barometer, 2013

Type of QuotaWomen in

LegislatureLegislative quotas 23%Reserved seats 17Voluntary quotas 17Appointed quota 8.5

Women in Legislatures

Quotas 20%No quotas 5%

Women in Legislatures

Quotas (122 countries) 24%No quotas (97 countries) 15%

Rania Maktabi: Women have acquired wider civil rights in homogenous states with unitary court systems than in multireligious states with dual court systems (Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon)

Dorthe Engelcke: More unified legal system in Morocco more conducive to gender reform and Jordanian separation of civil and sharia legal systems. Different British and French traditions influenced these outcomes.

Country Unified Courts Unified LawsAlgeria yes yesMorocco yes yesTunisia yes yesIraq yes yesKuwait yes yesTurkey yes yes

Libya yes noOman yes noEgypt yes noYemen yes NA

Bahrain no noJordan no noLebanon no noPalestinian Authority no no Qatar no noSyria no noUAE no no

Maghreb MENA without Maghreb

Political Rights2005 5.7 5.92015 4.0 6.1Change +1.7 -0.2

Civil Liberties2005 4.7 5.52015 4.0 5.6Change +0.7 -0.1

Overall Democracy Ranking2005 5.2 5.72015 4.0 5.9Change +1.2 -0.2

Source: Freedom House. Free (1.0 to 2.5), Partly Free (3.0 to 5.0), Not Free (5.5 to 7.0)

Maghreb MENA without Maghreb

2005 69 73

2015 58 75

Overall change +11 improvement -2 worsened

Source: Freedom House

Free (F): 0-30 Partly Free (PF): 31-60 Not Free (NF): 61-100

Disruptions in gender relations and norms during conflict

1) Some political opening2) Active coalition including women’s

organizations3) Diffusion and learning within the region

supported by international donors 4) Pursuit of a coalitional accommodations,

however problematic and unstable, between Islamist and secularist feminists on some issues

5) Postconflict effects (Algeria)