These women claim their husbands are addicted to the Internet, especially chat rooms and social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter.
Although there are men who use the Internet for work purposes, they tend to fall into a minority.
Most women have started feeling that the Internet has taken the place of second wives. The ability to access websites and e-mails from an ever increasing number of devices, including mobile phones, have only added to the women’s anger.
For many men, it has become a new pastime to establish friendships with women via Facebook, Twitter and instant messenger programs, among others.
Srab Al-Safadi, a Jordanian housewife and mother of five, complained about the long hours that her husband spends on the Internet.
“My husband is unemployed, he has a lot of free time, but he never spends it with me or his children. In the past, he was using the Internet to search for jobs, but recently he stopped.”
“One year ago, I discovered that my husband was married to a Palestinian woman. When I asked him how this happened, and how he found this woman, he said he met her on Facebook.”
Al-Safadi questioned whether his use of the Internet at home was such a good use of money. “I asked him several times to disconnect the service from our home, especially as he had no job. The service costs SR300 monthly. Such money could be used for other essentials,” said Al-Safadi.
Certainly, cell phones and the Internet have become a part of people’s daily lives.
“Men are more likely to use the Internet than women. There are so many men that have become addicted to the Web. They believe that it is convenient to do anything and everything on the Internet,” said Buthina bin Shaaban, a Tunisian housewife and mother of one girl.
“In the past it used to be that the person would have to leave his home for everyday things such as talking to friends, shopping and banking. But now he can even contact his girlfriend from the comfort of his home.”
Some men find the Internet an escape from their boring everyday routine.
“My life became boring and each day is a copy of the previous day. I prefer to spend long hours on Facebook and instant messaging programs with a large number of friends,” said Mu’ath Ali, a Syrian father of four.
“Those friends are both men and women. Why should I have friendships only with men? Using the Internet allows me to interact with female friends without crossing the line.”
Suhila Al-Sheikh, a Saudi teacher and mother of three, complained about her experience trying to curb her husband’s online addiction.
“My husband has been addicted to the Internet since he was a student at university in the late 90s,” she said.
“I was unable to understand what he was doing online. For me it was impossible to monitor him or stop him. Recently, after the wide expansion of the Internet, I understand better what he has been doing.”
She said her husband uses the Internet to look for friendships with women. He even has friendships with teenage girls.
“Recently, my husband met the girl he was in love with before our marriage. He met her on LinkedIn.”
