Viral clip reveals Saudi escape risk

UNDER the kingdom’s Islamic law, women are barred from travelling, obtaining a passport or marrying without the consent of a male relative

Dubai, April 16: A young Saudi woman’s plea for help after she was stopped in an airport in the Philippines en route to Australia where she planned to seek asylum has triggered a firestorm on social media and drawn attention to the plight of female runaways.

For runaway Saudi women, fleeing can be a matter of life and death, and they are almost always doing so to escape male relatives.

Under Saudi Arabia’s conservative interpretation of Islamic law, a male guardianship system bars women from traveling abroad, obtaining a passport, marrying or even leaving prison without the consent of a male relative.

The mystery around what triggered Dina Ali Lasloom’s cry for help has only added to concerns for her safety. In an online video, the 24-yearold says her passport was taken from her at an airport in the Philippines on her way to Australia last week. “If my family come, they will kill me. Please help me,” she pleads.

Wearing a beige coat, the woman does not show her face in the video. “I am kept here as a criminal. I can’t do anything,” Lasloom says.

Women’s rights advocates in Saudi Arabia say Lasloom was ultimately forced to board a plane to the kingdom with two of her uncles, who flew from Riyadh to stop her. They said authorities then took her to a women’s shelter because of the attention around her case. She cannot leave, however, without a male guardian’s permission. Activists say only officials and relatives can contact her there.

Although there are no public statistics on how many Saudi women attempt to flee abroad, the issue has gained attention through a number of publicised cases. Women who have managed to flee abroad say they were barred from marrying or forced into marriages. Others have told rights groups that male relatives were abusive and confiscated their salaries.

For the past 15 years, four of the late King Abdullah’s daughters, Princesses Jawaher, Sahar, Hala and Maha — all in their 40s — have allegedly been held in a royal compound in Saudi Arabia. Their mother, who lives in London, has spoken out in the British press to try and bring attention to their plight. Two of the princesses managed to release videos pleading for help. — AP