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The impact of political developments on personal status law reforms in Egypt

Personal status law reforms do not only manage relationships within the household, but they are also important political tools that the state has used to serve its interests. However, most of the covered studies on law and gender in Egypt deal with the state as if it is a clear term and a homogenous...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Saleh, Mona
Format: Thesis
Published: AUC Knowledge Fountain 2015
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Summary:Personal status law reforms do not only manage relationships within the household, but they are also important political tools that the state has used to serve its interests. However, most of the covered studies on law and gender in Egypt deal with the state as if it is a clear term and a homogenous entity, which is not the matter as several theoretical studies on state show. Therefore, the main research question of this thesis grows out of this conceptual problematic, and it focuses on determining the main state actors that shaped personal status law reforms in Egypt, and the root causes behind their motivation to enact them. The thesis concludes that the elite, mainly lawyers, judges, the president, and the ruling party were the main actors in shaping and issuing these reforms. More importantly, this thesis argues that Egypt represents an interesting case as law is "nested within" politics. Personal status law reforms were essential tools in serving different political interests such as fighting colonization (during British colonialism), maintaining political stability within the society (Nasser era), adopting democratic reforms (Sadat period), and improving the image of the state internationally (Mubarak regime).