Role of Women in the Middle East Essay Example

Women in the Middle East are treated differently than women from other parts of the world; the following paper is going to discuss the role of women in the Middle East in comparison to those from other parts of the world.

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The Middle East has been termed as one of the areas that are considered to be unfair to women development. Comprising of a majority of countries being Islam dominated the Middle East is one of the places which has been deemed to be hostile to women (Hatem, 2018). There are no major roles that have been reported to be performed by women apart from the roles of being wives, bearing children, taking care of their husbands and conducting household chores. This norm has been inexistent for a long time; however, changes have been seen with more people mostly women being exposed to education, have improved some of the conditions experienced by women in the Middle East.

These conditions are suppressed by religion and cultural activities which when strictly followed by the members of these countries, they end up in favor of men and neglect women. The population of women in the Middle East is estimated to be more than half a billion; this is according to a recent census conducted (Afshar, 2016). These women lack support from their male counterparts and the government as well. Some of these rights include the right to education, the right to express oneself among others are not allowed in the middle east, especially if one is a female.

This condition of women from the Middle East makes them lose respect from their male counterparts for they are denied a voice to speak for themselves. Women are not granted the same opportunities as men, and they are not protected by the law, this makes them vulnerable to both violence and sexual abuse. Women are also not given leading opportunities in the mosque or government, they are not involved in any way to making decisions that will affect them, and this is an indication that they are discriminated by religion, law and even their male counterparts (Meriwether, 2018).

Boys are more valued than girls in the Middle East; this is as a result of seeing girls as a burden which benefits the family after marriage only. There is no investment done on a girl since it is believed if all of the efforts are put on a girl she will end up getting married and not help their aging family. This is one of the primary reasons as to why more than half of the girl's population in the Middle East has no access to proper education (Afshar, 2016). This in comparison to the boy child who upon completion of their studies can carry on the family's name and honor. Women are also viewed as sources of income since the dowry that will be paid for them will benefit the parents. This view of a girl lowers her status and results to boys having a higher rank than girls; this will make them have privileges which include better education, leadership positions among others that girls will not be allowed to have access to. In some countries, an example being Saudi Arabia, they have two different types of schools, one for boys and the other for girls; there are no recreational facilities for girls as well as vacations (Meriwether, 2018). Girls have to adhere to the strict Muslim code of dressing which includes wearing long dresses and long hand shirts and the hijab face cover. Other schools are used to educate girls on how to be good wives, apart from the syllabus based schools.

Islam is the main practiced religion in the Middle East with other beliefs having only a few followers most of whom are visitors. Based on the teachings of Islam, men have a status that is above women hence the reason as to why women will always come second; these are portrayed by the leadership positions in these countries which are mostly held by men and have very few women in leadership positions. Women that occupy leadership positions either studied abroad or they come from families that support female education, which is very few, based on the number of women that have received proper education in these countries. It is due to the teaching that men exercise superiority in these countries over women, this they base on the teachings of Koran, that place man over woman. It is a result of these teachings that in the Middle East the status of women is low (Hatem, 2018). In most of the Middle East countries, women are strictly expected to be obedient to their husbands and fathers. In that, the behavior portrayed by women depicts the honor that her family should be given. These types of practices make the western thinking seem to be a hindrance in the ways of Islam life. An Islam girl is supposed to be obedient to the father and the husband, unlike in the western world where women have equal freedom as that of men. It is in these countries where there is a special force of the police which focuses on the behavior of women in the public places and ensures that they do not go against the accordance of the Islam laws. Women are not allowed to drive in most of these countries as well as go out without the consent of the husbands; there is a thing not majorly practiced in the western culture. In some Middle East countries, women are not supposed to work and are denied some of the fundamental freedoms like freedom of movement and speech.

