140: Egypt has first female marriage registrar

An interesting story this one. According to today's linked article from Gulf News, Egyptian authorities have just appointed the first woman in the history of the country to serve as a marriage registrar - and possibly in the history of the Islamic world. Traditionally, this is a male role, and there had been a fatwa (religious ruling) against women doing the job until recently. Amal Sulaiman Afifi, a mother of three, was considered better qualified than her 10 (male) competitors for the post. She also feels that she can offer a new perspective on marriage that may help to reduce the divorce rate. Not surprisingly, there is opposition to this appointment in some quarters - but Amal Sulaiman Afifi's appointment is truly groundbreaking and she sounds hugely committed. No need for positive discrimination here, it seems - just equality of opportunity, with appointments based on merit. Good in principle - even better to see it in practice...