Amy Mousa, 17, trims the hair of a client while wearing a protective mask and gloves at a barber's shop in Qamishli, Hasakeh province. AFP
Amy Mousa, 17, trims the hair of a client while wearing a protective mask and gloves at a barber's shop in Qamishli, Hasakeh province. AFP
Amy Mousa, 17, trims the hair of a client while wearing a protective mask and gloves at a barber's shop in Qamishli, Hasakeh province. AFP
Amy Mousa, 17, trims the hair of a client while wearing a protective mask and gloves at a barber's shop in Qamishli, Hasakeh province. AFP

North-east Syria's first female barber is cutting up gender norms


Liz Cookman
  • English
  • Arabic

A female barber is a rare sight anywhere in the world, but in conservative Syria before the civil war, it would have been unthinkable.

Secondary school student Amy Mousa, 17, from the Syriac Christian minority, is among the women trying to change that – she is believed to be the only female barber in north-east Syria and knows of only one other in the country, who is in the capital Damascus.

From the Jazira region, she trained to be a barber in Qamishli – the de-facto capital of Syria's embattled Kurds and other minorities – near the Turkish border.

If a hairdresser is a man or a woman, it doesn't matter – their objective is still to cut hair

While the region prides itself on being more progressive than regime-held areas of Syria, it is still part of a country with deeply ingrained traditions and customs. Yet Ms Mousa is taking a pair of scissors to preconceptions of gender roles by entering this male-dominated profession.

"If a woman drives a car and another drives a bicycle, can you say one is more correct than the other? The use of either has the same objective – transportation. Likewise, if a hairdresser is a man or a woman, it doesn't matter – their objective is still to cut hair," she told The National.

As a child, she would visit the barber shop with her father and noticed that it was run by only men. But she was enthralled with the profession, and decided she would learn it.

Although she is still at school, she plans to become a full-time barber and perhaps own her own shop when she’s finished. For now, she has her own shaving tools and cuts her relatives and sometimes friends' hair at the local barber shop.

Amy Mousa, 17, is thought to be northern Syria's first female barber. AFP
Amy Mousa, 17, is thought to be northern Syria's first female barber. AFP

While she has been encouraged to continue her hobby by her family and friends, she has faced some criticism from people in the local community.

“People say ‘how come a girl does this?’ but I've decided not to listen because that would make me feel weak. Praise God my parents were with me and helped me become strong. As days pass people will adapt to the idea that a girl is working in this trade,” she said.

“I know myself and I know that I’m not doing anything wrong. If I thought I was doing something wrong, I would leave the profession.”

Evin Suede, spokesperson of the Kongra Star women’s movement in northern Syria, said Ms Mousa is the only female barber in the Syrian-Kurdish territory. She said that views towards women’s role in society have changed markedly since the beginning of the civil war in 2011.

“Women have had to assert themselves. They lacked experience in the roles considered as male-designated and men overpowered and subdued women’s voices,” she said.

'People say "how come a girl does this?" but I've decided not to listen because that would make me feel weak," said Syrian female barber Amy Mousa. Courtesy Amy Mousa
'People say "how come a girl does this?" but I've decided not to listen because that would make me feel weak," said Syrian female barber Amy Mousa. Courtesy Amy Mousa

“Things have changed drastically year on year as women have enrolled in extensive learning courses … I don’t want to be unrealistic and say that women taking up traditionally male roles is socially accepted now, but the majority [in northern Syria] are encouraging towards it.”

After nine years of civil war, a generation of Syrian men have either been killed, imprisoned or have fled as refugees. The women left behind have had to adjust, with many working for the first time and change is also being driven by their empowerment on the battlefield.

All female militias such as the Women's Protection Units (YPJ) fought against ISIS and Kurdish political parties have pushed women to the forefront.

“I think the popular movement that began in 2011 was an opportunity for women to prove their potential and talents in the military, and in the political, diplomatic and economic fields,” said Ms Suede.

“We need to share the success with all Syrian women to build a new Syria, where women are in leadership rolls.”

For Ms Mousa, women’s lives are still dominated by tradition – gossip among the community and parental approval holds many back. However, times are changing.

“As time goes by, we will see society change, especially for the new generation. Everything is available to us now,” she said.

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Ferrari
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Director: Christopher McQuarrie

Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg

Rating: 4/5

Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

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British Airways: Cancels all direct flights to and from mainland China 

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific: Cutting capacity to/from mainland China by 50 per cent from Jan. 30

Chicago-based United Airlines: Reducing flights to Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong

Ai Seoul:  Suspended all flights to China

Finnair: Suspending flights to Nanjing and Beijing Daxing until the end of March

Indonesia's Lion Air: Suspending all flights to China from February

South Korea's Asiana Airlines,  Jeju Air  and Jin Air: Suspend all flights

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1. Fasting

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5. Zakat 

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7

World Sevens Series Pools

A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan

B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland

C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales

D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya