Challenging Patriarchal Discourse in Lebanese Politics: PM Halima Kaakour as an Example

Challenging Patriarchal Discourse in Lebanese Politics: PM Halima Kaakour as an Example

مواجهة الخطاب الأبوي في السياسة اللبنانية: النائبة حليمة قعقور نموذجاً

      لما كلاكش Lama Kalakech⁾[1]⁽

تاريخ الإرسال:18-8-2026                                     تاريخ القبول:29-8-2026

Abstract                                                                                      Turnitin: 9%

This paper investigates lexis as a powerful tool utilized to challenge the Lebanese patriarchal discourse. Particularly, the analysis examines an interview by the Member of Parliament Halima Kaakour to highlight how her lexical choices resist and challenge the Lebanese patriarchal political discourse. The study draws on the methodological framework of Fairclough’s (1992) Three Dimensions within the Critical Discourse Analysis paradigm which focuses on how power is constructed, maintained, and challenged in certain contexts. The paper also analyzes how Kaakour constructs an alternative discourse that empowers women to participate in various Lebanese governmental institutions, especially the parliamentary and political ones. Kaakour’s presence in the Parliament is an example of Lebanese women’s participation in politics. The findings reveal that Kaakour’s language use reproduces political ideologies that empower Lebanese women, challenges the patriarchal ones, and establishes a different discourse that highlights the political identity, voice, and authority of women. Kaakour’s lexical choices contest and undermine the exclusivity of men in positions of political authority. Her use of lexis aims to encourage the Lebanese women to take matters into their own hands and assert the power of the Lebanese women against the patriarchal political establishment.

Keywords: MP Halima Kaakour, Lebanese women empowerment, patriarchy

الملخص

تبحث هذه الورقة في المفردات كأداة فعّالة تُستخدم لتحدّي الخطاب الأبوي اللبناني. وعلى وجه الخصوص، يحلل البحث مقابلة أجرتها النّائبة حليمة قعقور لتسليط الضوء على كيفيّة مقاومة خياراتها اللغويّة للخطاب السياسي الأبوي اللبناني وتحدّيها له. تستند الدّراسة إلى الإطار المنهجي لأبعاد فيركلو الثلاثة (1992) ضمن نموذج تحليل الخطاب النّقدي، والذي يركز على كيفية بناء السلطة والحفاظ عليها وتحدّيها في سياقات معينة. كما تحلل الورقة كيف تبني قعقور خطابًا بديلًا يمكّن المرأة من المشاركة في مختلف المؤسسات الحكوميّة اللبنانيّة، ولا سيما البرلمانيّة والسياسيّة. ويُعدّ وجود قعقور في البرلمان مثالًا على مشاركة المرأة اللبنانية في الحياة السياسية. تكشف النتائج أن استخدام قعقورللغة يُعيد إنتاج أيديولوجيّات سياسية تمكّن المرأة اللبنانيّة، ويتحدى الأيديولوجيّات الأبويّة، ويؤسس خطابًا مختلفًا يُبرز الهُويّة السياسيّة للمرأة وصوتها وسلطتها. تُقوّض خيارات حليمة قعقور اللغويّة احتكار الرجال للمناصب السياسيّة وتنافسه. ويهدف استخدامها للمفردات إلى تشجيع المرأة اللبنانية على أخذ زمام المبادرة وتأكيد قوتها في مواجهة النظام السياسي الأبوي.

الكلمات المفتاحية: النائبة حليمة قعقور، تمكين المرأة اللبنانية، النظام الأبوي

1. Overview

The participation of women in Lebanese politics has widened its scope the past decades. However, inequality in this domain continues to be evasive. Although women are bound by legal rights to indulge in the political domain they recurrently face various institutional, systemic, social and traditional impediments that limit their access to decision-making positions in politics (Chebaro, 2023; 2025). The Lebanese political system is primarily based on the notion of power sharing, where religious communities share the political authority. According to Chebaro (2025), this system is premised on the intention of preserving sectarian balance and has fortified this through the traditional elites and family lineage in politics. As a result, such a system limits women’s opportunities to become key players in the political domain. Hence, the political parties become significant institutions that enable the comprehension of the representation of women in politics.