In these countries, FGM(female genital mutilation) is practiced despite the ongoing campaigns that go against it worldwide. Mostly, when a girl gets to the age of five years, she is circumcised, there is a traditional belief that has been in existence for many years and is still being practiced in many households. They that this is a way of preventing the girls from getting wild and they can preserve themselves until the day they get married (Ginat, 2017). This implies that for a Muslim girl to get married she has to be a virgin in order to maintain the honor of her family, moreover, if a girl has a flow before getting married, example losing virginity before marriage, the father or the brother has the right to kill her and the government will understand since they follow the teachings of the Koran to the letter. The honor of the family is solely dependent on the behavior of the female members of that family; hence if they fall they tarnish the name of the family. By the Koran teachings, God created sexual desires in ten parts of which nine are given to women and only one given to men. This makes women to be closely watched, and as a result, the effect is seen in early marriages in Islam families. The longer a daughter stays without getting married, the higher the chances of her falling into sexual temptations and disgrace her.

The most common type of marriage practiced in Islam families is the arranged marriage. This is where the family of the girl gets to choose a husband for their daughter and only happens if the parents see the benefit their daughter will bring once married in that family. Hence most of Islam marriages are forms of alliances where both families get to strengthen family ties through marriage. Women are treated like property in the Middle East, an example being that a father will let go of his daughter to the highest bidder, the bid is determined by the bride price and on whether the union will bring economic advantage to the family (Afshar, 2016). The sexual dominance given to men in the Islam religion makes men are in a position of doing the following to their wives: in the case a wife becomes rebellious; the husband has a right to punish their wives. This is portrayed by the common occurrence of domestic violence in the households of Islam families. The Islam religion also allows men to be polygamous; this gives men the permission of having more than one wife. It is evidenced in the Islam families where some families compose of up to four wives. The Koran allows the man to hit his wife if she becomes rebellious; it is easy to get divorced in these countries. This is where there are various terms and conditions that a man should keep before divorcing his wife; the man has to pay all the marriage price to the family of the woman, the woman is allowed to keep all the jewelry apart from the children. As as result she has to move back to her father's house or the house of a close male relative so she can be under the watchful eye of them.

Under the Islam view of the responsibilities of a woman, she is supposed to bear children and raise them, of which their main concern should be focused on the male child. Women are not supposed to go out to work since it is an indication that their husband is not capable of providing for the family. According to Islam believes and culture, only a man is supposed to provide for his family, and if a woman tries to assist him, it is considered shameful to the man. In the Middle East women are sex-segregated on the types of jobs they can carry, an example, in Saudi Arabia, women are only allowed to do the following types of jobs, teacher or nurse or be a full-time wife. When in public places women are supposed to wear a veil to cover their hair and face, these are mostly applicable, the main purpose is to hide the woman's beauty, which will prevent the man from seeking another wife and the younger women will avoid the eyes of sexual predators thus it acts as security in an indirect way (Ginat, 2017).

Without the veil, women are easily distracted by the way they look; they tend to concentrate more on their looks and how people think of them and not accomplish other tasks. Hence the veil is one of the ways that make the women concentrate on other matters (Meriwether, 2018).

In conclusion, the roles bestowed to women in the Middle East are limited compared to those of civilized countries. Women's roles in the Middle East revolve around the household chores and family. A woman is also entitled to carry on the honor of her family home which she has protected by maintaining her purity till marriage. Being a virgin proves that a woman is pure and she has not been tampered with by earthly desires something the Islam community and religion values a lot.

Conclusion

In the presence of current law, everybody is equal, these open up the door for women to be educated, lead in companies, run companies, and own land - a norm that was not experienced before. In that note, the government should step by first appointing women to part and puzzle of the government; these means that women should hold leadership positions, attend meetings together with fellow men and even participate in men related activities. Women should not be limited to doing household chores and playing the wifely duties but should be given a chance of exploring what they can do with their talents.

References

Meriwether, M. L. (2018). A social history of women and gender in the modern Middle East. Rutledge.

Afshar, H. (Ed.). (2016). Women in the Middle East: perceptions, realities, and struggles for liberation. Springer.

Hatem, M. F. (2018). Modernization, the state, and the family in Middle East women's studies. A social history of women and gender in the modern Middle East (pp. 63-87). Routledge.

Ginat, J. (2017). Women in Muslim rural society. Routledge.