TresSugar

Saudi Could Be Flogged For Bragging About Sexual Conquests

TresSugar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 10:05:00 -0700

Do you find it annoying when men brag about the women they've slept with? Well Saudi Arabia finds it more than annoying - it's flog worthy! Abdul Jawad, a Saudi man who boasted about his sexual conquests on Arab TV, is now facing mounting calls for him to be imprisoned or flogged.

Ignoring the fact that premarital sex is a serious crime in Saudi Arabia, Abdul bragged about how he began sleeping with women at the age of 14. He also chronicled how he met women using the Bluetooth function on his cell phone. Gender-segregated singles in the conservative country use the mobile device to communicate with each other in public. For example, a man might see a group of women sitting in a restaurant, search to see if they have an active Bluetooth device, and then ask for permission to send them text messages.

As you might guess, Abdul isn't the only person in Saudi Arabia that breaks the rules - he's just the least discreet person to do so.

Source: Flickr User Lucie's Photography

Saudi Vice Patrol Gears Up For a Summer of Enforcement

TresSugar — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:00:00 -0700

Yesterday we examined Americans' sometimes confusing morals - but could you imagine if the US had a vice patrol to enforce them? Residents in Saudi Arabia do face that reality, as the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice is gearing up for a Summer of morality patrol.

What will get you potentially jailed or publicly flogged? Punishable vices range from: alcohol consumption, prostitution, keeping shops open during prayer time, congregating in public with a non-related member of the opposite sex, and driving . . . if you're a woman.

Luckily for everyone, especially women who need to get somewhere, change is slowly coming to the Islamic country. King Abdullah appointed a new head of the religious police who is thought to be more moderate. The group also hired outside marketing experts to help it soften its image and apologized for arresting a man that kissed his wife in a parking lot. But like I said, the change is coming slowly - the virtue police have yet to abandon plans to install video cameras in malls to keep a better eye on people.

Women's Gyms to Be Banned in Saudi Arabia

TresSugar — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 15:00:00 -0700

Feeling too lazy to go to the gym? You might jump on a treadmill or lift a few weights in solidarity with women in Saudi Arabia who face the shutdown of all women-only gyms.

Saudi women already face extreme limitations on their freedoms under Wahhabi Islam: they are not allowed to drive, vote, or run for public office; they must be covered in the presence of unfamiliar men; and they're required to have a male guardian.

And now, because the government has agreed to license fitness clubs for men only - categorizing women's gyms as unlicensed and illegal - they have nowhere to exercise without the scrutinizing eyes of men.

In protest, Saudi women recently launched a campaign called "Let Her Get Fat" which protested the decision to close down all-female fitness clubs that are not under the supervision of a government hospital or clinic.

Even entrepreneurs are frustrated. Interested in hearing why? Then read more.

Businessman Bader Al-Shibani, wanting to open a women's fitness club in Jeddah along with the men's club he runs, was told by the government they didn't have the authority to let him do that. "I ran into a stone wall at every turn," he said. "In the end, I just abandoned the project."

So what's the big deal about women working out? For one thing, in a kingdom that intensely regulates the female body, the idea that a woman would focus on strengthening her body - for her own gratification - must rankle patriarchs on a symbolic level. Leading Saudi clerics see an even more imminent threat. If women exercise, they argue, they'll be tempted to leave their homes and neglect their husbands and children.

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Picture It: A Saudi Sandstorm's a Brewin'

CitizenSugar — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:01:14 -0700

A dust cloud enveloped Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia this week. The sandstorm caused car accidents, as well as road and airport closures.

View 5 Photos ›

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Unfitting? Women Must Buy Lingerie From Men in Saudi Arabia

LibertySugar — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 13:30:46 -0800

Saudi Arabia has no idea how to treat a lady. It's jailed women for coed Stabucks runs. Banned the sale of Valentine's Day gifts, which might not be a terrible idea with so many unwilling valentines. And now the story of women uncomfortably buying lingerie from male sales clerks has emerged.

To be fair, the Saudi government passed a law in 2006 that allows women to work in shops that sell women's items. But the men who stand to lose jobs have little incentive to hire them. It doesn't help that Muslim clerics, who wield considerable power in the religious country, believe home is where the woman is.

Adding to the problem, the kingdom's religious police have banned fitting rooms in lingerie shops along with physical contact between unmarried men and women. Shoppers can't be properly measured and are forced to buy bras without trying them on. Most are too embarrassed to return what doesn't fit.

Now one woman hopes to unravel the status quo with the help of others. To find out how, read more.

Reem Asaad, a college professor, is sidestepping the government and religious establishment to call on women to boycott lingerie stores staffed by men. "We the consumers are the final decision makers," said Asaad. "We decide what to buy or not to buy, and that's where it will hit the most - in the pocket."

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Something New? Saudi Cleric Condones Child Brides

CitizenSugar — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 13:00:38 -0800

A ceremonial wedding between a girl and a frog sounds like child's play compared to a real wedding between a girl and a middle-aged man. Yet the practice continues to cross our screens and affect real lives around the world. And it's not stopping anytime soon - at least not in Saudi Arabia.

