'There is a lot to be done'

The first Bahraini woman President of the United Nations General Assembly, Shaikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa, is a force of nature. Many in the West have been surprised by the savvy and the knowledge of this down-to-earth woman, who knows perfectly well what role she fulfils as the highest-ranking Muslim lady in the world's most important organisation.

It is obvious that for Shaikha Haya it was not enough to be scion of the most distinguished family in her country. She ascended all the echelons of the international intellectual, academic and political domains, easily transitioning from intellectual property, to labour law, international law and diplomacy. She has become a symbol of progress in her society, even if this goes one step at a time.

They say, behind every great man, there is a great woman. In the case of Shaikha Haya, it is safe to say, every great cause needs a great woman.

Shaikha Haya received me at her well-appointed office in the UN headquarters in New York, with a splendid view of the East River, surrounded by some artefacts from her beloved Bahrain.

When told that Italy's Romano Prodi government had lost a confidence vote just two hours earlier, she said: "I know Prodi very well." She was heading for Italy two days later.

In an exclusive interview given to Weekend Review, Shaikha Haya discussed wide-ranging issues. Excerpts:

Your election as President of the General Assembly is remarkable as an example of what is being achieved, however slowly, yet consistently, in the Middle East, and particularly in the Arab and Muslim world. It is difficult for foreigners to appreciate those changes in their real dimensions. Some may argue that being a relative of the King of Bahrain is far from being an obstacle to becoming a famous lawyer in your country or even to being elected to this high position at the UN. What do you want to tell the world about the women in your country and region?

First, it is an honour to have been elected as President of the General Assembly. This organisation needs to be strengthened through the support and help of the international community. I am privileged to have a supportive family that encouraged me to explore my full potential.

Bahraini women have always been at the forefront in the region. The first school for girls was established in the 1920s. Our constitution explicitly reaffirms gender equality, and we have a good number of women, including ministers and a judge, in decision-making positions. This is not to say that there is not much more to be done — in fact, we still need to work on a number of fronts. I am a firm believer in the need to improve the quality of education. Underlining that most girls in Bahrain have access to primary education does not guarantee equality.

We need to ensure that the curricula are free of notions of inequality and must not be subject to non-progressive interpretations of Islamic texts.

There is a lot of talk of reforms in the Arab countries and the UN reports released in the last two years have asked for more effort on these issues. How do you see the path of reform in the Arab world? What are the obstacles and the opportunities?

The Arab world is very vast. Some countries are extremely rich, some have economic problems, some are close to Europe and are therefore, exposed to dealing with Western culture easily, and some are not.

Reform is a continuous process. It should not be viewed as a one-time event. Economic, political and social reforms are under way in the Arab world, but at different paces. The most important aspect is that such a process has taken off and is irreversible. What we need is a consistent commitment for this process to continue advancing. This commitment should manifest itself at the local, regional and international levels.

One should realise that the most important component of reform is national ownership. Each country or region has its own specificities, and there is no one formula for reform, but there are shared objectives and best practices that need to constitute the benchmarks. There are many opportunities for advancing reforms in the Arab world, but there are still political and cultural obstacles which, if addressed, will speed up this process.

There are so many issues in the Arab world. In fact, we are all members of this organisation [UN] and we, the Arab countries, are all responsible vis-à-vis the rules governing the international community. In addition, by being members of this organisation, we have to follow the general principles of human rights and respect all the moral rules of the world. We are part of the world and we cannot regard the Arab countries differently. In addition, with the new technologies, with the new possibilities of living with others, we are now coming closer to other cultures.

The West has a stereotypical view of women in the Muslim world. It sees them as being oppressed in the name of religion. Now that you are one of the highest-ranking diplomats in the world, how would you like to influence this perception?

One of the stereotypes about Arab and Muslim women is that they are closed, they are covered and they do not understand anything. However, it is not like that. Women in our countries work, they are participating in the development of their countries. In many Arab countries, such as Egypt, Lebanon, and those in the Gulf and North Africa, women are working and participating in their countries' development. For instance, in Bahrain, more than 50 per cent of the staff at the Ministry of Education are women and more than 50 per cent of its work force in healthcare and hospitals are women.

However, some of the interpretations of Islamic texts merely provide an opinion requiring women to stay at home. But it is not practical at this moment because women need to support themselves and their families economically. So they work together with their men in all domains besides education and health. In Bahrain, we now have a woman pilot.

When they say that women stay back at home and stay covered, it is not correct. They are working for a living, they are normal like in America or in Europe. In practice, we work together with men. And, we receive equal treatment as men.

