Saudi Arabia Implements Electronic Tracking System For Women 591
dsinc writes "Denied the right to travel without consent from their male guardians and banned from driving, women in Saudi Arabia are now monitored by an electronic system that tracks any cross-border movements. Since last week, Saudi women's male guardians began receiving text messages on their phones informing them when women under their custody leave the country, even if they are travelling together. 'The authorities are using technology to monitor women,' said columnist Badriya al-Bishr, who criticised the 'state of slavery under which women are held' in the ultra-conservative kingdom. Women are not allowed to leave the kingdom without permission from their male guardian, who must give his consent by signing what is known as the 'yellow sheet' at the airport or border."
Re:Apartheid (Score:2, Informative)
South Africa only has gold and diamonds, not oil. Also, South Africa doesn't have a state religion to hide behind. Any criticism of Saudi Arabia would be "anti-islamic" bigotry.
2 years old and not only women (Score:5, Informative)
The "service" has been in operation since 2010 and it applies to all "dependents" which includes children, contracted laborers, etc. See: http://riyadhbureau.com/blog/2012/11/saudi-women-tracking. As offensive as the Saudi gov't policies are, getting half the story isn't going to help matters.
Re:Apartheid (Score:2, Informative)
At that time the UK derailed all sanction attempts on South Africa for economical interests. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Apartheid_Movement [wikipedia.org]
and BTW, countries like Pakistan and the Taliban in Afghanistan are not any better...
Not True, Saudi Arabia didn't sign UN declaration (Score:5, Informative)
Muslim countries didn't sign UN declaration of Human Rights because they perceived it as not compatible with Islam. Although these countries got own version of Human Rights declaration:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cairo_Declaration_on_Human_Rights_in_Islam
Re:Apartheid (Score:3, Informative)
Yep, and the prophet Muhammad is the perfect man, whose acts are a model for all to follow, for all eternity.
So go ahead and marry a 6 years old girl, wait for her to be 9 or 10, and then you can have sex with her (his dear Aisha).
Ahh, but she is a girl! That's where the Catholic priests got it wrong! To rape a 10 year old boy is wrong, but if it's a girl it's ok! Allahu akbar!
Too bad hell is a fictitious place, these people really deserve it.
This is merely the digitisation of the system (Score:5, Informative)
It may surprise people but.... Saudi has ALWAYS had this system of tracking women.
As a child, when I left the country to visit my grandparents, accompanied by my mother, we had to be legally escorted to the airport and signed out by my dad, on re-entry we were re-checked into my dad's care.
We were westerners living under the same rules as the locals. This was as far back as early 80s... the system has been in play forever. This is merely a modernisation of the system. I'm not saying I agree with the practice but, this is hardly headline news as its simply an upgrade to rules and methods for applying those rules that have been in play for a long long time.
Why is it only now, when computers get involved that people are having issues with the basic concept? It was widely unknown it appears when the system was paperbased.
Expat Brat.
Re:Apartheid (Score:4, Informative)
Not so long years ago girls were getting married in the USA at age 12 or 13.
Didn't Edgar Allen Poe marry his 13-year-old cousin?
Re:This will be reality in all countries... (Score:5, Informative)
Just ask France. France has entire districts run by Muslims that even the police are afraid to enter. In their own country.
You're quite right, and is the list of them [ville.gouv.fr] as they stand right now.
They treat women like children (Score:4, Informative)
Women there are treated like children. But we can't get too high and mighty here. Women only got the right to vote in the US in 1920. [wikipedia.org]
On the other hand, as far as I can tell, never in non-Muslim cultures have women been forced to cover themselves from head to toe, with only their eyes visible. Or not allowed to leave the house without a male custodian. That's a unique curiosity only found in portions of the Muslim world.
Re:Allies... (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Newsflash! (Score:5, Informative)