Policy Analysis by Tala Al Otaibi, Contributor

May 7th, 2021

For a very long time, women all around the world have been subjected to inequality as a result of laws that were put into place by historical lawmakers who deemed them inferior by nature. In the MENA region, Islam is a dominant religious ideology. Therefore, as a result, Islamist beliefs have always played a key role in how states run and govern and how their citizens are viewed and treated. As opposed to more liberal and democratic states, neopatriarchal states are known for the use of religion in determining state power, as well as the family being the building block of the society. Moreover, neopatriarchal states are illustrated as male-oriented, meaning that much of the privilege is given to men at the expense of women. 

Let us take a look at Saudi Arabia. To properly explore their case, we must first define and understand what a neopatriarchal state is and what it entails. The patriarchy is a universal tradition that is manifested differently in every society. It is a transitional product of both social and cultural conditions that went on for a long period in history. However, neopatriarchy marked the end of the patriarchal period. As a predominantly Islamic region, the Arabs have immersed themselves in a pristine patriarchal system, which is determined by their tribal structures. The Arab patriarchal system has extended along with the prevalence and growth of the extended family, as opposed to the nuclear family. The nature of these families is determined by reliance, subordination, and the enslavement of women, those of which are typically changed with the expansion of nuclear families. With the development of the patriarchal system into a neopatriarchal one, we can still observe a very male-oriented ideology, which gives full privilege to the men in society at the expense and marginalization of women. In general, Saudi Arabia is far more conservative than other states in the region regarding how women should act and how they are seen in society. 

Women in Saudi Arabia have a lot in common with other women in other regions. Existing gender gaps include gaps in literacy, ease of access to paid employment, and political representation. Women in Saudi Arabia are subjected to a degree of second-class citizenship as a result of two factors: first, Muslim family law and second, the general patriarchal cultural practices of the state. Like many countries in the region, Saudi Arabia governs its people using Islamic law to a certain extent. In their case, sharia is used for both family law and the penal code of the country. Of course, the use of certain parts of Islamic law has certain implications on the status of women in the country, as it determines what women tend to obtain from different factors, such as marriage, divorce, and even inheritance, which tends to be unfavorable towards them. 

As some scholars have realized, the perception of Saudi women is quite contradictory. Women in Saudi Arabia are either heavily excluded from society and victimized or wealthy and glamorous. Despite many positive developments that have occurred in the MENA region, Saudi women are still excluded from fully participating in their societies and economies. Given the neopatriarchal nature of the state, the way Saudi women live their lives depends on their male counterparts, who are seen as their guardians. Men tend to make the decisions regarding education, work, lifestyles, and health on behalf of women. Over the years, despite there being a rapid increase in the number of women receiving education, that development was not matched with a rapid increase in the number of women in the workforce.

Madawi Al-Rasheed tends to refer to religious nationalism as a means to explain why women in Saudi Arabia are still falling behind in terms of development in comparison to other women in this region and in other regions. Al-Rasheed defines religious nationalism as a form of politicized representation with an aim to create a godly community. A key characteristic to this is the attempt of keeping the family and the woman underneath the private domain in the state. As a result, some sort of obsession with the status of women begins to form, whereby there is a large control over their purity, sexuality, appearance, and more. Hence, religious nationalism in Saudi Arabia became a very important factor and framework that defines the role and status of women within the Kingdom.

When issues regarding citizenship and equal rights in numerous aspects of civil life were on the rise, many uprisings in the Arab region took place as a way of trying to eradicate these issues and achieve equality. Saudi Arabia, much like its Arab counterparts, was no different. Many factors, such as globalization and global pressures, have led Saudi Arabia towards modern development, though slowly, by allowing the spread of rights and citizenship in all of the Kingdom.

 Given the rather young and well-educated population of Saudi Arabia, the people in the Kingdom have largely been exposed to technologies and ideologies from around the globe, as a result of globalization. Hence, the government has been able to recognize that the increasing interconnectedness has affected those within its borders. With such an exposure to Western ideologies and with an increase in the number of women activists, it is only normal for us to see that the government of the Kingdom would slowly implement changes towards development. Nonetheless, it still remains extremely controversial and difficult to implement change given the strong ties between religion and state. Religious scholars have dictated much of how the people in the Kingdom have lived and how they are represented in the community. Another prime example of such interventions includes the fact that these religious scholars once believed that the formal education of girls would corrupt their morals. However, the lack of participation of women in the workforce may drastically affect the economy of the Kingdom. Hence, it was only crucial for the Kingdom to slowly start making changes and to further integrate these women into society.

In conclusion, the case of Saudi Arabia can bring to light many aspects of the neopatriarchal state nature and its implications. Given the importance of religion and the family in a state like this one, we can only expect for inequalities to arise as a result. This state’s implications have led to the oppression and subordination of women, where they have been regarded as inferior and incapable by their male counterparts. However, it is still very important to note the effect of globalization and activism in this case. The rise of globalization and the spread of ideologies about equality have led to uprisings and different forms of activism. As such, until today, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has slowly begun to implement changes in society and moved towards modern development. Nonetheless, despite the multiple efforts of activists in the country, it will still be quite challenging to achieve all forms of equality in a short period of time given how much the government of Saudi Arabia relies on Islamic law when it comes to its family laws and its penal code as well.

Sources

-       Al-Rasheed, Madawi. A Most Masculine State: Gender, Politics, and Religion in Saudi Arabia. Cambridge University Press, 2013.

-       Hawkesworth, Mary. Political Worlds of Women: Activism, Advocacy, and Governance in the Twenty-First Century. Westview Press, 2012.

-       Meijer, Roel. "Citizenship in Saudi Arabia." Middle East Journal 70, no. 4 (2016): 667-73.

-       Moghadam, Valentine. “The Middle East and North Africa: Social Change and Women’s Rights.” In Women and Politics around the World: A Comparative History and Survey, edited by Joyce Gelb & Marian Lief Palley, 441-57. Vol. 2. ABC-CLIO, 2009.

-       Sharabi, Hisham. Neopatriarchy: A Theory of Distorted Change in Arab Society. Oxford University Press, 1992.

-       Thompson, Mark. Being Young, Male, and Saudi: Identity and Politics in a Globalized Kingdom. Cambridge University Press, 2019. 

-       Van Geel, Annemarie. "Separate Or Together? Women-Only Public Spaces and Participation of Saudi Women in the Public Domain in Saudi Arabia." Contemporary Islam 10, no. 3 (2016): 357-378.