When women work in our countries, they have the same salaries and the same benefits as the men get according to the law. We have a law, which applies equally to women and men, giving them the same rights. However, few women have reached high-ranking levels, such as ministers. There are only two or three, only in social or women's ministries. However, I am optimistic about the future of women in our countries.

You have joined a very exclusive club of women in positions of political prominence. Germany has a lady Chancellor while France and the United States could possibly have a woman president. In your opinion, are women worldwide more empowered today, especially politically? Where do you see them going?

This is the time for women but it is not because they are women, it is because of their qualification, their position. With these rules that are promoted by the United Nations, one of the [eight] Millennium Development Goals is empowerment of women and has become the leading consideration for women who have skills — why don't we give them the possibility. It is an international trend, and also cultural, because the most important international organisation, the United Nations, is promoting the idea that women must be treated as equal and empowered.

I believe that any assessment about whether the situation of women worldwide has actually changed or not will depend on where you are looking. One can conclude that the situation in general has changed when you look at the examples you mention in your question and other examples at the political level. But the question remains about the vast majority of women in both developed and developing countries. On the one hand, there remain many challenges that women face at the workplace, in striving for equality in pay and benefits.

On the other, there is the challenge of acquiring the basic rights of education, health, economic opportunity and participation in the political life of their countries. Of course, such examples as you have mentioned and others provide role models to be followed by all women worldwide, and give hope to the rest of us that getting there is possible.

As a final note on this topic I must emphasise that there is still much to be done but we are on the right track. You witness more participation in public life, though modest by international standards, of women in societies which have historically been stereotyped as closed societies and cultures that are not gender friendly … which [encouragement] is a positive signal from the governments of those countries.

Some of the biggest issues the UN is dealing with today originate in the Arab world, such as Iran's nuclear programme, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the situation in Iraq. As an Arab and a Muslim, will your being at the helm of the UN General Assembly help these causes in any way?

I am governed by the Charter and the Rule of Procedure. Being the President of the General Assembly is being a facilitator, helping member countries reach resolutions by consensus, by agreements and make relationships among them open and transparent.

The issues you have mentioned, the problems in the Middle East, are regulated by the Security Council, not by the General Assembly. However, in the General Assembly, we deal with the resolution. We have already held two or three meetings about Palestine. My role is just to facilitate it; I have to be independent and neutral. And, this helps me show the position of an Arab woman which is the same as any other human being in the world, because we are the same. Our differences come from our level of commitment to the law and how we respect it and how we respect the rule of this organisation.

In the Gulf, we had 10 terrible years, so naturally, a new war would be a tragedy not only for us but also for the whole world. The last decade was very difficult for the Gulf countries because of the Iraq war and the Iran-Iraq dispute earlier. So I hope that through international efforts, from the UN, America and the big countries in Europe, we can avoid a war.

If we have a war in the Gulf, it will not only affect our region but the whole world because our area is very important and we have the oil. It is really important to reach an amicable, reasonable solution regarding issues such as the situation in Iraq, Iran's nuclear ambitions, Lebanon and Palestine.

Could you stress the importance of the General Assembly in the reform of the UN and also are you in favour of a more democratic Security Council?

I believe in these positions. I believe that the General Assembly can and should play a leading role in addressing the main challenges that we face today. It is based in that belief that I had initiated a number of high-level meetings to address some of those challenges. In the first meeting, which was dedicated to the implementation of Millennium Development Goals, we were successful in guaranteeing additional funding for developing countries and less developed countries through the initiative of the Islamic Development Bank to establish a "Poverty Alleviation Fund" with a capital of $10 billion.

We are holding another high-level meeting from March 6-7 on "Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women" which will focus on the issues of women's participation in decision-making and the role of micro-finance in the empowerment of women in developing countries. The third high-level meeting that I intend to organise will focus on civilisations and the challenge for peace in the world, which I firmly believe is one of the cornerstones of our pursuit of international peace and security. These topics are high on my agenda as President of the General Assembly and I believe that a large number of countries view them as a priority as well.

Lately, the UN has come under severe criticism. Its effectiveness has been questioned and it has been condemned by some for being a puppet in America's hands. At the same time the UN receives about $3 billion in funding from America, by far the single largest contribution by any country. What do you have to say about this situation? Do you think it is time for the organisation to reform? Also, do you believe that more permanent members should be added to the Security Council? Moreover, is it fair to give a select few the veto power? Doesn't this sometime impede voting on crucial issues?

