Saudi Arabian Women Unveiled

Last time, I came across a documentary by Vice about Saudi women. More precisely, it is about Ziyah Gafic, a photographer who decided to “photograph them  [Saudi women] and interview them in their private spaces”. And the video tells the story of his project.

 As I do not know much about Saudi Arabia (and much less about the women), I was very curious to watch it. That also encouraged me to get to know more about the country itself.

One of the most significant facts about Saudi Arabia is that it was a Muslim kingdom from its origins. After conquering successively regions in central Arabia, Ibn Saud established the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932 with Sunni Islam as the official religion. He declared himself a king. Since its origins, the state has had six kings. They all originate from the House of Saud.

The influence of strict religious rules has been considerable until now, which is visible in the clothing, among others. As we know, Saudi women generally go outside dressed in abaya - long, black dress. One of the women explains: “For every occasion, we do have different kind of abaya. Fashion designers, they would have business only to sell abaya and women of course like it”. She says also that they have their favourite fashion designers and patterns.

However, in the video, we see women without cover, sitting in their houses and telling about themselves.

It is interesting to learn that they are successful writers or businesswomen. They express opinions about their work, their life and the society they live in. One of them said that “Saudi Arabia is an advanced country and it’s keeping with the rest of the world”. She regretted that many people think negatively about the country. “But if they visited Saudi Arabia, they would definitely change their perspective”. She also tried to convince that Saudi women are not oppressed, they are like the other women. “A lot of people think they are tempered. But the truth is they are very active but behind the scenes. (...) I consider achieving a lot.” – added the other one.

“All of the women we met, they all work and they all have college degrees”, said Ziyah Gafic. He is right: they speak English, they run their own businesses, they seem self-confident and optimistic. Even if they probably do not represent all Saudi women, it seems that the stereotypic image of Muslim woman is not entirely true. On the other hand, I would like to know more also about the rest of the Saudi women, without college degrees and who do not work. I am sure their stories would not be the same.

“If the issue that we are dealing with is that Muslim woman is underrepresented in the media, then I wanted to dedicate my attention to her.”, said Ziyah Gafic. I think he achieved his aim.