Amr Moussa, the president of the committee that drafted the new constitution, expressed frustration with how the historic nature of this referendum is being ignored in the West. He told me in an interview, “This is the first time that women have full political, social and economic rights and can hold all government positions. The right of belief is now absolute. The right to express yourself freely [is protected]. This is all new.”

These rights are fundamental to democracy and were absent in the previous “democratic” Morsi constitution.

Dr. Mona Makram-Ebeid, a former member of Egypt’s parliament and a professor at the American University in Cairo, told me, “Women are making history in Egypt. This referendum propelled women into the mainstream of political life. For the first time it says in the constitution there is equality between men and women. It condemns any violence against women, which includes domestic violence.”