The Imprisonment of Women’s Sexual Rights in the MENA region - An ongoing cycle of misogyny and oppression

Opinion piece by Rahaf Fouani, Visiting Contributor

February 17th, 2022

“No woman can call herself free who does not control her own body”; this quote by Margaret Sander is one that is known by women far too well. For the longest time, women have been told that their bodies are not truly theirs and that they are slaves to their societies’ patriarchal views that view women as sexual objects, thus putting them under the constant pressure of succumbing to the status quo. In the MENA region specifically, culture and tradition have had a clutch over the society and that has stripped women away from their sexual liberation and their autonomy. Women in the MENA region have been silenced and molded into what the patriarchy wants them to be for far too long and its disastrous consequences need to be discussed now more than ever. They are constantly being sexualized yet shamed when they take control and embrace their sexuality. They have been violated, abused, disrespected, and belittled as women; they are seen as inferior and as a convenience for men and their needs. It isn’t acceptable for them to live while being imprisoned by the patriarchy and its shackles. Their bodies are viewed as a tool for pleasure and birth-giving, as if they do not own them. Therefore, it’s time for women to take control and have complete freedom over their bodies and sexuality.  

To begin with, one clear violation of women’s bodies and rights is the hymen reconstruction surgery. It’s baffling that this is still happening in the 21st century and specifically, women in the MENA region are still forced to undergo this extremely violating and disgusting procedure due to the patriarchal gender norms. In the MENA region, women are still forced and expected to stay “untouched” and “pure” for their husbands on their wedding night. This incredibly toxic mindset is still common today and so many girls and women live in fear every day just to “prove” their virginity to the men they will be marrying. Husbands leave, shame, and in some cases, even kill their wives if they doubt or even suspect that they’re not “virgins”. Societies in the MENA region are still attached to the traditions and outdated views about sexuality, specifically when it comes to women; they still view virginity as rigid and that women’s virginities are not truly theirs, but rather their husbands’. The common misconceptions that are still being perpetuated to this day are the assumptions that an intact hymen determines whether a woman is a virgin or not and that all women bleed during the first sexual intercourse. Women are brainwashed and made to believe that their virginities are owned by their future husbands and that their worth is determined by whether they bleed or not during their first sexual encounter. Not only is this surgery barbaric and morally unjust, but it’s also incredibly risky. Health care professionals have voiced their concerns when it comes to this surgery, which could affect a woman’s pleasure during sexual intercourse and even cause physical pain (Cook, 2009). Also, the psychological aspect is very important: it mentally affects women, since they are objectified and shamed, and it also has an impact on their self-esteem and how they view themselves and their bodies. This goes to show how distorted the image of sex in MENA societies still is today.  

Speaking of the topic of intrusive surgeries when it comes to women, another barbaric concept is Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). FGM is seen as a way to repress a woman’s sexual urges in the belief that it will ensure her marriage, and thereby honor her family. The baffling thing about FGM is that it serves absolutely no benefit, but its consequences and risks are endless. Multiple scholars have reported that FGM is linked with less sexual arousal, satisfaction, and enjoyment in women (Alsibiani, 2010). It makes absolutely no sense that women have to go through all these horrendous sacrifices for a surgery that not only did they not consent to have, but also presents no benefits to the whatsoever. The concept of FGM is rooted in misogyny and the need to control women’s bodies and sexual urges since it’s seen as “dirty” and “unnecessary”. It violates women’s bodies and their right to their own sexuality since the patriarchy constantly reinforces the idea that women’s sexual desires or urges are not necessary nor needed. 

It is heartbreaking to see that some people claim that women have earned their rights when there are still millions of women in the MENA region who don’t even have access to their basic sexual needs and don’t know that their bodies are their own and nobody else’s. Education and awareness are a must, but most importantly, these women need to be empowered, so that they know how to stand up for themselves and they should know that they are being heard. No woman is truly liberated until all women are. No woman truly has her rights until all women do. The shackles of the patriarchy need to be removed so that women can breathe and truly have autonomy over their lives, bodies, and sexualities. It is time that we progress and move forward because as long as there is one woman who is oppressed and stripped from her rights, all women are still victims under the current patriarchy. Women’s bodies and sexuality are rightfully theirs: they always have been and always will be.  

References

Alsibiani, S. A., & Rouzi, A. A. (2010). Sexual function in women with female genital mutilation. Fertility and sterility, 93(3), 722-724.

Cook, R. J., & Dickens, B. M. (2009). Hymen reconstruction: ethical and legal issues. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 107(3), 266-269.