The new Secretary-General wants to reform the Secretariat and the management of the UN. Therefore, there will be a very big reform of the General Assembly which is the most important policy-making organ in the world. Maybe within this year, things will start changing for the better.

The issue of reforming the Security Council has been on the agenda of the United Nations for a long time. This reform includes both the manner of the work of the Council and its membership. One has to acknowledge that there is consensus that the Council should undergo reform. The question is the scope of such reform. I believe that the reform of the Council is a crucial component of the reform of the international political system and the United Nations. Decisions of the Council have to be more legitimate and it must respond to the political realities of today's world. Even the permanent members agree to that.

The question before the international community is what kind of reform can garner the broadest possible agreement. It is apparent that all the ideas put forward in the last two years cannot lead to this broad agreement. So, what do we do?

I have launched a process of consultations in the General Assembly which will attempt to help us get out of this deadlock, and explore new and creative ideas that might lead us to achieve our goal. Ultimately, it is for the international community to make this decision collectively. My role is to provide the ideal circumstances for healthy and productive dialogue and consultations.

What has been your experience as President of the General Assembly?

I knew the UN through my studies; I studied law and the structure of the UN, the Charter and the rule of procedure.

When I assumed my position, I found the political life so interesting here — seeing the differences between the members, the South and the North. Sometimes there is mistrust which spoils the atmosphere, and sometimes that mistrust is not correct. When we bring members here, they say it is the South and the North — I feel during the discussions some expect others to be opposed to them.

However, it is not as bad as they think. Sometimes in the matter of small issues, they think we may not find it acceptable, but through discussion and transparency we get to work it out and the discussion between member states makes a difference. It is important to let them sit and say what they think of each other. It also needs people who believe in this organisation.

There are many ambassadors and many delegations who believe that by helping each other we can achieve something, we can help people outside the UN. Because in Africa, and in many countries, their needs are all to do with survival, not for ideals like we fight here. They have no water, others have HIV problems. That is when the UN's intervention becomes essential.

In fact, the concept of this session is the "implementation of the development goal". And I have helped create three thematic divisions. We have already helped the first one — "Eradication of Poverty". We succeeded in persuading the private sector to help poor countries. One of the banks, the Islamic Development Bank in Saudi Arabia, has established a fund for $10 billion for the eradication of poverty. I think it is a very good thing that the UN can help people.

The second session will be on "Empowerment of Women" and the third and last one, in May, will be on "Dialogue of Civilisations". We will bring thinkers from different civilisations.

As you see, my experience has been a very rich one. The UN is complex and deals with a wide range of issues. Dealing with 192 member states and trying to always build consensus, even around the most difficult issues, is a very challenging and rewarding experience.

The role and authority of the President of the General Assembly has grown dramatically over the years, in particular, in the last three years. One of the most challenging tasks of any president of the assembly is that he or she needs to deal with the different perspectives of member states regarding the same issue.

I remember that when we were negotiating the Resolution on Ecosoc Reform and I proposed a compromise solution, a group of members states asked me whether my proposal was a "take it or leave it" one. When I said no and that it was for them to decide, they said that if it was a "take it or leave it" proposal they would react favourably to it. I said OK. When another group of states asked the same question and I replied that it was for them to decide, they said that they would have rejected it if it was a "take it or leave it" proposal out of principle.

This proves that one should be constantly sensitive to the different perceptions of member states about the same issue.

I believe that the UN is doing a lot of great work around the world, which the public is not always aware of. There is a lot to be done in this area. Some of the perceptions about the UN in different parts of the world are unjustifiably negative. There needs to be more public information campaigns by all those who believe in the UN and draw attention to what it does to drum up public support for its programmes.

You were one of the first two women to practise law in your country. What has been your experience as a lawyer in Sharia-regulated courts? How do you envision the application of Sharia in a progressive Middle East?

It is about the progressive interpretation of the Islamic texts by moderates. The problem is not with the Sharia, it is with how you interpret it in the context of modern societies, and how you apply it in a manner that is adaptable to the needs and challenges we face in our world today.

In fact, when I started out more than 20 years ago, it was not easy for a woman to work as a lawyer, a specialty that belonged only to men in the beginning. And, it was really exciting for me see how people think. I studied in Kuwait, Egypt and France. I lived there, so I know different mentalities of peoples when I came to my country. Bahrainis are very open so I started to work, and I am not covered. I work like that [uncovered] in Bahrain.

