Saudi Arabia: The Largest Maximum Security Prison For Women Wants To Host The Women's World Cup In 2035

Let's start with how absurd it is for this country to host the Women's World Cup. As a woman and a fan, I am personally appalled, and as a women's rights activist, I am concerned. I am concerned not just for the female players but for the fans who will travel to see the event in Saudi Arabia. 

My concern stems from first-hand experience with the laws that govern women on the ground. Male guardianship is a law that requires every woman to have a man who will have the final say on the most basic aspects of her life until her death, no matter her age. Reema bint Bandar Al Saud came on TV and announced that Male Guardianship is over, followed by an announcement that the age of maturity for women is 21, the same age as it is for men. She used the word can a lot. A woman can now obtain a passport without her father's permission. A woman can travel without permission, and a woman can open a bank account without permission. A woman can… but she conveniently forgot to mention that a woman can also have those same new reforms denied to her by her male guardian. Under the new personal status law, which, instead of doing away with male guardianship, codified it and just gave it a new name. 

Regardless of age, a woman can be reported as a runaway by her male guardian. A woman can be stopped at the airport at the request of her guardian and sent straight to a holding cell or worse, the well-known Dar al-Reaya (The House of Care), which is a women's prison that was publicized as a shelter for abused women when in fact, it is nothing of the sort. Once picked up when reported by your guardian, you go nowhere unless your guardian signs you out. Even if that same guardian is the person who raped, beat, and abused you. 

I point all of this out to help you, the fans, and the players understand that although you might think this law does not apply to you, you would be wrong. As a woman entering a country where women have no rights, you too will have no equal rights once on Saudi soil. Even visitors have, as they are called, "sponsors." These sponsors have similar powers to guardians over their female wards. They can block you from leaving the country, keep your passport, and have you arrested. Your word will mean nothing as a foreigner and especially as a woman. It is a country where the courts are happy to work on hearsay and lock women, and especially activists, up with little to no evidence needed. All you need to do is upset the wrong person, and you will find yourself being asked to sign a confession in a police station that was drafted hours before you arrived. 

I would not have believed all this myself if I had not been an American citizen born to two American parents. I was laughed at by passport control and told I was not allowed to leave the country until my Saudi stepfather, my sponsor, and my guardian said I could. Remember that it's always easy to enter a prison, but it is much harder to get back out. 

We, as the fans and the players, need to stand firm that Saudi Arabia should not be allowed to host an event that represents and serves as a platform for creating female role models and breaking long-standing gender stereotypes. We must stand as role models for the strong Saudi women who are being silenced, trampled on, and denied their every human right by the Saudi Regime. They need our voices to say NO MORE. If you want the Women's World Cup, show us that you respect women, especially those of your own country, as much as we do.

Elise Evans Martin
Women’s Rights Activist | Called The Katniss Everdeen of Saudi Arabia.,
Speaker | Author | Proud Dissident of Saudi Arabia