Women in Egypt

Very interesting article about sexual harassment in Egypt.


"What is being done to raise awareness and combat such behavior? A law regarding sexual harassment will have to wait. The country has greater concerns now -- forming a new government; writing a new constitution; getting Egypt's economy going again and dealing massive unemployment, among other things.The military is in charge now, and who knows when Egypt will get a new president, or parliament."


Maybe that's precisely the problem.


I'm going to say something here, even though I try to stay neutral in most of my writing because I'm training to be a reporter and that's what I'm supposed to do: 


A law regarding sexual harassment should be a first priority. It should be one of the first things on their list. I maintain and always will maintain that unless women are treated as human beings, societies do and will continue to suffer. If Egypt wants to reinvent itself and make their country a better, more prosperous place, they HAVE to make women a priority. If they fail to get this, this revolution will have done nothing to improve their lives. 


And this is not based on my opinions alone. There is a plethora of studies that show when women are treated better, the country fares better. Socially, economically, in terms of safety and war. It's that simple. Just look at Valerie Hudson's work.


As a friend pointed out, this isn't a feminist issue, it's a human issue.