A growing number of women in Saudi Arabia are joining the workforce and chipping away at discriminations enshrined in its laws. But they face conservative opposition and — even now — a ban on driving.
Juliane von Mittelstaedt and Samiha Shafy write: Every time Hanin Alamri sells a pair of shoes, it amounts to a revolution. Stilettos, platform heels, gold peep-toes — all lined up on white shelves on the second floor of the Red Sea Mall, one of the biggest shopping centers in Jeddah. 27-year-old Alamri wears trainers with her floor-length black and white abaya. Her hair, hidden underneath a headscarf, is dyed red. She recently got divorced. “Every day I say thanks, thanks, thanks that I am free,” says Hanin Alamri. If it weren’t for her job, she’d still be married.
Her marriage was arranged, and she only met her husband-to-be after they got engaged. He promised her he would be tolerant and open-minded, but once they were married, he forced her to wear a niqab, which left only her eyes uncovered. He was unemployed and unhappy. “He didn’t want me to be happy either,” she says. She was stuck at home, with no money of her own and nothing to do. She had a daughter, but became depressed. Her husband controlled her every move and forbade her from working. Alamri begged him to change his mind. After two years, he gave in.
Her first job was selling cosmetics. Then she began working in a shoe store. Four years ago, female shop assistants were few and far between. Most people working in stores were men from overseas — from the Philippines, Bangladesh and Malaysia. Foreigners account for one third of the population in Saudi Arabia, working primarily as drivers, waiters, housekeepers or salespeople for clothes and cosmetics — and even lingerie. In a country that insists on segregation of the sexes, women had to buy lingerie from men.
“Once I had to give a shop assistant my bra size,” says Alamri. “He told me I had it wrong. I was deeply embarrassed.” Trying anything on was out of the question. There are no changing rooms in stores in Saudi Arabia. So Alamri did what all women there have to do – she picked up a random bra, paid and left. And got used to badly-fitting underwear. Women at Work in Saudi Arabia
