Lebanon Prohibits Woman From Passing On Citizenship

A Lebanese court has prohibited a Lebanese woman from bequeathing citizenship to her children. The court ruled that the judiciary lacks oversight on citizenship matters and that only the president can rule in this case.

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"Lebanese law is clear on who can be granted Lebanese citizenship and stipulates that the president alone can look into emergency cases," the court's verdict stated.

The case concerned a Samira Soueidan, mother of four, whose Egyptian husband passed away in the early 1990s. And the law in question was written by the French colonial administrators back in 1925 which mandates that only men can pass on citizenship.

Initially Soueidan won her case when a judge ruled that she could pass on citizenship to her children, but then this decision was overturned by a higher court and Soueidan now has two-months to appeal.

Part of the reason for the reversal is sexism. Despite its progressive image, Lebanon is one of the most regressive Arab states in the region. This is almost exclusively due to Lebanon's sectarian politics which mandates that family matters be left to respective religious institutions. No civil marriage exists in Lebanon, for instance. And neither the Christian authorities nor their Muslim peers can be described as feminist and supporting full equality for women. The religious clergy on both sides has undermined the female's position at home by, say, limiting child custody rights is a divorce.

That is part of the reason; a religious effort to restrict women's rights. The other reason many do not want a change is because many anti-Palestinian Lebanese do not want Palestinian refugees to obtain citizenship:

Many fear changing the law would hand citizenship to Palestinian refugees who are married to Lebanese women.

Lebanon lacks behind Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and other Arab nations in this regard.