**Date: September 27, 2016**
The Center for Women’s Legal Researches, Counselling and Protection (CWLRCP) concluded its “Legal Protection for Women” project during a meeting held yesterday, Monday, with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) – Sawasya – the Joint Programme of UNDP and UN Women: Promoting the Rule of Law, Justice and Security for the Palestinian People, which aims to contribute to the promotion of women’s rights and gender equality in the Gaza Strip.
Ms. Zeinab Al-Ghunaimi, Director of the CWLRCP, welcomed attendees from women’s, human rights, and community organizations, as well as reformers, lawyers, and media representatives. She emphasized the need for a new and unified law in Palestine, based on ensuring fair rights and equality in rights for both men and women. She stated that the laws regulating family rights currently in effect in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank are decades old and contradict the constitutional framework of equality because they are based on discrimination against women and prevent them from enjoying their rights. According to Al-Ghunaimi, these laws grant men broad rights, most notably the absolute right to initiate and terminate marriage contracts, as well as the right to guardianship and custody of children when they reach the age of discernment.
Al-Ghunaimi called on the Sharia Judiciary in Gaza to consider the petition submitted by the CWLRCP to His Eminence Dr. Hassan Al-Joujou, Head of the Sharia Judicial Council, which calls for the abolition of Judicial Circular No. (08/2016) concerning the husband’s right to file a lawsuit for discord and conflict, considering it a circular that violates the principle of equality and non-discrimination.
In her speech, Ms. Wafaa Al-Kafarna, Rule of Law Programme Officer in the Gaza Strip, praised the CWLRCP for its efforts in serving women and implementing the project in a way that serves women’s interests and enhances their access to justice through legal services, awareness, and education. She affirmed that the goal of the Sawasya Programme is to provide awareness and education to all segments of society in a way that contributes to changing laws towards justice and equality, as well as providing free legal aid to poor women.
Sheikh Saeed Abu Al-Jubeen, a judge at the Supreme Sharia Court in Gaza, emphasized the need to unify laws between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, noting that the current laws need to be updated. He spoke extensively about the Personal Status Law, especially the grounds for separation due to discord and conflict, which is the focus of the meeting.
Similarly, researcher Ahmed Hassouna presented the results and recommendations of the research conducted by the CWLRCP within the project, entitled “Women’s Right to Obtain Separation,” which focuses on lawsuits for separation due to harm, discord, and conflict as a form of ending the marital relationship. The research will be printed and distributed, and its results will be presented on the CWLRCP’s website.
Ms. Wafaa Helles, the project coordinator, presented a summary of the activities that were achieved during the project period, in addition to the results, outputs, and success stories that were achieved during the project.
