Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai said on Friday that the Maronite Church supports full gender equality, noting that the Church highlights the importance of preserving the dignity of women.
He also reiterated that the Church will not remain idle facing the inequality or violence prevalent against women in the country.
Rai’s comments were made during a celebration on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the message of Pope John Paul II.
The Patriarch called on the Lebanese Parliament to ban all violations against women.
On Tuesday, the Lebanese Parliament passed a law to protect women from domestic violence; however, did not make the amendments requested by Non-Governmental Organizations, most prominently KAFA (enough) Violence & Exploitation.
Following the ratification of the law, a KAFA spokesperson told LBCI that the NGO was not satisfied with the law, pointing out that the law is not an achievement for Lebanese women since it does not guarantee that they will be fully protected.
Lebanon, known for its nightclubs, stylish boutiques and liberal social norms, offers women freedoms denied to many in the Arab world, but campaigners say at least one woman a month is killed by domestic violence in a country of 4 million.
Following the deaths of Manal Assi, Cristelle Abou Chakra, and Roula Yaacoub, many Lebanese took to social media to condemn a seven-month delay in passing the domestic violence law, held up by political disagreements and backlog of bills linked to the Syrian civil war and internal political rivalries.
Last week, a new campaign was launched by KAFA; photos, along with the hashtag #NoLawNoVote depicting women, men and children holding up their thumbs covered with red ink (color of injuries and restrain), were shared on social media websites to urge the members of parliament to vote and pass the law to protect women from domestic violence. However, to much of their disappointment, the law was passed without the requested amendments the group had called for, they said.
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