Juego de roles

Women landholders had opportunities to obtain new social roles and responsibilities through their access to land. For many women landholders, the fact that they had to

immediately ‘green’ or farm their lands and could not legally rent or sell their land meant that they had to adopt new roles: farmers (in Sa’yda) and farm managers (in Sa’yda and Intilaq). Furthermore, as landholders, women were able to participate on committees related to the land. These committees include the Water User Associations, LACs (as members at large and as board members), Marketing Cooperative (exclusive to Intilaq), Local Councils, and Social Development Associations. While the Water User Associations, Marketing Cooperative, and LACs were exclusive to landholders, Local Councils and Social Development Associations were also open to non-landholders. Because women landholders had active political and public roles, they were also involved on the Local Councils and Social Development Associations. Social Development Associations were almost exclusively comprised of women in some villages. Through the Social Development Associations, women opened nurseries, clinics, and cloth decorating workshops, as well as attended training on food preparation, preservation, and first aid training.

It is very unusual in Upper Egypt for a woman to be a member of the board

committee in LACs. In two other desert resettlements in Upper Egypt only one woman was a board member. In the Sa’yda settlement, the WLs who were board members in LACs were so because the WFP created women exclusive ‘Widow Villages’ and imposed a quota for women’s participation on LACs in mixed villages. In the Iman village, for example, there are three types of settlers, the WHHs, the Evicted Tenants, and the Graduates. Each of the

categories was represented by two board members in the LAC. The LAC of the Samaha village, which is exclusively inhabited by women, has all its board members comprised of

women. Board members of the LACs of both genders were sent for training in various governorates by the WFP. The training was for leadership skills and for exchange of farming skills between provinces.

These male related roles of farming and committee members in both settlements helped women landholders feel that they have achieved equality with men, as illustrated by the quotes below:

“On the land and in the LACs we are exactly like men. When we enter our homes, however, we revert back to being women.” (Om Azeez, a GWL and board member in the local LAC)

“I feel like I am the same as any other male graduate here. In fact, I feel like my land is better than some of the male Graduates in the project. People here talk about me, ‘how come she was able to farm her land and even male Graduates could not and rented their lands out?’ I wanted to prove that I can be a successful farmer, and I did that.” (Om Omar, a GWL and member of the Social Development Association and the Marketing Cooperative in Intilaq)

Similarly, officials and other local men felt that women who adopted male-related roles are men in their communities, as illustrated by the quotes below:

“Om Shareef, the GWL who is on the Water User Association, she is very outspoken and brave. She is like a man. She speaks her mind and contributes to discussions.” (Sayf, a male Graduate settler in Intilaq)

“Om Fareed is a real man. She could do anything. She is outspoken and intelligent,” (Vice Head of the Intilaq settlement about Om Fareed, a GWL who is a member on the Local Council and Water User Association)

Along the same lines many officials and settlers felt respect and admiration towards WLs’ adoption of new roles:

“Here [in the Samaha village] women are very brave, braver than the WHHs in the Old Lands. These WHHs know how to manage their affairs better. They go wherever they want and speak to whomever they want. Honestly, they are much braver here.” (Om Hamada, a newlywed from a nearby town)

“I taught her how to farm? No, I did not. Om Badee’ could teach a country how to farm. She is very smart. She always makes the best of everything. When she harvests the wheat, she collects all the seeds and leaves nothing to waste.” (Lateef, the son of a WL and Om Badee’s neighbor on the land)

“Women in Upper Egypt seldom go outside the house. Their groceries are brought to them by their husbands and/or their sons. Women in Upper Egypt do not work on the land. This is a phenomenon unique to the Sa’yda settlement. You will not see a woman going to the field elsewhere in Upper Egypt. This only happens here.” (Head of the Sa’yda settlement)

With these new roles and responsibilities, women were able to expand their networks in both the local communities and officials’ offices. Agarwal (1994) argues that having social and state support is empowering for women by enhancing their fallback positions

(independence) in the household and beyond. Women involved in the aforementioned committees were more assertive in their households and communities. In their households, women landholders were adamant about implementing certain projects on their lands, such as purchasing camels for fattening, cultivating fruit trees, and purchasing cattle for milking or fattening through networks and business partners in the original or new communities. In their communities, many women landholders were able to use their networks with officials for the public good.

