Being a feminist woman living in Malta, I constantly face questions, mostly from men, claiming that the fight is over and that I face no additional obstacles compared to men of the same socioeconomic background and upbringing. A claim that is unfounded and untrue.

As a woman growing up in Malta, I am very aware of how privileged I am, and the ways in which I benefit thanks to the hard work of the women that came before me. As Audre Lorde said;

I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.

This quote captures what it means to be a feminist in this country. The constant news we read about women worldwide being stripped of their rights is devastating.

New Taliban laws prohibit women from speaking or showing their faces in public in order to avoid ‘leading men into temptation and vice.’ Although this is happening in a culture and country far from Malta, the impact it has on women here is still profound. Seeing the reversal of progress for Afghan women is sobering and serves as a reminder that, as free as we may feel, our rights could still be taken away, reminding us that the fight is never truly over.

The re-election of Donald J. Trump was also a blow to women everywhere. The fact that blatant misogyny and committing sexual assault (among other issues) were not dealbreakers for over 74 million people is heartbreaking. It sends a clear message to women that many would still choose an underqualified, convicted felon over a highly qualified, mixed-race woman.

Trump ran three times, only losing when a white man was his opponent. The election results are complex, but the gender of his opponent was undoubtedly a factor. One of the takeaways from this Presidential race is that the majority of people trust a felon more than they trust women.

Just this week, a new law was proposed in Iraq to lower the age of consent for girls to nine years old. This introduced amendment would also remove the women’s right to divorce, child custody and inheritance. This would put young girls at increased risk of sexual and physical violence, as well as deny girls and women access to education and employment.

Stripping girls and women of these rights  ensures that they will not be able to live independently and cements the complete control men have over women.

People may claim that these issues are too remote to affect Maltese women, yet we too are being denied basic access to healthcare here. Women’s bodies are still being controlled by the government, giving us no safe and legal choice.

Although harmful to everyone, poor women, migrant women, refugee women and women in abusive relationships are disproportionately affected. Whilst wealthy women can have access since they are able to go abroad and acquire these services elsewhere, women who are poor, who cannot afford to leave the country, who don’t have passports, who are trapped in unhealthy relationships don’t share this same access. These restrictive laws play into the hands of the oppressors, men who want to control women’s lives, women’s bodies and women’s careers. 

That’s exactly what misogyny boils down to. It’s the control that men want to exert on women, on our education, our bodies, our livelihood. And this control can be exerted in minor ways such as telling your girlfriend that her top is too low-cut, or in more extreme measures like in the case of Afghan women who aren’t allowed to speak or learn, or Palestinian women who aren’t allowed to live, or French women like Gisèle Pelicot who wasn’t allowed to consent, or Maltese women who aren’t allowed to choose if they want to be pregnant or not.

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The views expressed in this article are those of the author/s and do not necessarily represent a position or perspective of this or any organisation

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