Preliminary observations on women’s participation in 2016 municipal elections

With the impending municipal elections, calls have risen to step up women’s participation in the said elections as well as for the endorsement of the women’s quota.  The latter of is significant importance given that the rate of participation of women in municipal action still lags behind, despite its increase from 3% to 6% in the wake of the 2010 elections. To this effect, and just one day before the deadline of submission of nominations for the Beirut and Beqaa areas, preliminary indications show that the number of women generally remains low. Some women candidates chose to be on civil society electoral lists, while others chose to run as independent. Another feature is that women candidates tend to describe themselves as activists or professionals. One other clear and important observation is that political party lists have yet to include women candidates, notwithstanding past pledges and public statements by parties in favor of increasing women representation in the upcoming elections. A good illustration of women candidature is the Beirut Madinati list which is unprecedentedly and equally divided among men and women nominees, with a noticeable inclination in selection towards competence and proficiency. Of women candidates, we noted so prominent names such engineers Mona H7allak and Nada Dughan, film director Nadine Labaki, as well as Maria Manok, Carol Chebli Touini, Nada Sahnaoui, Rita Maaluf, Farah Kobeisi, Rana Khoury, Amal Cherif, Iman Hassan Ghandour and May Omar Daook. Also, remarkably, and for the first time in its history, the town of A3rsaal in the Beqaa, have filed a number of women candidates. These include civil society and women activists Rima Krombi and Fatmeh Bo7hlok. Meanwhile, in the Metn village of Khreibe, woman journalist Haifa Banna stressed in her interview with As Safir daily that she has run independently to face the monopoly of the very few. Heading south, and specifically to Zawtar al Sharqia in Nabatiyeh, the newspaper  highlighted the nomination of young woman journalist Zainab Ismail, who vowed to end the marginalization of women in the upcoming municipal elections. (As Safir, Al Mustaqbal, April 19 and 26, 2016)