MASTERS THESIS H-3321 KLETZIEN, Sharon Benge THE CHANGING STATUS OF TUNISIAN WOMEN. The American University» M.A., 1971 Sociology, general University Microfilms, A XEROX Company , Ann Arbor, Michigan © 1972 Sharon Benge Kletzlen ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THE CHANGING STATUS OF TUNISIAN WOMEN by Sharon Benge Kletzlen Submitted to the School of International Service of The American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in International Studies Signatures of Committee:' Chairman: . f ) Dean of' the School Date; f 1 I_____ Date: I ^ JHÈ /lyiftjCAN UNIVERSITY Th^merlcan University y , __p . Washington, D.C, rCD o Valù PLEASE NOTE: Some pages may have indistinct print. Filmed as received. University Microfilms, A Xerox Education Company TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION .................................. 1 The purpose of Che study ........................... L Justification of the study ......................... 1 Organization of the thesis . 2 II. EARLY HISTORY ........... ' ............................ 7 The Phoenicians and Carthage ......................... 7 Rome ............................................... 9 The Vandals 9 / / / The Byzantines ........................................ 10 /' y Summary 11 / / / . Ill. ISLAMIZATION AND THE STATUS OF WOMEN .................. ;4.' / Historical background .............................. / 12 /'■ Women in traditional Islam ...................... r. 17 /' ' IV. THE FRENCH PROTECTORATE / . 25 ( / V. INDEPENDENCE AND THE NEW EMANCIPATION.................. 40 Personal Status Code ................................. 47 Union Nationale des Femmes de T u n i s i e ................. 55 Government . 58 Education ............................................. 60 Labor ............................................ 66 Family planning ......... ..................... 69 S u m m a r y ................................ 72 ii CHAPTER PAGE VI. SUMMARY .................................................. 74 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................... 8L Primary s o u r c e s ................ 81 Secondary sources .......................................... 83 APPENDIX ...................................................... 91 Interview q u e s t i o n s ................... 91 LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I. Foreigners in Tunisia ................................ 26 II, Number Seeking Land Registration in French Courts .... 30 III, Frequency that Respondents Wear t!ie Veil ........ 46 IV, Choice of Husband for Married Respondents ........... 52 V. Age of Respondents at Time of M a r r i a g e ................ 53 VI. School Statistics 1956-57, 1970-71 . 62 VII, Respondents' Completed School Years . ................ 65 VIII, Type of School Respondents Prefer for Daughters ........ 66 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The purpose of the study. Since Independence in 1956, the Tunisian government has enacted exceptional legislation affecting the status and emancipation of women. These reforms provide for; --women to vote and hold office --abolition of polygamy and unilateral repudiation --a minimum age for marriage --marriage as a contract between man and woman rather than between families --child support and maternal custody in divorce cases --compulsory education to include girls as well as boys --legalized abortion for women with five children even without the husband's consent. This new legal framework for women's emancipation has been instituted despite Tunisia's Islamic heritage and well-established tradition of subjugating women. This study's purpose, then, is to determine how such recent and significant changes have been effected, including the enabling historical factors, and how a sample of Tunisian women have evaluated the Impact of these reforms on their lives. Justification of the study. Tunisia's progress in forging new roles and rights for its women is a result of historical factors. 2 dedication of Ita leaders to women's emancipation, and their very skillful approach to the Tunisian populace. President Bourguiba declared in one of his many speeches regarding the role of the Tunisian woman that "a society cannot be healthy and balanced with half the social body--the feminine element--still subjugated, exploited, and humiliated."! In only the last few decades Tunisian women have left the seclusion of the harem to actively participate in their society. From a human rights as well as a manpower viewpoint, this is profoundly important. Although Tunisia's progress in effecting social change in general is mentioned in numerous books and articles, no substantial study since Henri de Montety's Femmes de Tunisie, published in 1958, has dealt exclusively with women. This study, then, will not only up-date de Montety's work, but will also trace the historical factors contri­ buting to this peaceful evolution. Organisation of the thesis. The history of Tunisia^ will be ! Habib Bourguiba, "Women and Social Evolution." Speech given June 24, 1966. (Tunis; Secretariat of the State for Information and Orientation, 1966.) p. 3. 