Scores of women participated in a march in Beirut on Monday to protest for various human rights issues in Lebanon.
From speaking loud against gender inequality to calling out the Kafala system, these women raised their voices in the streets chanting different slogans.
Though the majority of the women were Lebanese of different religious backgrounds, some of the women were also of different nationalities. And they were not alone but joined by dozens of men who protested in support of the same causes.
They organized this march on International Women’s Day, a day that recognizes and commemorates the cultural, political, and socioeconomic achievements of women around the world.
Their presence on this day signifies their undying fight to push for what’s right and to give a voice to those who cannot speak up.
For instance, just last month, a young Lebanese bride, Zeina Kanjo, was killed by her husband.
She was strangled in her own home just days after filing for divorce. Her killer, her husband, has yet not been brought to justice and is still on the run.
Lebanese women will not stop standing in the face of corruption and striving for what’s right, for a better country, for safety and security. Women, after all, are the backbone of society.
For the women in Lebanon, the quote, “They tried to bury us, they didn’t know we were seeds,” applies perfectly.
There is still much to do for Lebanon to claim its place among the well-developed countries of the 21st century, and that could only be when it enacts and honors the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
And when it comes to its women, Lebanon has been massively failing and not by ignorance but in full knowledge.
Women’s rights, gender equality, fair laws in family courts, mother’s right to the custody of their kids, women’s protection from femicide and domestic violence, and legally acknowledging Lebanese mothers’ rights to pass their citizenship to their children.
Until then, women’s march will continue in Lebanon, and not only on International Women’s Day.