Sihem Habchi
Encyclopedia
Sihem Habchi has been the presiding president of Ni Putes Ni Soumises
(Neither Whores nor Submissives) since June 2007, and is a member of the High Authority of the Battle against Discrimination and for Equality (HALDE
).
and university that primarily involved linguistics and multimedia. She obtained a specialized degree in the field of multimedia at the Pierre-et-Marie-Curie University in Paris, in 2001.
After having taught French abroad to an audience predominately made up of women undergoing rehabilitation, she launched into multimedia production and oriented her research toward educational methods and multimedia directed at children.
where the young Sohanne
, victim of misogynism, was burned alive in a dumpster in a Balzac city neighbourhood. This first march obtained its objective: to break the silence, as evident of the more than 30,000 people who turned out to march behind the “Ni Putes Ni Soumises” banner, until the annual International Women's Day
, 8 March 2003.
Sihem Habchi told her story and that of the myriad women with whom she had grown up. All, like her, had known constant discrimination which victimized young boys and girls. It was for these many reasons, as well as due to a great desire to set off change in society, that Sihem Habchi joined Fadela Amara
and her team in April 2003. She was one of 14 “Mariannes of Today”, displayed on the face of the National Assembly from July 12 to August 31; 2003. This exposition was highly symbolic in terms of identification with republican values. The natural and frank portraits of young “black, white, and North African” women paid homage to Marianne, the rebellious French heroine devoted to equality and fraternity.
In September 2003, Sihem Habchi took the position of vice-president of the Ni Putes Ni Soumises movement. She was responsible for the Multimedia Department, for networking and international relations.
In February and March 2004, during the national debate over secularism
, she participated in the “Tour de France Republicain” to move the focus of the debate beyond the spheres of politics, media, and academia. She led over 100 public meetings before audiences of close to 1,000 persons, often at risk to verbal and physical threats.
In October 2004, the Ni Putes Ni Soumises movement received women from all over the world (Saudi Arabia
, Germany
, the Netherlands
, the United States
, Morocco
, Algeria…) who came to argue for the necessity of solidarity at the hour of growing religious fundamentalism
and patriarchal regimes looking to suppress the emancipation of women
. Her role as vice-president, charged with dealing with international relations
, allowed for the creation of NPNS committees in Spain
, Sweden
, Switzerland
, and Belgium
.
During her participation in numerous international conferences she stressed the dangers of religious shifts, cultural relativism
and communitarianism
.
On International Women’s Day, 8 March 2005, NPNS collaborated with a number of grassroots associations and personalities to launch a call “For a new feminism” which emphasized the necessity to promote equality, secularism (la laicité) and diversity to ensure the emancipation of all individuals. This collective also denounced communitarianism linked with any sort of particular cultural belief which, in the name of the “relative” liberty of choice, led to subjection and imprisonment.
In 2006, Sihem Habchi participated in the development of the House of “Mixité” (diversity), inaugurated 8 March 2006, in the presence of ex-French President Jacques Chirac
. In 2007, thanks to her actions in New York as vice-president of Ni Putes Ni Soumises, the movement was granted consultative status
to the United Nations
, which made it a privileged representative on the international scene.
Sihem Habchi left soon after for Pakistan to support the ex-minister Nilofar Bakhtiar
, who had been threatened with a fatwa
. Since 2007, Sihem Habchi has not ceased to defend women victims of obscurantism
throughout the world: she has met with Ayaan Hirsi Ali
, Naeema Moghul, Nawal Saadawi
, Taslima Nasrin
, and many others.
On 24 November 2008, Habchi addressed a letter to Nicolas Sarkozy
, current French president
, to demand he commit to the national cause to end violence against women
. To solidify this demand, Ni Putes Ni Soumises initiated a collective of associations.
, president of the National Assembly, to the HALDE Institute.
Ni Putes Ni Soumises
Ni Putes Ni Soumises is a French feminist movement, founded in 2002, which has secured the recognition of the French press and the National Assembly of France. It is generally dependent on public funding...