However, male political domination started to loosen in the previous years in Lebanon. A recent report by United Nations Women (2025) shows that there are step-by-step improvements in the participation of Lebanese women in the political domain such as the 2016 elections and the 2025 municipal elections. This reveals that this progress continues to be a step-by-step and not a groundbreaking act. What occurred as a turning point in the engagement of Lebanese women in politics was the revolution of October 17. In this apprising, the Lebanese women adopted clear leadership roles through civic and reform movements as well as demonstrations. These actions challenged the sectarian political system of Lebanon (Chebaro, 2023). What is interesting is that the Lebanese political parties are the main gateways to the Lebanese Parliament and they are culturally and traditionally headed by males. Despite this, the involvement of Lebanese women in political parties remains sparse in spite of their having particular senior executive positions. However, because the Lebanese political system is guided by patriarchy (Geha, 2020) women are excluded from attaining decision-making positions.

1.1. Lebanese women, patriarchy and the Lebanese political system

Chebaro (2023), believes that patriarchy is one of the most ingrained impediments that hinder the Lebanese women from attaining a leadership role in politics. Patriarchy not only functions as a cultural ideology that favors men but in Lebanon it is also institutionalized inside the political, religious, financial, and social blocks of the system. Moreover, patriarchy is at an intersection point with governance, family lineage politics, and clientelism (Chebaro, 2025). These intersections prevent women from political participation because they reserve political leadership for men. In line with Chebaro (2025), Geha (2020) argues that the pact between the aforementioned elements and the male-dominated political parties constructs and produces a tight political system that maintains patriarchal domination that marginalizes women from such a participation. As a result, this accord reproduces and maintains a political system where life-altering decisions are maintained or negotiated by a restricted group of powerful men who tailor the political agenda in favor of their political interests. Similar to Geha (2020), Lebanon Support (2018) further illustrates that women seldom engage in institutional roles that are supportive while being marginalized from decision making leadership and negotiations. Such actions regularize men’s leadership roles and strengthen the hierarchies of male domination.

Furthermore, Geha (2020) amplifies this evaluation to argue that the Lebanese political parties are not only dominated by men but they are also institutions that are built to maintain the existing male power. Geha (2020) also asserts that what determines the political power is not only the election in itself, but the actual political authoritarian dominance springs from sectarian forces, under the table negotiations, and political bargaining among the elites. These are procedures that continuously and systematically exclude women. Accordingly, women continue to be marginalized from the economic, social, and political inclusion irrespective of whatever qualifications they have, even if the qualifications enable women to compete in the political arena. In addition, one of the ways through which patriarchy grips women’s leadership roles in politics is through political violence. Women are subjected to harassment, defamation, and cyber bullying. Sometimes women suffer from verbal and symbolic physical violence, all of which are practiced in an attempt to instill fear in women, reveal male dominance, and prevent them from engaging in political decision making practices (Geha, 2020; Chebaro, 2023; Chebaro 2025).

1.2. Lebanese Women Leadership

Despite being underrepresented in political organizations, Lebanese women came out as effective leaders in civil society, human rights, politics, and academia. What shifted their position to become significant leaders is the October 17 Revolution which highlighted their leadership qualifications where they organized humanitarian movements, negotiated with national forces, coordinated demonstrations, and laid the plans for reform agenda that moved beyond sectarianism (Gheha,2020). According to Chebaro (2023), Lebanese women became a focal point in organizing civic mobilizations and managing reform movements. In this respect, their leadership roles widened its scope inside the political parties. Chebaro (2025) reports that young women attained leadership roles in youth campaigns, managed reform teams and headed committees for policy reformation. In the same vein, UN Women (2025) further illustrates that Lebanese women’s leadership roles extended beyond election officers to include civil organizations, peace building mechanisms, and universities. Accordingly, women’s leadership roles are seen as the materialization of the women’s ability to influence decision-making organizations, public policy, contribute to social and organizational reform, and shape the public opinion. Moreover, according to the UN Women (2025), in order to eradicate male dominance from the Lebanese political institutions, the leadership of women needs to be rooted through internal transformation of the cultures of the political institutions that always privilege men’s political dominance. Similarly, Chebaro (2025) stresses the need of solidifying women’s leadership in the field of inclusive governmental practices and democratic resilience in the country. In addition, Geha (2020) highlights women’s leadership role by emphasizing that “Women are not only at the forefront as leaders and spokespersons…but are also conceptualizing and bringing to life a new way of doing politics, a participatory and inclusive approach, a feminist political platform in the most un-feminist of societies” (p. 4).

