The newly formed National Society for Human Rights receives and investigates complaints from women whose human rights have been violated. The complaints include physical, sexual, financial and psychological abuse. Social workers report horrible stories of women who have been suffering in silence and girls who have no alternative but to accept a miserable fate with no hope of avoiding or escaping it. After many years of denying abuse, our society is now exposing the guilty every day; and our society is now realizing that some Saudi men are guilty of committing such crimes against women. Both God and the Prophet, peace be upon him, directed that women be treated with kindness and respect; there are no extenuating circumstances.
According to social scientists, the reasons why the abuses and violations have gone unchecked are the inefficiency of our Shariah courts, the absence of law enforcement mechanisms and the unwillingness of society at large to admit and deal with the problem.
The government has now recognized the need for immediate action and has announced changes in the judicial system. Former Riyadh Supreme Court Judge Dr. Yousef Al-Jaber notes, however, that although the changes are both necessary and significant, the judicial system needs further improvements. He has suggested employing sociologists and psychologists to follow up on cases of domestic violence and to ensure that the abused undergo such treatment as they may require. He also recommends that the procedures for reporting domestic violence be made easier and urges the need to establish women’s sections in all courts of the Kingdom’s 13 districts.
At the same time, the National Society for Human Rights has made plans to provide both a hotline and a shelter for abused women. The society, along with the Social Affairs Ministry, is preparing a seminar on the subject of domestic violence. Regular workshops and lectures around the country are being organized in order to raise awareness of women’s legal rights.
Discrimination against women continues to be a major problem that Saudi society needs to confront and deal with. Though women constitute more than 50 percent of the population, their potential is far from being fully realized. They continue to struggle to attain the rights of equality and justice which Shariah law guarantees them.
Experts say that the best way to increase awareness of rights among Saudi women is to begin educating them at a very early age — in elementary schools, for example. Girls are taught home economics but are not taught any subjects that would empower them or teach them to become independent voices, demanding their God-given rights as men’s equal partners.
The real challenge facing society today is the need to reveal the violations committed against women in the name of Islam; they must be made aware that they do have a choice, that they do not have to accept in silence a life of abuse. We need to change the attitudes of men who view women as “inferior in intelligence and religious thinking.” Religious scholars and educators must speak out against men who manipulate women for their own selfish ends. The media also has its role and must expose the self-styled “pious” men who advocate the marginalization of women, who claim that men are superior and thus, that men must dictate how women should live.
Recent studies have shown that many women suffer abuse within their families and are desperate for a better life but find no justice in Shariah courts and have no place to turn to for help or assistance. Many endure unspeakable hardships due to poverty and neglect while the self-appointed guardians of morality allege that Islam forbids a woman from seeking work or driving herself to a safe place in order to escape an abusive man.
In spite of being educated, there are some people in our society who adamantly oppose change and insist on following traditions that have no basis at all in Islam. These people interpret Islam in the most unyielding, intolerant and narrow way; as a result, they vehemently oppose the empowerment of women. They believe that women must be kept under the control of male guardians, regardless of those males’ manipulative characters or domineering tendencies. The time has come when we must rescue women from being at the mercy of a male guardian who may be violent, inhumane and untrustworthy.
Such social issues as these cry out for immediate resolution. Women’s rights must be addressed in courts and in government departments. We must change negative attitudes toward women and reject old customs and traditions that allow discrimination against them. I am speaking of traditions such as not providing women with skills and opportunities to enable them to earn a decent living. It is equally wrong to hold women virtual prisoners in their homes in a place where there is no dependable public transportation and also a ban against driving. Laws should be made and publicized and those who break them should be seen to be punished. Women must be guaranteed security and the kind of life that is ordained by God and our religion. Abuse of women cannot any longer be tolerated in Saudi Arabia if we want to be seen as Muslims who follow the actual Shariah law.
Islam is a moderate religion and Muslims have a duty to correct the image that has been tarnished by extremists who have no respect for an individual woman’s dignity and status. Many extremists resist change and insist on marginalizing the role of women, claiming that Saudi society has a special religious character and therefore Saudi women must not be compared to women in other countries. For years the extremists have relied on this ridiculous and baseless argument in order to suppress and isolate women.
The majority of young educated Saudis, both men and women, want to be part of the international community and to contribute to their country’s development. They want to initiate changes that will lead to a better nation for all. Educated Saudi women today want to project a progressive international image, rather than the oppressed and repressed one that is current of women who have no voice or opinion in the future of their country or in their own affairs. Saudi women especially should aspire to a leading role among the Muslim women of the world, a role befitting the female descendants of the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him, and the female inhabitants of Islam’s Two Holy Cities.
— Samar Fatany is a radio journalist. She is based in Jeddah.
