WUNRN
CEDAW Ratification - Saudi Arabia: http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-8&chapter=4&lang=en
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7
Sep 2000 |
7
Sep 2000 |
Saudi Arabia CEDAW Reservations:
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“1.
In case of contradiction between any term of the Convention and the norms of
islamic law, the Kingdom is not under obligation to observe the contradictory
terms of the Convention. ___________________________________________________________ |
SAUDI ARABIA - WOMEN PRESS FOR SUFFRAGE
Agence
France-Presse - 25 April, 2011
Full
Article Link: http://www.gulfinthemedia.com/index.php?id=560424&news_type=Political&lang=en&
A group of Saudi women have turned
up at a voter registration office in a rare public protest against the
male-only electoral system, one of the activists said yesterday.
“We want to make our voices heard,” Nayla Attar, a businesswoman among a small
group of activists said after making a symbolic attempt on Saturday to register
for upcoming local elections in the Red Sea city of Jeddah........
___________________________________________________________________
Saudi Arabia - Women Denied Right to Vote in Upcoming
Municipal Elections
March 29, 2011
Yesterday it was revealed that women in
It appears that the election
commission is not letting women participate in any form. They are not allowed
to vote or run for office.
“We are not ready for the participation of women in these municipal elections,”
Election Commissioner Abdul Rahman Al-Dahmash said in Arab News.com
However, Al-Dahmash has claimed that this decision is only temporary and that
soon women would be able to contribute, reports Arab News.com. He explains that
the reason for the ban is best understood by looking at the inclusion of women
as a gradual process, which has been the case for most countries.
Election officials claim that women will be
able to vote after they (the commission) are given the chance re-organize the
election system itself.
"There is nothing to stop the
participation of the woman but this needs some preparations and we cannot make
these preparations in all regions of the kingdom," the commission said in
a statement in Reuters.
I find this unlikely. I mean look at how
women have and continue to be treated in
But given the history of municipal elections
taking place in the country (as the last elections took place in 2005, which
was the first time in more than 40 years) and again women were denied the vote,
and considering how women continue to be treated living in the country, many
are hesitant to believe that women will be included the next time around.
Some have even suggested that by excluding
women, it just makes the country look bad and I would have to agree.
"Banning women participation only
perpetuates the stereotype of the kingdom being a state that oppresses women
and constrains their freedom. A state that does not care about its female citizens,"
said Hatoon al-Fassi, a history lecturer at
Sources:
Khalil, A. (2011). Vote ban angers Saudi women in era of change. Yahoo News retrieved March 29, 2011.
(2011). No votes for women in Saudi Municipal elections. Reuters retrieved March 29, 2011.
(2011). Election chief: We’re not ready for women’s suffrage. Arab News.com retrieved March 29, 2011.