1.3. Brief Bio of Halima Kaakour

Halima Kaakour is an esteemed Lebanese academic, a lawyer, and an activist in human rights who became a politician when she was elected in 2022 as a member of the Lebanese Parliament. She is a PhD holder in Public International Law, a lecturer at the Lebanese University, and is a researcher in the field of Political Science and Law. Her interests in research and professional activities highlight governance, development of Lebanese women, and also focus on Lebanese women’s participation in politics. Before she became an MP she was an activist in the Lebanese civil society and the campaigns of October 17 Revolution. Her research examined the impediments facing Lebanese women who aspire for the Parliament. In the elections of 2022 she ran as a reformist and became “first woman from Iqlim al-Kharroub to make her way into the Lebanese Parliament” (El-Hage, 2022). Accordingly, her political activities address feminism, human rights, and link them to official political representation. Such interests and fields enable Kaakour to be a peculiar case for analyzing the way in which a Lebanese woman politician constructs and maintains agency in Lebanese politics and how she challenges, discursively, the gendered power relations in the Lebanese political arena. Hence, her interview with Asfari Institute provides a fertile material for examining how her linguistic choices challenge the power relations residing in the Lebanese political system.

2. Problem of the Study, Aim, and Research Question

Despite growing in prominence, Lebanese women are becoming actively involved in political actions and politics inside the Parliament. However, the patriarchal discourse in this field remains a tool for weakening the representation of women in politics, leadership, and decision making. The presence of women in the Parliament such as Halima Kaakour mirrors a significant era in Lebanese women’s engagement in politics. Despite this, the existence of women in political institution does not sufficiently pinpoint to the eradication of the political patriarchal discourse that has for long time modeled the politics in Lebanon. The emergence of Lebanese feminist activists and young political players has based the ground for alternative means of political discourse, and Halima Kaakour is no different. She is an exemplar case for analyzing such development because her political discourse stresses notions that include gender equality, political reformation, political participation, and human rights. Kaakour’s interests include the aforementioned notions and her activism plan is based on these principles because it places Lebanese women at the forefront of public policy.

Moreover, the studies in the related literature analyze the political participation of women, their representation, and feminist engagement in Lebanon. Hence, little attention is given to the way women politicians employ language, specifically the lexical linguistic choices in order to challenge the Lebanese patriarchal discourse in politics. Taking the profile of Halima Kaakour, her interests, and the gap in the literature as a scaffold, the problem of the study is the continuous existence of the Lebanese patriarchal discourse within the political domain and social culture despite the continuous rise of feminist movements and women’s representation in politics. Accordingly, there is a need to examine how the lexical choices of Lebanese women politicians such as Halima Kaakour resist and transform such a political patriarchal discourse in Lebanon. Her presence in the Parliament is an example of Lebanese women’s participation in politics. As such, this necessitates the analysis of how Kaakour’s language use reproduces political ideologies, challenges the patriarchal ones and establishes a different discourse that highlights the political identity and authority of women.

In this manner, the present paper attempts to address the gap in the literature about the political representation of women in Lebanon and the research regarding how the political resistance of women is constructed. Therefore, springing from the problem of the study and its aim, the present paper attempts to answer the following research question: How does a representative of Lebanese women, in particular PM Halima Kaakour as a politician and a feminist activist challenges the patriarchal discourse inside the Lebanese political structure?.

