The principal intervention in the session was followed by a round of debates which dealt with the major problems that still face women's acquisition of the political rights which men enjoy. The debates dealt with the inherited cultural and social factors, the role of political will in the process of change and the external factors which impacted on the Arab women's condition. The participants presented some proposals for the improvement of the conditions of Arab women.

One participant asked whether the talk about discrimination between women and men expresses a genuine desire of Arab societies or it is an imitation of what is being circulated on the world arena. He called for an investigation of the historical and political origins of the special attention which women are given in the current Arab discourse. He went further and asked whether we are supposed to speak of women's rights or speak of the problem of Arab societies in general where women issues represent one of the aspects. He said that the problem of women in the Arab world is the problem of women and men at the same time and that is it is the problem of Arab societies in general. Consequently, it is imperative to educate the Arab peoples and to advance their development programs instead our dependence on Western societies' outward appearances with all their designations of civil society and NGOs. He raised doubts about the independence of these associations and their contribution to the weakening of the process of political participation of the Arab peoples.

Another participant added that we are supposed to search for the gender imbalance in the experience of Arab political parties. Consequently it is important to investigate the position of women in the political parties and why they did not reach the positions of leadership.

Other participants said that what hinders women participation in Arab political life are the customs, traditions and interpretations of the sharia and legislative texts.

Some participants asserted that, on the legal and legislative levels, most Arab constitutions recognize the political rights of all citizens without discrimination between the sexes whether before the law, in job opportunities or political participation. Furthermore, Arab constitutions have adopted the principle of monitoring the constitutionality of laws and it gives everyone the right of contesting a law that is unconstitutional. This creates a situation where the civil and political rights of women are recognized constitutionally but practically unapplied in a sound manner.

This situation is not only true for women, but for men as well. Hence, we must look for the factors of ignorance, poverty and weakness which are still prevailing in the midst of Arab societies. How can we ask Arab women to play a political role if the rate of illiteracy among them ranges between 51 and 75% or if between 10-25% of all Arab citizens live below the poverty line. Therefore, before we ask that more Arab women become MP's, we must demand for the working woman the right to enjoy a decent and healthy life.

For this reason, others said that legislation alone is not enough for Arab women to exercise their political rights. Legislation must be accompanied by a parallel movement of the political will. It is not easy for women to force themselves on political life unless they possess this will.

On the other hand, some participants asserted that the changes taking place in the world impose challenges that are associated with globalization and the adoption of market mechanisms. This situation, in turn, imposes economic, social and political burdens on the Arab citizen generally. However, the heaviest burden will fall on those segments of society whose existing social, constitutional and legal circumstances are the most unfavorable. Consequently, women could bear the worst burdens of the effects of market mechanisms including the possible loss of work opportunities and increased economic burdens in providing for family expenses.

Women representation in parliament based on the quota principle occupied a large part of the discussions. There was almost a consensus among the participants that the quota principle is undemocratic mainly because of MPs elected on this basis are inclined to support the executive power against the legislative power. However, it might be necessary in some circumstances to resort to the quota principle on condition that it is restricted by a number of procedures and constraints and that it is a temporary measure to correct imbalance in parliamentary representation. Also, it has to be a "diminishing measure" where the number of those elected according to the quota principle is gradually decreased so as to change this principle in time from an imposed system to a voluntary outcome of election.

In the field of women's right to participate in the political life, some Arab states are witnessing new experiences. In Morocco, the government of Abdul-Rahman Yusufi has adopted the national plan for merging women in the development process. And in Algeria, a Party imposed a 25% ratio of women in the party structure from top to bottom. In Palestine, a technical unit of parliament called "women's unit" was founded and it includes a group of jurists whose duty is to review the draft laws presented to parliament to ascertain that they do not contain any prejudice or discrimination against women and to report their findings to parliament. The "women’s unit" also expresses its opinion on government policies so as to guarantee women's right in benefiting from these policies.

In the context of future aspirations, one participant called upon Arab parliaments to develop legislations which insure women's rights in participating in the political process. Another participant called for the activation of the parliamentary women's committee that emanated from the ninth conference and the 35th session of the council of the Arab Parliamentary Union.