Feature: Syrian women choose challenging jobs in macho society

Being a woman in a macho society has not stopped Siham from challenging her environment and choosing a tough job.

With her light brown hair and red polished nails, Siham, a female electrical technician, was sitting behind a table in a small workshop, fixing water motors.

The contrast between the red of the polished nail and the soot from the old rusty motor between her hands didn't stop her from smiling, while she was rewinding an old motor to a customer who said he has had his electrical stuff fixed at her shop for over 12 years.

Siham, 35, said her family was extremely poor, as they lives in a village called Mafaleh, northeast of the southern province of Swaida.

"I have been rewinding and fixing motors for over 17 years, and the reason why I chose this tough job was because I wanted something challenging that could earn me a living, because I was in a desperate need for money," she said.

When Siham decided to become an electrical technician, she attended a training course, and without surprise, she was the only woman among seven men.

"My trainer was surprised when he saw a woman taking a course that only men attend," she said, adding that after a while the astonishment of the couch turned into admiration.

"When sensed my seriousness, he started teaching me more and I earned his trust with my hard work and fast learning," Siham said.

Expectedly, Siham said she had received quite annoying criticism from the male-dominated society in the village.

"When I finished the course and wanted to open a shop to work at, I was subject to a great deal of criticism from the men in the village, but that didn't stop me from working hard to prove to them that I am as capable as any masculine man," she said.

However, Siham's tough job and strong personality seems to have pushed the grooms away, as she is still single at 35, with no wedding or any engagement ring around her finger.

"I am not married yet and even though I feel a bit of sadness, but I am proud that I can rely on myself without having to rely on others, even a husband," she said, pointing to the banner that bears the name of her shop "Golden Eagle."

"I am the Golden Eagle," she proudly said.

Just across the street, Rihab Asfour, 36, was preparing the ingredients used for her daily meal, after she lost her husband four years ago.

Asfour cooks a main dish, Couscous, a Moroccan cuisine, which her late husband had learned when he was in Libya.

"My husband learned this dish in Libya and when he retained to our village he opened this small diner and started cooking it for the folks here," she said. "The people in the town really loved Couscous and we started making good money out of it."

"When my husband died of his illness, I chose to continue what he had already started and followed his lead. Now I sell at least seven big meals of Couscous every day," she said.

Asfour said she had four sons who work in Lebanon, but they could barely make ends meet, which leaves her on her own in the village depending on the money she earns from cooking.

"Work for the woman has a great value and as we say the 'work is a worship.' My reputation now precedes me in my village and the neighboring ones, because I love what I do and I do it perfectly," she said.

"I encourage every woman to work to fulfill her potentials and break the stereotypes and taboos in our male-dominated society, and change how the West looks at us. We are created to do more than just raising children," Asfour continued.

Inside the city of Swaida, 55-years-old Munira runs a small bakery shop, selling the Swaida-type tandoor bread.

"This is a traditional business that we pride ourselves with," she said.

"This has to do with tradition and secondly this is how I earn a living that helps me in covering my expenses," she said, adding that she has managed to send her children abroad to study.

Munira said she enjoys the direct contact with different people every day, some of who have become her all-time customers.

"The joy that I receive from my job gives me a big motive to give more to succeed and maintain my success," she said.

Still, and like all working women in villages, Munira said she was facing some criticism, mainly from her family.

"In the beginning I sat down with my family and discussed me working in a bakery, but they didn't encourage me and didn't accept the idea," she said. "With time, and after the successes I have achieved as well as the good income, my family's view started shifting toward encouraging me to move forward."

Munira and the other two women from Mafaleh said they feel lucky that they have a job before the war broke out. Now despite the challenges and the conflict, they still have an income thanks to their jobs. Endit