From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord@igc.apc.org>
Newsgroups: soc.rights.human
Date: 25 Sep 92 12:01 PDT
Subject: ACT:Because I Am a Woman
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1476700524:000:5240
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!hrcoord    Sep 25 12:01:00 1992


From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord>
Subject: ACT:Because I Am a Woman

/* Written  9:42 pm  Sep 24, 1992 by web:act in cdp:gen.newsletter */
"BECAUSE I AM A WOMAN"

By Marie-Louise Cote
Special to the ACTivist

Nada is a Saudi Arabian woman who is presently living in extreme 
fear.

Nada is in hiding because there is a warrant of arrest against her. Her 
life is at risk if she is forcibly returned to Saudi Arabia, unless the 
Minister of Immigration allows her to remain in Canada for 
compassionate or humanitarian considerations.

She will be persecuted by the Saudi government because she is a 
feminist and refuses the constant repression and discrimination inflicted 
on Saudi women. Like other women who have publicly campaigned for 
their rights in Saudi Arabia, she fears being imprisoned and tortured 
for an indefinite period of time. She also faces a strong possibility of 
being stoned, flogged and beaten.

Almost every day of Nada's life has been punctuated with public and 
private ridicule and abuse against her, because she is a woman who 
dares to demands her rights.

When Nada walked unescorted in the streets of her town, men would 
jeer, spit and throw rocks at her.

When Nada challenged the wearing of the veil, she was persecuted 
and beaten by the Mutawwi (enforcers of religious and social 
precepts).

Peripherally involved with the underground women's movement, she 
risked arrest and imprisonment.

Nada's freedom of movement was severely restricted: she needed 
the permission of a mahram (a senior male of her family) to leave 
her home and she had to be accompanied by a mahram when permitted 
to leave her home or leave her country. Like all other women, Nada 
was forbidden to drive a car.

Nada was threatened with an "inspection of her virginity" for violating 
the dress code (head, face and body must be covered) or being seen in 
public with a man who was not her father, brother or husband.

Segregation of the sexes being an integral part of her society, Nada's
 educational and employment opportunities were greatly limited. 
Although physical education and sports were her preferred fields of 
study, they were totally unacceptable by Saudi standards.

Nada fled from her country because she could no longer tolerate 
these numerous restrictions on her fundamental rights and the 
constant humiliation she felt as a second-class citizen. She was willing 
to leave everything behind in order to enjoy her basic, fundamental 
human rights.

Nada fled from Saudi Arabia and claimed refugee status in Canada 
on the basis of her political opinion as a feminist. Despite all the 
evidence adduced, the two Refugee Board members who heard her 
case decided that she was not a refugee.

The Board members gave two reasons for rejecting her claim. First, 
they stated that Nada had not established that the State was involved 
in the persecution she feared. This conclusion is unacceptable, since 
the Board did acknowledge the existence of the Committee for the
 Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, responsible for enforcing 
the fundamentalist-Islamic moral code, a body which has the legal 
right to detain suspects for up to 48 hours before even turning them 
over to the regular authorities. This Committee has the legal authority 
to enforce the social restrictions on women; the religious police officers 
carry sticks to hit women who fail to respect the Islamic dress code. 
Nada did present evidence of a specific incident where this Committee
 attempted to capture her.

Second, the Board members wrote, "the claimant, like all her 
compatriots, would do well to comply with the laws of general 
application she criticises ... or to show consideration for the feelings of 
her father ..."

Not only is this reasoning drenched with paternalism, it recognizes 
the legitimacy of an entire set of laws persecutory and discriminatory
 against women. In this instance, the Board members do not consider 
serious violations of human rights to be persecution when they affect 
women.

Following this decision, her application for leave to appeal to the 
federal court was denied, without any reason given.

The Minister of Immigration, Mr. Bernard Valcourt, has now refused 
to allow her to stay in Canada, as he feels there are no 'humanitarian or
 compassionate grounds' that apply to her case.

It would seem that the Minister has forgotten that our country has 
agreed to respect gender equality rights. A signatory of the Convention 
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimation Against Women, this 
country has an obligation to offer Nada the protection she needs.

Nada's case has enraged many women and men across Canada. 
Numerous letters of support have been sent to the Minister's office 
and several articles have been published in the press. This reaction has 
not yet swayed Valcourt to change his decision.

Nada desperately needs strong support. If you wish to help, we 
encourage you to write to the Minster and express your deep concern 
for Nada's future. His address is: Bernard Valcourt, Minister of 
Employment and Immigration, 140 Promenade du portage, Phase IV, 
14th Floor, Hull, Quebec, K1A 0J9, fax 613-994-0448.

Marie-Louise Cote is Nada's lawyer.