Ayman Okeil, chairman of Maat for Peace, Development, and Human Rights, participated in the 15th International Conference of the Arab Union for Sustainable Development and the Environment, entitled "Family Media and Digital Transformation: Towards Sustainable Awareness and Security," held on December 4, 2025, at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States in Cairo.
In his address, Ayman Okeil stated that the rights of the family and its members are enshrined in the Arab Charter on Human Rights, specifically Article 33, which considers the family the natural and fundamental unit of society. The Charter also obligates the state and society to protect the family, strengthen its bonds, protect its members, and prohibit all forms of violence and abuse among its members, especially against women and children.
Okeil added that there are challenges and obstacles preventing families and their members from fully enjoying their right to protection. The most prominent of these are the legal frameworks governing family rights in the Arab region, the high rates of divorce and family breakdown, the prevalence of early and forced marriage, the impact of wars and conflicts, the decline in family planning services, and the risks of the digital space and domestic violence.
The human rights expert recommended launching urgent appeals to urge the League of Arab States and its relevant bodies to expedite the establishment of a regional Arab convention that would address digital citizenship issues, regulate the safe, ethical, and rights-based use of digital technologies, and promote individuals' enjoyment of digital rights. He also recommended organizing awareness and educational campaigns to eradicate negative phenomena, stereotypes, and harmful societal norms affecting girls and women's education, and to raise awareness about the social, economic, and psychological value of girls' education.
Okeil stressed the importance of providing official and digital platforms for women's voices and encouraging them to report instances of violence, harassment, and threats, thus enabling effective and immediate action against violations. He also called on CSOs to launch awareness and advocacy campaigns that challenge prevailing cultural stereotypes in the Arab region and protect victims of domestic violence against Arab children and girls.
shortlink: https://safearabregion.org/en/?p=45650
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