More power to women in Qatar Politics
Nisaa FM: - In a historic decision, the Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani on Thursday November 9 2017 appointed four women to the Advisory “Shura” Council, the legislative body of Qatar responsible for discussing draft laws, general government policy and the state's draft budget.
This is the first time women are being appointed to the Council.
"Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani issued an emiri decree renewing the membership of some Shura Council members and appointing 28 new members to include women for the first time in the history of the ... council," Qatar News Agency reported, citing a statement.
Experienced women enter the Shura Council
The women appointed are Hessa Sultan Jaber Mohamed Al Jaber, Aisha Youssuf Omar Al Hamad Al Mannai, Hend Abdurrahman Mohamed Mubarak Al Muftah and Reem Mohamed Rashid Al Hammoudi Al Mansouri.
Hessa Sultan al-Jaber is one of four women appointed to Qatar's Shura Council
All four women bring with them a long list of credentials:
• Hessa Al Jaber has earlier worked as a Cabinet Minister, country's third female to assume the role. She was appointed as the Minister of Communication and Information Technology in June 2013.
• Aisha Youssuf Al Mannai is an academic and Director of Sheikh Muhammad Bin Hamad Al-Thani Center for Muslim Contribution to Civilization at Hamad Bin Khalifa University. She has authored many books and received many awards.
• Hend Abdurrahman Al Muftah, another academic, is Vice President of Administration and Finance at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies and Associate Professor in the Public Administration and Policy Program. She earlier worked at Qatar University.
• Reem Mohamed Al Mansouri is an expert in information and communication technology and currently serves as an Under Secretary for Digital Society Sector Development at the Ministry of Transport and communication. She has earlier associated with ictQATAR, Al Jazeera and Qatar Academy.
The announcement follows a diplomatic crisis
The announcement comes as Qatar continues to deal with a five-month long diplomatic crisis in the Gulf, which has seen the country politically and economically blockaded by neighbouring countries - Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt.
Since the crisis began, Doha has made several notable social policy changes, including changes to its residency laws and labour laws to protect the two million-plus migrant workers in Qatar. The November 9’s announcement may have been prompted by the dispute.
The four newly elected women are not the first to enter politics in Qatar; in 2015, two women were voted on to the country's only directly elected body, the 29-strong central municipal council.
“Women play an important role in national decision-making in all fields,” Muftah, who works at the Doha Institute for Postgraduate Studies, told AFP.
She added that this role covered government institutions and the “overall development process in the country.”
Source: www.aljazeera.com