(Neither Whores nor Submissives) since June 2007, and is a member of the High Authority of the Battle against Discrimination and for Equality (HALDE
High authority for the struggle against discrimination and for equality
The High Authority for the Struggle Against Discrimination and for Equality is a French "independent administrative authority" which "has the right to judge all discrimination, direct or indirect, that is prohibited by law or an international agreement to which France is a signatory."HALDE was...
).
Biography
Born of Algerian immigrant parents, Sihem Habchi followed a course of study in secondary schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
and university that primarily involved linguistics and multimedia. She obtained a specialized degree in the field of multimedia at the Pierre-et-Marie-Curie University in Paris, in 2001.
After having taught French abroad to an audience predominately made up of women undergoing rehabilitation, she launched into multimedia production and oriented her research toward educational methods and multimedia directed at children.
Political activism and Ni Putes Ni Soumises
In March 2003, like thousands of French women and men, she joined the women’s March for equality and against the ghetto. For five weeks, through 23 cities, and under the deliberately provocative slogan “Neither Whores nor Submissives,” five women and two men called for public attention and action regarding the condition of girls in poor neighbourhoods. The March commenced symbolically in Vitry-sur-SeineVitry-sur-Seine
Vitry-sur-Seine is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris.-Name:Vitry-sur-Seine was originally called simply Vitry. The name Vitry comes from Medieval Latin Vitriacum, and before that Victoriacum, meaning "estate of Victorius", a...
where the young Sohanne
Sohane Benziane
Sohane Benziane was a French girl of Algerian ancestry who was murdered at the age of 17.On October 4, 2002 in Vitry-sur-Seine, South of Paris, 17 year old Sohane Benziane, the daughter of Kabyle immigrants, was burned alive in front of her friends in a cellar by her former boyfriend, a local caid...
, victim of misogynism, was burned alive in a dumpster in a Balzac city neighbourhood. This first march obtained its objective: to break the silence, as evident of the more than 30,000 people who turned out to march behind the “Ni Putes Ni Soumises” banner, until the annual International Women's Day
International Women's Day
International Women's Day , originally called International Working Women’s Day, is marked on March 8 every year. In different regions the focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women's economic, political and...
, 8 March 2003.
Sihem Habchi told her story and that of the myriad women with whom she had grown up. All, like her, had known constant discrimination which victimized young boys and girls. It was for these many reasons, as well as due to a great desire to set off change in society, that Sihem Habchi joined Fadela Amara
Fadela Amara
Fadéla Amara, also known as Fatiha Amara is a French feminist and politician, who began her political life as an advocate for women in the impoverished banlieues. She was the Secretary of State for Urban Policies in the conservative Union for a Popular Movement government of French Prime Minister...
and her team in April 2003. She was one of 14 “Mariannes of Today”, displayed on the face of the National Assembly from July 12 to August 31; 2003. This exposition was highly symbolic in terms of identification with republican values. The natural and frank portraits of young “black, white, and North African” women paid homage to Marianne, the rebellious French heroine devoted to equality and fraternity.
Directorship of Ni Putes Ni Soumises
Sihem Habchi offered her talents to the creation of the Guide to Respect, sold today to 100,000 copies throughout France (a European version is currently under way), as the march allowed for the collection of thousands of stories of girls and boys in pain.In September 2003, Sihem Habchi took the position of vice-president of the Ni Putes Ni Soumises movement. She was responsible for the Multimedia Department, for networking and international relations.
In February and March 2004, during the national debate over secularism
Secularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
, she participated in the “Tour de France Republicain” to move the focus of the debate beyond the spheres of politics, media, and academia. She led over 100 public meetings before audiences of close to 1,000 persons, often at risk to verbal and physical threats.
In October 2004, the Ni Putes Ni Soumises movement received women from all over the world (Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, Algeria…) who came to argue for the necessity of solidarity at the hour of growing religious fundamentalism
Fundamentalism
Fundamentalism is strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology. The term "fundamentalism" was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the...
and patriarchal regimes looking to suppress the emancipation of women
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
. Her role as vice-president, charged with dealing with international relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
, allowed for the creation of NPNS committees in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
.
