New Age Islam News Bureau
31
Jul 2020
• Sarah
Al-Tamimi, Vice Chair of Saudi Arabia’s National Committee to Combat Human
Trafficking
• Saudi Café
Penalised Over Waitresses
• Arab International Women’s Forum Highlights Pandemic
Challenges, Race For Vaccine
• Taliban
Executes Female Prison Guard, and U.N. Raises Concern Over Afghan Violence
• Ahead
of Raksha Bandhan, Pakistan Woman Sends Rakhi For PM Modi, Says She Will Visit
Delhi If PM Invites
• PKR
Women’s Wing Announces Several New Leaders
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/in-historic-verdict-saudi-court/d/122515
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In a Historic Verdict Saudi Court Allows Women to Live
and Travel Without Guardian
July 16, 2020
Women in
Saudi, 22 February 2020 [bintroo/Twitter]
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A Saudi court has issued an “historic” ruling in a
legal case that will give women the right to live and travel freely within the
kingdom without the permission of their guardian. The judgement, which will be
seen as another milestone in Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s reformation of
the conservative country, followed a legal battle between public prosecutors
and a Saudi woman, who it appears had left the family home in defiance of her
parents.
According to court documents published by Abdulrahman
Al-Lahim, a lawyer in the case, Public prosecutors had been pursuing the woman,
who was identified as Meriam Al-Eteebe by Al Arabiya news agency, for being
absent from her family’s home and travelling to Riyadh without their
permission.
Ruling in favour of Al-Eteebe the court judged that
the independence of the defendant in a separate home is not considered a
punishable criminal act as the “woman is a sane adult who has the right to
decide where she wants to live.”
Al-Lahim is quoted as saying that he considers this a
historic ruling because it represents a significant change that is underway
within the kingdom’s judicial system.
“A historic ruling was issued today, affirming that
independence of a sane, adult woman in a separate house is not a crime worthy
of punishment,” Al-Lahim is also reported saying in a tweet. “I am very happy
with this, this ruling that ends tragic stories for women.”
Speaking to Al Arabiya, Al-Lahim further stressed the
significance of the decision. “This shows the creation of a new generation of
judges who coexist and live in the reality that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is
living in, in alignment with the vision of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman,”
said Al-Lahim. “A ruling that deals with reality, the reality of society and
the reality of the entire world.”
In remarks following her victory, Al-Eteebe said that
she had been fighting this battle for three years. “After long suffering that
has lasted since 2017, I managed today, along with the court hero Mr.
Abdulrahman al-Lahim, to take back my freedom of movement, guaranteed by the
Saudi constitution, which states that every citizen has freedom of movement and
stability.”
It was “not easy but worth it,” added Al-Eteebe.
This ruling is the latest in a series of decisions undertaken
by the crown prince considered to be part of his vision to reform the kingdom’s
economy, culture and society. Though such reforms have on the main been
welcome, critics have argued that arrest and detention of Saudi women’s rights
activists undermine his claim to be creating a more free and open country.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200716-in-historic-verdict-saudi-court-allows-women-to-live-travel-without-guardian/
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Sarah Al-Tamimi, Vice Chair Of Saudi Arabia’s National
Committee To Combat Human Trafficking
Vice-chair
of the Saudi National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking, Sarah Al-Tamimi
(Supplied)
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July 31, 2020
Sarah Al-Tamimi has been the vice chair of Saudi
Arabia’s National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking since February 2020.
Her work includes coordination with ministries and authorities working together
as a national team.
As part of her capacity-building strategy, Al-Tamimi
oversees training programs at the committee with partners at the UN Office on
Drugs and Crime (UNODC) for the Gulf Cooperation Council region and the
International Organization for Migration, as well as coordinating protection
responses for victims and potential victims of trafficking.
Al-Tamimi holds a BA in international relations from
Tufts University, an MBA from MIT, and a master of public administration from
the Harvard Kennedy School.
She joined the committee’s fight against human
trafficking in October 2019. One of her responsibilities was developing the
committee’s strategy.
Coinciding with the World Day against Trafficking in
Persons on July 30, Al-Tamimi has been nominated by UNODC for her efforts in
raising awareness of the issue. UNODC’s campaign this year focused for the
first time on profiling people that work in human trafficking. Nominations came
from offices around the world and Al-Tamimi was the only person chosen from the
GCC countries.
