Policy paper| The Syrian Women’s Political Movement
This policy paper is puplished by The Syrian Women’s political movement in August 2023 within its National Consultaion programme.
SWPM National Consultations team members:
Dima Moussa, Lina Wafai, Rowaida Kanaan,Sabiha Khalil, Wejdan Nassif
Researcher: Alaa Younes
From the Introduction:
In Syria, where there is religious, ethnic, and sectarian diversity, a delicate and contradictory
relationship has formed among religion, state, constitution, and politics throughout the
country’s history. It is worth noting that while the Syrian Constitution defines secular
foundations of the state, it attempts to reconcile secularism with recognizing religion and
cultural traditions. The constitution asserts basic rights and freedoms for all, regardless of
gender, race, or religion. However, it stipulates that the president must be Muslim, which
reflects tension between secularism and religion in the country’s legal structure.
The current Syrian Constitution(4), adopted in 2012, also stipulates guaranteeing personal
status laws for all sects. This has resulted in adopting discriminatory personal status laws,
that have adverse effects on Syrian women, rising to the level of violence and oppression
when it comes to their personal affairs, as personal status laws specify all that is related to
marriage, divorce, inheritance, guardianship, and other issues, which are considered vital
areas that affect Syrian women’s rights and their status in society.
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