A well-known writer wants emancipated women to be harassed, inspired by a legendary Islamic warrior. This has reignited a heated debate between Islamic reformers and traditionalists over Saudi Arabia's hesitant reforms.

Riyadh (AsiaNews/Agencies) - Mohammad Al-Dawood, a well-respected Saudi writer with almost 100,000 Twitter followers, wants working women to be harassed so that their chastity can be preserved. He is especially incensed by the 1 per cent who found work in the first part of the year, cutting female unemployment from 35 to 34 per cent.

In his writings, al-Dawood describes the world as a place of danger and corruption, in which a woman can only be safe at home. On his Twitter page, the author stressed the importance of burqas as a deterrent to rape, citing the example of al-Zubair, a legendary Muslim warrior who raped his wife, hiding his identity, to discourage her from going out of the house.

In a statement, the author's office claims that he was misquoted; never the less, his words have raised a storm in Saudi media, causing outrage among reformers but eliciting support from conservatives.

Khalid Ebrahim al-Saqabi is one of the latter. A conservative cleric, Saqabi supports Dawood. In his view, the government's law against sexual harassment was "only meant to encourage consensual debauchery".

Others agree, with one writing "It is a man-made law and it can't be accepted in a kingdom ruled by God's law. They had better ban mingling of the sexes, not protect it."

Yet, a woman was elected for the first time in 2011. Two years from now, women should be able to vote in municipal elections as well. The conquest of women's first political rights has also come with greater emancipation in the workplace. Thanks to a series of reforms approved by the government, 150,000 women found work between 2009 and 2012.

This policy of openness towards women's participation, promoted by King Abdullah since 2005, has met with tough resistance from defenders of a strict interpretation of Islam.

The gap between the rate of unemployment among women and the presence of ten million migrants in the country has prompted Riyadh to encourage female employment and to set a 3 July ultimatum for undocumented foreign workers.

Still, despite an encouraging trend, Saudi Arabia remains the only Gulf state that prevents women from driving and, thanks to its conservative religious elite, it is dead last when it comes to female participation. Mohammed al-Dawood is part of that elite.

 

• saudi
• arabia
• mohammad
• al-dawood
• al-zubair
• harassment
• working
• women