COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN CONSIDERS REPORT OF LIBYA

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women today considered the combined second to fifth periodic report of Libya on how that country implements the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women.

Introducing the report, Huda Fathi Ben Amer, Secretary of Women's Affairs, General People's Congress of Libya, said all national legislation came in line with the provisions of that agreement, and agreed with it in most cases in letter and in spirit. Moreover, national legislation banned any discrimination between men and women. Protection of human rights was one of the most important duties of the State, considering that the establishment of justice and perseverance of freedoms was at the core of its tasks. Women in Libya enjoyed legal protection for their rights, on an equal par with men through the code of legislation. This was in addition to various procedures, some of them exceptional to avoid cultural impediments.

Among questions and issues raised by Committee Experts were why reservations had continued to be made to the Convention and whether Libya, in the context of its avowed commitment to women's rights, would consider withdrawing them; whether the phenomenon of domestic violence existed in Libyan society, and a request for statistical or other information, whether qualitative or quantitative on domestic violence and the remedies available for women; whether the law on nationality had been amended so that children of a Libyan woman married to a foreign man automatically acquired citizenship; why conditions on joining the workforce stipulated good morals and conduct and what did this mean and why this was not an objective criteria; and what was the property distribution when couples separated or were divorced and what were the property rights of divorced women.

In concluding remarks, Ms. Ben Amer said Libya would shortly be amending a number of the laws which it had referred to, and this was a result of the work of women and the Women's Committees. The delegation wished to apologise to the Committee if it had taken too long, and if it had committed any mistakes, and to thank the Committee for its questions, queries, and direction.

Also in concluding remarks, Xiaoqiao Zou, Committee Vice-Chairperson, said she wished to thank the delegation of Libya for their constructive remarks.

The delegation of Libya also included representatives of the Permanent Mission of Libya to the United Nations Office at Geneva, the General People's Committee of Planning, the General People's Committee of Social Affairs, the General People's Committee of Justice, the General People's Committee of General Security, and the General People's Committee for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

The next meeting of the Committee will be at 10 a.m. on Monday, 1 February, when it is scheduled to take up the sixth periodic report of Germany (CEDAW/C/DEU/6).


Report of Libya

The second periodic report of Libya (CEDAW/C/LBY/2) says that Libyan Arab society is a society of freedom and equality in accordance with the third universal theory, a concept which advocates the elimination of inequitable social relationships and values and the liberation of the human race from all forms of coercion, injustice and exploitation. It emphasizes the equal political, economic and social rights of men and women and stresses that the sexes are different only in terms of duties, thus preserving the human attributes of women and acknowledging their biological differences with men. On that basis, the majority of Libyan legislative acts promulgated after the Great Revolution of 1 September are directed at all citizens, irrespective of gender; they prescribe numerous rights to be enjoyed in all fields, without distinction between men and women, in so far as they are fundamental rights that are intrinsic to human beings, both male and female. As a result of these legislative acts, Libyan women now enjoy their human rights in full and are subjected to no factors of discrimination or distinction between them and men.

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women is therefore binding on the Chief Justice and, given that it is part of internal legislation, any interested party has the right to use it in pleading and to invoke its provisions before the Libyan judiciary. At the time of its accession to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya expressed a general reservation that such accession should not run counter to the personal status laws derived from the Islamic Shariah. This reservation has since been made more specific. It is noteworthy that Libyan legislative acts do not run counter to the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. On the contrary, in most cases, they are fully compatible and consistent with its provisions in both letter and spirit. Indeed, it can be said that Libyan Arab society endeavoured to apply the provisions of the Convention before its entry into force and that it continues to do so, such provisions being stipulated in the national legislation.