Om Badee’ a board member on the LAC felt that women were being pushed too much in the bread lines during early mornings. She suggested to the Village Engineer building a cement structure to separate the women wanting to buy bread from the men. The Village Engineer agreed and told Om Badee’ to collect money from WLs and a son of a WL to collect money from male households. The Village Engineer also told the baker to speak with Om Badee’ if he had problems in the bakery and that

Il hajja Om Badee’ is a board member with us, and she will help you build this cement structure,” reported Om Badee’.

Om Azeez, a GWL and board member on the LAC, as another example, convinced the local Vice Head of Intilaq settlement to provide an orphaned family from the father’s side with land access. She knew the land prices and which lands were vacant. Om Majid, a WL in Sa’yda, arranged a meeting for her cousin with the Head of the Sa’yda settlement for the cousin to ask about her husband’s access to land. Om Majid’s cousin explained how Om Majid became more resourceful in helping others since she accessed land: “Since the Samaha, Om Majid became more adept in helping people around her. She was like that from before, but the Samaha introduced her to so many people.” The Head of the Sa’yda settlement later told me that, “Om Majid has a special place in my heart. When I became the Head here, and she saw me, she hugged me and told me that she feels very happy that I am the new Head.” He went on to say that he would do his best in helping her cousin’s husband claim his land. Some officials used the network of some women landholders to gain access to participants in training programs or to gain access to crop buyers. Om Omar for example often got calls from officials at IFAD and LDU asking her to recruit participants for training

programs. Other officials who also had land called Om Omar to ask her about contact information for crop buyers.

Especially after the Revolution, WL board members in the LAC of Samaha demanded an increase in the fertilizer rations, potable water, and access to health care on several occasions. During my return visit in 2013, the Head of the Sa’yda settlement reported that WL board members visited his office a couple of times to ask for more fertilizer and that he gave it to them.

Some of the roles women landholders adopted are normally socially prohibitive for women (see Table 10). It is through these roles that women landholders are able to address inequalities in their communities. This included managing a farm, irrigating at night, and operating diesel water pumps.

Usually men care for their mothers and needy relatives, but many GWLs played major roles in providing for their parents and needy relatives because of the land and its produce, as illustrated by the following quotes:

“Om Fareed [a GWL] bought all my clothing. Om Fareed always gives me money and food from the harvest, such as wheat. I used to attend sessions with her as a fellow Graduate woman and get 25 EL for each session. She is the one who takes care of me in the family.” (Om Fareed’s mother, a widow)

“I always give my nieces and nephews a carload of produce, clothing, and things they need. They are orphans.” (Om Azeez, a GWL)

Many GWLs also gained more power in their extended families through land access. “Om Azeez is the big head in her family. She has the most land and wealth. Her word is always heard,” explained Village Engineer Mahmoud. Om Fareed, similarly, reported that “whenever my siblings have a fight, they call for me to resolve the dispute. They respect my opinion, and I bring them all together. I go to my old town once every year and hold a feast. I feed my family meat and produce from the land.”

Table 10 Changes in women’s roles and responsibilities through land access in Sa’yda and Intilaq.

New Roles and Responsibilities

At Intilaq At Sa’yda

Participate in Public Life

On land-related committees (such as the LACs, Social Development Associations13, and Water User Associations)

In legal matters related to the land, such as electricity stations and police stations to report theft of water pumps

On land-related committees (such as the LACs and Water User Associations)

In legal matters related to the land, such as electricity stations and police stations to report theft of water pumps

Interact with Men In public roles and training As had to deal with called them ‘sons’

Participate in labour on the land

N/A Common, especially in the

‘Widow Village’

Increase mobility Attend training and meetings outside the local communities

Carry on legal matters as landholders outside the local communities

Operate Water Pumps

N/A Operate the baytar (diesel pump)

machine

Irrigate the land At night At night

Manage a farm Through training and support from male peers and/or husbands Husbands sometimes resist and divorce might occur

Common, especially during the early stages of settlement when government policies were rigid and sons were young

Rarely the case when sons grow up but there are two cases

Adopt male- related roles

Conflict resolution in family and settler and hometown villages Financial support of family members in need

Farm the land for fear of eviction and to make a living out of it

13

These associations are currently not active in Upper Egypt but used to be when the WFP-Assisted Projects Unit was working in the area.

It was also clear that women landholders in the women exclusive villages were more likely to adopt socially prohibitive roles than women landholders in mixed villages. Together they gained more courage to do so.