King Abdullah open letter
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An open letter to Saudi King Abdullah from a devout Muslim Woman, Ghazal Omid, on the issue of womens rights in Saudi Arabia.
King Abdullah open letter
- 1. In the name of Allah the Beneficent the Merciful Commanding For Good & Preventing From Bad His Majesty Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Royal Court Riyadh 11111 Kingdom of Saudi Arabia c/o Ambassador Prince Adel A. Al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the US 601 New Hampshire Ave., NW Washington, DC 20037 Fax: 202-944-5983 info@saudiembassy.net An open letter to Saudi King Abdullah from a devout Muslim Woman, Ghazal Omid, on the issue of womens rights in Saudi Arabia. Your Majesty King Abdullah, I am writing to you as part of my Islamic duty to urge you to do the right thing by women in your country. I am sure you are up-to-date about the situation of women in your country in recent months. Particularly, those women who try to drive seem to so often end up in prison for a few hours or, in the case of Manal Al-Sharief, for a few days. In many interviews with Western media during the past few years you have expressed your desire to allow women to step into the 21st Century. Your country seems to lag a great deal behind when it comes to personal freedom, especially in basic rights and freedom for women. I am hoping when you read this letter you will be reminded that you are not just a King of Saudi but also King of the Holiest sites and country among Islamic countries. Freeing women In Saudi Arabia from barbaric rules erroneously portrayed as rules of Islam is not just a political issue but also an Islamic issue. In the past decade, Islam has become more politicized than any other issue. What happens in your country is not merely a local problem. It becomes an Islamic problem and, therefore, a global one. Your countrys rules step on rights Islam has granted to women. Politics of your country treats habitual and traditional rules of your Arabic culture as if they are part of Islam; from covering face and hands to not allowing women to drive, to name a few. In reality, you and I know these are traditions of your county and have nothing to do with Islam. At this point, you might suggest that I take a look at my own country, Iran, and mind my own business, as you sort of hinted to President Obama in the inserted New Yorker article linked below. King Abullah, I am not just a woman and freedom fighter who fought for a
- 2. woman from your country who was raped. Instead of being embraced in her country, the rules were in favor of her fourteen rapists. Before my NGO joined the intervention, she was about to be lashed 200 times and imprisoned for a additional three to six months. More than anything, although not covered I am a devout Muslim woman. I am aware of my personal sins but when it comes to Islam, I do the right thing by others and speak up when I know I must. The behavior your countrymen pursue against women is very similar to the behavior of Arab men of the Saudi Peninsula before Islam when a father or husband would come home from a journey and bury alive an unwanted baby girl or consider it his right to rape and kill a wife or any unprotected woman. This isnt Islam. Not allowing women to drive would have been considered a sin if Prophet Mohammad PBH were alive today! What happens today in Saudi would be equal to not allowing women to ride their horse or camel in 1400 years ago. The House of God in Mecca is located in the heart of your country. Medina, among the holiest places on earth is also located in your country. It is not just the politics of your country that I am worried about. For example, your friendship and concern for a deposed brutal dictator; stating in the New Yorker article that you are willing to donate the wealth of Muslim nations and your own people, many of whom suffer greatly, to give sanctuary and afford a comfortable life for a brutal man, listed by Forbes magazine as among the 100 wealthiest men in the world, is appalling. There are hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world in need but your Majesty has not made a single inquiry about them. I can show you e-mails exchanged with your Embassy staff and ministers in DC documenting how many times I made inquiry about Hajj meat and where and when it was distributed. I still dont have a proper answer. I have only been told it is given to the poor. I want to ensure a system is in place so the meat can go to Afghanistan. Regrettably, you may not be aware that your staff seems to be too busy with politics to attend to humanitarian matters. You also chose to send troops to Bahrain, a country that brutally suppresses its uprising, shooting innocents in broad day light, spreading an ignoble reputation for brutality and suffering far beyond its borders. Your Majesty, I am here to plead with you and remind you of your moral and Islamic responsibility and the ability of a great leader to eradicate the inequalities between men and women in your country. You can bring down the walls of ignorance if you so choose. You can become a revolutionary leader initiating real change in your country; starting by granting rights to those who have been discriminated against the most. Or, you can let the people bring the walls down and join history with an unenviable reputation. I have visited your country, and your Embassy in Washington, DC and I must say, although the interior and exterior of your Embassy showcases the wealth of your country, I have little good to say about respect for women in your country. I hope you take this observation with an open heart that if there is a revolution in your country it will come from those who suffer the most. I end this open letter with a proverb from Persian Poet SAADI. A man is not dead because he passes to the next life. He is dead when people dont mention his name with dignity and regards. Yours sincerely, Ghazal Omid