Behind the Veil

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published by CNN, while this group of Muslim extremists is closely related to al Qaeda, they hold entirely different goals. TTP’s main target is the Pakistani state and it’s military; they resent the relationship Pakistan has with the West, and they want to see Sharia law imposed.

The Pakistani Taliban has a dark history of attacking women in brutal raids of violence; a notable example of this is when Pakistani teenager and Nobel Prize winner, Malala Yousafzai, was shot by a member of the Taliban after she fought for her right to receive an education (BBC). Yousafzai has since made immense strides to encourage equality in the world, but sadly the violence still persists in parts of Pakistan, with women being murdered in “honor killings,” murders that are often carried out by family members. Moreover, many rapes go unreported because of the shame that it would bring to the family, and with female literacy rates at 36 percent, women often do not have the confidence in their education or resources to be able to report such crimes. According to Zara Jamal of The Atlantic, “Quietly, slowly, in piecemeal legal reforms, female empowerment is coming,” but the important question to ask is if these miniscule legal reforms are doing enough for the women who are living through this oppression today. Most likely, this goal of female empowerment will be a slow process because, while human rights laws are being passed, it is an entirely different challenge to enforce them.

Differing from Iran, Jordan, and Pakistan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy with a king, currently King Salman, who controls essentially all aspects of government in the country, although he does have to comply with Sharia law and the Quran. Though Salman only ascended the throne this past January, his predecessor, Abdullah, aptly displayed the large control that Saudi Arabia has over women in the country. In an article from The Washington Post, Max Fisher outlines the driving ban for women in Saudi Arabia along with other forms of legal discrimination. Each woman in the country has a “male guardian,” or a man, typically a father or husband, who holds legal power over her. She has to ask permission for everything that she does and is entirely dependent on him financially. Women are undoubtedly treated as second-class citizens in this society, but this treatment often goes further, with many accounts of sexual harassment and rape (Mufta), and similar to the tragedies in Pakistan, these instances often go unreported because of the fear of repercussions.

Although times seem bleak in Saudi Arabia, women are beginning to take the first steps on the long road to gender equality by utilizing social media. In an interview from Marketplace, Saudi Arabian princess Reema Bint Bandar Al-saud explains how the influence of social media corresponds to a growth in desire for equality in the country. She states, “everybody is talking to everybody and everyone is listening to everybody right now . . . you can actually action change very fast these days.” The acquisition of up to date, first-hand information by modern Saudi women could lead to more women standing up against the king, and it ultimately might make all of the difference in a society that seems to be lost in another time.

Four countries, four completely different stories. The danger of generalization plagues Westerners today with many people defining an entire region by one fact or story instead of considering the entire history, culture, and growth of the country. Yes, horrific events have occurred in the past, and oppression in the region is by no means non-existent today. However, most Middle Eastern countries have made notable reforms to try to curb the oppression of women, and with social media acting as a means for awareness, activists and reformers are now able to reach wider audiences than ever before. Oppression in these four countries should be thought of as a mosaic rather than a simple color. Each story, tragic or hopeful, acts as a tile, and together, they form a larger picture of the spectrum of injustices.