A newsreader has caused a stir in Saudi Arabia by shunning traditional Islamic dress to deliver a bulletin 'bare-headed'.
The
presenter was broadcasting from the London studio of Al Ekhbariya, a
state-owned news channel which featured the Kingdom's first female
newsreader when it launched a decade ago.
Women
often appear on Saudi TV without wearing headscarves or veils, but the
appearance was thought by many to be the first by a newsreader on a
government-owned station.
Significant: Saudi news sites
suggested it was the first time a presenter has read a bulletin without
wearing a veil or headscarf on a state-owned news channel. The
newsreader was broadcasting in Arabic from London
The bulletin last week prompted a string of reactions on Twitter and news stories on Saudi websites.
A
Twitter hashtag in Arabic circulated which translated roughly as
#NewsEncouragesAdornments with one
user, @HoNABIL, branding the channel
'Zionist enemies of religion'.
Another, @maysaaX, remarked that it was a 'psychological jolt' for the conservative country.
Several
other users commented on how unusual the sight was, and some welcomed it
as a step forward for personal freedom and women's rights.
Clips
and stills circulating online showed the newsreader in two outfits,
suggesting she had opted not to wear a headscarf or veil for at least
two bulletins.
But
the channel has disappointed those who hoped it was becoming more
liberal, releasing a promise that the incident will not happen again.
Spokesman
Saleh Al Mughailif issued the statement after the clip was shared on
several Arabic language news sites and viewed tens of thousands of
times.
According to Gulf News,
he said: 'She was not in a studio inside Saudi Arabia and we do not
tolerate any transgression of our values and the country’s systems'.
He also played down the significance of the incident, emphasising the newsreader was simply 'a correspondent reading the news from a studio in Britain'.
It
is common for Saudi TV to feature women who are not wearing
headscarves, but it usually only happens on foreign-made shows or when
women feature as guests.
Several
Saudi commentators said it was believed to be the first time a female
newsreader in the country had not worn a head covering.
Those who hoped the incident was a
step forward for women's rights in the conservative country would have
been left disappointed, as the channel released a statement saying the
incident would not happen again
Al
Ekhbariya launched in January 2004 and its first bulletin made
headlines by featuring the Islamic state's first female newsreader, who
wore Western clothes with a hijab headscarf.
The newsreader stopped short of wearing the niqab, the full face veil seen as a requirement in other parts of the country.
The
clip is the latest chapter in the long battle for women's rights in
Saudi Arabia, which in October saw a landmark demonstration over its law
preventing any woman from driving a car.
Dozens of women got behind the wheel in full-face veils to protest in Riyadh, where the TV station is based.
Apart
from expats who live in the Kingdom, almost all Saudis follow Islam
with the vast majority describing themselves as Sunnis.
No comments:
Post a Comment