Abstract :
In Egypt, girls and women, in the private and public spheres, face varied and numerous forms of sexual violence. In the public sphere, they are exposed to violence, be they activists, human rights defenders, or normal citizens. They are also at risk as they walk through the streets and squares to take the metro, on their way to their schools and universities, or in their places of work. As soon as one of them undergoes a virginity test, is sexually abused, raped, or assaulted, gang-raped, vaginally examined, orally or anally raped, or sexually harassed, everybody, be it the family, friends, the media, medical professionals, or the judiciary rush to label or stigmatize her as a “victim”.Defining women as victims is the result of a regular practice by a patriarchal society that adopts male values aiming to shed light on the offense or violation committed against them from a sexual perspective. Oftentimes, these women are slandered and blamed for the crime perpetrated against them, and sometimes the patriarchal society links the violation these women endured to their honor and virginity as a means to measure their value within society. Such an approach depicts them as women in need of male protection in order to preserve their dignity and honor.
