Women activists in Syria
Salma Fayyad MA (Conflict Studies and Human Rights) wrote her master thesis about female detainees who were arrested in Syria because of their protests against the regime after the Syrian Revolution in 2011. Their activism and heroism is often ignored. During the Syrian Revolution Fayyad was an activist herself, so she knows how challenging it is for women to be politically active. She wrote about her findings in the May edition of the magazine Pandora.
Prisoners in Syria are considered as terrorists and traitors, even after release, Fayyad states. The women among them are treated even worse because society assumes that all women were raped in detention and women that are raped are stigmatised. Many of them get divorced after prison, and/or are expelled from their jobs or universities. With all these difficulties their heroism and freedom of choice are often ignored; the focus is only on sexual violence or victimhood.
Rising up against the regime
Syrian women actively chose to be part of the historical moment of rising up against the regime as individuals, regardless of the consequences of their actions. Female detainees defied social norms and expectations and, moreover, broke the stereotypical images and roles that were imposed on them, Fayyad concludes.