Libyan women, who constitute almost half of the inhabitants in Libyan Arab society, suffer flagrant violations of their rights imposed on them by the international community, not because they are female, but because they are an element of Libyan society, the implementation of Security Council resolutions 748 (1992) and 883 (1993) having inflicted extensive damage on the Libyan Arab people and on women in particular as one of the vulnerable groups in society. This damage has extended to all aspects of human and social life, particularly in the health and social security sectors, in which connection medical supplies have been substantially affected, as have curative and preventive services. The result has been to thwart the aspirations of the Libyan Arab people, both women and men, aimed at the achievement of greater progress, prosperity and stability and a life of security and peace.

Presentation of Report

HUDA FATHI BEN AMER, Secretary of Women's Affairs, General People's Congress, presenting the report, said all law and positive laws and legislation in force originating from the Holy Koran gave particular consideration to the respect of human rights and equality between males and females. Therefore, all national legislation came in line with the provisions of that agreement, and agreed with it in most cases in letter and in spirit. Moreover, national legislation banned any discrimination between men and women. Protection of human rights was one of the most important duties of the State, considering that the establishment of justice and perseverance of freedoms was at the core of its tasks.

The principle of independence of the judicial authority in Libyan society was an idea that strongly connected with the power of the political State's system. One of the manifestations of this system was respect of human rights and the exploitation of all wealth in the service of the citizen, equality in work and education opportunities, the prohibition of discrimination between both sexes, the prevention of racial or religious discrimination, and reactivation of the role of law and its equal application between humans, as well as prevention of all forms of dictatorship in power in terms that was a means to serve the human being and not to humiliate him. Therefore, all legislation in Libyan society ensured all rights and freedoms for the human within the legitimate legal operatives. Since Libya joined the Convention, it has abided by it, as an internal binding legislation on the national judge. It had been demonstrated that the contents of Libyan legislation outmatched what was included in the agreement because discrimination was a matter which was not admitted by Islam, nor any of the legislative fundamentals.

Women in Libya enjoyed legal protection for their rights, on an equal par with men through the code of legislation. This was in addition to various procedures, some of them exceptional to avoid cultural impediments. Libya had taken many measures on the legislative and executive levels which all ensured development of women and promotion in all political, social and economic levels, and secured actual exercise of their rights and freedoms on an equal footing with men. On the economic level, all the applicable legislation, prevalent measures and administrative systems in the domain of exercising economic activity strictly prevented any kind of discrimination in exercising economic activity. The law had adopted special treatment for women in work and care to motherhood. Also, in order to change the international view towards women, Libya had adopted numerous means for the sake of justifying some social customs and styles that were considered to be hurting society and affecting the social development movement.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles one to four of the Convention, Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including why the reservations had continued to be made to the Convention and whether Libya, in the context of its avowed commitment to women's rights, would consider withdrawing them; why there were no non-governmental organizations present at the meeting nor a shadow report when Libya had a law guaranteeing the freedom to form associations; was the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights part of binding domestic legislation; what did it mean that the Convention belonged to the "binding domestic law" of Libya, and did this mean it could be set aside in future legislation; the need for an explicit definition of discrimination in legislation, and whether it was clear to all law-makers and the judiciary that the terms of discrimination along the grounds of sex had to be interpreted according to article 1 of the Convention; and whether the Women's Affairs Bureau had drafted strategies, plans and programmes of action, and if so what period did they cover, as well as what priorities had been established therein, and what difficulties and challenges had been encountered in filling them, as well as their achievements.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, Ms. Ben Amer said that each society had its own characteristics - all agreed on a Convention or a Protocol in terms of its general rules, but this did not deny individuality. All individuals had the right to their own creed, faith, and nationality. There was no single standard that all countries and individuals had to apply. There was insistence on having a single clear definition of discrimination in Libya among the Experts. The need for such a definition was based on the presence of discrimination, however, and speaking in full objectivity, in Libya there was no discrimination between men and women in legislation. All laws applied to men and women indiscriminately - there was only discrimination in certain specific cases, and this was positive discrimination, taking into account women's special situation and the expectation of women. Discrimination was not accepted nor tolerated by Islam, and the Koran was the basis of national legislation, which prohibited all forms of discrimination between men and women, and promoted equal rights. Women enjoyed full legal protection of their rights, on a par with men. This was based on the constitutional declaration and the law on enhancement of freedom. The only discrimination that could be found was for special preferential treatment for women in work, training, maternity and a few others in order to protect them and take into account their special nature.

