Suffering in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Women Suffering in Everyday Life.
Simply impeding the development of women’s capabilities and women’s freedom of choice causes an imbalance of abilities between genders: women DO suffer from the lack of autonomy and integration into THEIR society and THEIR culture.
Women Endure Inequalities Based on Gender
Abuse to women and children was not seen as a crime, in Saudi Arabia, until 2013.
Saudi women are often seen as less than people, therefore, treated as such. Female abuse is not uncommon, even in America, but it is a little more drastic in Saudi Arabia. A woman television star, Rania Al-Baz, was documented to have been beaten by her husband. The press released photos of Al-Baz's bruised and swollen face into the press. According to Rania, after she had answered the phone without her husband's permission, he proceded to beat her with the intention to kill her.
The photo above was published to CNN.com for an article about Saudi Arabia's problem with domestic abuse to women. It was previously published in the Saudi Arabian newspaper to advocate women's rights involving domestic abuse.
This is Rania Al-Baz.
The photo on the left shows Rania before her husband brutally abused her; the photo on the right shows her, hospitalized, after the abuse.
“What is specifically damaging about stereotypes involving Muslim women is that these stereotypes have the potential to limit their activity in various career fields, as well as lead to a perpetuation of loss of rights in education, work and even the rights over one's own body.”(Aquil, R. 28)
Gender roles were created by the Saudi government to distinguish masculine from feminine in social and cultural contexts.
In a practice of civil disobediance, women in Saudi Arabia drove - mostly short distances like to the store or around the neighborhood - and the punishments, for the same crime, varied drastically. Many were brought to the police station and warned, some were jailed, but one woman was sentenced to 10 lashes - she was, later, freed of charges via the king’s wishes.
Women crave the feeling of acceptance in their society and equality to men. Negative repercussions of gender inequity, such as impeding the development of women’s capabilities and women’s freedom of choice, cause an imbalance of abilities between genders: women suffer from the lack of autonomy and integration.
“What is specifically damaging about stereotypes involving Muslim women is that these stereotypes have the potential to limit their activity in various career fields, as well as lead to a perpetuation of loss of rights in education, work and even the rights over one's own body.”(Aquil, R. 28)
In itself, the Muslim religion contains no gender biases towards women, but this does not reflect current Muslim laws. Although, these gender biases, which often deter women’s autonomy, do exist, expected gender roles were created by the Saudi government to distinguish masculine from feminine in social and cultural contexts.
According to WHO, "statistics reveal that about 30% of Saudi women are still illiterate"(Mobaraki, A., & Söderfeldt, B.)
Author:
Lauren Shiflet