WUNRN
SAUDI ARABIA - COMMITTEE FORMED TO
ADDRESS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Adel Abdulrahman - Okaz/Saudi Gazette
December 22, 2012 - JEDDAH — A committee has been established to deal with
cases of domestic violence.
The committee is headed by the director of Makkah Social Affairs Abdullah
Al-Tawi and includes representatives from the governorate, police, courts,
education directorate and hospitals.
Al-Tawi said the committee also includes highly qualified psychologists and
sociologists. The committee reviews domestic violence cases and why the offence
was committed in the first place.
If the offender suffers from a mental problem, he will be referred to a mental
hospital. If he is a drug addict, he will be referred to Al-Amal hospital.
Some cases are resolved amicably, he said, adding educational programs for
dealing with violence cases are organized in cooperation with the Ministry of
Health and the Ministry of Education.
The head of the family protection society Sameerah Al-Ghamdi said the society
deals with all kinds of family violence cases.
The society also has a program to assist women economically and enable them to
effectively deal with their affairs and problems. There are training programs
on marital rights.
She said violence cases are referred to the Social Affairs directorate, though
there are no accurate statistics on the number of such cases.
She said she hoped that lessons on domestic violence are included in the
curriculum to increase awareness of the problem. A number of lectures in
various provinces on domestic violence had a positive response.
One lecture encouraged a school to initiate a “School Without Violence”
campaign.
A spokesman for the National Society of Human Rights (NSHR) pointed to the
establishment of a separate national commission to deal with violence cases. He
said domestic violence has reached serious levels and need special deterrent
laws to tackle it effectively.
Dr. Mishal Al-Ali, member of the Shoura Council, said the Shoura reviewed and
voted on a program to tackle domestic violence. He added that Shariah laws
protect the rights of women and children.
Social networking sites have witnessed intense discussions on violence against
women and children. Many have questioned the absence of deterrent laws and said
no domestic violence offenders have ever been punished.
Dr. Hassan Basfar, media professor at King Abdulaziz University, called for
intensifying educational campaigns on domestic violence all year round.
These campaigns should not be linked to certain incidents only, he said.
He suggested that a forum should be held that includes highly qualified
scholars and specialists to discuss the current social reality as a starting
point to deal with the issues of domestic violence.
Over the past Hijri year Makkah courts looked into 50 domestic violence cases
against women, according to the director of the National Society for Human
Rights’ Makkah branch.
The majority of domestic violence victims went directly to the branch to
complain, Dr. Jawahir Al-Nahari told Al-Yaum, adding some victims preferred to
go to the print media to get their stories published.
She said the NSHR will take measures to protect women and children who are
likely to become victims of domestic violence.
“Many cases of domestic violence slip under the radar because the victims are
too frightened to report these cases.
“Some women and children are mistreated and punished in the name of
discipline.”
She said the NSHR is keen to spread a culture of human rights among women and
focus on everything that might protect them against inhumane treatment at the
hands of their husbands or fathers.
Women will only be protected against such injustices when they realize their
rights as human beings, she pointed out.