The hopes of women standing at the forefront of the "Arab Spring" were not met. The dictators were overthrown, the reforms were carried out, but women were not given the rights they hoped for. On the contrary, even the few slight successes they had achieved at the time have dissolved. Now they have to fight for their rights on the Internet.

A Lebanese activist Haidar Diyala along with four like-minded women launched a campaign on Facebook The Uprising of Women in the Arab World in October of 2011 to tell the world about the injustices against women in the region. 28-year-old Diyala wrote that the Arab Spring was held under the banner of freedom, dignity and equality, but they could not be established if the women were left out of the equation. She added that at every stage of history, we have heard nothing but excuses, e.g., the war was not the time to discuss such issues.  Now it was the time to say: we want our rights, she said.

Her Facebook page has nearly 80,000 Likes, and now The Uprising of Women in the Arab World has moved to its own site. The movement is currently running two campaigns. Under the first campaign women send their photos with posters showing the words of support for other women. The other campaing, with the support of the UN, collects stories of violence, harassment and discrimination, making such incidents public.

So far only the bravest responded to Diyala's call. Dozens of women who shared their stories complained that they could not talk about it to anyone else, or bring the perpetrators to justice. "The revolution is not done in secret, it is done publicly," said Haidar. "We must begin to share their stories and concerns publicly. This would prove that such incidents are not exceptional cases, but a part of everyday life, and we must work hard to overcome violence. "

Continue reading here:  http://english.pravda.ru/society/stories/09-01-2013/123409-arab_spr...