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| Arabia |
| Saudi women get the vote |
| 2004-03-10 |
| Maybe they will catch up one day. Via Melanie Phillips. Slightly EFL. Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s most male-dominated countries, is preparing to break with tradition and risk the wrath of religious conservatives by allowing women to take part in its first elections. Plans for municipal elections, a key step towards modernisation and democracy, were announced in October, but the government gave no public indication of whether women would be included as voters or as candidates. Saudi officials said privately at the time that they wanted to introduce women’s suffrage but hoped to slip it through quietly at a later date to avoid a conservative backlash. Public confirmation came yesterday, in a press release from the Saudi embassy in London. A paragraph describing the election plans said: "It is believed both men and women will be given the opportunity to vote." Saleh al-Malik, a member of the Shura Council, the kingdom’s non-elected parliament, confirmed that women would be allowed to take part, though the government is taking a cautious approach. He said anyone aged over 21 would be entitled to vote. Although the law will not state explicitly that women can vote, "there will be no clause saying that women are not eligible to vote or be elected", he said. The elections are expected to be held in late October. Voters in 180 municipalities will be asked to choose between four and 16 councillors, depending on population size. The electoral law is not expected to be approved until August, giving opponents little time to organise a rearguard action. Pressure for change has built up as increasing numbers of Saudi women take up employment. About 10% of private businesses are now believed to be run by women - a situation that would have been unimaginable a generation ago. In an unprecedented move last year, 300 Saudi women signed a petition calling on the country’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Abdullah, to recognise their legal and civil rights. Rejecting women’s suffrage would leave Saudi Arabia exposed to international criticism. Elsewhere in the Arab world, women vote in almost all the countries that hold elections. Women do not vote in Kuwait. Although the emir wanted them to vote and stand as candidates, conservative elements in parliament blocked the move. Among the arguments used against women’s participation is that menstruation could cloud their political judgment. |
| Posted by:Bulldog |
| #10 LOL. Just imagine! The Doo Mucker giving spelling lessons. Next he'll write an essay on the proper use of the shift key. |
| Posted by: GK 2004-3-10 10:08:35 PM |
| #9 Its spelt Filipino normally. The country is the Philippines, the adjective is Filipino. The name of the country in English is after the English form Philip, for Philip II of Spain. The Spanish and Tagalog form is Filipinas, according to the Spanish form Felipe, and the adjective form is Filipino in both languages. The usual practice has been to adopt the Spanish adjective. Some people early on used the form Philippino, but this died out quickly. |
| Posted by: buwaya 2004-3-10 7:14:52 PM |
| #8 So, different polling places and only worth 1/4 to 1/2 a man's vote??? |
| Posted by: Anonymous2U 2004-3-10 2:00:52 PM |
| #7 sigh...looks like my surprise meter just had a malfunction spike. It's still progress though. We had similar arguments in our own country less than 100 years ago. At least they are narrowing the thousand years gap that we see on their other social issues. |
| Posted by: B 2004-3-10 1:51:42 PM |
| #6 remote man! i think it spelt- phillipino. |
| Posted by: muck4doo 2004-3-10 1:50:04 PM |
| #5 Among the arguments used against women’s participation is that menstruation could cloud their political judgment. So does banging one's head on the ground, five times each freaking day. |
| Posted by: ed 2004-3-10 12:40:09 PM |
| #4 And lets no forget that their husbands have to drive them to the polls. "No, my desert flower, you may not leave the house today. Amuse yourself by beating the Fillipino maid." |
| Posted by: remote man 2004-3-10 12:25:22 PM |
| #3 Mine still points at zero: this is Saudi Arabia, will there be several people to vote from? will the candiuadtes have to be approved by the "Councils of the guardians of oid and wahabism? what power will have the delegates? will the delegates be equal or will there be two classes of them: the ones reprensenting males and the ones representing females with zero power? |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-3-10 11:54:56 AM |
| #2 This is directly due to the influence of Iraq. The Iraqi constitution providing equal treatment regardless of gender or ethnicity is embarrasing for the surrounding regimes. They would look pathetic to the world and their own population if the country directly to the north of them that was invaded by the great satan had women's sufferage and elections and they didn't. They are trying to control it but the autocrats better proceed carefully, if their people get a taste for freedom there will be no putting the genie back in the bottle. |
| Posted by: Damn_Proud_American 2004-3-10 11:51:40 AM |
| #1 wow..the surprise meter works! |
| Posted by: B 2004-3-10 11:45:49 AM |