Political Ideology
It is hard to imagine that in a first world country so exuberant and lavish as the one depicted in this picture (King Abdulah Economic City, Saudi Arabia) that there would be such a disparity between women and men. Perhaps the name of the city is a clue to how patriarchal Saudi Arabia is. Beautiful cities full of riches and massive buildings all named after men. Beautiful cities run by Princes with infinite amounts of money tied to enormous oil reserves and global trade. A country so prosperous that women and men have separate entrances to their homes. "...the separation between genders was strictly enforced everywhere. That separation became law, from public places to government offices, to banks, schools, even to our own houses. In time, each house in Saudi Arabia ended up having two entrances: one for men, one for women." -Manal al-Sharif (2012)
Although many things have changed in the last three decades, as late as 1979 there was essentially only two possible female employment options: education or healthcare. "In 1992 Saudi Arabia enacted its Basic Law, which resembles a constitution by providing the powers and duties of the State as well as enumerating certain rights of individuals. The actual constitution is the Shari'a (Islamic law), from which all other laws obtain their legitimacy. The sources of law are in statutes, but more significantly, Saudi Arabia has a Council of Senior Ulama, which delivers fatwas (edicts) based on the Qur'an and the Sunnah. The courts apply the rules of the Islamic Shari'a in the cases that are brought before them, in accordance with what is indicated in the Qur'an and the Sunnah, and statutes cannot contradict them.''- Sifa Mtango (2004) Sadly, even in the industrialized first world country of Saudi Arabia there is very little religious or political influence from the female populace.
The past ten years have brought about the most change in Saudi Arabia as it seems the country is embracing a change in the direction of not only educating women, but recruiting qualified women into positions of leadership among the hierarchy in both the public and private sectors. "A study conducted by Al-Halawani (2002) concludes that women in many sectors of government are operating under the umbrella of men, which impacts negatively on the performance of women sections, and that the constant intervention by men restricts their freedom to make decisions. The study further concludes that lack of authority and centralization of authority in headquarters run by men limit women’s ability to lead effectively and to make decisions, even those that concern their own departments". Fortunately Saudi Arabia as a country is demonstrating positive changes in the women's role in government and in women's leadership.
The past ten years have brought about the most change in Saudi Arabia as it seems the country is embracing a change in the direction of not only educating women, but recruiting qualified women into positions of leadership among the hierarchy in both the public and private sectors. "A study conducted by Al-Halawani (2002) concludes that women in many sectors of government are operating under the umbrella of men, which impacts negatively on the performance of women sections, and that the constant intervention by men restricts their freedom to make decisions. The study further concludes that lack of authority and centralization of authority in headquarters run by men limit women’s ability to lead effectively and to make decisions, even those that concern their own departments". Fortunately Saudi Arabia as a country is demonstrating positive changes in the women's role in government and in women's leadership.