DURING the past few decades, there has been a wealth of publications and writings on personal status problems and the relevant laws implemented in Egypt,

coinciding with an increasing interest on the part of local NGOs in the problems experienced by women and children as the most vulnerable sectors of society. However, most of these studies have tended to concentrate on the legal aspects and have not examined in any depth the social background of the problems.

The social role of women has been defined by the economic, social and cultural values of this society. Of the many social and economic factors that interact in this complicated picture underlying the drafting and implementation of the law, economic factors and the issue of illiteracy are arguably the most critical. In the context of the family structure, women tend to suffer a double social and political suppression. Moreover, men have the advantage of being more involved in social life and are therefore generally more experienced than women, apart from the few women who manage to overcome the restricted boundaries of the family.