3. Literature Review

          This literature review highlights some of the recent studies conducted on the topic of the present paper in relation to Lebanese women in politics. The review presents what has been achieved by previous studies in this respect.

          The situation of women in Lebanon’s political parties is examined by Chebaro (2025). Her study is an important tool for improving knowledge of women’s political participation and the difficulties they encounter. The objective is to assist initiatives in order to increase women’s participation in political and party life as important decision-making stakeholders and to help generate practical answers for Lebanon’s larger problems. The study emphasises political parties as the main entry point to political involvement in Lebanon, acknowledging their vital role in improving gender equality across the political sphere and society, as well as in encouraging women’s inclusion and active involvement in political life. The findings of the study reveal that political parties are crucial in promoting equity between men and women, breaking down conventional gender roles, and opposing patriarchal practices.

          Using a case study of women’s participation in the 2022 parliamentary elections from a gender point of view, Chebaro (2023) gives an outline of Lebanese women’s involvement in political decision-making processes. Why are Lebanese women’s essential voices still absent from politics, the article asks? What has been accomplished? The gatekeepers are who? How can women’s political engagement be increased and equality accelerated? are questioned posed by her study. In her article’s conclusion, Chebaro (2023) asserts that all parties involved including men and women alike, must muster the political will to recommit to the cause of women’s political emancipation. It is only by altering the current situation, putting transformative and reformative feminist strategies into practice, and building momentum, that women’s political involvement and participation becomes a standard practice, and “it is about time we make this” (Chebaro, 2023, p. 32). In a similar vein, Geha (2020) argues that since October 2019, the revolution that has rocked Lebanon has been led by Lebanese women. This article makes the case that if women wish to convert their participation into equal opportunities, the next phase will be crucial. They must transition from unofficial revolutionary politics to formal election and party politics with significant and substantial representation in order to achieve this. Geha (2020) comes to the conclusion that feminist activists and women’s supporters cannot afford to be pessimistic or put aside; instead, it is time to take what they have done “while no one was looking or anticipating it and put it front and at the center” (p. 6).

          A study conducted by Lebanon Support (2018) aims to increase knowledge of women’s involvement in the Lebanese political system, which is built on clientelism, political familial ties, confessionalism, and other elements that promote familial-based patriarchy. In four distinct examples such as a political party, a union, a civil society organization, and a social movement, the study examines both leadership and rank-and-file roles. Based on a research of official papers, public discourse, practices, and the experiences and difficulties faced by women linked with these institutions, the study looks at these institutions’ frameworks, their stances on women’s concerns, and their target group and public involvement strategies. The study also shows that women are excluded from leadership and decision-making responsibilities and rarely participate in supportive institutional roles. These behaviours reinforce the hierarchies of male dominance and normalize men’s leadership positions.

The literature review reveals that the above studies highlight a prime notion, that in order to strengthen the political leadership of women, there must be a transition beyond the traditional women empowerment strategies to a solid reform in the political structure of the Lebanese system. Reformation includes areas of establishing democratic political parties, strengthening the transparency in the selection of the candidate, supporting the protection against political violence that is gender-based through passing legal acts, eliminating clientelism, and making women’s leadership as an institutional practice inside the political institutions of the government. However, none of the above studies examines a specific speech or interview by a particular Lebanese woman politician in order to exhibit how she challenges the Lebanese patriarchal political discourse. Accordingly, this notion makes the topic of the present paper significant through its contribution to understanding such discourse and how and through what linguistic choices the Lebanese patriarchal political discourse is challenged and countered.

4. Methodology, Framework and Material

Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), a methodological technique that examines the connections between language, power dynamics, and ideologies, serves as the theoretical foundation for this paper. Moreover, this paper critically examines Halima Kaakour’s interview using a qualitative, non-experimental research methodology. The qualitative research approach emphasises the investigation and comprehension of complex phenomena in their everyday surroundings, according to Creswell (2014).

