As Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf reshuffles his Cabinet, trying to placate the boiling Egyptian street with a more representative government, women have started to speak up, demanding greater representation in politics. Sharaf reshuffled 14 ministers in his Cabinet on July 17, replacing ministers of finance and foreign affairs, but retaining the controversial interior and justice ministers. Women’s organisations contend that with only one woman in the new Cabinet, International Cooperation and Planning Minister Fayza Aboul-Naga, the new government is far from egalitarian. Although described by the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram as “liberal-dominated,” the Tahrir Square protesters that forced the change claimed that even the new cabinet was too pro-Mubarak. The public outcry forced Sharaf to postpone the swearing in of the government.
“This is an intentional ignoring of women’s representation,” Nahed Shahata, head of programming at the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECWR), a Cairo-based organisation, said. “Women stood alongside men at Tahrir Square. They were killed and injured just like men. It’s not a question of gender; this is an important period of democratic transition.”
Shahata said there is no religious or educational barrier preventing women from holding leadership positions in Egypt, noting that women already serve as judges, academics and social leaders. She said it was the government’s responsibility to instil notions of equality in society by appointing more women in parliament, in the new government and as governors. The press release issued by ECWR did not explain what female ratio would be considered “fair”, but Shahata said that 30 per cent was a reasonable goal.