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"Everyone of us is a superhero"

in Egypt women protection projects multiply

Women's protests

Women's protests

"Everyone can be a superhero". This is the motto of Supermaj, the Egyptian superman created by Ahmed Majluf who rescues Cairo women from harassment on public means of transport, in the streets or on the squares. His superpower consists in breaking up the prejudice according to which violence is the fault of the victim's.


"Comics can help fight harassment - says Majluf - Maybe boys and girls will realize that they themselves are the heroes, as they have to struggle against violence". Supermaj thus becomes an unusual hero, who in the first strips helps the women, but aims at an end result which is different the ones of typical superheroes: in the last strips in fact the very victims dare report the guilty for harassment.


In a country which witness everyday a surge in physical and psychological violence, the protection of women is made possible also by Web tools. The association HarassMap hence created the software Woman under siege, interactive maps of the cases of rape as reported by users. 


"We wish to represent rape cases on a map to draw the people's attention to them- said Lauren Wolfe, director of the programme- We also want to show the places where these abuses occur and the women are needing help. And, as a long term goal, we would like to build an archive that can be used in case in the future war crimes trials are set up".


After Mubarak's fall the problem of violence against women has been growing in a worrisome way. A recent survey of the United Nations has proven that 99,3% of the women interviewed admitted being victims of sexual harassement, and not receiving any kind of help from the bystanders.


The protest of women was fiercely criticized by the Islamist fringe of the country. "Sometimes - said Adel Maqsoud Afifi, an ultraconservative lawyer- a girl contributes for 100% to the rape against her if she puts herself in some conditions".A representative of the Muslim brotherhood echoed this stance by demanding the Parliament: "How can they ask the Ministry of the Interiors to protect a women if she goes to a place crowded with men?". The reference is to the demonstrations on Tahrir square which have resumed after 25 January, the second anniversary of the revolution. In just one day 18 rape cases were reported.

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