dosoandthatEgyptwouldalsowithdraw itsreservations toarticle 9. 10.Mr.GALAL(Egypt), replying tocomments madebymembers oftheCommittee, said thattheschooldrop-out rateamonggirlsandwomenwasduenot50muchtothe pressure putonchildren butrathertotheoverall economic situation ofthe family. Egyptian society wasatraditional society inwhichthemanwasthemain breadwinner; thewomanenjoyed equalrightsbutwasprivileged toreceive assistance. 11.Withregardtothequestions concerning Islam, hesaidthattheconcept of equality wasabasicelement oftheIslamic religion. Anylawwhichwasnot consistent withthisconcept wascontrary tothespiritofIslam;however, itwould clearly benecessary totakeapragmatic approach onthesubject. Inpractice, therewere ce~tain differences andtherewereincorrect interpretations ofthe concept ofIslam,butmenandwomenwouldhavetoworktogether inorderto surmount thoseproblems. 12.InEgypttherewasonesetoflawswhichapplied totheentirepopulation; differences existed onlywithrespect toprivate law.Islamwassaidtobethe dominant religion inEgyptbecauseitwasthereligion ofthemajority; however, allotherreligions wererespected. 13.Withregardtothequestions relating toabortion, hesaidthathehadalready dealtwiththesubject inconnection withhumanrights. Heagreedthat,oncethe Convention wasadopteditbecamepartofdomestic legislation; thathadnotbeen madeclearinthereport. Nodistinction wasmadeinEgyptbetween thetypeof workdonebymenandthetypeofworkdonebywomen, saveinthecaseofdangerous work,fromwhichwomenwereprotected. Withregardtoaccesstocontraception, he explained thatcontraceptive devices weredistributed freeofchargeinthefamily planning clinics. Adoption wasillegal inEgyptbecause ofthecomplications that couldensue. Nevertheless, theneedswhichledapersontoadoptachildweremet bymeansofanother system, thecustody system, whereby apersoncouldmaintain a childwithout passing theirnameontothechild. Inaddition, thereweremany orphanages runbyvoluntary organizations. I•••CEDAW/C/SR.165 English Page4 (Mr.Galal, Egypt) 14.Thelawgivespreference towomeninsofarascustody ofchildren was concerned, uptotheageof15yearsinthecaseofgirls(withapossibility of extension untilagirlmarried) anduptotheageof10yearsinthecaseofboys (withthepossibility ofextension untiltheageof15). 15.Referring totheguestions relating toreligion, hepointed outthatwomenhad aprivileged position inIslamandthatmanyofthepremises wereconsistent with theteachings ofthewivesoftheProphet. Nevertheless, thespiritofIslamwas oftendistorted asaresultofincorrect interpretations. 16.InEgypteducation wasfreeforbothmenandwomenwithout discrimination. Increasingly, womenwereholding highoffice, thankstotheirperseverance and dedication. Religious discrimination didnotexist;thevarious religious groups allhadthesamerightsbeforethelaw. 17.Withregardtotheroleofwomen, heciteddatafromarecentstudywhich showedthatamajority ofvomenwerehousewives. Intheeventofdivorce, awoman wasentitled tosupport fromherhusband andtoretaincustody ofthechildren and ofthefamily home,atleastuntilthechildren reached theageatwhichcustody ceased. Firstperiodic reportofTurkey (continued) (CEDAW/C/5/Add.45 andAmend.l) 18.Attheinvitation oftheChairperson, Ms.Dogramaci (Turkey) tookaplaceat theCommittee table. 19.Ms.DOGRAMACI (Turkey) saidthatshewouldreplyasfullyaspossible tothe questions whichtheCommittee hadraised. Turkeyattached greatimportance tothe Convention; itwasconscious ofitslimitations andwoulddowhatitcouldto overcome them. Turkey wasgoingthrough aperiodofeconomic andsocial change whichhadnegative andalsopositive implications forthestatusofwomen. The general problem ofunemployment hadaffected women. Atthesametime,inurban areas, womenweredeveloping theirindividuality, taking agreater interest in theirhealth andinfamilyplanning andincreasingly takingadvantage ofservices inthoseareas. Theirexpectations andaspirations werechanging rapidly, asalso wastheirperception oftheirroleinsociety andinthefamily. 20.Women's organizations hadbeenconsulted informally priortothepreparation ofthereport. 21.Withregardtoreligious fundamentalism anditsadverse repercussions onwomen inTurkey, shepointed outthatinademocracy itwasnecessary totolerate different beliefs, eveniftheyweretotally opposite toone'sown.Moreover, it should benotedthatthefundamentalists hadnotwonasingleseatinParliament in thelatestgeneral elections; thatshowedthattheydidnothavepopular support. Therightsthatwomenhadacguired inthe1920sand1930sandthegreatstrides madetowards eguality wouldsafeguard womenfromtheobstacles which'somewere attempting toputinthewayofprogress inthatarea. /...,CEDAW/C/SR.165 English
**Analysis**
The text appears to be a report on the status of women in Egypt, discussing various aspects of their rights, education, employment, and family life. The focus is on the social and cultural context of women's lives, with mentions of Islamic teachings and traditional societal norms. The text also touches on the government's policies and laws regarding women's rights.

**Category**
Education, Employment, Human Rights