“Enhancing quality of life for all is a key pillar of
Vision 2030, which is a goal we also strive for at the committee,” she said.
“Human trafficking is a crime that knows no borders,
therefore neither can we who fight it,” said Al-Tamimi.
“Combating human trafficking requires the
participation of a variety of international and local actors that goes far
beyond the public sector and operates in areas ranging from cyberspace to
private sector supply chains.”
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1712366/saudi-arabia
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Saudi Café Penalised Over Waitresses
July 28, 2020
Women are
allowed in Saudi Arabia to work at restaurants in women-designated areas, a
restriction aimed at providing favourable work conditions for them.
------
Ramadan Al Sherbini
Cairo: Saudi authorities have penalised a local coffee
shop after it had employed women as waitresses in violation of work rules, a
government official has said.
Legal action was taken against the café in Saudi
Arabia’s eastern governorate of Taif after reports on social media circulated
about female waitresses at the place, spokesman for the Ministry of Human
Resources Nasser Al Hazani said.
“The violating establishment was identified for
violating the unified guidebook regulating the working environment for women
and disciplinary penalties were taken against it,” he added on his Twitter
Account without giving details.
Women are allowed in Saudi Arabia to work at restaurants
in women-designated areas, a restriction aimed at providing favourable work
conditions for them.
Saudi women accounted for 1.1 million workers or about
26 per cent of the country’s manpower at the end of 2019, according to media
figures.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia has sought to boost
women’s rights and empower them as part of wide social and economic reforms in
the country.
In 2018, the kingdom allowed women to drive for the
first time in its history, ending a decades-old ban on female driving.
In another move boosting women’s empowerment, Saudi
authorities have authorised women to travel without a male guard’s approval and
to apply for a passport, easing long-time controls on them.
https://gulfnews.com/world/gulf/saudi/saudi-caf-penalised-over-waitresses-1.72845005
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Arab International Women’s Forum Highlights Pandemic
Challenges, Race For Vaccine
July 30, 2020
LONDON: The Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF)
has drawn together experts from the Middle East and internationally to examine
some of the key challenges raised by the coronavirus pandemic.
In her introduction to the virtual event, held in
cooperation with global partner Pfizer, AIWF founder and Chairwoman Haifa
Al-Kaylani paid tribute to “the women at the frontline of the coronavirus
crisis — women in science, research, policy development, health care, the
media, and women who are caregivers, mothers and community leaders.”
The panel was moderated by AIWF board member Dr.
Oualae Al-Alami, vice president cluster lead at Pfizer Biopharmaceutical Group
and chair of the Regional Diversity & Inclusion Council for Pfizer Africa.
The speakers were Dr. Maryam Matar, founder and
chairwoman of the UAE Genetic Diseases Association; Dr. Graciela Morales, vice
president and Pfizer vaccines lead for emerging markets; and Dr. Fadi
El-Jardali, professor of health policy and systems and chairman of the Health
Policy and Management Department at the American University of Beirut.
Al-Alami noted that women account for 70 percent of
health services personnel. “They’re on the frontlines, sometimes sacrificing
their lives for patients and their families during the crisis,” she said.
“Typically there’s a pay gap, with women earning 80
percent of the wages of their male counterparts.”
The experiences of women coping amid the pandemic have
shed light on how the structure of societies has a notable impact on stress and
resilience levels.
Matar said pressures on women in the UAE were
mitigated by the way society is structured around extended families.
“I’d like to pay tribute to the importance of the
extended family within the UAE which provides women with important
psychological support,” she added.
“A woman might be working as a nurse or a teacher but
she has the support of her mother or mother-in-law. It’s very important to
emphasize the importance for any community where women are on the frontline to
have a safety net for them when it comes to economic and psychological
support.”
Matar said the UAE was in a good state of preparedness
when the pandemic struck, thanks to crisis planning and long-term investment in
developing resources.
“In 2019, we had a big conference in Abu Dhabi dealing
with disaster and crisis management. We were discussing a scenario of what
might happen in a pandemic with specific reference to the 2020 Expo.
This exercise put us on our toes and made us think
through the various scenarios. We went through a very tough exercise to
formulate a response. This planning demonstrated the vision of our UAE leader,”
she added.