On reservations, the delegation said Libya had made first a general reservation on acceding to the Convention, and this had been withdrawn in 1995. Libya maintained a reservation on half of article 2 and article 16, paragraphs c and d. Islam was the law of the land in Libya, and any legislation in Libya had to be consistent with Sharia, and could not be contrary thereto. In terms of the shares of heirs and inheritance, Sharia organised this, and did not distinguish between heirs. The process of inheritance in Sharia and the text of the Koran was that basically, males inherited twice the share of females - this was why some thought there was discrimination, but this was not a general rule, but a special case, and was limited. The general rules of inheritance were not based on one share for females and two for men - this was a principle which was open to interpretation. There was the degree of kinship between heirs - the closer the link to the deceased, the bigger the share of the heir. In some cases, in terms of the share of inheritance, a female could inherit more than a male. The financial obligation always fell on men in the Koran - this was not discrimination, but respect for women and protection of them. People were free to choose their religion. Inheritance was a provision of the Koran, and could not be changed.

Ms. Ben Amer said non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations were present voluntarily, and were not imposed in Libya. It was important to have civil society organizations in other countries as well. In other regimes, where there was a monarchy or a democracy, a part of the people represented the people to rule the country, and there was therefore a need for civil society organizations that people could join to express freely their preferences, and the presence of these NGOs was very important in those regimes. In Libya, it was important also, but not to the same extent, as there was a system of direct democracy, and everything was done in the basic Congresses, and every Libyan man and woman who had reached majority could participate in the work of the Congresses, expressing themselves and taking part in the life of the country - and this was why the work of the NGOs was less important. Women's affairs were part of the sovereign organ in the People's General Congress. In every neighbourhood there was a general Congress in which all took part, and there were sections for women, in particular for women who did not wish to take part in mixed meetings, and wished to attend meetings for women only. This was especially present in remote areas, due to social beliefs.

Since the adoption of the Charter for Women in 2008, Ms. Ben Amer said that a plan had been drawn up to review all laws and legislation to ensure there was no discrimination against women. Some gaps in some laws had been found - in the law on personal status in marriage and divorce, for example, there were articles that allowed the husband to take on a second wife, but with the proviso that the first wife accepted and the husband had the capacity. It had been found that women went around this provision, and to get around the provision requiring the first wife's consent, men divorced the first wife in one statement instead of three, thus allowing him to marry the second wife. In case of divorce, a woman who had custody of her children could not travel abroad with those children without the consent of the guardian. However, there was no text stopping the father from travelling abroad without the divorced wife's consent - and this was a gap. Drafts had been submitted to the People's Congresses to remedy this. A campaign had also been launched to raise women's awareness of these issues.

With regards to the status of the Convention in national legislation and its implementation through national law, the delegation said the adoption of the Convention had led to the issuance of a law, one of the highest laws, and this had given priority to the implementation of what was in the Convention. Every person who had any interest could insist on the provisions of the Convention in any dispute that came before the courts, and it was important for judges to rule in line with the provisions. There had therefore been no cases in which there was application for the provisions of the Convention. The General Committee for Social Affairs had a special unit for the family and women, and this had many branches all over Libya. It functioned through social workers who studied the special conditions of women and the family, worked to solve economic and social problems faced by women and families, and cooperated with the administration of legal affairs whenever there was a question related to women, and also with the Social Security body.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles five and six of the Convention, Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including that the report did not comply with reporting guidelines; whether the phenomenon of domestic violence existed in Libyan society, and a request for statistical or other information, whether qualitative or quantitative on domestic violence and the remedies available for women; a clarification of the institutionalisation of women and girls, in particular the victims of rape, as this isolationism had never proved to have worked and re-victimised the victim, and what efforts were being done to remove these women from institutions and reintegrate them into their own homes and domestic setting as responsible members of society; whether there were any emergency options available for women such as emergency injunctions against abusive partners and whether women had venues of redress against intimate abusers; whether there was impunity for rapists who married their victims, and how could there be guarantee of the consent of the victim in such a case; and what was being done to eliminate negative stereotypes de facto and eliminate substantive discrimination with regards also to patriarchal attitudes and traditional roles.


Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, Ms. Ben Amer said the Committee did not see Libya, nor any other countries in the region, clearly, but was speaking about Libya as though it was speaking about a myth. This could possibly be because Libya was not raising awareness about its situation. When the Committee spoke about social and family relations in society, the Committee had to be aware of the clear image of the community in Libya and Arab communities in general - they were different from Western communities. In Arab society, a woman's lack of virginity on marriage made her a delinquent - this was a social perception, and could not be changed. The centres of detention were not supposed to be for women - if they were in them, then they had committed a crime and were punishable for these. However, the centres that currently existed were not solely confined to women. There were women who committed a crime, being it prostitution or adultery, and society and the family could not accept this. If there was fear for her life, then there was a home for them in these institutions, and it was voluntary if she wished for protection from her father or brother for example. There was training and rehabilitation in the detention centres, to make the women more easily reintegrated. The Committee could not ask Libya to change its culture in this regard.

Concerning violence and domestic violence as well as rape, the delegation said, all legislation condemned this act, and the law prohibited violence, with harsh sentences on any who perpetrated rape. Any act that deprived the person of his life, money, properties or liberty, or caused moral or physical damage was penalised. Acts of rape, fornication or adultery, particularly in the case of a minor or a disabled person, were punished harshly. The legislation did not penalise domestic rape, although the perpetrator could be found guilty of ill treatment of a family member. No damage could be inflicted on a wife, be it physical or material, and she could not be disciplined physically, in accordance with Sharia. The State was responsible for establishing justice in any community through investigation. Every person was allowed to have recourse to the courts, and could be provided a lawyer free of charge. In the case of a woman subjected to discrimination, she had the right to litigate against the perpetrator, and could receive justice as well as compensation.

Libya was a society that enjoyed tribal cohesion as well as family solidarity, and many problems were solved before they reached the judiciary. Women were protected from domestic violence by the social side - even if a husband thought about perpetrating violence against a wife, he would think twice, knowing that if he attacked her, social solidarity as well as her kith and kin would provide for her rights, Ms. Ben Amer said. If society did not intervene, then there were courts where women could file complaints of oppression, including Women's Courts, which took prompt decisions, and women had privacy in these cases, the delegation said. Libya's mentality accepted and found a solution to the problem of rape in the victim being married by the perpetrator, as otherwise she would bear a stigma and could not be married. However, there was nothing in the legislation which obliged the parties to marry each other, unless they had the desire to consummate the relationship through marriage, and this would suspend the verdict of rape. The marriage would also ensure that the father could take charge of his child. There were training courses which trained officials, the judiciary and the police on how to deal with victims of rape.

Libya rejected prostitution, Ms. Ben Amer said, and the commercial exploitation of women's bodies for purposes of advertising, and called on developed countries to wake up and get back their humanity, as such use of women was disrespectful of their bodies and humanity, and a form of trafficking. This was a debate in which both sides could learn from the discussion. Concerning international cross-border trafficking, there were no elements of the problem in Libya, as Libya was not an exporting country of illegal migration, but only a transit country, the delegation said. Libya was against injustice against all women, and hoped that all women in the world would have the same rights as women in Libya.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles seven to nine of the Convention, Experts raised a number of questions and issues, including the low level of representation of women at the national political level as well as in the civil service; the need to apply all the articles to which Libya had made no reservation; and whether the law on nationality had been amended so that children of a Libyan woman married to a foreign man automatically acquired citizenship.


Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, the delegation said there was no discrimination between men and women on nationality, and acquisition and transmission thereof. With regards to whether a Libyan woman married to a foreigner could transmit her nationality, these children were allowed to acquire nationality according to certain rules and regulations. This right was given to a child upon reaching the age of 18, at which point the person could acquire Libyan nationality. Otherwise, it was the nationality of the father which was applied, under the system of lineage. However, changes were being made to allow the child to acquire nationality whilst under the age of 18 and to allow the woman to transfer to her child nationality as of birth. Libya took into view that nationality was a question of kin. There was no dual nationality, however, another nationality could be acquired, with the permission of the Secretary for Legal Affairs.

All places in Libya had Congresses, Ms. Ben Amer said, and every group of people up to a certain number that considered that within a geographical location they constituted a community was a Congress, and within these Congresses, plans and budgets were set, and international relations were also organised within these Congresses. All Libyans, men and women, were members of these Congresses. In some areas, there were special women's Congresses, which had been set up in support of women - and they discussed and had the same agenda as other Congresses. The role of women in the decision-making process was given to all women in Libya, as well as to the men. It was therefore not possible to provide statistics and ratios. Women represented 32 per cent of the Congresses. Women represented 70 per cent of university graduates, according to a recent decision of the General Congress, and this should help women to undertake greater roles. Libya had the will, and there was no obstacle, to moving forward, it merely lacked expertise, and it was this it was hoping to acquire in the meeting, and in other similar meetings.

With regards to the representation of women in the diplomatic corps, the delegation said there was no discrimination against women - on the contrary - women were privileged, as there was clear political will based on equal rights and equal duties. There were no quotas; it was all left to the competence of the applicant. There was an Institute for Diplomatic Studies - after sitting an exam, those who were successful could enter it. In recent years, the graduates with the best results from the Institute were women, who had been rewarded by being sent out to train abroad and continue their studies. Women represented Libya in the most excellent manner everywhere across the globe. There were no embassies without women, except for problem areas where there were armed conflicts, and women were not sent to these areas. In diplomatic activity, women had rights that were not available to women in many countries, even developed countries.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles 10 to 14 of the Convention, Experts raised, among other things, a request for the exact percentage of women deans in universities; a request for more concrete information on education for girls in rural areas where there appeared to be some problems with enrolment and drop-out rates; whether girls in institutions were provided with education other than religious education and sewing lessons; whether it were true that children born to non-Libyan fathers had limited possibility to enrol in State-run schools; the need to understand why chastity and virginity as requirements always fell on women and not on men; why conditions on joining the workforce stipulated good morals and conduct and what did this mean and why this was not an objective criteria; what was the situation with regards to the access of minority women to health services; a request for further information on women's mental health in Libya, particularly in the areas of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder which was a common issue in very traditional societies; and whether women could continue to work after the age of 62.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and issues and others, Ms. Ben Amer said that the questions that had been raised were important and fundamental, but due to the time limit and the quantity of questions, not all could be answered. In Libya, there was no rural community per se – 85 per cent of the society was urban, and only 15 per cent was rural. Whoever devised developmental plans and projects focused on urban areas, not rural areas. Women's Congresses in some districts were more women's gatherings. The most important thing was to discuss and devise plans concerning the politics of the country. Women also in rural areas had their own gatherings, and there were also mixed ones.

