Marginalization striks Egyptian women despite government’s efforts: says former diplomat

on: September 05, 2017

Cairo – Egyptian former head of National Council of Woman Mervat Tallawy received the Order of the Rising Sun from Japanese Embassy in Cairo in appreciation to her role to support the issues of women in Egypt.

The Egyptian woman, who served as a diplomat in the Foreign Ministry, stressed the need for further steps to empower the Egyptian woman during the coming period.

“Al-Bawaba News” held an interview with Tallawy to discuss her vision over the current position of Egyptian woman and the ways to achieve gender equality:

How do you receive the invitation to receive honor from Japanese embassy in Cairo?

It was surprise to be honored by the Japanese Embassy in Cairo. I served as a diplomat in Egyptian embassy in Tokyo 20 years ago, while they still remember me and are keen to honor me. I was extremely happy for this invitation. During my work in Japan, we managed to conclude a large number of agreements that served the interests of the two countries.

Japanese government was keen to honor Egyptian woman, Have you received the same in Egypt?

Japan is one of the countries that managed to gain the international respect and appreciation. The Japanese government is keen to honor the persons who play a role to support their country. In Egypt, I have received honor many times before, while the major challenge we face in Egypt is the increasing poverty and illiteracy.

Do you think that women suffer from repression?

Egyptian woman suffers from increasing problems for decades despite the major role she plays in different occasions. Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi launched increasing initiative to express support for Egyptian woman, while the country has no the suitable mechanism to improve the position of Egyptian woman. We need a program to support organizations in Egypt to perform their role towards the Egyptian woman.

How do you assess the media role to support woman?

The media channels and newspapers played a major role to break the image of woman before the Egyptian community. It is important for the government not to allow any abuse of women and to take punitive actions against the violators.

How do you see the woman’s role to improve her position in the Egyptian community?

The woman bears a major part of the responsibility for her marginalization. A large number of women do not want to change their position. During the era of Muslim Brotherhood, we monitored a number of calls to limit the role of woman to just having children.

What are the required steps to empower woman in Egypt?

I think that it is important for the Egyptian woman to prove her efficiency in different fields and to play a major role in her community on political, economic and cultural sides. The female parliamentarians should play a role to promote gender equality and support the role of woman in the Egyptian community.