Geneva Institute for Human Rights

Finishing up her first visit to Amman, United Nations Special Rapporteur Rashida Manjoo urged the Government of Jordan on November 24 to adopt new measures to promote women's equality.

Manjoo called for changes to both law and society, noting that a purely legal or programmatic approach would not be sufficient to achieve women’s equality, She called for special measures such as additional quotas, positive action or preferential treatment to advance women's integration into education, the economy, politics and employment.

At the same time, she drew attention to the Royal Committee on Constitutional Review’s decision not to accept constitutional amendments to include discrimination on the basis of gender. “The explicit prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex and gender in the Constitution would not only give women a practical tool to challenge inequality more effectively, but would also serve to educate and raise awareness among the Jordanian society as a whole,” she said.

The rights expert also emphasized sexual harassment and sexual violence, noting that interviewees generally told her those issues were not a problem in the country. "It is necessary to acknowledge that sexual violence and sexual harassment occur both within and outside the family in every society,” she stressed. "The fact that certain subjects might be considered taboo within a society that largely describes itself as traditional, conservative, patriarchal and tribal, might explain women’s silence with regard to these manifestations of violence.”