by Imogen Rayne

Created on: August 03, 2008

Did you know that thousands of women in Saudi Arabia are being legally abused? These courageous, yet helpless women endure the abuse. According to the Human Rights Group (2007), Saudi Arabian government and courts punish the women for speaking out. Sometimes, the local police even harass these women and get away with it. These victims have no where to turn, these powerless women suffer in silence.

Harassed by the Police

Many Saudi Arabian women have reported being raped, by the local police officers or other assailants. However, they were publicly executed for. These women are afraid of turning up dead, if they do decide to report the police officer's actions. The "religious police" will harass or abuse a woman, who is seen with a man that is not her husband or a relative. According to the Human Rights Group (2007), most of these women suffer the abuse, because they have now way out.

Controlled by the Government

These women are forced to wear certain "restrictive clothing" and are not allowed many "civil rights". According to the Human Rights Group (2007), Saudi Arabian women are generally homemakers and they are not allowed to pursue careers outside the home. Instead of fleeing for safety, these women endure the abuse and suffer in silence. Even as young children, strict laws called "Shari laws" have kept Muslim boys and girls separated.

Killed by the Courts

Most of these victims are "charged" and "convicted" for "Crimes against Chastity" or "Adultery", whenever they report their abuser. According to the Human Rights Watch (2007), the Saudi Arabian women are executed for speaking out. Several thousands of women have been "amputated" and other wise "degraded" for their crimes. Furthermore, teenage girls have been "publically executed" also, under Muslim law for "sexual deviance".

Conclusion

Unfortunately, these powerless women deal with abuse and control daily, but they have no where to turn for help. Some women have been punished or killed for asking for the assistance of the government and the police. According to the HRW (2007), these courageous women endure this legal form of abuse for many reasons. However, they deserve respect and love, instead of being punished by those they trust.

References:

Human Rights Watch (2007) Human Rights in Saudi Arabia
Retrieved on the World Wide Web on November 5, 2007
http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/mena/saudi/

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