Crisis in Tahrir

Reporting sexual violence in the Middle East

| 28 January 2012 | Comments (6)

Egyptian women at a protest.

CAIRO: On January 25, as hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets to mark the one-year anniversary of the uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak and his cronies from power in 2011, women were harassed and assaulted in the iconic Tahrir Square. It tainted what had been a show of force against the military junta in the country and the will of the Egyptian people to continue their revolution.

Bikyamasr.com reported a woman’s story of being stripped of her pants, assaulted and beaten by a mob of men in the center of the square. Surprisingly, this led to a backlash against us, in comments on the article, emails and on a private listserv here in Cairo. It highlights the need to discuss the reporting of sexual violence in the region, and Egypt.

I received a number of emails condemning reporting such incidents, with the correspondence saying Bikyamasr.com is “anti-revolution,” “Orientalist,” and even patronizing and victimizing toward women by detailing the sexual violence that was perpetrated in the square.

This misses the reality. Sexual violence in Egypt, and around the region is not new. It seems to occur whenever large crowds gather in this country. As a media outlet, we can only do our best to report on such incidents. Many argued that we did not contextualize the situation by reporting the story of the woman being assaulted.

They argued Tahrir was “safe” for women and that even men were protecting women throughout the day. Certainly, this was correct, but it misses the point. Sexual assault needs no contextualization. Assault is assault, in our view.

By attempting to contextualize the brutality of an assault is an way to dampen what happened to the woman. We will have no part in it.

If a rape, or sexual assault happens, should we contextualize the violence by commenting on what the woman was wearing? I think not. Would, or should we, write that “while this incident occurred, many women did not get assaulted?” I think not. The fact is the woman, or in this case, the women, were attacked, brutally assaulted and sexually abused in public. And it is not the first time.

One need not look to mob-style attacks, which have occurred at nearly every celebration or holiday in the country for four years and beyond. The facts on the ground, facing everyday women in Egypt are appalling at best. I have heard women tell stories of taking their attacker to the police station, only to be told by officers there that there really wasn’t anything they could do; courts would take too long. “Can you imagine if this had happened to a diplomat’s wife, or a foreigner?” one of the officers told a 30-year-old Egyptian woman.

Egyptians have attempted to avoid the situation plaguing society for far too long. If it happens to a foreigner, they apologize, but if it happens to their sister, their mother, their girlfriend, their spouse, there has always been a tacit denial of any real problem. Instead of trying to save face, what should be happening is a real dialogue, a real open discussion about the causes of sexual violence in society. Without one, these women will not be the last victims of sexual brutality.

According to a 2008 study published by the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECWR) 60 percent of Egyptian women and 98 percent of foreign women are harassed on a daily basis. The ECWR warned that harassing foreign women would lead to the loss of millions of pounds. A number of foreigners said they would never return to Egypt. 14 percent of all foreign women said they would either never return to Egypt or tell their friends not to visit.

Is that enough contextualization? This is not a new problem and it is a problem that appears unwilling to disappear because few individuals are ready to tackle the issue head on.

In the end, sexual violence needs no contextualization. By demanding contextualization is another attempt to hide the truth of the problem facing Egypt. Rape, assault and harassment are daily issues for many women living in Egypt. It is a fact. Those who attempt to put these assaults in a different contexts are simply part of the problem. Sexual violence needs no explanation. It is horrific, barbaric and inexcusable. Here in Egypt, in Europe, North America or wherever it happens. Our duty as media professionals is to deliver the news. This is news. It is sad that no other news outlet in Egypt reported the sexual violence against women in Tahrir Square. And it isn’t about religion.

Promoting the revolution does not mean silencing the horrors that happen to women. In fact, reporting sexual violence is part of the media’s duty as seekers of delivering the reality to its readers.

By demanding Bikyamasr.com report on the “safety” of the square is akin to demanding we report false news. Women were groped, harassed and ultimately violently assaulted in broad daylight, in public, by mobs of men. It does not matter who the perpetrators were, it affects all women and they deserve the truth to come out. To say otherwise, or to put Egyptian society on a mantle – as if it is unique – is akin to the American politicians who allude to American exceptionalism. It is a false sense of security that continues these crimes and as Editor of Bikyamasr.com we will continue to report on the violence to women here in Egypt and elsewhere to the best of our ability.

BM

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Section: Editor's choice, Egypt, Latest News, Op-ed, Women

Egypt in Crisis
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  • Info

    Very well said! I got, as a foreigner, sexually harrassed many times the 25th january on Tahrir. We should not be silence about it, it happens! You can not work on a problem if it is not acknowledged.

  • http://ianrobertdouglas.com Ian Douglas

    A news organization should report the news. If you have done this, readers may object for any number of reasons, but you will have fulfilled your obligation. Nonetheless, there are times and situations when the political context news unfolds in is important and should inform how a story is investigated and ultimately conveyed. For example, rape as a method of warfare is not simply rape. It is also a method of war. In such contexts, it is impossible to understand rape as only rape. The fact that these assaults took place in Tahrir Square on the first anniversary of the January 25 Revolution is not irrelevant, though investigation should not presume, either, that it is relevant. Simply, questions could be asked. Clearly Tahrir Square on that day was not like the rest of Egypt on that day. It was — and remains — a political zone. This is not at all to say one must add, “other women were not attacked,” or “generally the square was safe,” or any other such statement. But I think in this instance it would helped, not hindered, the story to contextualise the location of this attack. Had it happened in Mohandessin at the same time no context would be needed. But this did happen in Tahrir amid a distinct period of struggle between revolutionary and counter-revolutionary forces. I think that recognizing this is not taking sides, or ignoring the sad reality of systematic sexual harassment in Egypt, but rather being — or attempting to be — as accurate as possible to the actual incident; the when, where and who. If investigations found new information further, one could say that. But if — and I underline the word “if” — the incident was premeditated, the action of baltageya and their financiers, then not contextualising it achieves what those who ordered the attack and others want as a result: conveying that Tahrir Square is unsafe, a place where women can be attacked, and where disorder and immorality basically prevails. I end with this thought: It was well known and widely talked about that during the 18 days of the initial uprising last year, not one female reported being sexually harassed in Tahrir Square. Indeed, news was the absence of such harassment. That sexual attacks would happen in the square now should lead us to question why, alongside reporting the facts. Thanks for reading

  • Asedf

    Yes, you are right! It is a mindset. Men – and women – have to understand one thing about women: It’s HER body. It’s HER life! A woman does not BELONG to a father, a husband or a son!
    But in a country where even marriage is in fact but a sale from father to husband and where religious beliefs are abused to cement the demeaning of women, there is little hope these views will change.
    I have been the victim of public assault in the street and on the subway, and even more in my own home at the hands of my Egyptian husband for 30 years. And I do not talk about some rural redneck but about an academic who has lived in Europe and likes to present himself as an educated and liberal person. What I remember most is that he always used to explain his behaviour with his religious rights above women in general and wives in special.
    And I think there are millions of women like me in Egypt and other Arab countries.

    • Sjean1r1

      Why have you  tolerated such treatment for 30 years?

      • Asedf

        Because he stole my savings and would have taken away the children while they were still minors. This is Egypt – there is no help for women in such a situation, even if they are foreigners. If you get out at all, you get out alone and with the clothes on your back. Nothing else.

  • http://azzasedky.typepad.com/ azzasedky

    I agree. This has absolutely nothing to do with Tahrir or the Revolution. It is a mindset, and this is what we should fight.
    Then again, anywhere in the world, if you have 2 million congregate, there will most definitely be the good, the bad, and the ugly. The ugly will penetrate these millions