Whether it is the US government welcoming this pardon, or the BBC’s noting that the pardon is already creating anger among Saudi religious conservatives, the story is getting international coverage.
Most of the coverages is coming from international news agencies, mostly relying on the original Saudi Al-Jazirah newspaper account. As of the time of this posting, the official Saudi Press Agency has yet to report.
Below a sampling of what’s out there. As more editorials and opinion pieces appear, I’ll point them out.
CNN: King pardons rape victim. This piece, as that from the BBC, notes that the pardon came on the first day of the Hajj. Generally, many prisoners receive pardons after the Hajj, on the first day of ‘Eid Al-Adha. Thus, the timing itself makes this special.
Al-Jazeera TV: Saudi king ‘pardons’ rape victim. Notes in passing that the pardon was not the result of international pressure, but due to a problem with the sentencing.
FOX TV: Saudi King Pardons Teen Female Rape Victim Sentenced to 200 Lashes. Accentuates the negative, but nothing unfactual.
Raped woman pardoned by King Abdullah. The Italian news agency reports that the girl’s attorney will be getting his law license returned after the ‘Eid.
The New York Times: Pardon Reported for Saudi Rape Victim. Notes that some concern has been expressed about the woman’s safety after the pardon. Quotes the Ministry of Social Affairs saying that they will provide protective housing if necessary. Also reports that the pardon does nothing to reform the legal system.
Telegraph: Saudi Arabia’s king pardons gang-rape victim. Nothing particularly different in this coverage.
‘AlterNet’, an activist network, finds that it’s all George Bush’s fault: Saudi Gang Rape Victim Pardoned But Bush’s Reaction, Media’s Reporting Are Unpardonable.
UPDATE: 12/19/2007 __ Hindustan Times of India editorializes: Tradition be damned
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December:17:2007 - 13:44
To the handful of people who might be upset that the King overturned the ruling I would like to say that they exist within a tiny miniscule bubble.
I firmly believe that Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) would agree and Allah would agree and so does most of the rest of the world. So I feel that anyone who is sulking is not upset about the ruling itself or the rightness or wrongness of it, but rather they are feeling their loss of power and that is what upsets them. Tough!
We, and I mean then entire world, have been left a better place by this overturning. It might just be beginning of the momentum of change.
December:17:2007 - 14:02
AlterNet needs to realize that it’s getting just as annoying as any conservative Bible-thumping website. Even a liberal like me can’t stomach their “anything but Bush” spiel any more. There are a lot of things worse than Bush. Like it or not.
John: you mentioned many postings back that these are central laws of the country and we just have to deal. True. But KSA needs to make changes if they want to get more of the techno-crowd in to meet their expanding needs. I was at a meet-up for South Asian techies recently and given the frustrations with the US immigration system, a lot of them are looking for greener pastures. Middle East came up, at first there was a lot of enthusiasm because Middle Eastern countries are recruiting aggressively in the tech sector. Lots of opportunities and everyone was very excited. Then one person asked “Would your wife agree?” and the room fell silent–we had all heard about the Qatif Girl.
I know a lot of South Asians have traditionally worked in the Middle East but I don’t think they are the high-end techno-professionals which the Middle East is seeking to recruit now. Plus, no matter the money, it has over the past few years become a cultural issue. One woman in the room openly declared she would not cover her or her daughter’s face because it would conflict with HER religion and no amount of money would change that.
So, the traditional “wife giving up career and living in a compound for sake of husband’s role” option is rapidly disappearing off the table as far as we are concerned. I don’t know if this bit of info has seeped into the pointy heads of policy makers higher up but I can see it on the ground in the high-tech crowd when they really take down their hair behind closed doors and let loose.
Especially with so many countries opening the doors and competing for the same set of highly skilled professionals. Central Europe has become tempting as has Far East like Singapore which is offering very generous packages and letting us write our own tickets.
Let’s just say, if the Middle East wants to come to the technological revolution table, pretty brochures of gender segregated pool parties and stunning views of the desert aren’t going to cut it any more. Money is available elsewhere, no need for us to give up religious and/or personal freedoms for the sake of oil cash is the feeling. Sure we understand that we have to respect the laws of the country we go to. But we have a LOT of countries to choose from and we prefer those that offer some semblance of logic and modernity.
Of course, if KSA wants to stay solely reliant on oil and low end labor, well, then I guess they don’t have to change to accommodate the world either.
December:17:2007 - 14:17
I didn’t really say that we just have to accept bad laws in other countries. I said that there’s not a whole lot we can do to change them, particularly as outsiders.
