With an influx of Western journalists coming to produce "documentaries" and "insightful stories" about Saudi society, there was a notion that an awareness dialogue had finally begun. For months we have stressed the need to share information about our culture, our strengths and our weaknesses in order not to be misunderstood. In unprecedented numbers, foreign reporters have been invited to, and allowed freedom of movement in, Saudi Arabia. They have had opportunities to speak and interview a wide variety of people — from teenagers "hanging out" in malls, to religious people and government officials.
Perhaps the greatest number of journalists have come from the United States. They say they have come in order to discover how Saudis live and what they think. On the surface, this would appear to be a blessing after the avalanche of one-sided, judgmental and inaccurate information recently presented in the Western media. The sad part, however, is when the correspondents come and say that they want to provide a fair, well-balanced report on Saudi Arabia and then focus only on the same few questions over and over, it becomes the era of yellow-journalism revisited.
Eager to "set the record straight" about women’s problems in Saudi Arabia and to give a more accurate idea of life in the Kingdom, I agreed to speak to several of these journalists. What I discovered from my encounters was amazing. Their idea is a ridiculous one — that all Saudi women are abused and oppressed. Yes, we certainly have a number of problems and there is plenty of room for change and improvement but an oversimplified, over exaggerated approach serves no purpose.
Over the last two months, I have been interviewed several times and each time the questions were the same, not even allowing for digressions into different areas. "How do you feel about women not being able to drive?" and "How do you feel about having to cover your hair and body especially at work?" I think being questioned about only these issues and nothing else is a greater abuse of Saudi women than the unsubstantiated allegations made about us.
If I could make one point for the foreign media right now with regard to these two obsessively-asked questions, it would be a blunt: "Get over it. These are two concerns — yes. In reality, however, they are the two least pertinent issues concerning women’s rights in Saudi Arabia." Women in Saudi Arabia frequently have informal majlises (meetings) where important concerns are discussed. The focus is on real problems and the need for changes but social customs are not at the top of the list of the many subjects discussed. Not being able to drive and covering our hair are NOT human rights violations so please stop treating them as such.
Foreign journalists abuse Saudi women by treating them as trivial creatures with few problems and concerns. Wouldn’t it be better to ask a range of questions, drawing attention to education, career opportunities and freedom in both society and the business world?
Driving is an important question when asked in the framework of the greater integration of women into the economy and work force. Covering our hair, however, does not deter us from working, studying or simply being productive. In respect of these, the foreign media has also failed to recognize that some women are content with the status quo while others are fighting to have a choice.
Almost every woman I question on what they feel is the most important issue facing Saudi women today responds "Work opportunities." Before we can examine work opportunities, however, we must look at the educational system that does not admit girls into a number of fields. First, girls should be given opportunities to study the subjects that interest them — whether engineering or law. They should be well prepared to go into those fields and this would entail a redesigning of the educational curriculum to include both creative thinking and logic rather than tedious memorizing. Women should also be able to travel without permission from a male guardian; her work might require her to do so. Finally, career and investment opportunities need to be expanded and the environment facilitated to allow for the integration of women. Women will not be encouraged to play an active role in the Saudi economy if they face obstacles at every turn. One of the women I interviewed stated firmly, "Equal pay is our basic desire — not only in Saudi Arabia but around the world."
To the foreign media who may be genuinely interested in writing about women in Saudi Arabia, I say the following: "We have minds. Respect them. We have voices. Permit us to express them. Most of all, understand that we wish to choose how we change and not have someone else decide for us."
