Women and empowerment in the Arab world

Arab Studies Quarterly (ASQ), Fall, 2003 by Sherifa Zuhur

In Saudi Arabia, female covering has been imposed strictly, but the form of outer veiling worn is not identified with a religions opposition movement as in some other cases. However, in March 2002 there was a horrifying report of a fire at a school and that rescue workers were hatred from entering since the girls were considered to be improperly dressed without their outer cover (BBC News, 15 March 2002). As women have gained increasing riots to education, and some have entered the world of business and work, the presence of women's bodies in public space remains problematic.

Let us also recall that on 6 November 1990, forty-seven Saudi women drove their own cars--an action that was merely forbidden by custom, but not illegal until their particular rebellion. These women were forced to sign a statement declaring that they would never drive again, false rumors were spread that they were not properly dressed (covered) in the demonstration, they were blacklisted and threatened, they lost their jobs and were not allowed to leave the country. A fatwa was issued declaring that women's driving was contrary to Islam. In a plea to non-Saudis, one woman described the events following their demonstration and observed:

   Sometimes I wish that I never went to school or learned
   anything so I would not see the unfairness and the wrongdoing
   and not be able to do anything about it, and most of all, so I
   would not know that I do not have rights (Letter printed in "In
   These Times," Austin Peace and Justice (16-22 January 1990
   and reprinted May 1991).

Another interesting point of the woman's letter is that she attributes state and society's absolute power to retaliate against the women demonstrators to a lack of "human rights" in Saudi Arabia--a condition pertaining to men as well as women, rather than simple discrimination against women. Since all is controlled by the royal family, there is little recourse for protesters, or rather; whatever movement toward liberalization of this restriction can take place only with the permission of the royal family. Liberal Saudi spokesmen explained that not all were opposed to women's driving, but that the incident came at an unpropitious moment.

Oddly, Sandi women are chauffeured by male, unrelated, usually foreign men. Since the fatwa rules against driving using the argument that women will run the risk of mixing with unrelated men if they are allowed to drive themselves, this is a little strange. These men, often Asian immigrants, have rights superior to women's with regard to freedom of movement in public space, although their social and economic status is far inferior to their mistresses in every other respect. This particular rule has not yet been ameliorated, despite many hints that it might occur.

POLITICAL RIGHTS

The area of political rights involves suffrage and women's rights to run for office, or hold appointed positions of power in government. Political empowerment for women is important to the subject of this journal issue because without politicians and officials who consider the effects of various policies, laws and measures on women's status--no cohesive headway toward social change or reform may be made. It has been assumed that more women with increased political power will work toward women's empowerment. Although some women politicians and decision-makers may be as ambivalent toward the empowerment of women as male counterparts, it is also clear that others (who may influence male counterparts) are responsive to certain basic conditions of their constituencies such as the greater number of women who are poor or illiterate, and the increasing number of woman-headed households in various districts.