"Khuloe"

Issam Smeir of the Jordanian civic group Shifa'a (Arabic for "healing") has a new blogpost up with thoughts about the Jordanian parliament's failure to grant women the right to a divorce at their own will. Known as "Khuloe," the bill would amend the personal status codes to grant women the right to file for divorce without having to declare a reason.

Smeir reports that the proposed amendment is being fiercely debated in Jordan (a positive sign), but sees a long road ahead in transforming social mores surrounding women's rights:

As I observe the wind of change blowing hard in our part of the World, I believe that a political reform is easier to achieve than a social one. Important matters such as democracy, human rights and educational reform, as difficult as they might be, are easier to be tackled and less resilient to external pressure in comparison with some social practices and norms. in this case, women's rights campaigners have to fight on two fronts. An external front, that they seem to be winning against the Male-Exclusive Club that control the  "Decision Making Institutions" in the Middle East. The other internal front is a delicate and painful one, as they have to fight to convince and educate their fellow sisters about their own rights. Now, that might be a lengthy emotionally-draining fight!

The American civil rights movement faced similar obstacles in that many people - both black and white - were hostile to its agenda of transforming the social fabric of the American south. Many blacks (along with the pro-segregation majority of whites) feared both the de-stabilizing effects of civil rights campaigns and the potential backlash they would face. A simple Supreme Court decision could not in of itself change hearts and minds.