The delegation said that Libya enjoyed a very spacious country, and this was one of the difficulties facing education, as it was hard to spread it across the country. However, thanks to great efforts, it had been made available, and was free of charge and protected by law and legislation. It had been established with Libya's inherited culture in mind, namely that girls could not travel far to be educated - thus there were schools all over the country. Only 3 per cent of students in basic education travelled 5 kilometres to school, and this was why there was 99.9 per cent of children in schools, 51 per cent of whom were girls. There was no distinction whatsoever in the field of education for all Libyan children, no matter the location of their school, and all got the same care and education as in urban areas. Some 35 per cent of citizens were graduates and students as well in private education. Libyan female students in 2003 were able to reach to the same level as boys – 50 per cent specialised in the arts, 85 per cent of women studied law, 52 per cent were studying to become lawyers. In 2003, equality had been achieved among the number of students in higher education, and the Millennium Development Goal on education had been achieved.

The centres where girls were detained were luxurious to the point that some marriages had failed when brides, who were married from the centre, did not find such luxurious conditions in the marital home, Ms. Ben Amer said. If a woman was assaulted and raped, the rapist was sentenced to punishment, and the sentence was executed. He could be obliged to marry his victim even if it were only for one month, in order to ensure that if she were pregnant, the child would have a father and know its lineage. In case of adultery, this was a different story - many cases were due to a woman choosing a husband whom the family did not agree with, and her having a relationship with him in order to put the family before a fait accompli, and forcing them to allow her to marry him.

With regards to the need for good conduct for employment, this was a certificate that was requested when any person applied for a job - this was to ensure the employer that the employee would not be denied certain civil rights, the delegation said. With regards to school fees being paid by the foreign father of children to a Libyan mother, this was because the children were viewed as being of the lineage of the father. However, these children did not now have to pay fees, and were treated equally with Libyan children. Some 85 per cent of women in employment worked in social services such as education and health. Social security provided women with privacy at work, allowing them, for example, to work part-time. A woman with a newborn child could work four hours a day, during which time she could leave twice to breast-feed the child. Assistance was provided to families either in kind or in subsidies.

On work opportunities and the possibility to enjoy all opportunities, such as enjoying micro-credit, Islam gave women the opportunity to dispose of their wealth and income as they wished, the delegation said, and they did not have to account for this to anybody. Many foreign companies had noticed that a lot of Libyan women were very savvy businesswomen, and there were a lot of projects where the 50 per cent partner was a woman. Many Libyan women occupied leading positions in these companies. Some 99.6 per cent of births were in hospitals, out of which 85 per cent took place free of charge in Government hospitals, irrespective of the cost of this healthcare, which was free of charge for every woman who lived in Libya. Emergency care was also free of charge for every person residing in the country. Around 92.5 per cent of women received pre, post, and ante-natal care. This meant that Libya had the lowest percentage of mortality, with a high expectation of life that made Libya proud. Care was given equally to all women in Libya. The healthcare system in rural areas allowed women to be transferred in an ambulance to a more advanced hospital if required, including outside Libya, and this was also free of charge, and had led to a drop in the mortality rate among all sections of society. Mental institutions were specialised and run by women for women, children, men, youth, and the elderly, and allowed both in- and out-patient care. There was also a centre for sexually-transmitted diseases, where medication was given free of charge. As for clean water, 92.5 per cent of families drank directly from the tap. Some 99 per cent of Libyan families enjoyed electricity - there were in this area no differences between rural areas and cities.

Questions by Experts

Taking up articles 15 and 16 of the Convention, Experts raised, among other things, what were the inheritance rights and property rights of women both married and unmarried; what was the property distribution when couples separated or were divorced and what were the property rights of divorced women; whether there was a concept of guardianship for women, and what was the limits of this; whether the mother had equal guardianship rights if the father was incompetent; a request for clarification of the right of divorced women to travel outside the country; whether abortion was legal and what was the situation with regards to contraception and family planning methods; what did the delegation see as priorities as a result of this discussion, and whether it thought that changes could be made or whether they viewed that Libyan legislation had reached an optimum stage; and whether Libyan society had moved forward enough to take certain interpretations of religion and evolution of law vis-à-vis religion.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these questions and others, Ms. Ben Amer said that in cases of divorce, the home of the mother was the home of the mother and the children, and this was a legal stipulation. If she had no children, then the woman could return to her own family. She was not a criminal - she was a woman whose agreement of marriage had come to deadlock, and who had returned to her previous situation. It was the natural situation for a divorced woman to return to her parents' home. If she had no parents and no brothers, then she could go to social care, and would be well taken care of in those centres, where she would be provided food, shelter, healthcare and transportation free of charge, as though she were living at home, as well as funds to cover her needs. Custody rights were for the mother, unless she did not have legal capacity or could not be responsible for taking care of her children. This was decided in order to maintain a healthy environment for children. Society was the guardian of those who had no guardians, and there were homes which could take in orphans and those whose mothers could not care for them.