2 Tunisia's present geographical entity has been fairly consistent within the same borders. At times parts of today's Algeria and Libya have been Included. Various governments, ruling from Carthage, Kairouan, Msdhia, and Tunis, were able to extend on occasions, the southern boundary Into the Sahara, only to have it pushed back when the nomads' strength exceeded the government's. The French fixed the southern boundary on independence in 1956, but until agreement was reached between Algeria and Tunisia in 1970, this boundary was in dispute. The present eastern and western boundaries were fixed by the Ottoman rulers in the sixteenth century. 3 divided into four period8--pre-Islsmic, early Islamic, French controlled, and independent--in order to assess those factors affecting the status of women. Chapter II includes a brief summary of political developments in pre-lslamic Tunisia from 1000 B.C. to A.D. 697. Tunisia's early history is important in any discussion of social change because it is responsible for the homogeneity and cosmopolitan nature of the society. No attempt will be made to deduce the status of women in these early societies since this is not the main contribution of the pre-lslamic history. Sources of data for this period are books and pamphlets, especially those by Charles-Andre Julien,3 Cliarles Gallagher,4 and Nevill Barbour.3 The Islamic era from 697 to 1881, has had the greatest effect on the Tunisian population. Thus, Chapter III will trace the development of the various dynasties which controlled the area, and it will also include an examination of the status of women according to the tenets of Islam. Works by Charles-Andre Julien,^ Roger le Tourneau,^ 3Charles-Andre Julien, Histoire de l'Afrique Blanche (Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1966). ^Charles Gallagher, Field Staff Reports 1956-1968 (New York: American Universities Field Staff Reports, 1956-1968). ^Nevill Barbour, A Survey of North West Africa (New York: Oxford University Press, 1962). ^Charles-Andre Julien, History of North Africa from the Arab Conquest to 1830 (London: Cass, 1968). ?Roger le Tourneau, The Almohad Movement in North Africa in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries (Princeton; Princeton University Press, 1969). 4 Leon Carl Brown,® and ibn Khaldun^ were particularly valuable In analyzing political factors. The section concerning women's role in Islam was drawn largely from the Koran, Social Structure in Islam by Reuben Levy, and Femmes de Tunisie by Henri de Montety. Chapter IV reviews the changes occurring between 1881 and 1956, the period of the French Protectorate. One of the most important effects of this Western exposure was the breakdown of traditional authority which enabled the younger nationalist leaders to dominate the independence movement. Factors contributing to this breakdown and women's status during the occupation are discussed. Works by Clement Henry Moore,!® Jacques Berque,!! Charles Gallagher,!^ Henri de Montety,!® g^d Charles Micaud!4 were primary sources. Far-reaching reforms accompanied independence in 1956. In Chapter V these reforms and the methods used by the government to insure their ®Leon Carl Brown, The Surest Path (Cambridge, Mass; Harvard University Press, 1967). Q Ibn Khaldun, The Muqaddimah; An Introduction to History Translated by Franz Rosenthal, (New York: Pantheon Books, 1958). ^^Clement Henry Moore, Tunisia Since Independence (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1965). Jacques Berque, French North Africa: The Maghreb Between Two World Wars (New York; Praeger, 1967). !^Gallagher, o£. cit. !®Henri de Montety, Femmes de Tunisie (Paris; Mouton & Company, 1958). Charles Micaud, Leon Carl Brown, and Clement Henry Moore, Tunisia The Politics of Modernization (New York; Praeger, 1964). 5 acceptance is discussed. The Union Nationale des Femmes de Tunisie and the Parti Socinliste Destourien are examined in view of their key roles in the women's rights movement. This chapter draws heavily upon the experience of the author who lived in Tunisia for the period 1964- 1966 and the spring of 1967. Many of the discussions which took place during this period of residence increased understanding and appreciation of the Tunisian women's position. Other sources drawn upon for this chapter are President Bourguiba's numerous speeches regarding the status of women and social change, Union Nationale des Femnes de Tunisie (UNFT) tracts and reports, newspaper accounts, and Secretariat of State for Information and Orientation