Program in Jordan
Our actions
In Jordan, the authority of the man over the woman is based on communal traditions and religious interpretations so that, in reality, men keep control over women’s bodies and behaviors, on which rests the honor of the family. Keeping control over the woman means denying her the exercise of her most basic rights and adopting practices deemed discriminatory in Europe, but very common in Jordan.
To mention just a few of these practices:
- Many families favor male children, which results in the abuse of their daughters and the use of violence against them (verbal, psychological and physical).
- The families do not consider it necessary to educate their daughters because their future is limited to marriage and maternity. Therefore, investing in the education of the boys rather than the girls’ is considered cost-effective.
- In this case, girls leave school during adolescence, even if their academic results are good. They are confined to the house while their fathers choose their husbands, whom they will marry even if the legal age of marriage is 18 in Jordan, thanks to a derogation that the father can easily obtain from the Scheik.
- A girl can also be withdrawn from school to prevent her from communicating with the society or by fear that she will be approached by strangers on her way to school.
- A girl can be designated by all family members to be the one who takes care of the elderly, the children or the disabled members of the family. This helps reduce the financial expenses of the family and the relief from the need of having someone come and perform these tasks. But this consolidates the total dependence of the daughter in relation to her father and her family and the impossibility for her to become independent someday.
- Girls kept at home do not develop socialization skills, which accentuates the offset in society, and the impossibility for them to become independent someday.
The program
The program aims to raise awareness in the Jordanian community about discriminatory practices against women and young girls, who are exposed to honour crimes. The goal is to reduce these practices through the combined efforts of a network of 12 partner organizations in the Jordanian governorates, supported by an awareness campaign by the media which targets the civil society and the community leaders.
Our activities
1) The establishment of a network of 12 organizations in 3 Jordanian governorates;
2) Capacity-building training of 12 partners (TOT);
3) Media awareness campaign in 3 regions from Jordan;
4) Awareness sessions in the civil society (adults, students);
5) Advocacy with elected leaders and decision makers;
6) Support towards the reintegration of 20 women held in administrative detention
The situation in 2020
Despite the difficult year due to the pandemic context, SIGI organized online trainings for the members of 12 organizations across the country. Family mediations were set up for the women locked up in administrative detention for being victims of sexual abuse or for protecting them from honour crimes. Solutions are discussed and drawn up with the women and sometimes with their family regarding their social and economic rehabilitation. They follow professional courses in order to ensure their financial autonomy upon release from administrative detention.
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