MAKKAH, 1 February 2008 — If you are an abandoned child seeking foster parents, your chances of being adopted are much higher if your skin is lighter, according to Najla Rida, the head of the Makkah branch of the Um Al-Qura Charity Organization.
The problem is that most orphans are not fair skinned. Rida says about 85 percent of them have African features and are unwanted by Saudi adoptive families who perceive these children to be outsiders.
“Their looks indicate that they are not of Saudi origin,” she said. “They are the children of illegal residents of Makkah.”
Rida says adoptive families make it clear that they aren’t interested in these children and specifically ask for light-skinned tots. She warn that this phenomenon of leaving these children — widely perceived to have been dumped by illegal aliens on the Saudi street or the product of extramarital affairs — will eventually exacerbate social problems
“These children grow up to hate Saudi society,” she said. “It will take us a long time to rehabilitate them. These children are the result of immoral relationships, poverty and lack of religious values.”
Abandoning babies is clearly a global issue, but the problem is exacerbated in the Kingdom due to the large numbers of uncounted people living outside the system, either as pilgrims that overstayed their visas to eke out a living in the Kingdom or by undocumented migrants crossing from poorer countries in the region.
Saudis interviewed for this report all view the practice of abandoning children at the doorsteps of mosques and hospitals as a criminal and immoral practice.
Nisrin Al-Ghamdi, a psychologist, said that while she wouldn’t call the problem endemic to Saudi Arabia, she does think it could be addressed more compassionately. “In the West orphans are raised and given an education regardless of their origins,” she said. “In Arab countries these children are often considered sinful. They’re raised under psychological suffering and they grow up hateful.”
Al-Ghamdi said that girls are more likely to be dumped than boys due to cultural mores that view girls as more of a hindrance than boys. She also encouraged families and mothers in particular to watch their daughters to prevent them from being raped, which might result in unwanted pregnancies.
Maj. Abdul Muhsin Al-Maiman, Makkah police spokesman, said that when they confront a case of an abandoned baby they usually pass it on to welfare officials while trying to find the perpetrators. “Our role is limited to taking these babies to hospitals to check on their health,” he said. “We then look for their parents.”
If police failed to find the parents of these children they end up in charity organizations such as Um Al-Qura. The officer couldn’t provide statistical data on the number of abandoned babies found in Makkah, which is home to a high number of illegal residents.
Rida said that her organization typically received these babies from the government after it is informed by the hospitals that received the babies from the police.
Islamic scholar Sami Khayat said that Islam encourages marriage in order to prevent the problem of abandoned children. From a religious perspective, abandoning a child implies two sins: one of having an illicit sexual affair and the other of not taking care of one’s offspring.
“Whoever is not (caring for his children) deserves punishment now and on the Day of Judgment,” he said.
