Jordan is a highly patriarchal society in which cultural traditions and societal norms continue to encourage discrimination against women. In recent years, the status of Jordanian women in society has improved somewhat; however, their economic and social opportunities are still not equal to those of men.
Family law in Jordan discriminates against women in several ways. In regards to family matters, the country’s Muslim majority (which comprises approximately 95 per cent of the population) is governed by the personal Status Law; non-Muslims may apply their own personal status laws. Reflecting the large Muslim majority, the following paragraphs consider only Islamic family law.
The legal age of marriage in Jordan is 18 years; the chief justice can lower this to 15 years in cases where early marriage is deemed to be in the best interest of the young bride or groom. A 2004 United Nations estimated that 8 per cent of Jordanian girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed. It can be noted that the proportion of never-married men and women aged 15 or older has increased over the past 20 years.
Following provisions in Sharia, Muslim men in Jordan have the legal right to practice polygamy. They may take as many as four wives, but before marrying a second, third or fourth time, they must prove their financial capability to support another wife. The law also requires that men inform their wives and wives-to-be about each other’s existence.
With regards to parental authority – and again in accordance with Sharia – the personal Status Law recognises only fathers as the legal guardians of children. Mothers are seen as the physical custodians. Women cannot confer citizenship to children born to a non-Jordanian father.
Islamic law in Jordan provides for detailed and complex calculations of inheritance shares. Women may inherit from their father, mother, husband or children and, under certain conditions, from other family members. However, their share is generally smaller than that to which men are entitled. Daughters, for example, typically inherit only half as much as sons. This is usually justified by the argument that women have no financial responsibility towards their husbands and children. A daughter’s share can be further diminished by legal transactions related to assets that fathers often undertake with their sons while still alive. Women can also be pressured into waiving their right to inheritance.
Violence against women – particularly domestic violence – is common. Women have only limited legal protection through broader provisions on battery and assault within the Penal Code. Social awareness of domestic violence has increased, but there is no specific legislation that criminalises such violence and incidents are rarely reported. So-called honour killings do occur in Jordan. Critics argue that provisions in the Penal Code justify (at least to some extent) these crimes by allowing for lower penalties when a crime is committed in rage following an unlawful act by the victim.
Women in Jordan are not well protected in terms of their physical integrity. Female genital mutilation (FGM) is not a general practice, but the UN’s Integrated Regional Information Network reports that it is known to occur in southern Jordan.
The sex ratio in Jordan is slightly higher than normal in favour of men, suggesting that Jordan may be a country of concern in relation to missing women.
Women in Jordan have the legal capacity to enter into financial contracts, but the country’s social structure still deprives many of them from owning and controlling economic resources by limiting their access to land and access to property other than land. The UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) reports that women comprise just over 10 per cent of land and property owners, and that a majority of these women gained ownership through inheritance. Looking at land ownership only, Cotula estimates that women own close to 30 per cent of the land.
Women have the right to access to bank loans and other forms of credit, although some banks and financial institutions might require a guarantee from their husbands and collateral requirements are sometimes higher for women than for men. The situation is improving: some banks now accept the applicant’s salary (in lieu of land or property) as collateral. In recent years, various institutions and organisations have developed and expanded micro-finance projects that target women.
Women in Jordan have limited civil liberty. Current restrictions to women’s freedom of movement arise mainly from social norms, but this was not always the case: prior to 1976, husbands had the legal right to prevent their wives from traveling. Recent amendments to the Passport Act give women the right to apply for their own passports without having to obtain permission from their husbands. According to a study by Hassan, legal restrictions on women’s movement remain in other areas of daily life: women are not allowed to work between 8:00 pm and 6:00 am, and are prohibited completely from working in quarries and other hazardous environments.
By contrast, Jordanian women enjoy legal freedom of dress. Despite the strong Islamic influences, wearing a veil is optional. The majority of women (about 75 per cent) choose to wear a veil in public, but one of the highest-profile women, Jordan’s Queen Rania, does not.
The Associated Press (2006), A Look at the Wearing of Veils, and Disputes on the Issue, Across the Muslim World, International Herald Tribune, Paris.
CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) (2006), Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Jordan, Combined Third and Fourth Reports of States Parties, CEDAW/C/JOR/3-4, CEDAW, New York, NY.
Cotula, L. for the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) Legal Office (2002), Gender and Law: Women’s Rights in Agriculture, FAO Legislative Study No. 76, 2002, Rome.
Hassan, R. (2005), Women’s Rights in the Middle East and North Africa: Citizenship and Justice – Jordan Country Report, Freedom House Inc., Washington DC.
Hendessi, M. (2007), Jordan Gender Assessment, USAID, Washington, DC.
IRIN (Integrated Regional Information Network) (2005), Middle East: FGM Still Largely an Unknown Quantity in Arab world, www.irinnews.org, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, New York, NY.
Uhlman, K. (2004), Overview of Shari’a and Prevalent Customs in Islamic Societies: Divorce and Child Custody, Expert Law, www.expertlaw.com.
UN (United Nations) (2004), World Fertility Report 2003, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division.
UNIFEM (United Nations Development Fund for Women) (2006), Status of Jordanian Women: Demography, Economic Participation, Political Participation and Violence, UNIFEM, New York, NY.
