ipyg-In Saudi Arabia, Where is Women’s Rights?

Today, I will introduce about Saudi Arabia located in the Middle East.

Islam is the state religion in Saudi Arabia. Islam has a big effect on Saudi Arabia and there is rough discrimination against women.
I would like to introduce the issues of discrimination against women in Saudi Arabia.

1.Women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is the country only in the world that prohibits women from driving.  
There is no special legal provision to ban women from driving, but women can’t drive because the state doesn’t issue driver’s licenses to women. 

On June 27 last year, the October 26 Driving Campaign was held for defying the state ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia. 
About 60 women drove cars and some of them uploaded video clips on YouTube they took when they were behind the wheel. 
But on the day, Saudi authorities arrested about 14 women who drove vehicles and some were fined. 

Joss torque from Human Rights Watch said, “Saudi authorities oppress women who simply pursue their basic rights.” and urged kingdom to remove the oppression on women’s driving and to legalize driving by women. 

It would be an example that shows the worst women’s human rights in the world. 
Saudi women were forbidden from voting, traveling without permission (if they are under 45) and there is also restriction on women getting jobs.
Women are not allowed to enter most restaurants and shopping malls when they were alone. They can enter the restaurant or shopping mall with their family.
You might not imagine what is happening to Saudi women in the same world.
Saudi human rights activists working in overseas want to improve Saudi people’s rights by spreading these inhumane things being happened in Saudi.
I hope that women all around the world can be free from the law and their human rights can get improved.

※Human Rights Watch- an international non-governmental organization which conducts research and advocacy on human rights.

2.Female newsreaders must wear hijab when she anchors the news.

When a female newsreader anchors the news, she has to cover up her hair with hijab which is Muslim women's traditional costume.

But, a female newsreader has caused outrage in Saudi Arabia after she became the first person to read the news without a headscarf.

The International Business Times UK reports that a newsreader from the Al Ekhbariya has caused a stir internationally because she showed up in the news being uncovered with hijab.

In the public video on YouTube, a female anchor looks properly dressed in all black.

You may wonder what caused controversy because she didn’t wear a revealing costume, make a tongue slip and she also looked solemn.

However, you can understand that it is very shocking if you get to know the Al Ekhbariya broadcast channel belongs Saudi Arabia which is an absolute monarchy maintaining its particularly rigid and conservative tradition.

It can be accepted that a female anchor doesn’t wear niqab (Muslim women’s traditional dress which covers the entire face except the eye-shield) because she has to deliver the messages with her mouth. 

But, she would have worn her hijab.

This issue has become controversial only in Saudi Arabia which discriminates against women.

We shouldn’t focus on blaming the uncovered female anchor but we have to regard this as a serious international issue.

Through this issue, I want the discrimination and oppression against women to be improved gradually in Saudi Arabia.

And I hope you will never forget that human right is the basic right that is equally given to all human beings regardless of gender.