It is a rare sight to behold an unveiled woman in the streets of Sabha (southwestern Libya), a conservative town with an Islamic authority. Yet 34-year-old Mariam Mansour is unfazed by such cultural expectations. The university graduate not only ignores the custom of wearing a veil, she actively advocates for women’s rights.
Mansour is the president of al-Risala (The Mission) Association, which is now working on the documentation of violations against women in Sabha. She also manages a specialized center for training and rehabilitation of women.
It is a rare sight to behold an unveiled woman in the streets of Sabha (southwestern Libya), a conservative town with an Islamic authority. Yet 34-year-old Mariam Mansour is unfazed by such cultural expectations. The university graduate not only ignores the custom of wearing a veil, she actively advocates for women’s rights.
Mansour is the president of al-Risala (The Mission) Association, which is now working on the documentation of violations against women in Sabha. She also manages a specialized center for training and rehabilitation of women.
Mariam Mansour, when did you become a civil activist?
I started to be active in 1998. I wanted to register an association to care for women, train them, and improve their foreign language and computer skills, but I was prevented from doing so by many parties who launched a war against me and did not give me the needed permits to register the society.
Why were you prevented?
There were several reasons, most importantly is that during the era of the former regime, the state was monopolizing civil activism. There were only 2-3 associations and they were headed by persons who have good contacts with government officials at that time. There is another reason: It seems that officials in the city did not like my appearance.
How did you deal with this situation?
I tried in various ways to make my association active but I was summoned by the Internal Security Agency and interrogated on charges of fighting the republican regime. Before my release, I was forced to sign a pledge not to seek to create an association and for this reason, I joined some of the existing associations and started to be active through them. After the revolution, I was able to register my own association in 2011.
Do you believe that you are different from the women in the south because you don’t wear the veil?
Yes, I’m not only different from women, but also from men. I refuse the male-dominated society and this is why I believe that I am a different person in this environment.
You are working in a field which puts you in direct contact with women. Aren’t you afraid of their response? Do you feel that some of them might not cooperate?
No, not at all. Women in Sabha and in the south do not do what they really want to do. There are many women who are wearing the veil not because they want to and not because they are convinced about wearing it. They only wear it because of family pressure and because of social norms and traditions. These women, especially the ones who I document the violations they suffer from, or those who received training to improve their scientific and cultural performance, accept me and they are very responsive.
Sabha is controlled by armed groups led by the rebels and others, some of them have an Islamic authority. Have you had any troubles with them?
Until now, I have not had any problems with these groups. I work in a very professional and transparent way and I do not attack, criticize or evaluate the work of these groups in any way. I always try not to have any negative engagement with them as long as they do not interfere with my work.
A commander of one of these battalions provides me with lots of support. He participates in some of my projects aimed at helping poor families. On more than one occasion, I gave awareness lectures to the members of these battalions and they were very responsive and appreciative.
Don’t you believe that through this cooperation, some of the commanders of these battalions are trying to improve their image?
I don’t think so. Here in Sabha each battalion has its supporters for tribal or for other reasons. Even if this is true, I really don’t care. What is important for me is to help women regain some of their rights and improve their educational status so that they demand their rights.
What was the strangest comment you ever heard regarding your appearance?
Once, I was coming back on a plane to Sabha and there was an old man who thought that I was a foreigner. He started to treat me like a foreigner, but then I told him that I am Libyan, Bedouin and from Sabha. He was shocked to hear this. He started to examine me again with astonishment and said: “A Bedouin without a veil!”
Do you have any intensions of wearing the veil in the future?
Now, I am not thinking of wearing it, but I do not know if in the future I will. I respect veiled women who wear the veil because they are convinced about wearing it and I defend their right to wear it. However, I feel bad about women who wear the veil because they are obliged to do so out of fear or because of the society’s norms and traditions. Today, I and the veil face opposite directions. We might agree or disagree in the future.
While you were documenting violations against women in the south, were you exposed to any threats from those about whom you were documenting violations?
Yes, this happened all the time. Most of the violations against women are committed by their families. The families of women usually torture them physically and psychologically. They deprive them of their right to education, force them to marry and sometimes kill them. Thus, when any of the victims tries to communicate with me, her family starts to directly threaten me. In most cases, families of the victims ask me not to contact their daughters and to stay away from them but of course I don’t listen to them.
How do you deal with these threats?
My family is always supporting me. My brothers are always on my side and they protect me against any attack. Lately, I started to become more careful and I am documenting violation cases with strict confidentiality. I speak to the victim without letting her parents know that I am speaking to their daughter. In this way, I was able to avoid many problems, especially since the court hasn’t been issuing any verdicts regarding honor crimes over the last three years.
How do you evaluate the status of women in the south?
Women in the south have very strong personalities and are motivated to participate in the building of their society. However, these women are prevented from doing so because of the society’s system of beliefs, traditions and social customs and all these are imposed by men. They have monopolized the interpretation of religious texts and women became captives of these interpretations. For this reason, I hope that women in the south start building their independent personalities, away from all these considerations.
