Fethia Mzali
Fethia Mokhtar Mzali (
Early life and education
Fethia Mokhtar was born on 6 April 1927 in
Career
Mzali was a teacher and then headmistress at the Teacher's College in Tunis.[1] She was a member Destour and participated in the demonstrations from 1950–1955 that led to independence.[1]
In 1956, after
In 1957, Mzali was elected as a municipal councillor for the city of Tunis, serving a three-year term.[1] She was first woman in Tunisia to give a speech about birth control in 1959.[1] She joined the Central Committee of the Socialist Destourian Party in 1974 and was appointed a member of its governing body in 1979. She was elected to the Chamber of Deputies as the deputy for the regions of Kairouan, Tunis and Bizerte in 1974 and 1981.[1] She was elected Vice-President of the National Assembly each year from 1980 to 1984.[1]
On 1 November 1983, Mzali was appointed as Minister for Family and Women in the government of her husband Prime Minister Mohammed Mzali. Souad Yaacoubi was appointed Minister of Public Health at the same time, making the two women the first to serve in the country's cabinet.[4][2][6] Mzali was dismissed from her position in June 1986 after her husband's dismissal from the ruling party's administration. They fled the country for France, and in April 1987 Mohammed Mzali was convicted in absentia of abuse of social property and unlawful enrichment. The conviction was annulled in 2002, allowing their return to Tunisia.[2]
Awards and honours
In 1978, Mzali accepted the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights on behalf of the National Union of Tunisian Women.[7] She also received decorations from the governments of France, Finland and Senegal.[1]
Personal life
Mzali met Mohammed Mzali while studying in Paris and they were married in 1950. They had six children.[2] Mzali died on 12 February 2018 at the age of 90.[8][9]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Fathia Mzali, Minister of the Family and the Promotion of Women". Tunisian Women Speak. 33: 5. August 1985.
- ^ a b c d Hlaoui, Noureddine (23 June 2010). "Tunisie - Décès de Mohamed Mzali". Business News (in French). Retrieved 7 April 2017.
- ISBN 9781496936455.
- ^ ISBN 9781496936455.
- ISBN 9789774244049.
- ISBN 9781442273184.
- ^ "HURC-CRT UN 139548 Human Rights Day Concert". United Nations. 11 December 1978.
- ^ "Fethia Mzali, ancienne présidente de l'UNFT, n'est plus". 12 February 2018.
- ^ "Décès de Fethia Mzali". Express FM. Archived from the original on 2018-04-23. Retrieved 2018-02-12.