Riyadh: Turnout for voter registration in municipal polls was low in Riyadh on the third day. Despite a ban imposed on women's participation in these elections, a group of women were standing at the gates of registration centres.
Photographs of these women were published in some local newspapers. This has generated a strong public opinion supporting women participation in municipal elections.
A group of women activists have sent a memo to the authorities concerned describing the ban on their participation as ‘arbitrary'.
About 60 Saudi women academicians and researchers launched a Facebook campaign under the name ‘Baladi' or my country. The group said that there are no laws that limit participation to men.
Fawziya Al Hani, chairperson of the group, told reporters that the showing up of women at registration centres in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam during the past three days to press for their right to take part in the elections is not a violation of the law. The law reads, "Woman has the right to cast her vote and stand as a candidate," she added.
For her part Elfat Qabbani, vice-chairperson of the industrial committee at Jeddah Chamber of Commerce, underestimated any role to be played by the men-only municipal councils. She said depriving women of the right comes as a shock for many Saudi women who were concerned with public and community service.
"I couldn't understand the fears expressed by some people regarding the participation of women in these elections. Previously women in Bahrain and Kuwait took part in similar elections and the experiments have succeeded and women have played effective roles in municipal councils in these countries," she pointed out.
Saudi women have successfully taken part in two successive elections at the chambers of commerce in Jeddah and the Eastern province, she added.
Qabbani rejected the proposed idea that women shall approach the Human Rights Society for complain or establish a virtual municipal council on the internet. "Woman is part of the fabric of this society and represents more than half the population and when seeking to get her right she gets this through negotiations so we will approach officials for more discussion," she clarified.
Hutoon Al Fassi said banning women from elections runs contrary to international conventions which stipulate that there should be no discrimination against women.
Aisha Neto, member of the board of Jeddah Chamber of Commerce, said Saudi women make up some 50 per cent of the population. "This gives them the right to take part in the elections as candidates or at least as voters," she added.
She said that after six years since the previous municipal elections were sufficient to make all arrangements that pave the way for women's participation.
Meanwhile, social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have witnessed remarkable activities focusing on calls for boycotting the elections.
