Women in the Middle East
Sharia Law
• Body of Islamic religious law
• Legal framework within which the public
and some private aspects of life are
regulated
• There is no strictly static codified set of
laws of sharia. Sharia is more of a system
of how law ought to serve humanity, a
consensus of the unified spirit.
Dress Codes
• Men have a more relaxed dress code: the
body must be covered from knee to waist.
• Women are required to cover all of their
bodies except hands and face.
• The rationale given for these rules is that
men and women are not to be viewed as
sexual objects.
• It is a common concern in the west that
Muslim women are oppressed and forced
to wear the Hijab or headscarf by their
male counterparts. Muslim males contend
that the majority of women choose to wear
the garment of their own free will. The
main principle reason for the hijab is
modesty.
Burka
The burka is thought to
have originated in the
Arabian peninsula and
can still be found there
today.
Hajib
The word hijab
refers to the
variety of styles
in which Muslim
women use
scarves and
large pieces of
cloth to cover
their hair, neck
and sometimes
shoulders.
Chador
The chador is the
full-body cloak
Muslim women in
Iran are expected
to wear outdoors.
Nikab
The nikab is
the form of
Muslim veiling
that comes
closest to what
is actually
meant by the
English word
"veil."
Rights of Women in Saudi Arabia
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Able to attend universities (separated from men)
Work in female only occupations
Can keep their own name when married
Property protected
Cannot drive
Must wear hajib
Can only marry a Muslim
Can only divorce if granted by the man or approved by
court
• Cannot talk to men outside their family
• Gained right to vote in 2004
Saudi Arabia forbids women to eat while
publicly exposed.
All restaurants, have 'family areas' where
women can eat behind the curtains.
Partition to separate the Single
Men side from the Family Side
Penalties
• Mutawa – religious police
• Arrested, lashes
• “U.S. Woman Arrested in Saudi Arabia
Starbucks”
Advances for Women
• Kuwait: Women are allowed to vote, but not run
for office
• Egypt: Women allowed to travel overseas
without approval from significant other
• Cairo: women are now allowed to file for divorce,
but now must give up all financial claims
• Turkey: Women wear western styles of clothes
• Egypt: female cops
• Jordan: women are the majority in med school
• Syria: female lawyers
Inaccurate Portrayal of Women
• Jihadists portray them as ignorant lambs who
need to be protected from outside forces, while
the United States considers them helpless
victims of a backward society to be saved
through military intervention.
• Millions of Muslim Arab women still love the
societies they're born into, regardless of jihadist
manipulation or American intervention. If reform
is to come, they will surely be the ones who
push it forward.
FAQ
• Do tourists or American women have to
follow these laws?
– In some instances. It is not necessary for
women to wear hajib, but most women will
take one along in order to avoid harassment
by the religious police. If foreign women are
accused of a crime, they are subject to similar
punishments as native women.
• What do they wear to swim in?
– Burkinis have been developed.
Fulla
FULLA – a type of Jasmine
grown in the Middle East
In September 2003 Saudi Arabia outlawed the
sale of Barbie dolls, saying that she did not
conform to the ideals of Islam.
The Committee for the Propagation of Virtue
and Prevention of Vice stated "Jewish Barbie
dolls, with their revealing clothes and
shameful postures, accessories and
tools are a symbol of decadence to the
perverted West. Let us beware of her
dangers and be careful."
“The enemies of
Islam want to invade
us with all possible
means, and
therefore they have
circulated among us
this doll, which
spreads deterioration
of values and moral degeneracy
among our girls."
Outdoor
and
Indoor
Clothes
Clothing
• “Outside” clothes
a black abaya and head scarf
• “Inside” clothes
- Extensive Wardrobe
- Skirts are below the knee and
shoulders are always covered
- Only seen by other women and
male relatives
Outside Clothes in more liberal
Muslim Countries
Unlike Barbie, Fulla does not date
Yasmeen and Nada
Fulla’s Best Friends
Tarek Mohammed,
chief salesman at
Toys’r'Us in Cairo, said:
“Fulla sells better
because she is closer
to our Arab values –
she never reveals a
leg or an arm.”
Alternatives to Fulla
• Razanne in Britain and the United
States
• In Iran, toy shops sell a veiled doll
called Sara
• Moroccan doll called Leila