Malaz Foundation for Women’s Support has issued a new policy paper entitled “Marriage as a Cover for Exploitation: A Rights-Based Analysis of Trafficking in Women and Girls and the Role of Intermediaries and Brokers in Egypt.” The paper comes as part of civil society efforts to support the Egyptian State’s approach to protecting women and combating violence and trafficking in persons, while proposing practical policy alternatives to strengthen protection mechanisms and institutional responses to cases that may involve indicators of exploitation.

Malaz Foundation commends the attention accorded by the Egyptian State to the protection of women and girls and to combating violence and trafficking in persons, as well as the directives of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in support of women’s rights, protection, and empowerment. The Foundation emphasizes that strengthening protection mechanisms is a shared responsibility that requires complementarity between the roles of State institutions and the expertise of civil society organizations.

The paper examines a complex issue concerning cases that may initially appear to constitute marital relationships that have been duly formalized in accordance with legal procedures, while the circumstances surrounding them may reveal potential indicators of exploitation. These may include the exploitation of poverty, need, or a situation of vulnerability; deception; coercion; control; or the pursuit of material gain from a woman or girl.

Link: https://dub.sh/3W0Hrkb