WHAT THE WOMEN OF SAUDI ARABIA WANT.
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There is no real answer to this question, for you see, all the women of Saudi Arabia want different things. Some women are completely happy with what rights they have, because that is what they were raised to believe and that is what is written throughout the Islamic Laws. Many of these women also fear that having the same rights as men would make their life too difficult. Other women in this country feel like they are being treated like they aren't even human. These women strongly believe they deserve equal treatment compared to men in order for them to experience life to it's fullest.
There are many restrictions on the Saudi Arabian women, but only some of the restrictions really directly affect their lives. For example, women in Saudi Arabia are prohibited from driving a car. This directly affects the woman's life in a very big way. Without a male driver to take them places, the women have to walk everywhere they go. Women also must be accompanied by a male guardian (father, husband, brother, and even a son) whenever they go out in public. If her male guardian is too busy to walk her out in public that day, then that woman's plans will have to wait. It seems very unjust that the male comes first in every situation, but that is the Saudi Arabian culture.
Princess Ameerah, (wife of Al-Waleed bin Talal who is the 26th richest man in the world) concerns herself with many Saudi Arabian issues, especially ones involving women's rights in Saudi Arabia. Once when she was being interviewed, she was asked what were some of the biggest issues with women in Saudi Arabia. This was her response:
There is no real answer to this question, for you see, all the women of Saudi Arabia want different things. Some women are completely happy with what rights they have, because that is what they were raised to believe and that is what is written throughout the Islamic Laws. Many of these women also fear that having the same rights as men would make their life too difficult. Other women in this country feel like they are being treated like they aren't even human. These women strongly believe they deserve equal treatment compared to men in order for them to experience life to it's fullest.
There are many restrictions on the Saudi Arabian women, but only some of the restrictions really directly affect their lives. For example, women in Saudi Arabia are prohibited from driving a car. This directly affects the woman's life in a very big way. Without a male driver to take them places, the women have to walk everywhere they go. Women also must be accompanied by a male guardian (father, husband, brother, and even a son) whenever they go out in public. If her male guardian is too busy to walk her out in public that day, then that woman's plans will have to wait. It seems very unjust that the male comes first in every situation, but that is the Saudi Arabian culture.
Princess Ameerah, (wife of Al-Waleed bin Talal who is the 26th richest man in the world) concerns herself with many Saudi Arabian issues, especially ones involving women's rights in Saudi Arabia. Once when she was being interviewed, she was asked what were some of the biggest issues with women in Saudi Arabia. This was her response:
Princess Ameerha's comments on Saudi Arabian Women's rights
"It's true. It wasn't easy for American women to get their full rights, and even now it's not as full as they want it to be. With us, it has been three decades that we've been trying to acquire our rights, and to be honest with you, it's not going to be as easy as one would wish for. You're not only talking about government and policies, you're talking about a mindset, a culture, a religion and a very conservative culture. Driving, yes, it is symbolic, but there are very important issues like you said, that concerns us women like civil rights, more fields in education, more fields in the labor force and more political participation."
As she said, some of the things that women want are civil rights, more areas in education for women to study, greater opportunities in other areas in the work force, and increased political participation. Although these are the things women have yet to have acquired in Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has recently granted women the right to vote and run in 2015 local elections and to be appointed to his advisory Shula Council. This is certainly a sign that things are moving in the positive direction for women's rights.
As she said, some of the things that women want are civil rights, more areas in education for women to study, greater opportunities in other areas in the work force, and increased political participation. Although these are the things women have yet to have acquired in Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has recently granted women the right to vote and run in 2015 local elections and to be appointed to his advisory Shula Council. This is certainly a sign that things are moving in the positive direction for women's rights.