“We have to remember that when we’re talking about the
UAE, we aren’t just talking about Emiratis — we’re talking about 200
nationalities. In the UAE, we understand the role of non-Emiratis in helping us
to build our country,” she said.
“At the same time, however, it’s very important for us
to have our own nationals in a position to take the lead in the implementation
of policies throughout the chain of response, not just in emergencies but in
every respect.”
Matar noted that it had taken decades of work to build
capabilities, including investment in education and the forging of
public-private partnerships (PPP).
“The participation of women in combating this crisis
on the frontline didn’t happen overnight. It took 50 years to build up this
capability within the community,” she said.
“We’ve learnt the importance of planning and clear
vision. A key element in dealing with the crisis has been very effective
public-private partnerships.”
In relation to the role of the World Health
Organization (WHO), Matar said she would have liked to see a more nuanced
approach better fitted to the widely varying conditions within countries across
the Middle East and North Africa.
“With regard to dealing with the pandemic, it’s clear
that there’s no single WHO policy which should be applied universally to all
nations. This is a strong lesson for all decision-makers. Policies should be
made to fit the needs and situations of each country and region,” she added.
“Previously, the WHO has always had this approach of
defining countries according to regions. I believe this should be reformed as
per the needs of individual countries, not regions,” she said.
“There are major differences in the preparedness of
each country and the vulnerabilities of their populations. We need, for
example, to have plans for food and job security.”
In relation to the global efforts underway to develop
a vaccine, Morales said there have been unprecedented levels of cooperation.
“The pharma industry sector has been working together
through collaborative networks and platforms. We’re in a race against the
virus, and these have been challenging times,” she added.
“This has been an opportunity to recognize the
collective advantage of all sectors working together and sharing knowledge.
We’re confident that science will win.”
She said vaccines are the only long-term solution for
ending this pandemic. Pfizer is “testing four vaccines simultaneously to
increase our chances of success with the highest safety profile possible and in
the shortest possible time,” she added.
“We have early positive data from one of the candidate
vaccines, and overall the preliminary data is encouraging … What we can say at
this point is that there’s a viable vaccine candidate based on the data we have
to date,” she said.
“We’ve worked hard to secure our production capacity
for all our products during the pandemic to ensure that all in need of
treatment will have the possibility of receiving it. At the same time, Pfizer
is scaling up manufacturing to be ready to produce and supply the vaccine.”
El-Jardali said governments could do more to support
PPP in the development of vaccines. “Many countries talk about public-private
partnerships, but in reality, in this time of crisis this concept has broken
down. There has been a lot of dysfunction in PPP, and we’ve seen in many cases
that the PPP relationship is mostly contractual,” he added.
“It should mean sharing both benefits and risks, but
in some countries we’ve seen that the private sector opted out and tried to
leave the public sector dealing with the implications of the coronavirus for
economic reasons,” he said.
“We need to revisit the frameworks for PPP and to have
better regulation, especially in middle-income countries.”
El-Jardali said lessons that should have been learnt
in relation to recent outbreaks of infectious diseases have not been acted on.
“In relation to vaccines, we’ve had over the past two
decades five major disease outbreaks, but the response came late because of the
market-based approach to investment,” he added.
“We all know that the private sector invests in
vaccines when they have a protected, profitable market. What has been missing
has been the role played by the government. What are governments doing to
change and modify the incentive for the R&D (research and development)
model so that the pharma industry can take a more proactive approach to
investing in vaccines before crises become overwhelming?” he said.
“We haven’t learnt the lessons of the past two decades
because it has been abundantly clear that if a pandemic came along we’d have a
problem with vaccines, but nothing has been done to address this. Governments
should’ve been much more proactive in working with the private sector and
pharma industry to create push and pull incentives.”
The webinar was attended by over 240 participants from
31 countries, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Palestine,
Morocco, Oman, Tunisia, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany,
France, Canada, the US, the UK, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, India, Ghana, Kenya and
Pakistan.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1712166/lifestyle
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Taliban Executes Female Prison Guard, and U.N. Raises
Concern Over Afghan Violence
By Mujib Mashal and Najim Rahim
July 27, 2020
KABUL, Afghanistan — The Taliban abducted and executed
a female prison guard in the eastern Afghan province of Ghazni, officials and
relatives said Monday, as the United Nations expressed concern over the war’s
unending toll on civilians.
