Voters selected not one of the 26 girls who stood for election in Qatar’s first legislative elections on Saturday, disappointing candidates who had wished to lend a voice for ladies and different Qataris within the Gulf monarchy’s political course of, stories Reuters.
The vote was for 30 members of the 45-seat advisory Shura Council whereas the emir will proceed to nominate the remaining 15 members of the physique that may approve a restricted scope of insurance policies for the small however rich nation, which bans political events.
“To have all males is just not the imaginative and prescient of Qatar,” mentioned Aisha Hamam al-Jasim, 59, a nursing supervisor who ran in Doha’s Markhiya district. She urged Qatari girls to begin “voicing what they imagine in” and vote for sturdy girls candidates sooner or later.
“For the primary time in Qatar, that is the chance to participate within the political,” she mentioned as individuals trickled into the polls earlier on Saturday.
Jasim, like fellow feminine candidates, mentioned she had encountered some males who thought girls mustn’t run. Highlighting her administrative abilities, she centered on coverage priorities like well being, youth employment, and retirement.
I simply say: I am sturdy, I am succesful. I see myself as match as a person … If you wish to see me as weak, that is as much as you, however I’m not weak,
she mentioned within the polling station the place women and men had separate entrances.
Whereas Qatar has launched reforms to girls’s rights in recent times, together with permitting girls to independently get a driving license, it has been criticised by rights teams for points just like the guardianship system, the place a girl wants male permission to marry, journey, and entry reproductive healthcare.
Human Rights Watch in March mentioned that when in 2019 girls tweeted from an nameless account about Qatar’s guardianship system, the account shut down inside 24 hours after cyber safety officers summoned one girl.
Naima Abdulwahab al-Mutaawa’a, a candidate and overseas ministry employee whose aged mom got here to vote for her, had wished to press for a physique advocating for ladies and youngsters.
A number of feminine candidates had been searching for to enhance the combination into Qatari society of youngsters of feminine residents married to foreigners who, like in different Gulf states, can’t move their Qatari nationality to their kids.
READ: Qatar sets up body to oversee first Shura Council elections
Qatar has one feminine minister: Public Well being Minister Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari.
Whereas Jasim stopped wanting advocating for granting passports, fellow candidate Leena al-Dafa known as for full citizenship for youngsters in such instances.
Dafa, a author, doesn’t see those that oppose girls within the Shura Council as an impediment as a result of the ruling emir – and the regulation – help feminine participation.
“The regulation offers me this proper … I do not care what aggressive individuals say about that,” she mentioned, including that ladies have been finest suited to debate their points.
Al-Maha al-Majid, a 34-year-old industrial engineer stood for election, alongside her insurance policies, to vary mindsets.
To persuade the males (to vote for ladies), sure, we could should put in work or additional effort … I am prepared to take this additional effort with the intention to be in and to persuade this society that the ladies can accomplish that,
she mentioned.
For some, attitudes are exhausting to shake.
Male candidate Sabaan Al Jassim, 65, helps girls standing in elections however mentioned their main position stays within the household.
“They’re right here, they’ve their fingerprint they usually have their vote and a voice … However most essential is in the home, to care for the children with the households,” he mentioned at a polling station the place Jasim and Mutaawa’a sat throughout the room from him.
