National Action Charter has empowered Bahraini women to make huge differences

Manama, Feb. 14 (BNA): “We shall remain hand in hand and united over the course of this process and I hereby stretch my hand to every single Bahraini, men and women, as it showed the pledge of allegiance and it will show a new formula of allegiance. The new formula and the national modernisation will be the features of our best days to come,” His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa said in his address when the National Action Charter draft was submitted. The Charter, an outstanding social, political and economic contract among Bahrainis, was approved by 98.4 per cent in a national referendum in 2001. Never has such a document influenced the progress of a nation as much as it did in Bahrain, launching sweeping reforms, elevating the status of the country and promising a bright future for all. For instance, the Charter stipulated the people's right to participation in public affairs: Citizens, men and women alike, have the right to participate in public affairs and political rights including suffrage and the right to contest as prescribed by law. That was the wonderful statement that women had been for decades looking forward to hearing since it meant that they now had the right to vote and run in parliamentary and municipal elections. Bahraini women are highly educated. The National Action Charter gave them the chance to be true trailblazers and to be well represented in major professions. Their status was now more elevated and their positions more advanced, both locally and internationally. Shaikha Haya bint Rashid Al Khalifa made history by becoming Bahrain's first female ambassador to France (1999-2004) and the first Arab woman to preside the UN General Assembly - The 61st general assembly in 2006. Nada Haffadh became Bahrain's first female minister after she was appointed Minister of Health in 2004. Dr. Fatima Mohamed Albalooshi became Bahrain’s Minister of Social Development in 2005. She kept the portfolio until 2014, becoming the Kingdom’s longest-serving female minister, and the first minister to oversee three portfolios – Social Development, Health and Human Rights - simultaneously. Dr. Albalooshi was awarded the Bahrain Medal (First Class) by His Majesty King Hamad in 2011. Forbes magazine named her fourth most influential woman in a Middle East government in 2014. Mona Jassim Al-Kuwari made history by becoming Bahrain's first female judge after her appointment in 2006. Shaikha Aisha bint Rashid Al Khalifa is the first female fighter pilot. She also made history by becoming the first Bahraini woman to graduate from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Maria Anton Khoury was appointed in 2017 the first Bahraini woman to head the National Institution for Human Rights, Bahrain’s main rights society. Fawzia Zainal was elected first woman Speaker of Bahrain's parliament in 2018. His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the Prime Minister, has recently praised the role of the Representatives Council chaired by Fawzia in the progress of Bahrain. Ahdeya Ahmed made history after she was elected the first woman president of Bahrain Journalists Association. Ahdeya has already made history by becoming the deputy editor-in-chief of Daily Tribune. She was also a former government spokesperson and a former spokesperson for the Bahrain Human Rights Watch. Bahraini women have been at the forefront of national and international achievements for decades, and the National Action Charter gave them a powerful impetus that allowed them to make huge leaps forward. The vision for the advanced status of women, championed by HM the King and Her Royal Highness Prince Sabeeka bint Ibrahim, Wife of HM the King and President of the Supreme Council for Women, has helped Bahraini women to overcome challenges and be successful leaders and decision makers in state institutions or private companies or businesses. Bahraini women have proven their aptitudes and their leadership characters on numerous occasions and throughout the years, earning praise and compliments as trailblazers and achievers. Thanks go mainly to the Supreme Council for Women, set up soon after the launch of wide reforms by HM King Hamad to help lay strategies and plans to protect the rights of women while advancing their status in institutions and companies. The Council has signed agreements with government entities and instituted awards to boost the conditions of women and activate their roles as partners and leaders in the nation-building process. Bahrain, as a remarkably vibrant nation and an advanced state, knows also how to express gratitude and share successes. Thus, Bahraini women who by now have built a reputation of courage, ingenuity, vision and achievement and become incredible role models, are celebrated with great fanfare on December 1. The Bahrain Women's Day is celebrated under a different theme every year.