DEIR EZ-ZOR, Syria (North Press) – Yusra has lost all hope of working in an NGO or an institution linked to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), as she lacks even a school certificate.
Yusra al-Ahmad, 25, from the village Hamar al-Ali, 20 km west of Deir ez-Zor, has repeatedly been rejected from work interviews due to her lack of a school diploma. She blames her parents, as they did not allow her to complete her education.
Women in Deir ez-Zor, in eastern Syria, face difficulties because of the tribal nature of the region and strict customs and traditions which deny women their basic rights to education or to freely choose a husband.
Al-Ahmad said she searched for a job many times but had no luck. “My parents are the reason I do not have a diploma. They objected to continuing my education. Now they let me work, but no one hires me.”
Additionally, she is not eligible for any of the training courses offered by NGOs in the region. The organizations require a certificate to be accepted, she said.
She wants to get any job to pay her expenses amid the deteriorating economic conditions and high prices that trouble the majority of the people.
Aysha al-Khalaf, 22, from the al-Tar region, 12km west of Deir ez-Zor, does have a diploma but is not allowed to work for the same reason Yusra was not allowed to complete her education: the strict traditions and customs that rule their society.
The young woman was prevented from completing her college education after finishing school, for which she suffered psychologically, as she was unable to stem the expectations of her community.
Al-Khalaf said she hoped to be a teacher. But the unstable security situation and the dominance of tradition and family prevented her from accomplishing that. “Women are restricted. They do not have a say in their personal and practical life.”
International Women’s Day is celebrated every year on March 8. On this day, the workers’ movement began; it later became an annual event recognized by the United Nations.
In 1908, 15.000 women marched in protests in New York City demanding better wages and working conditions, as well as the right to vote in elections.
In eastern Syria, traditions control the community. They are ruled by a set of untouchable tribal laws that cannot be overruled. The majority of the rules are negatively affect women.
Nour al-Mahmoud, 40, from the village of al-Hawija, 12km west of Deir ez-Zor, is a widow and mother to three children. She too suffers amidst this social climate.
The perceived social pressure increased after al-Mahmoud’s husband passed away. She is tormented by the judgments and negative perception of the community towards single widowed women.
The woman, who supports her children, has an additional burden placed on her, as she cannot get a job under the current economic conditions. She did not receive any help from the community or from NGOs.
Fatima al-Hussein, co-chair of the AANES Women’s Committee in the Deir ez-Zor region, said that “the Women’s Committee is working to support and enable women and to attract as many women as possible,” although efforts are greatly limited.
The committee is providing courses for several illiterate and educated women, each according to their level, after which their names are registered with the labor office in order to provide them with jobs according to their qualifications, she added.
The committee is working on projects to better the reality of women, such as the women’s oven project in Al-Kasreh, which provides job opportunities for 15 women, as well as the Beyt Al-Mouna, a dried foods processing plant, according to al-Hussein.
Al-Hussein added that the committee established a number of projects for women in 2023, including a printing house to provide job opportunities for women, and vocational training courses.