Fairclough (1992) considers that CDA is a structured approach that integrates three stages: explanation, interpretation, and description. These are existent in the three dimensions of his CDA framework: text, discursive practice, and social practice. The model’s central component is the text, which describes the text’s characteristics or structural shape. The interpretation analysis, which addresses discourse practices, is the second stage of this methodology. In this phase of processing, the analyst concentrates on the context in which the text is created and utilized, taking into account both the context of the text and the viewer’s understanding of it in the given context. The macro-level “social practices” that define the third dimension, in which the other two dimensional elements are nested, are linked to the text via discursive processes. This step defines an overall discourse order and explains the relationship between the two dimensions and the broader social processes.

The material of analysis is an interview with MP Halima Kaakour by Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship. It is broadcasted and posted on the Institute’s YouTube channel. The core analytical material is roughly composed of an on-screen English translation of the interview by the Institute. The URL of the interview is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wQuwP0UQzE

6. Analysis and Discussion

6.1. Textual Dimension

“I kept asking myself… Why don’t we become the ones on the inside instead?”: This quotation includes the use of the pronoun ‘I’ and the possessive ‘myself’ which together, with the question, reveal and internal monologue and the mind of Kaakour. It is an attempt to reform the political system through having a voice and a role in decision making inside the Lebanese Parliament. This metaphor signifies women’s power in politics. This also means challenging and diminishing men’s exclusivity to political power.

“I had mixed feelings, both good and bad”: The use of the first person pronoun and the contradictory adjectives gives the reader access to how Kaakour is feeling upon entering the parliament for the first time. These feelings are symbolic of the emotions of every Lebanese woman marching toward change.

“We had entered it through our strength… The strength of the people, the people who… Decided… Change… Who resembled ordinary citizens”: The use of the collective pronouns ‘we’ and ‘our’ and the repetition of the nouns ‘people’ and ‘strength’ convey the collective power of the masses in the face of the political system. The usage of ‘we, people, citizens’ shows that the power of the people leads to the people in Power. The people are the fresh voice of change. They are from the people, to the people, and for the people. This usage creates a mental image of pumping new blood in the Lebanese Parliament.

“Attacked me… Accused me… Started shouting… Of course, everyone else started shouting too. The situation became verbally aggressive… There was so much hostility… He even poked me physically”: This quotation has the structure of storytelling. This is Kaakour’s encounter with a fellow MP whom she attempted to question. The words in this quotation abound in action verbs that reveal verbal violence and even a physical one. The use of the adjective ‘aggressive’, the noun ‘hostility’ and the adverb ‘physically’ attest to the Lebanese patriarchal political system that is trying to exercise male dominance and intimidation on Kaakour. This also shows how much the system is drenched in patriarchy and infuriation at a woman who has a voice because of her MP position in the parliament. Furthermore, it reveals the males’ fear of such a voice because they consider it as a threat to their position. Moreover, Kaakour herself relates that this was not the only incident she faced: “I’ve experienced many incidents of verbal abuse”. This statement shows that even if she is an MP, she is subjected to abuse. It also indicates that Lebanese women, regardless of their position, experience abuse which is due to the rooted patriarchy in the Lebanese political traditional system.

“I have every right to mention names”: The use of the pronoun ‘I’, the adverb ‘every’, and the noun ‘right’ reveals that Kaakour is an experienced person in the field of Human Rights. Based on her educational background and experience in activism, Kaakour projects herself as a knowledgeable Lebanese woman who is aware of the ins and outs of her rights as a citizen and a Member of Parliament.

“…then I raised my voice and said:’ no one in this Parliament gets to tell me what I can or cannot say. I will say exactly what I want”: This quotation is uttered after the use of physical violence on Kaakour for the purpose of intimidating her by her fellow MP. What is significant is the use of negation in order to assert her voice and power. The repetition of the pronoun ‘I’ is significant because it stresses the identity and power of Kaakour. In addition, the use of the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ signifies Kaakour’s decisiveness and intention to speak up her mind despite the physical and verbal violence she is experiencing. Accordingly, this quotation mirrors how Kaakour challenges the patriarchal political system through her lexical choices by rejecting patriarchal authority and domination that dictates women’s behaviour. “No one encouraged me. Even my own family spent a long time unconvinced by what I was doing. They didn’t believe I could succeed”: This is a statement by Kaakour relating her family’s opinion concerning her running for Parliament. In this quotation, negative lexis is used to show how her family is influenced by patriarchal views. Her family demotivates her and its members are ‘unconvinced’ and ‘didn’t believe’ in her potential as a woman to make a change in the system. Hence, the use of negation stresses the patriarchal belief that women cannot achieve anything outside the family domain. Pragmatically, this is ideologically ingrained in the familial culture: Women can achieve nothing in the domain of politics because politics is solely reserved for men.

“I believe in what I’m doing. I believe in myself…Encourage yourself. Believe in yourself and move forward”: This quotation is significant because it highlights voice and identity as well as internal power. The use of pronoun ‘I’ by Kaakour asserts her voice and identity not only as a Lebanese woman but as a Lebanese woman politician. Through the verb ‘believe’ Kaakour derives her internal strength which in turn motivates her to resist not only the familial patriarchal ideology but also the Lebanese patriarchal political beliefs. Accordingly, this usage creates an empowerment discourse not only for Kaakour herself but for Lebanese women as well. Such an empowerment is also asserted by the pronoun ‘I’ which reveals personal agency and strength of character. Thus, the pronoun becomes a tool for challenging patriarchy and standing tall for women’s rights. Moreover, the verb ‘believe’ functions as an intrinsic and self-motivation for her to keep on fighting for women’s rights in political participation. Therefore this verb is utilized as a counter discourse and a discourse of self-empowerment. It also highlights personal independence and agency. The verb ‘encourage’ also acts as a motivational trigger which urges women to depend on themselves for change. These positive lexis are a direct command to incentivize women to take matters into their own hands.

          Moreover, the interview includes the concept of three in ‘came, started, and poked’ which is based on three verbs. This concept is significant because it highlights how men approach women inside the Parliament. Pragmatically, since the members of the Parliament are elected by social individuals and the members of Parliament also belong to society, it follows that this act is not only restricted to politicians but it is revealed in the wider scope of society as well.

Furthermore, the interview contains many repetitions which are mostly positive lexis such as the structure adjective + noun in ‘quota, parliamentary quota, municipal quota’ which highlights the necessity of empowering women in the governance sector. Also, the repetition of words such as Parliament, democracy, women, rights, and change magnifies the democratic participation of women in governance and denotes the ideological significance of the Lebanese women’s participation in the governmental institutions.

6.2. Discursive Dimension

          This level relates to the wider communicative context of the interview. The speaker is a Member of Parliament and the target audience is the Lebanese society at large in general, and the women attempting to run for the Parliament or attain a political role in particular. The interview is conducted by Asfari Institute in order to highlight the opinion of a Member of Parliament concerning Lebanese women in politics. Furthermore, in her interview, Kaakour empowers women and encourages them to participate in politics and governance. She also exposes patriarchal practices inside the Lebanese Parliament and resists patriarchal discourse through powerful lexis. In addition, Kaakour advocates reformation in various social sectors and in particular, the political domain.

At this discursive level, the interview also reveals intertextuality where Kaakour refers to the discourse of Human Rights and Civil Society. In addition, she refers to statistics by the United Nation in order to strengthen her opinion as in ‘according to United Nations… We used to pressure the government to adopt reforms related to human rights… Political will’. These examples highlight the discourse of international governance, anti-corruption, and feminism.

6.3. Social Practice

          At this level the analyst examines the broader ideological and social context of the text. This is because according to Fairclough (2014) discourse shapes and reflects the ideology and structure of society. In examples such as ‘capital is concentrated in the hands of small number of men… No one in this Parliament gets to tell me what I can or cannot say… Believe in yourself’, the following notions take place: The discourse adopted by Kaakour is a counter discourse that resists the patriarchal discourse. Her discourse links inequality towards women to the political and economic power of the elite, and Kaakour exposes political and financial feudalism. Also, political dominance takes place through the control of finances and when this occurs, it means that the elite can control the people. Furthermore, Kaakour proposes alternatives to the Lebanese political patriarchal discourse when she proposes women quotas in the governance sectors. Hence, she challenges patriarchal expectations concerning women’s participation in politics. Thus, Kaakour’s discourse challenges the patriarchal ideology that male politicians are the only ones who have the right to be in the Parliament.

