“Women have to believe in themselves as agents of change”
Interview with Rose Somali, President of Women’s Affairs Technical Committee (WATC)
What is the work of Women's Affairs Technical Committee)?
Our organization was created in 1992 with the aim of eliminating all forms of discrimination against women. To that end, we carry out a job that falls into two main priorities. On the one hand, WATC works in the field of awareness and advocacy on issues related to women's rights. On the other, our organization implements projects to develop the role of women in society, and to empower women to assume decision-making positions. WATC pays particular attention to the most vulnerable women, mainly in rural areas and among the refugee women in Palestine.
What is the situation of Palestinian women at present?
Palestinian women are in a situation of extreme vulnerability that emerges from a triple circumstance: as victims of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as women living in a patriarchal society and as unequal members of society subject to discriminatory laws.
In this way, women suffer much of the consequences of the conflict at all levels. They bear the weight of the household, and they have to work outside it to earn money for the family. In addition, because of the conflict, many women can not receive an education because they do not have sufficient resources to do so. The lack of education severely restricts their aspirations (economic, social, etc.) in the future.
What is the situation of the movement of defending women's rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories?
Although the situation is complex and we have to face many problems in the actual context, there is a significant number of organizations in the Palestinian territories that work in defending and promoting women's rights. So, as WATC does, many organizations focus their activities in protecting the basic needs of women, training women to become economically and socially independent, advocating for a non discriminatory family law towards women, raising social awareness on gender issues, etc.
What is the way Palestinian women must follow to improve their situation and develop on an equal plane with men?
Women have to believe in themselves as agents of change. They have the necessary capabilities to assume decision-making position in the society to which they belong. And this belief must also emerge within their own families.
All this requires women to keep working and pushing through the coordinated work of all organizations with the aim of gradually become an active part in society and in the decision-making process.
Actualidad