Fatima Rajabi, 23, who had trained as a police
officer, was pulled out of a civilian minibus on her way to her home village in
the Jaghori district two weeks ago. After holding her captive for two weeks,
the Taliban executed the young woman and sent her body to her family, her
brother, Samiullah Rajabi, said.
“My sister was shot eight times,” Mr. Rajabi said.
“When we opened the coffin, her hands were behind her, together and stiff — you
could tell her hands were first tied and they had only untied them after they
sent the body.”
The United Nations, in a report released on Monday on
civilian harm in the Afghan conflict in the first six months of the year,
expressed particular concern about the rise of abductions and executions by the
Taliban. There has been an increase of more than a fivefold in civilian
casualties tied to abductions since last year, it said.
Nearly 1,300 civilians have been killed and close
2,200 others wounded in the first six months of the year, according to the
United Nations, which attributed 43 percent of the civilian casualties to the
Taliban and 23 percent to Afghan forces.
It said the insurgent violence had grown deadlier,
with a 33 percent increase in deaths caused by the Taliban over the same time
period last year.
Women and children made up about 40 percent of the
overall dead and injured, with pro-government forces responsible for the death
of more children than the Taliban, the United Nations said. Civilian casualties
from airstrikes by Afghan forces tripled from the first half of 2019.
“The reality remains that Afghanistan continues to be
one of the deadliest conflicts in the world for civilians,” the report noted.
“Each year, thousands of civilians are killed and injured, abducted, displaced
and threatened by parties to the conflict in Afghanistan.”
The numbers still marked an overall 13 percent
reduction in civilian casualties — which accounts for injuries and deaths —
from the same period last year.
That is largely attributed to a major drop in
casualties from United State airstrikes and attacks by the Islamic State branch
in the country, which has shrunk significantly after major military operations.
As part of a withdrawal deal signed with the Taliban in February, the United
States is no longer deploying its air power against the group except in extreme
cases, such as when their Afghan allies are being routed.
Although the United States has reduced its troops in
the country to about 8,600 — it is on schedule to complete a full withdrawal
over a 14-month period laid out in the agreement — other elements of the peace
agreement, mainly direct negotiations between the Afghan sides over future
power-sharing, have stalled as the violence continues.
“At a time when the government of Afghanistan and the
Taliban have a historic opportunity to come together at the negotiating table
for peace talks, the tragic reality is that the fighting continues inflicting
terrible harm to civilians every day,” said Deborah Lyons, the U.N.
secretary-general’s special representative for Afghanistan.
Zalmay Khalilzad, the United States’ special envoy for
peace in Afghanistan, has begun another trip to meet with the Taliban’s
negotiating team, based in Doha, and Afghan leaders in Kabul and push for
direct negotiations, the State Department said. Those negotiations were expected
to begin in March, but were delayed by disagreements over a prisoner swap under
which the Afghan government was expected to free 5,000 Taliban fighters in
return for 1,000 of its forces.
Jaghori, where Ms. Rajabi was traveling to see her
family at the time of her abduction, was long considered one of the safest
districts in a volatile region inhabited by the Hazara ethnic group. But in
2018, the Taliban launched an assault on the area and nearly took control,
before being pushed back.
The insurgents have increasingly threatened the
highways and main roads across Afghanistan, taxing commercial vehicles and
searching buses for anyone suspected of working for the government.
Mr. Rajabi said his sister would often travel home
unannounced to reduce the risk of being detained. Her family found out she was
taken by the Taliban only after five days had passed.
Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban,
denied that the group was behind the execution.
But local officials said the Taliban had been using Ms.
Rajabi to pressure local leaders into resolving certain outstanding issues,
possibly including taxes that the Taliban believe they are owed. “The Taliban
were angry that despite repeated notices, the leaders hadn’t reported to them,”
said Mohamad Ayub Bahonar, the district governor of Jaghori.
Ms. Rajabi’s 70-year mother, Mariam Akbari, traveled
to the Taliban-held area to beg for her daughter’s release. The Taliban told
her she must bring 15 district leaders who they wanted to talk to — something
that was out of her power, she said.