During her participation in numerous international conferences she stressed the dangers of religious shifts, cultural relativism
Cultural relativism
Cultural relativism is the principle that an individual human's beliefs and activities should be understood by others in terms of that individual's own culture. This principle was established as axiomatic in anthropological research by Franz Boas in the first few decades of the 20th century and...
and communitarianism
Communitarianism
Communitarianism is an ideology that emphasizes the connection between the individual and the community. That community may be the family unit, but it can also be understood in a far wider sense of personal interaction, of geographical location, or of shared history.-Terminology:Though the term...
.
On International Women’s Day, 8 March 2005, NPNS collaborated with a number of grassroots associations and personalities to launch a call “For a new feminism” which emphasized the necessity to promote equality, secularism (la laicité) and diversity to ensure the emancipation of all individuals. This collective also denounced communitarianism linked with any sort of particular cultural belief which, in the name of the “relative” liberty of choice, led to subjection and imprisonment.
In 2006, Sihem Habchi participated in the development of the House of “Mixité” (diversity), inaugurated 8 March 2006, in the presence of ex-French President Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
. In 2007, thanks to her actions in New York as vice-president of Ni Putes Ni Soumises, the movement was granted consultative status
Consultative Status
Consultative Status is a phrase whose use can be traced to the founding of the United Nations and is used within the UN community to refer to "Non-governmental organizations in Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council." Also some international organizations could...
to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, which made it a privileged representative on the international scene.
President of the movement
On 23 June 2007, Habchi was elected president of the movement by the National Council of Ni Putes Ni Soumises. She replaced Fadela Amara, who was nominated to the Secretary of State under the Minister Fillon II administration.Sihem Habchi left soon after for Pakistan to support the ex-minister Nilofar Bakhtiar
Nilofar Bakhtiar
Nilofar Bakhtiar is a public official in Pakistan. She was Federal Minister for Tourism in Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz's cabinet until a scandal forced her to resign. She remains a senator. Bakhtiar has worked toward improving women's social status, as well as working in areas of health and...
, who had been threatened with a fatwa
Fatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
. Since 2007, Sihem Habchi has not ceased to defend women victims of obscurantism
Obscurantism
Obscurantism is the practice of deliberately preventing the facts or the full details of some matter from becoming known. There are two, common, historical and intellectual, denotations: 1) restricting knowledge—opposition to the spread of knowledge, a policy of withholding knowledge from the...
throughout the world: she has met with Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Ayaan Hirsi Magan Ali is a Somali-Dutch feminist and atheist activist, writer, politician who strongly opposes circumcision and female genital cutting. She is the daughter of the Somali politician and opposition leader Hirsi Magan Isse and is a founder of the women's rights organisation the AHA...
, Naeema Moghul, Nawal Saadawi
Nawal El Saadawi
Nawal El Saadawi , born October 27, 1931, is an Egyptian feminist writer, activist, physician and psychiatrist. She has written many books on the subject of women in Islam, paying particular attention to the practice of female genital mutilation in her society....
, Taslima Nasrin
Taslima Nasrin
Taslima Nasrin is a Bengali Bangladeshi ex-doctor turned author who has been living in exile since 1994. From a modest literary profile in the late 1980s, she rose to global fame by the end of the 20th century owing to her feminist views and her criticism of Islam in particular and of religion in...
, and many others.
On 24 November 2008, Habchi addressed a letter to Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy is the 23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. He assumed the office on 16 May 2007 after defeating the Socialist Party candidate Ségolène Royal 10 days earlier....
, current French president
President of the French Republic
The President of the French Republic colloquially referred to in English as the President of France, is France's elected Head of State....
, to demand he commit to the national cause to end violence against women
Violence against women
Violence against women is a technical term used to collectively refer to violent acts that are primarily or exclusively committed against women...
. To solidify this demand, Ni Putes Ni Soumises initiated a collective of associations.
The HALDE Institute (The High Authority of the Battle against Discrimination and for Equality)
In July 2007, some days after being elected to the position of president of Ni Putes Ni Soumises, Sihem Habchi was nominated by Bernard AccoyerBernard Accoyer
Bernard Accoyer is a French politician who is currently the President of the National Assembly of France, as well as the Mayor of Annecy-le-Vieux.-Biography:...
, president of the National Assembly, to the HALDE Institute.