Contribution to the debate on the Family Law
November 7, 2020
The Institute of Women’s Studies held an internal meeting between its members to discuss the law and formulate a contribution to the social debate around the draft law to protect the family from violence. The paper (in Arabic) was later published on the University’s as well as the Institute’s website and Facebook page.
The Institute held an electronic Zoom workshop on October 27th 2020 to discuss the Institute’s contribution to the debate on Family Protection Law.The aim of the workshop was to bring together in dialogue and debate the different approaches to the question of violence against women in the Palestinian society as well to try to find a common ground from which a context based strategy for tackling family violence can be developed. From the Institute, Dr. Islah Jad and Rema Hammami participated in the workshop, another academic, Nadera Kevorkian specializing in criminology, state crimes surveillance, gender violence, law and society also participated in the workshop, in addition to Dr. Tahrir al-A’raj, who represented civil society organizations which advocated the family protection law.
Dr. al-A’raj representing civil society organizations which participated in drafting the proposed family law stressed the necessity of having a family law that would both protect women and the family from violence. Stressing the need for the collaboration of all social and political parties in supporting the law.
The institute’s contribution to the debate was represented by Dr. Islah Jad who stressed that the institute’s paper was based on an overview of different positions supporting and opposing the law. The institute’s paper explored the theoretical presuppositions leading to rigid positions that become obstacles to a dialogue that could lead to a common ground between the different parties. According to the institute’s paper, the problem lies in the way the question of family violence is approached, mainly in the focus on the notion of a “patriarchal culture and partial interpretations of religious texts. The focus on culture instead of attempting to understand and explain family violence within the context of specific social, political and economic relations in Palestine has limited the ability of activists and academics to effect a real change in the question of family violence or family relations in general. Moreover, the institute’s paper also pointed to the limited sovereignty of the P.A and thus its limited power to impose the rule of law, or effect real social changes on the ground, especially through the law. Dr. Jad also presented the main recommendations of the institute’s paper including: the need to go beyond dichotomous formulas on which the proposed law was based including those of violent men\victimized women, tradition/modernity…etc. The paper concluded with the need to formulate an ethical base on which different parties including social and community activists can tackle issues of family violence in ways that are more relevant and thus more effective in the Palestinian context, and in which local and community activists can play an important role.
Dr. Kevorkian’s presentation has also stressed the importance of ethical responsibility as well as the best interest of the victim as main reference points for tackling issues of violence. According to Kevorkian, law itself is based on implicit or explicit forms of violence. Reaching ethical criteria that stem from the local context and can thus attain communal and social support would be more effective in tackling family violence.
It is important to note that a good number of participants representing social, legal and women’s organizations, in addition to members from the police and other governmental institutions participated attended the workshop and participated actively in the debate.
To watch the workshop through Zoom:
https://www.facebook.com/iws.bzu/videos/2764559987121502