A harassment-infested region

An abstract painting of a woman being harassed by a man Artwork by Haisam Al Saiegh — Artwork by Haisam Al Saiegh

“He brought me water. He sat beside me, as if he wanted to make sure I was okay. He put his hand on my thigh and said, ‘do you want something else?’ and he started moving his hand on my skin.”

Women labour in al-Raqqa, harassment-dipped bread. Rozana *

The girls, however, avoid talking about the harassment they face at the workplace, fearing stigma and the power of the merchants. Rozana*

Meanwhile, some Syrian women, especially those who are now refugees and migrants in Europe, managed to break through the barriers of silence, and they confronted society with their wishes:

Reem al-Haj: “I will not get a hymen reconstruction surgery. I do not want to hide the crime of my rape.”

Yasmin Mari: “Women get away from politics because of the attacks on their bodies and their womanhood.” Rozana*

an illustration of a red smudge on black Artwork: Haytham Al-Sayegh

Spreading a culture of harassment and sexism

“The color red on blonde women, wow! Red makes for intensity, yes indeed. Red is really, really intense. Her beauty, her eyes, wow! What a pity that you have to carry this bag. The bag is heavy on you. The bag takes away some of her beauty.”

These comments by al-Qurini belong to societal culture in our harassment-infested region with strong bias against women. This TV channel ran several rounds of women’s gymnastics competitions, with the commentary of the sports commentator Othman al-Qurini. The words he used, the expressions, for commenting on the performance of the athletes, were shocking. Is Bein Sports spreading a culture of harassment and sexism? Enab Baladi *

I still remember the journalist’s accusations of me. When I was discussing collaborating with him, organising a workshop on “editing”, and we had a discussion on harassment. He “slapped” me with his words when he hinted at the short dress I was wearing being an open invitation for men to harass me! SFJN *
It is not relationships with people that anger Bissan. She’s angry when these relations are imposed on her in a space that feeds on fears that grow in the heart and mind. She’s angry when people gather together to judge her, when she doesn’t find a space of privacy and safety for herself and her son.” Aljumhuriya *

Detention person standing by a table against a black background. Illustration: Haytham Al-Sayegh

Previous: Women detainees face a social stigma

an abstract painting of a tent in a refugee camp. Artwork by Haisam Al Saiegh

Next: Between two camps… and solitude

XwhY

XwhY is a reader of gender and sexuality related-content that represents the problems and challenges faced by women and LGBTQIA+ communities in Syria and the region.

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Introduction XwhY

Metamorphosis of the body and sexuality

How the tale starts…

Again in other plastic boxes

A religious undertaking or a patriarchal tendency

Inflicting harm based on difference

Female detainees face a social stigma

A harassment-infested region

Between two camps… and solitude

Tarps fly away with the first gust of wind

Reality and hopes between laws and social traditions

Empowerment vs “slow change”

Syrian women’s path towards political participation…

Women's sports in the face of conservative social norms

Campaigns surveys and shared reports

Audience interaction…breaking the silence.

Sexual diversity star instead of the binary slash

Gender and sexuality reader Visit page

Since they were united in the embrace, they became two no more

A pair they had become

But we cannot say if a woman or a man they were

They appear sexless

But of two sexes each all the same.Visit page

I was 13 years old when I learned how to cook pasta at school. Meanwhile, my boy friends were playing football in the schoolyard. Visit page

How would it feel if we try to put you inside a plastic box with a transparent lid, and let you watch the world from there as much as the world is watching you? Visit page

Al-Hisba / Muhrim / the Branch / abominations / morals / do-gooders / right and wrong / veil and chastity / morality police … “Do we have Islamic feminism? Visit page

Women and the confrontation of violence… between the injustice of society and lacking protection alternatives. Visit page

Mending what has been broken, Female detainees face social stigma after their release from the Syrian prisons. Visit page

when these relations are imposed, in a space that feeds on fears that grow in the heart and mind. Visit page

After this long life, how can you want to preserve the right to life for yourself? You are already destroyed, even God cannot untangle your internal destruction. Visit page

In these forgotten camps, our concern was to secure many of the missing simple and basic things, the most important is how to get water, showers and hygiene. Visit page

Societal traditions prevent the progress from being put into practice, so how can we get out of this deadlock? Visit page

It was funny to read that more than a quarter of women would rather criticize their partner’s sexual performance than talk about money. Visit page

I am specifically calling for intersectional thinking, not to “adaptation”, the intersection between feminist and gender issues with all political issues. Visit page

Professional training, with the aim of supporting local women against extremist and conservative values. Visit page

despite the lack of data, interactive alternatives were in place. Visit page

The impact of breaking the silence and shifting from bullying to dialogue. Visit page

The most challenging aspect we faced while preparing the content was using appropriate language, but it wasn’t the only one. Visit page