Introduction
Quatar is one of the oil rich countries in the Arabian region deriving most of its wealth from its rich oil and natural gas resources. Quatar is a Muslim country with a population of approximately half a million with only about quarter of these being citizens.
Women in Quatar are approximately half the local population and their role and participation in the society has continuously changed with time. This essay discusses women in Qatar in regard to politics, education, marriage, role in the society, and how this has continuously changed with time and how the society and leadership treats the Qatar women.
Women in Qatar
Quatar women have been given the right by the laws to own property businesses and participate in any form of economic activity. They have the right to use their wealth and income at free will however the society discourages women to participate in non family businesses where trading is especially with strange men.
Recently it has been reported that there has been a positive change whereby women organizations such as women’s investment company of Quatar alongside businesswomen club of Qatar have encouraged women to participate in business at a higher platform.
Women and Education
The government gives the right to education to all Quatar citizens including women. Since the education system is free, Qatar women have the free access to education. However it is reported that there are different colleges for men and women probably due to the influence of the Muslim culture.
The government has introduced a policy allowing other international organizations to install modernized education system where women will even benefit more. Since time immemorial women in Quatar were not allowed to specialize in higher levels of learning such as engineering and computer science, however they have recently taken the challenge and reports indicate that they achieve the same level of competence and success with their male counterparts even after enrolling in the theoretical fields.
With their qualifications they are able to participate in the work industry. However, statistics have indicated that women only contribute approximately slightly above ten percent of Quatar working population and a quarter of the national labour force. With more women seeking higher education it is projected that in the future Quatar women will compete at a much fair level (Qatar, 2000, p.1).
Quatar women are usually given equal work opportunities. They are entitled to maternity leaves and also given special time packages to allow them to take up their roles as mothers and take care of their children. High quality child care is not fully developed though it is reported that the government will have such programs in place which will release women of basic child care roles and hence enable them to participate more in the society.
Women and Politics
Quatar political and leadership arena has always been dominated by men until recently whereby the constitution allowed complete rights to women to vie for leadership positions. However it is said that this has been limited to specific positions with minimal tasks. The society however do not seem to support those who stand to be elected. The first woman was elected to office in 2003 (Crystal, n.d.).
Women and Family Life
Women in Qatar actively participate in family roles such as taking care of their children, daily house routines among other family roles. In the public scene the society seems to alienate women by primarily separating functions and events based on gender. Women are also expected to have unique mode of dressing.
The women hardly have any decisive role in the family setting. Though the women have been given some freedom over their health matters and even have access to health care, these rights are sometimes violated due to the restriction imposed on their movement. Their reproductive rights are hardly openly discussed in the public dominion and matters that relate to sexual harassment are arguably not addressed (Qatar News Agency, 2010, p. 1).
Women and the Law
Quatar constitution is said to provide equal rights to all Qatar citizens including protection of women against gender bias. However, it has been noted that the government does not provide legal paths where women can use to express their concerns about gender bias. This may be attributed to the fact that Quatar is a Muslim country and as such Islamic laws that are discriminative against women are often practiced.
This is perhaps clearly illustrated where the legal proceedings consider witness of two women to be equivalent to the witness of one man. In addition to this some reports also indicate that no female judges in Quatar existed until the year 2000 when the first woman was allowed to practice law and since then the number have increased with time. This is an indicator that this gender bias will cease with time (Crystal, n.d. p. 1).
Historically the Qatar government could be termed as discriminatory to the Quatar women as compared to other similar countries. It is reported that Qatar was one of the last Arabian Gulf countries to fully and willingly embrace international laws and treaties that protected women against any kind of discrimination. Though the government allows for freedom of association in its constitution it does not allow for organizations that advocate for the rights of women in the country.
Not allowing women rights groups in the country has been viewed to be contrasting the fact that the government has formed a women’s rights group that is separate from other state organs. This organization is said to be headed by the first lady El Shaikha Moza and it primarily focuses on issues concerning women and also children. Through her leadership much reforms for women equality have been done, women have since been actively involved in fields that had been previously dominated by men such as sports.
She is also reported to be actively campaigning for women education and empowerment. Through the organization, women can now marry at the age of eighteen instead of the previous tender age of sixteen. Divorce matters were also improved and women could now process divorce and still retain their children. A women organization by the name Quatar Crescent society was also formed with its specialty in gender and welfare related activities (Explore Qatar, 2011, p. 1).
Qatar law provides equal opportunities for both men and women to access to job opportunities and industry related matters. There are reports, however, which suggest that though such laws seem to be protecting Quatar woman they are also biased against women since the same laws prevent women from doing jobs that may seem dangerous, hazardous or harmful in any way.
Jobs which are perceived to be dangerous are reserved for men hence creating the inequality. In case of sex related offences against women in offices, women have not been given formal complaint channels to report the offenders.
With the global advancement in information and technology Qatar has not been left behind. Quatar women in particular have gradually gained privileges of accessing the internet hence broadening their information and knowledge. The government has been reported to have established an ICT center that comprises a special unit for women hence empowering them intellectually. However it’s argued that since other policies limit their freedom of association then the information gained may not be of much use to them (Crystal, n.d.).
Women in Quatar had for a long time been subjected to criticism. The government seems to have noticed this and it is said that it was not until the year 1995 that the information policies were reviewed to minimize women criticism. However, there still remains element of censorship by the media on women. The media is said to be under the influence of the government hence only expresses the stand of the government on various issues and hardly focus on issues relating to women.
However, this seems to be taking a positive direction with time and this was evidenced recently when the media started to employ women in broadcasting and printing media. Quatar women are now even practicing journalism. Local universities are reported to have established facilities for training women in media technology. This will go a long way towards empowering Qatar woman (Crystal, n.d.)
Conclusion
Qatar women have come a long way in terms of their role in the society politically, socially, economically and in all other aspects of life. Qatar women have gradually being released from the history of gender discrimination, censorship, oppression, and alienation from the society in terms of opportunities in education, leadership, decision making among others.
They have gradually gained a lot of freedom, personal rights, and equal opportunities and have become an important part of the Qatar society. Future projections have suggested that she may arguably be one of the most empowered women in the world.
References
Crystal, J., Qatar women. Web.
Explore Qatar, 2011. Role of Women. Web.
Qatar News Agency, 2010. Qatari women. Web.
Qatar, 2000. Qatari Women and Education. Web.