The Saudi system is in dire need of reform. Some Saudis realize that. Other Saudis want ‘modernization without change’, an utter impossibility. Outsiders can make their opinions known and support would-be reformers, but that’s not just a matter of standing on the sidelines cheering. Too much ‘support’ becomes counterproductive when it only provides ammunition to those fighting change. Calling someone ‘running dog lackey of X’ still works to discredit people. In the KSA, it takes a form more like ‘You don’t respect/support Islam’, a not-very-veiled threat.
December:17:2007 - 15:36
Olivetheoil
I think that a lot of ladies who come from outside KSA who adore the life here. The reason they have left in the past was due to fear not lack of freedom. Trust me! I know people from both sides of the fence. Some of these ladies turn entrepreneur in their spare time. I do agree that a career woman may not want to relocate here but that would apply to relocating anywhere really. There are embassy jobs and a few companies that employ foreign women if they choose to work. Nowadays. there are even local companies employing foreign women as well as Saudi women. The problem is that these Saudi young ladies are very bright and bilingual and thus hard competition for wives of expatriates.
As far as low end labor, I would have to say I have seen many bright and hard working Saudis who will gladly step in and take the salary of what a foreign worker takes.
December:17:2007 - 15:50
It’s a pity that some Saudis don’t want to see other Saudis ‘taking work that is beneath their dignity’, like house cleaning. In fact, Saudis spend an inordinate amount of time worrying about other people’s business.
December:17:2007 - 15:57
I absolutely agree with you John
December:17:2007 - 16:03
Sparky:
Yes, I have known women who have worked in SA and what you say is true about embassy jobs and other options. But again, these women were willing to make sacrifices to live in a land with limited choices. What I am saying is that most women I work with wouldn’t buy that change.
I don’t think any relocation has to come at a career cost. I have relocated several times for personal reasons over the last few years but without sacrificing what I that worked very hard to build up. If anything, I managed move up the ladder in one case by negotiating a larger promotion that I was technically eligible for.
I hear you about the so called “beneath dignity” jobs. Personally, no job is beneath my dignity. As long as I am paid fairly and treated equitably, housecleaning is a perfectly viable option for me:)
December:17:2007 - 16:26
This says her companion was pardoned as well.
http://www.spa.gov.sa/English/details.php?id=510329
I hope so! It have a feeling that the “anti-woman” feeling would have spiked if the pardon was for her alone.
December:17:2007 - 16:43
I’m American and have been in Saudi since 1980 as a teacher and wife of a Saudi businessman. I can tell you that when the Americans moved out several years ago, they were quickly replaced by English, Chinese, Irish, Germans, South Africans and others. It’s not like the Saudis HAVE to have Americans in order for their country to go high tech…(although some would like to think that.)
Saudi Arabia has come a long way in the past 30 years…I’ve seen it go from a sleepy country of one channel and no malls or even fresh milk to a country with satelite t.v., cell phones, internet, huge malls and businesses. Change takes time….and they certainly understand their own people better than we do.
Our way is not the only way and certainly not always the best way.
December:17:2007 - 17:54
Mary Ann Shubaily:
I am not American by birth or citizenship, I only am here temporarily. I would strongly resist having the “American way” imposed on me:)
I am merely pointing out what effect the Qatif Girl judgment made in a lot of career decisions, that globalization of economy has opened up a lot more options in many countries that were unthinkable even a couple of decades ago. So, with many countries competing for talent, professionals like me are taking into account women’s rights and liberties in making our choice.
I am not asking for the right to wear a bikini in public. In my home town I would face accusations of public indecency (the first time I wore jeans my mother accused me of destroying the family reputation). All that I want is equitable treatment in the eyes of the law. If that is not available in one country, then we will opt to work in countries that do. Equality in treatment is not a fund raising catchword any more. I believe that it is rapidly becoming a recruiting asset.
December:17:2007 - 18:38
Isn’t it ironic, that a victim is being ‘pardoned’? Pardoned for…doing what?
December:17:2007 - 19:01
She was pardoned for her part in the crime/sin of Khulwa, committed before she was raped. Even though she admitted to this crime, the impression was that the penalty far exceeded moral norms, particularly in view of the fact that she was later raped. Most people–including Saudis–believed that the rape was more than enough punishment and ‘taught her her lesson’.
That khulwa is not a crime in most countries doesn’t alter the fact that it is a crime, and well known to be a crime, in the KSA.