All medical and health centres could provide family planning services free of charge. There was no restriction in family planning - widening the population was rather encouraged rather than limiting it. All Libyans were equal before the law, the delegation said, and as for legal capacity, the Civil Code stated that any person who had reached the age of maturity, had full mental capacity, and was not under custody, had full legal ability to exercise legal rights. No person could waive legal capacity or amend it. Women in Libya were on a par with other women in other countries with regards to legal capacity. On the capacity of women regarding marriage, women did not lose their legal capacity upon marriage - it had no legal effect, as a woman had an independent legal and financial status. The distribution of property on divorce was complicated - if there were children to the marriage, during the divorce proceedings, the woman had custody of the children, which meant that she retained the home and all belongings in the home, and could also have the right to alimony. There was no distribution of property in this regard. If there were no children and the woman went back to her family's home, whatever was initially hers she retained, and the same applied to the husband. If the divorced woman had no guardian, then she had the right to remain in the family home, even if there were no children, until she died or married another man.

On raising awareness of the Convention, Ms. Ben Amer said that a number of workshops had already been held on this matter. A working scientific group had been established and the mandate of it was to deal with the number of issues that needed consideration and treatment, and review all legislation in Libya. It had achieved much, and it was depended on when amending law and in preparing information for conferences. The meeting had allowed the delegation to feel that the world was a small village, and this sort of meeting brought people together, reducing sensitivities and allowing for agreement, without which problems could happen. On abortion, this was not usually free in a society where sex was not free. If abortion was voluntarily requested by the woman as she did not want the pregnancy, the health of the woman did not allow her to deliver the child, or the child was abnormal, then abortion was allowed. It was up to the discretion of the doctors, who were the ones who decided if abortion was permitted from the point of view of health. Islam was not used in terror in Libya - it left everything to God and not to man, and this was part and parcel of Libya's creed, which was against any ideas or viewpoints that were biased or extremist or used religion to repress women. Islam and Libya were against terrorism or terrorising peoples, or destabilising countries, as negative effects eventually impacted women and children. Libya was open-minded, and listened to everybody's viewpoint. If the Committee had any ideas for gatherings, Libya was ready to finance, supervise and host these meetings, whether in Libya or elsewhere in the world.

Responding to brief follow-up comments, the delegation said there was no legislation that obliged a raped girl to marry the rapist. Concerning detecting virginity, this was done when the act had been done with the consent of the girl, and legal procedures would transmit the girl to the prosecution if she lost her virginity for a reason that had to be determined. With regards to the age of marriage, in accordance with the law, this was 18 for both men and women, Ms. Ben Amer said. Law treated men and women equally - the only distinction was with regards to maternity and pregnancy.

Concluding Remarks

HUDA FATHI BEN AMER, Secretary of Women's Affairs, General People's Congress, in concluding remarks, said Libya would shortly be amending a number of the laws which it had referred to, and this was a result of the work of women and the Women's Committees. The delegation wished to apologise to the Committee if it had taken too long, and if it had committed any mistakes, and to thank the Committee for its questions, queries, and direction.

XIAOQIAO ZOU, Vice-Chairperson of the Committee, in concluding remarks, said she wished to thank the delegation of Libya for their constructive remarks.


For use of the information media; not an official record

CEDAW09009E