Saudi Arabia discovered the women's suffrage
For the first time women have been admitted to local elections in Saudi Arabia. A big step for the country. But why do so few participate?
A woman in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh | © Fayez NURELDINE / AFP / Getty Images
For the home of the Prophet Mohammed, it is a premiere for Jamal al-Saadi, a personal triumph. Early in the morning the teacher appeared recently in traditional black Abaya on the registration office of Mecca, where they registered the first woman in the whole of Saudi Arabia for the local elections on 12 December 2015 respectively.
For four weeks, until mid-September, the female subjects of the royal family may register in lists - as candidates and as voters. Made possible by a decree of the late monarch Abdullah in January. It dates back to 2011, but was not made by his successor Salman undone. And so could, unlike in the previous elections, the turn out 284 new local councils colorful, lively and democratic.
The King appoints not half, but only one third of all deputies themselves. This means that the future really get elected with a majority. Really powerful municipal officeholders are not be anyway: The sovereignty over the city's budget is in the capital Riyadh.
"Important step towards moderation of our society"
Saudi Arabia still has enormous backlog demand for women's rights. Rated on the Gender Gap Index of the Geneva World Economic Forum, the progress made towards gender equality, ranked Riad 2014 among the worst performers ranked 130 of 142. The discrimination against women is comprehensive, its dependence completely by men. Women do not drive. Without the written consent of a male guardian, whether husband, brother or uncle who can not travel, work, go to the doctor to renew their passport or open a bank account. The female employment rate is below 20 percent, which is a worldwide negative record. In the marriage, there is no legal minimum age, a 13-year-old can be forced to marry a 50-year-old man, which often happens in the Arabian Peninsula. And the first and only female member of the Cabinet, Deputy Minister of Education Norah al-Fayez, was dismissed by the new king Salman to pressure from conservative circles, because they stood up for physical education in girls' schools.
Especially young women, however, insist more confident to end their discrimination in the name of Sharia. Tens of thousands have been studying with state scholarships abroad and know other worlds. They are highly qualified and come back with new ideas. But at home they need to be treated again like little children.
Still not exactly arises among women with respect to the right to vote a euphoria.At halftime the registration phase recorded remote provinces in the south only a dozen messages, because most voters know nothing of their new rights, no one can go to the office, or they do not own a passport. Even in the relatively enlightened port of Jeddah, the rush did not materialize so far. Nationally, the rate currently stagnating at about five percent.
Only 70 women out of 28-million-nation plan for the newspaper Arab News, to run as candidates. For men, on the other hand want to compete for 2,100 seats more than 5,000. Portrait photos on election posters is prohibited. Around one-third of all 1,263 polling stations have been reserved for women, because not may together stand in line at the polls in the Puritan theocracy both sexes. And still make conservative clerics and their followers these days mobile on Twitter against the new trend. "I only choose a woman if she bakes muffins for all the quarter," sneered one of the opponents. Activists like al-Sadiq Nouf who fought long for women's suffrage, let that not irritate. "This is an important step towards better participation of women in public life -. And the internal moderation of our society"
READER COMMENTS
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- Kramarz
- 8 minutes ago
The reason is in the article.Women have the right to vote but not the right to go to the ballot box / drive
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