.... “The Islamists dominate and they want not only an Islamic Egypt but a Caliphate,” Manal El-Tibi, a human rights activist, fumed to me. She quit the constituent assembly last month, convinced that a process that began with the quest for consensus has become hopelessly skewed. “I was in the kitchen and I saw all the dirty details.”
Her concerns, like those of many other women, center on what is now article 68 (previously article 36). This says, “The state shall take all measures to establish the equality of women and men in the areas of political, cultural, economic and social life, as well as all other areas, insofar as this does not conflict with the rulings of Islamic Shariah.”
The last clause amounts to saying, “We commit to equality between the sexes except when we don’t.” It should be dropped. [The New York Times] Read more
