Women in

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...

enjoy the same legal, political, economic, and social rights as men.Tartter, Jean R. "Status of Women"
Indian Ocean country studies: Seychelles
(

Helen Chapin Metz Helen Chapin Metz (April 12, 1928 – May 13, 2011) was an American editor and Middle East analyst. Life Helen Chapin was born on April 12, 1928, in Peking, China. She was the daughter of diplomat Selden Chapin and Mary Paul Noyes. Her brother, ...

, editor).

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

Federal Research Division The Federal Research Division (FRD) is the research and analysis unit of the United States Library of Congress. The Federal Research Division provides directed research and analysis on domestic and international subjects to agencies of the Unit ...

(August 1994). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired, ...

.''

Family life

Seychellois society is essentially matriarchal. Mothers tend to be dominant in the household, controlling most current expenditures and looking after the interests of the children.

Unwed mother A single parent is a person who has a child or children but does not have a spouse or live-in partner to assist in the upbringing or support of the child. Reasons for becoming a single parent include divorce, break-up, abandonment, becoming wid ...

s are the societal norm, and the law requires fathers to support their children. Men are important for their earning ability, but their domestic role is relatively peripheral. Older women can usually count on financial support from family members living at home or contributions from the earnings of grown children.

Violence against women

Domestic

violence against women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often con ...

was a continuing problem. Police rarely intervened in domestic disputes unless it involved a weapon or major assault. The authorities often dismissed the few cases that reached a prosecutor, or the court gave the perpetrator a light sentence. There was growing societal concern about domestic violence and increased recognition of the need to address it.

Rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

spousal rape Marital rape or spousal rape is the act of sexual intercourse with one's spouse without the spouse's consent. The lack of consent is the essential element and need not involve physical violence. Marital rape is considered a form of domestic vi ...

, and

domestic abuse Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for '' intimate partne ...

are criminal offences punishable by a maximum of 20 years' imprisonment. During 2007, the Family Tribunal registered 74 domestic violence complaints. The police registered 56 rape cases and four cases of attempted sexual assault. The Social Affairs Division of the

Ministry of Health and Social Development The Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (russian: Министерство здравоохранения Российской Федерации, in short russian: Минздрав России, translit=Minzdrav Rossii) is a ministry of ...

and Women in Action and Solidarity Organization, a local NGO, provided counseling services to rape victims.

Wider society

There is no officially sanctioned

gender discrimination Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primaril ...

in employment and women are well represented in business. As of 1994, women formed nearly half of the enrollment at the prestigious

Seychelles Polytechnic Seychelles Polytechnic is a government-owned tertiary institution located in Anse Royale, Mahé. The institution currently offer three programme areas in Business & Secretarial Studies, Visual Arts and the Manchester Twinning Programme, a first-y ...

, the highest level of education on the islands. As of 2007, there were 10 women in the 34-seat

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

, seven elected by direct election and three by

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...

.Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Seychelles (2007)

Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Affairs (DRL) is a bureau within the United States Department of State. The bureau is under the purview of the Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights. DRL's res ...

(March 11, 2008). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the

.'' Following the July 2007 cabinet reshuffle, there were two women in the cabinet. Prostitution is illegal but remains prevalent. Police generally do not apprehend prostitutes unless their actions involved other crimes. The law prohibits sexual harassment but is rarely enforced.

Inheritance law Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officially ...

s do not discriminate against women.

References

External links

{{Seychelles topics