Indicator 2 :The Constitution is in line with all international legal obligations pertaining to women’s rights as for

International law is a guide to judicial interpretations of the Constitution
Clearly prohibits discrimination based on sex or gender
Includes specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality
Adopted affirmative measures to realize equality of participation

The status assigned to international treaties by the various constitutions reflects a certain mistrust of the States of the region regarding international law, independently of the negative consequences of the reservations on women, and society, as monitored by the women’s movements in these countries. Out of the seven States, only four acknowledge in their Constitution their commitment to international treaties (Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia) and only two of this latter (Algeria and Tunisia) recognize that ratified treaties prevail on acts of parliament.

The constitutions of Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, and Tunisia prohibit discrimination based on sex and gender; Jordan and Lebanon do not yet. Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine do not have specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality, nor affirmative measures to achieve equal participation of women and men.

Even for the constitutions that prohibit sex discrimination and include specific provisions on women’s rights and affirmative measures to achieve equality between women and men (Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia) a question of the effectiveness of these principles can arise because of the declaration of the supremacy of Islam as the State Religion, or the supremacy of the Sharia. This means, for these States, that if any treaty provision contradicts Islam it shall be considered in contradiction with the Constitution and shall not prevail on the latter.

Countries

Algeria

The Algerian Constitution acknowledges the commitment to international treaties and conventions. Article 154 stipulates that “the treaties ratified by the President of the Republic, in the conditions specified by the Constitution, shall prevail over Acts of the Parliament.”
the Constitution prohibits discrimination based on sex. Article 37 provides for the right to equality before the law and the prohibition of discrimination based on sex.
the Constitution includes specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality. Article 68 provides that the State is obliged to guarantee equality between women and men in the labor market and to encourage appointing women in leadership positions in public departments, administrations, and institutions.
Article 59 affirms the State’s commitment to “promote the political rights of women by increasing their opportunities to access representation in elected bodies”. No quota mentioned in the Constitution but there is a legislative quota for the Parliament. (Article 2 of the 2012 Law for the representation of Women requires variable quotas between 20% and 50% of the candidates for Parliament to be women, depending on the number of seats in each electoral district. (Electoral Law No. 12-03- 2012).

Egypt

the Egyptian Constitution acknowledges the commitment to international treaties. Article 93 affirms the State’s commitment to the agreements, covenants, and that international convention of human rights, that have been ratified by Egypt, shall have the force of law after publication in accordance with the specified circumstances. At the same time, article 2 of the Constitution states that the principles of Islamic Sharia are the principal source of legislation which makes CEDAW provisions non applicable if they contradict Sharia’s principles.
the Constitution prohibits discrimination based on sex or gender. Article 53 prohibits forms of discrimination, including based on sex or gender.
the Constitution includes specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality. Article 11 addresses the rights of women. It includes the State commitment to “achieving equality between women and men in all civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights”.
the Constitution adopts affirmative measures to realize the participation of women. However, not in parity as only 25% of the seats is reserved for women and only on the municipal level, not at the level of the legislative authority, People’s Assembly.

Jordan

the Jordanian Constitution does not acknowledge the commitment to international treaties as superior to the Constitution. The constitutional court issued decision no. 1 in 2020 which was published in the official gazette, becoming part of the constitution’s provisions, stipulating that “no issued law or legislation can repeal or amend a treaty already ratified by the Kingdom, and the Cabinet of Jordan cannot issue a law within the legislative framework contradicting the commitments of States Parties to a convention ratified by the Kingdom by law.”
the Constitution does not prohibit discrimination based on sex or gender. Article 6 prohibits discrimination against citizens based on colour, language, and religion, but it does not mention sex.
the Constitution does not include specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality.
the Constitution does not adopt affirmative measures to realize equality of participation between men and women.

Lebanon

the Lebanese Constitution does not acknowledge the commitment to international treaties as superior to the Constitution and national laws.
the Constitution does not prohibit discrimination based on sex or gender. Article 7 states that all Lebanese are equal before the law and equally enjoy civil and political rights, but it does not mention sex.
the Constitution does not include specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality and there are no sections that recognize and protect women’s rights. Furthermore, articles 9 and 10 give each religious group the right to regulate the affairs of its members, which causes in practice discrimination not only against women and girls but also between women and girls as they are not subject to the same legal rules.
the Constitution does not adopt affirmative measures to realize equality of participation between men and women.

Morocco

the Moroccan Constitution acknowledges in the preamble the commitment to human rights principles as stated in international covenants and agreements.
the Constitution prohibits in the preamble discrimination based on sex and gender.
the Constitution includes specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality. Article 19 stipulates that the State aims to implement the principle of equality between men and women. “Thus, to this purpose, the authority for equality and the fight against all forms of discrimination was established.”
the Constitution adopts affirmative measures to realize the participation of women but not parity. Article 30 provides for the promotion of equality of opportunity between women and men in elective positions.

Palestine

the Palestinian Constitution does not acknowledge the commitment to international treaties as superior to the Constitution and national laws.
the Constitution prohibits discrimination based on sex or gender. Article 9 provides that Palestinians shall be equal before the law, without distinction based upon colour, sex, religion, political views, or disability.
the Constitution does not include specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality.
the Constitution does not adopt affirmative measures to realize equality of participation between men and women.

Tunisia

the Tunisian Constitution acknowledges the commitment to international treaties. Article 20 establishes that the international treaties ratified by the parliament have supremacy over the laws. However, the same article adds that these treaties have an inferior status to the one of the Constitution.
the Constitution prohibits discrimination based on sex or gender. Article 21 states that all citizens, male and female, have equal rights and duties, and are equal before the law without any discrimination, without mentioning the causes of discrimination.
the Constitution includes specific provisions on women’s rights and gender equality. It guarantees women’s representation in elected bodies (Article 34), equal opportunities between women and men to have access to all levels of responsibility in all domains, parity between them in the elected assemblies (Article 46), and gender equality between males and female citizens (Article 21).
the Constitution adopts affirmative measures to achieve equal participation of women and men in public life. However, it does not make the State’s commitment an obligation to achieve a result, but rather to conduct due diligence. The State works to ensure women’s representation in elected bodies (Article 34) and seeks to achieve parity between women and men in elected assemblies (Article 46). However, the electoral law includes a provision on parity for the parliament and local elections.

Back to

2020 Regional Index on VAWG