Women and Internet in Lebanon

  Nadine Moawad is a feminist based in Lebanon. She is researching the intersection of sexuality issues with Internet censorship in her country and area of the world. I watched an interview where she explained the issues facing women and the Internet, and how censorship works in Lebanon.

  Lebanon is different than the countries around it because it is not government censored. It is institutionally censored, which means that colleges and religious and political organizations can censor what is on the Internet by blocking key words or entire URLs. Moawad talked about the large number of fundamentalist groups who use the Internet to promote their viewpoints. She mentioned how these are often sexist and promote violence against women. Another issue facing women is how they access the Internet. If women are not wealthy enough to pay the $200 a month rate for very slow Internet, they have to access it in a public place. Moawad shared that the Internet cafes are often very male dominated and unfriendly and dangerous to women. This brings the issue of class into the picture because poor women will have to brave these conditions to access the Internet.

  Since Lebanon allows more content on its Internet, the sexual rights movement is able to progress. By limiting women's access to the Internet however, this prevents women from learning about their rights and joining the movement. Moawad mentioned how the Internet may soon be taxed in Lebanon to pay for the country's debt, which could mean a better Internet infrastructure. Hopefully, the access of the Internet to women will continue to grow, which means more education and opportunities for them.