Slowly changing Egypt’s old stereotypes
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After February’s vote by the State Council for Administrative Judges against female judges, the council’s vice president was quoted by Egyptian media as saying he didn’t think women could handle the workload of cases. Another top official added that having female judges could violate Islamic proscriptions against meetings between unrelated men and women. The state-run Al-Ahram newspaper reported that female judges could require lengthy maternity leaves, hampering the court’s efficiency.
Such stereotypical arguments are familiar to Egyptian jurist Osama Attaweya, a supporter of female judges who currently serves as an assistant to the justice minister.
He says, over the past three years, dozens of pioneering female judges — out of more than 9,000 total judges — have been quietly building an unassailable record of performance in other courtrooms across Egypt.
One reason these women have moved smoothly into their new role is that they came from the ranks of state prosecutors, which have included women for years.
Hana Dahroug, chief judge of the Cairo Economic Court, says after 15 years as a prosecutor, she wasn’t worried about handling a judge’s duties. Dahroug and her colleagues are hoping this year’s vote against female judges will be the last.
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