While I cannot say there was rejection, it was somehow strange in the beginning and at that time, there were not so many conservative people. Back then, people were normal, now they have become more conservative.

However, we are now more than 70 women lawyers out of the nearly 400 lawyers in the country.

Also, it is important to note that Bahrain has a civil court, like in France, Italy and Egypt. We have civil, commercial and criminal law.

Criminal law, for instance, is based on the French system, not on Sharia. Sharia is only applied to family law in all Arab countries, except Saudi Arabia. Our constitution lays down that Sharia is one of the sources of law. We also apply international laws besides French and Egyptian laws.

In Bahrain, we still do not have any written family law based on Sharia. In my country, under labour law, men and women are equal.

What is your message for women in the Middle East?
This is a multi-dimensional question. There is a need to work on various fronts simultaneously.

First, we need to acknowledge that we have problems in our societies like all other societies do, but some are more specific to our countries and peoples. There is a growing realisation in our countries today, compared to a few years ago, that we need to adapt our laws and educational systems to the advances that have taken place in the rest of the world.

Now you can see that a growing number of countries have amended their laws to allow more participation of women in elections as voters and candidates. While we still have some way to go, there is a consistent trend in our countries which, in my opinion, is irreversible.

Second, civil society must play its role to educate not only women about their rights but also educate society and contribute towards breaking ideologies of inferiority and stereotyping.

Third, because of the importance of our religion and culture in shaping our perspectives, we need to encourage moderate religious figures to participate in a debate which will also attempt to question these inherited perspectives.

Fourth, we have to realise that each country is in need of a self-tailored policy. But that does not exclude encouraging the exchange of experiences.

What is the role that women can play in reforming the institutions of the Arab countries? Where lies the border between rights and traditions on the issue of women's role in Arab societies?

As I outlined, there remains a political and cultural context for reforms in the Arab world. However, what is evident is that there are growing contributions from women in the process of reform, based on their experience as educators, lawyers, professionals and also their participation in the economic and political life of their countries.

Of course, there are different levels of contributions in different countries, but this trend must continue and we all must encourage it.

In many conflict-ridden countries in the Muslim world, children are being emotionally scarred and robbed of their childhoods. As a member of Bahrain's Child Development Society, what would you recommend to improve their well-being?

In Bahrain, and most of the Arab countries, we have signed UN agreements for children's protection. Besides, we also try to impose strict rules to help protect children from harm from their parents and others. In Bahrain, we have also adopted very strict environmental regulations so that the next generation could live in a country free of pollution.

Eliana Benador is president of Benador Associates and Benador Public Relations. She will be participating in the Women in Business Conference in Dubai next month.

A momentous journey

Shaikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa was elected president of the 61st session of the United Nations General Assembly on June 8, 2006. At the time, she was serving as Legal Adviser to the Royal Court in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Shaikha Haya brings to the post, a long and distinguished legal career, spanning three decades, both at national and international levels. One of the first two women to practise law in her country, she has held many senior positions with leading legal organisations of the world including the International Bar Association, where, from 1997 to 1999 she was vice-chairwoman of the arbitration and dispute resolution committee — the first woman from the Middle East to serve in this capacity.

Her pioneering role in the legal sphere has been coupled more recently with prestigious diplomatic assignments as her country's ambassador to France from 2000 to 2004 and as non-resident ambassador to Belgium, Switzerland and Spain. During the same period, she was the Kingdom's permanent representative to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.

She was also a member of the World Intellectual Property Organisation's Arbitration Centre Consultative Committee and became Bahrain's representative on the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce, an appointment that she still holds today.

A champion of women's rights, particularly in the legal sphere, Shaikha Haya has been an active participant in the movement to elevate the position of women in Bahrain before the Sharia courts and is an advocate of a progressive interpretation of Islamic texts as they apply to women. She was a vice-president of the Bahrain Bar Society as well as a member of the Supreme Council of Culture, Art and Literature, and is a member of Bahrain's Child Development Society and the Arab Women's Legal Network.

Shaikha Haya, who is well-versed in Arabic, English and French, has presented numerous papers at legal conferences across the United States, Europe and Asia, on diplomacy, international arbitration, dispute resolution and the status of women in the Middle East.

She holds an LLB from the University of Kuwait and studied international public law at the University of Paris I: Panthéon-Sorbonne. She also holds postgraduate degrees in civil private law from Alexandria University and in comparative law from Ain Shams University in Egypt.

She is only the third woman to serve as President of the United Nations General Assembly, and the first since the 24th session in 1969.

–Information courtesy: United Nations