The equality strategy

In this period, as noted by a number of analysts (Hammami and Johnson 1999; Jad et al. 2000), the women’s movement has been guided by an equality strategy, which has been the driving force in such important initiatives as the creation of a Women’s Charter (1994), the campaign for women candidates and platforms for the Palestinian Legislative Council (1995, with elections in January 1996 that yielded only five women members out of eighty-eight), reviews of existing legisla­tion and campaigns against discriminatory legislation, the model parliament (1998), examined below, and other campaigns lobbying for equality provisions in the Basic Law or other legislation in the Palestinian Legislative Council.