A secular Egyptian woman outlines the disappointments written into the country's new constitution, passed in late December. Women have had only one legal advance since the revolution: prosecuting sex harassment.

Despite the passage of pro-women laws perpetrators continue to inflict violence against women with impunity.

November 25 was designated the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in December 1999 by the UN General Assembly. It marks the death anniversary of the three Mirabel sisters assassinated in 1960 by the dictator Rafael Trujillo for their fight against Trujillo’s dictatorship in the Dominican Republic. Activists on women’s rights have observed a day against violence on the anniversary of the deaths of these three women since 1981.

Depriving women of their basic rights is not a new subject. But when these rights are ignored by social activists in the name of culture or religion we must be alarmed. Now is the time to stop justifying mandatory hijab in the name of religion, nation, country, or culture. It is time to remind ourselves, as women and human rights activists, that when it comes to women's rights, there is no room for appeasement.

The run-off for presidency elections in Egypt are this weekend – the first after the ongoing Egyptian revolution. The two candidates were the least expected to be at this stage: Mohamed Morsi, who represents the “political arm” of a group, the Muslim Brotherhood, that sees “Islam is the Solution,” and the other is Ahmed Shafik, who belongs to the Military that has been running Egypt for the last (60) years and still. Every one who is following the progress of events and incidents in Egypt is curious and everyone inside Egypt is worried, even if their decision is to choose one over the other or to boycott the run-off.