“I went and begged, I lowered myself at their feet, so
my sweet daughter could come back to me alive,” Ms. Akbari said. “They told me
‘You are old, we respect you, but don’t come again.’”
Ms. Akbari had already lost one son, a police officer,
to the war about ten years ago. One of her two remaining sons lives with her
and has a heart condition, and the other has lived in Iran for years without
much contact with the family.
“I really loved my daughter,” she said. “She had
joined the police out of poverty. Fatima was my only breadwinner.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/27/world/asia/taliban-executes-guard-afghanistan.html
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Ahead of Raksha Bandhan, Pakistan Woman Sends Rakhi
For PM Modi, Says She Will Visit Delhi If PM Invites
Jul 31, 2020
New Delhi: Qamar Mohsin Shaikh, a Pakistani woman has
sent a rakhi for PM Narendra Modi ahead of Raksha Bandhan. According to a
report, Sheikh has been sending rakhi to PM Modi for the past 25 years and she
is willing to visit New Delhi if he invites her.
"I get the opportunity to tie rakhi to elder
brother once every year, I'm happy. I pray that the next five years go so well
for him that the whole world recognizes the positive decisions he made,"
she had told news agency ANi last year.
Prior to that, she had hailed the Indian government's
decision to ban triple talaq and said that she would be keen on presenting a
painting made by her husband to PM Modi.
No provision for triple talaq in Quran: Shaikh
"There is no provision of instant triple talaq in
the Quran and Islam. No other than him could have taken this step (formation of
law). He has done a very good job in interests of Muslim women," she had
said while commenting on triple talaq.
She had also lauded the Indian government's decision
to abrogate Article 370 and revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
Sheikh's gesture comes at a time when her country has
been strongly opposing the Indian government's decisions in Jammu and Kashmir
and has made several futile attempts to garner international attention on the
Kashmir issue.
Raksha Bandhan will be celebrated on August 3 this
year. As reported earlier by Times Now, women artisans from Varanasi have
already sent rakhis to PM Narendra Modi and soldiers posted along the Line of
Actual Control (LAC) in Galwan on the occasion of Rakshabandhan.
https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/ahead-of-rakshabandhan-pakistan-woman-sends-rakhi-for-pm-modi-says-she-will-visit-delhi-if-pm-invites/630086
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PKR Women’s wing announces several new leaders
26 Jul 2020
KUALA LUMPUR, July 26 — The PKR Women’s wing continues
to be in a constant state of preparedness to face any situation with several
new leaders appointed in a meeting yesterday.
Central PKR Women’s secretary, Nor Azrina Surip said
that the women’s machinery nationwide would be mobilised to ensure that the
Pakatan Harapan (PH) government, which was legally elected by the people in the
last 14th General Election, returns to power.
“Efforts to raise the voice and welfare of the people
are our priority,” she said in a statement here today.
According to Nor Azrina, who is also the MP for
Merbok, during the meeting of the Central PKR Women’s Leadership Council
yesterday, several committee chairpersons were appointed to present new faces
in the party’s top women leadership.
Apart from Nor Azrina who was elected as the Central
Women’s secretary, others who were elected were Fadhlina Sidek and G. Sivamalar
as Legal and Community Development Bureau and Economy and Entrepreneurs Bureau
chairpersons respectively.
Meanwhile, Dr Zaliha Mustafa was also appointed as the
Strategy, Policy and Training Bureau chairperson and Loh Ker Chean was elected
as an exco in the Central Women’s leadership.
Apart from that, eight state PKR Women’s chiefs were
also announced, namely, Rodziah Ismail as Selangor Women chief; Rohaidah Mamat
(Regional); Amni Idris (Negeri Sembilan) and Naziratul Aini Muhamad Sayuty
(Kelantan).
Also elected are Junaida Jamaludin (Perak); Napsiah
Khamis @ Maharan (Johor); Che Meriah Che Endut (Terengganu) and Barirah Mokhtar
(Pahang).
“Women chiefs from six more states will be announced
later,” she said.
On July 11, Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh was appointed as
the new PKR Women’s chief after the incumbent Haniza Mohamed Talha was sacked
on June 29. — Bernama
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/07/26/pkr-womens-wing-announces-several-new-leaders/1888313
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