Second Class Rights: How Amnesty International & Human Rights Watch Fail Women in the Middle East

Abstract

The 2011 “Arab Spring” sparked optimism that there would be profound democratic change in the Middle East, a region dominated by autocratic and oppressive regimes. The lack of rights and fundamental freedom for women in the region was one of the most egregious manifestations of these abusive governments. While women’s rights should be a primary focus of the most prominent human rights NGOs, specifically Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW), these organizations have not directed sustained attention to women’s rights in this area of the world. HRW and Amnesty have allowed ideology and politics to prevail at the expense of true freedom for women.

Keywords: Women, women's rights, Arab Spring, Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, human rights, international law, Tunisia, Yemen, Syria, Bahrain, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Kuwait, Qatar

JEL Classification: K10, K33