Accordingly, she constructs a counter discourse that is feminist in essence which legitimates women’s contribution to politics and situates them as equal social members with men. Finally, Kaakour uses positive verbs to empower women. Her discourse is motivational in which it advocates women’s political participation through encouraging women to depend on themselves and not to go after men’s approval before attaining leadership positions and taking a life-altering decision. Therefore, Kaakour is telling women to be autonomous and depend on themselves. When this occurs, nothing is impossible and then change will prevail.

7. Conclusion

In conclusion, Kaakour seeks to change the political system by having a voice and participating in decision-making within the Lebanese Parliament. This is accomplished by contesting and undermining the exclusivity of men in positions of political authority. Her use of collective lexis evokes the idea of injecting fresh blood into the Lebanese Parliament by manifesting the power of the public against the political establishment. Additionally, the account of her personal interaction with a fellow MP points to the patriarchal political system in Lebanon, which is attempting to intimidate and dominate Kaakour through male control. This further demonstrates how deeply ingrained patriarchy is in the system and how angry some people are at a woman who has a voice due to her MP status in the legislature.

Kaakour asserts her authority and voice through negation. Despite the emotional and physical abuse she is subjected to, Kaakour’s forceful language demonstrates her resolve and will to voice her opinions. As a result, she is able to question the patriarchal political system by rejecting the patriarchal dominance and authority that controls women’s actions. In addition, the verbs used by Kaakour serve as both a discourse of self-empowerment and a counter-discourse. They emphasise individual autonomy and self-determination. They serve as a catalyst for change, encouraging women to rely on themselves. Thus, women are encouraged to take matters into their own hands.  The interview is a powerful indication of how a Lebanese woman as a Member of Parliament challenges and resists the Lebanese political patriarchal discourse through her lexical choices that reveal her strong will and independence. Kaakour’s discourse presents women as political leaders whose actions are legitimate. According to Kaakour, politics is not restricted to men but the people at large are entitled to political participation, without any consideration of the gender of the participant. She believes that democratic legitimacy and individual competence dictate authority and not familial lineage or elitism. Thus, Kaakour’s interview is a manifestation of the notion that women have a voice and because of this, they can speak and resist patriarchal power.

References

-1Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship (2025). Women’s political

participation: Interview with MP Halima Kaakour https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wQuwP0UQzE

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leadership. UN Women & Office of the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon. https://lebanon.unwomen.org/en/digitallibrary/publications/2025/09/lebanese-women-from-political-participation-to-party-leadership

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Baasir who shook the long-established political norms of Lebanon.

https://today.lorientlejour.com/article/1300684/halime-kaakour-the-newly-elected-feminist-mp-from-baasir-who-shook-the-long-established-political-norms-of-lebanon.html

-6Fairclough, N. (1992). Discourse and social change. Cambridge: Polity Press.

-7Geha, C. (2020). Lebanese women and the politics of representation. Arab Reform

Initiative in collaboration with Chatham House. https://www.arab-reform.net/publication/lebanese-women-and-the-politics-of-representation/

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reproduction of social roles—Case studies from Lebanon. Centre for Social Sciences, Research and Action. https://www.socialsciences-centre.org/english/research/reports/resource/womene28099s-political-participation-exclusion-and-reproduction-social-roles-case-studies

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leadership.https://lebanon.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/202509/en_lebane

se_women_from_political_participation_to_party_leadership_full_report.pdf

[1] – Professor of English at the Lebanese University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration. E-mail: lama.kalakech@ul.edu.lb

 أستاذ محاضر في الجامعة اللبنانيّة في اللغة الإكليزية، كلية الاقتصاد وإدارة الأعمال