Top Saudi cleric, Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Sheikh, said it is not fair to tell a 10- or 12-year-old girl that she can't marry. This comes after a Saudi judge refused to annul a marriage between an 8-year-old girl and a 58-year-old man.

The girl's mother petitioned for the annulment, saying the marriage was arranged by the girl's father to settle a debt. The judge's only consolation? He required the newlywed husband to sign a pledge promising to abstain from sex until the girl reached puberty, bringing new meaning to abstinence pledge.

Though Saudi law may intend to protect children, it's difficult to separate the secular from the sacred in a country so steeped in Islam - a religion that imposes no age limits on marriage. A Saudi Arabia researcher for Human Rights Watch said, "It is still the religious establishment that holds sway in the courts, and in many realms beyond."

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Send Them to Rehab? Program Could Answer Gitmo Problem

LibertySugar — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 03:00:14 -0800

Following President Obama's order to close Guantanamo Bay prison within a year, the US is looking for responsible ways to relocate prisoners. Since one suggested location - Alcatraz - won't do, US lawmakers might consider "jihad rehab."

CNN reports that a Saudi rehab program, which uses religious teachers to re-educate Islamic radicals, could solve the US's dilemma of closing the prison while also keeping Americans safe. Saudi officials say that of the 218 participants that were arrested for engaging in terrorist activities only nine have been rearrested. That's less than .05 percent, and much better than the 11 percent re-engagement rate for prisoners released from Guantanamo. The program tries to neutralize dangerous ideology, explaining that killing goes against Muslim teachings, and also helps prisoners lead a normal life once they leave. One participant described his life before the program: "They told me Americans kill Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan. . . and they brainwash me. . . They said it's the honorable thing to do to go fight Americans."

Since keeping detainees at Guantanamo Bay with limited rights could have increased anti-American sentiment among many prisoners, a more enlightened approach might serve everyone's interests.

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Eight-Year-Old Saudi Cannot Divorce Her 58-Year-Old Husband

LibertySugar — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 13:00:04 -0800

An eight-year-old Saudi girl will not be able to divorce her 58-year-old husband until she reaches puberty. A Saudi court rejected her mother's divorce plea, ruling that the marriage contract - signed by the groom and the father with the verbal condition that the marriage would not be consummated for 10 years - was valid.

In exchange for his child's hand in marriage, the down-on-his-luck father received $7,500. The girl still lives with her mother and attends school.

This story of a legal system tolerating essentially the sale of a young girl to a man 50 years her elder makes me wonder: Of the billions of women in the world, how many must face an unjust life with few opportunities to control their destinies?

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Front Page: Bush to Keep Guantanamo Open, Obama Leaving Campaign Trail, Saudi Arabia Charges 991 Al Qaeda Suspects

CitizenSugar — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 06:56:52 -0700

Bush to Keep Gitmo Open:
Though he'd previously stated a desire to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Bush has now decided not to do so, and did not consider proposals from the State Department and Pentagon to transfer the prisoners elsewhere. His current view appears to be that closing the prison would involve too many political and legal risks. It will remain open for the rest of his term.

Obama Leaving Campaign Trail:
Barack Obama is canceling almost all of his campaign events on Thursday and Friday to go visit his suddenly gravely ill grandmother in Hawaii. According to a spokesman, ''Sen. Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has always been one of the most important people in his life, along with his mother and his grandfather." He's going so he can "spend some time with her.''
Saudi Arabia Charges 991 al Qaeda Suspects:
Saudi Arabia has charged 991 suspected al Qaeda militants with attacks that left 164 dead and that seem to range back to 2003, though specifics aren't yet clear. The country has been reluctant to charge militants in the past, fearing retribution from local sympathizers. A spokesman said, "In the past few years, the kingdom has been the target of an organised terrorist campaign linked to networks of strife and sedition overseas," before linking that campaign to al Qaeda.

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What Would You Wish For? Saudi Arabia Debates Birthdays

CitizenSugar — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:30:00 -0700

Though it's a lightning rod in its own right, My Super Sweet Sixteen pales in comparison to the birthday controversy blowing its way through Saudi Arabia. The country's most senior Muslim cleric has recently denounced birthday parties as an unwanted foreign influence, going head-to-head with another cleric who's said pony rides and cake are just dandy.

Under the strict interpretation, even modest birthday celebrations are "haram," or banned. The Saudi ban on birthdays is observed by the conservative Wahhabi sect that is dominant in the kingdom. Their belief is that all Christian celebrations, plus most Muslim feasts celebrated elsewhere in the Islamic world, are nixed as alien customs.

The cupcake controversy started when the more lenient cleric announced on TV that it's OK to celebrate milestones like birthdays as long as the word "eid" (feast) isn't used to describe them. The blowback was swift and pointed (especially if you've been to a Hallmark store lately) from the cleric: "Christians have Mother's Day, an eid for trees, and an eid for every occasion. And on every birthday, candles are lit and food is given out." Between no birthdays for Muslims and no voting for Jehovah's Witnesses, what would you give up for religion?

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