Northeast Syrian women to participate in meetings on tribal matters
Some women in the autonomous, Kurdish-led statelet welcome the move.
Women in northeast Syria are now allowed to participate in social meetings pertaining to political and tribal matters.
One female Syriac Christian official in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria that governs the area welcomed the new move, saying it counters centuries of women being sidelined in the region.
“In the Middle East, women are only at home and men have bigger roles,” Elizabeth Gawryie, a deputy of the administration’s Executive Council, told Al-Monitor. “But women must have equality and rights.”
Last week, Syrian Kurdish leader Ilham Ahmed tweeted that women would be allowed to participate in the meetings known as “al-madhafah.” Ahmed is the president of the Executive Committee in the Syrian Democratic Council. The council is the political wing of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed group that controls the statelet in northeast Syria. The forces are led by Kurds, but include an array of Christian and Arab groups as well.
