NGO Support

Minister of Justice, May 4, 2001
Counselor Farouk Seif El Nasr

General Prosecutor, Maher Abdel Wahab

Your Excellencies,

This letter is to express very deep concern on the part of the Association for Middle East Women's Studies regarding the charges brought against Nawal Saadawi and her husband Sherif Hetata and on the part of various other organizations concerned with women in the Middle East.

AMEWS, the Association of Middle East Women's Studies is an international organization of over three hundred scholars and individuals of various national, ethnic and religious backgrounds who engage in research on Middle Eastern women and gender, or who are otherwise interested in this subject, and certain institutions. Our members reside in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, South Asia, the United States, and Canada. We have been affiliated with the Middle East Studies Association of North America since 1985. The DAVO Working Group on Genderis made up of scholars who are members of the German Middle East Studies Association. The Coordinating Council on Women in History is an affiliate of the American Historical Association with a large membership. The Arab Women's Court to Resist Violence Against Women is a regional organization based in Beirut, while The Lebanese Council to Resist Violence Against Women is a national organization.

We regard Nawal Saadawi and her writings on the issues of women's and human rights with the greatest respect and esteem. We are disturbed to hear that private citizens can threaten the sanctity of her marriage under the pretext of her supposed challenges to religion (a highly controversial and interpretive judgment) simply because they disagree with her views. We hope that you will continue to protect the freedom of your citizens and not allow justice and the legal system to be manipulated to silence the views of those who awaken society to its deep and troubling dilemmas.

Sincerely,

Dr. Sherifa Zuhur, President &
Board of Directors
Association for Middle East Women's Studies

Working Group on Gender
in the Near and Middle East, North Africa,
Central Asia and India within the German
Association for Middle Eastern Studies (DAVO)

Arab Women's Court to Resist
Violence Against Women
Beirut, Lebanon

The Lebanese Council to Resist
Violence Against Women
Lebanon

Coordinating Council for Women in History
(American Historical Association)

Cc: President Hosni Mubarak
Prime Minister Dr. Atef Mohamed Ebeid,
Minister of Foreign Affairs Amr Mousa,
Ambassador to the United States Nabil Fahmy,
Minister of Interior Major General Habib Ibrahim El Adly