Have you ever thought that women can be arrested for wearing western clothes? Well, if not! You will now agree with it after reading this story of women in Saudi Arabia who got in serious trouble for wearing… a mini skirt.
In a strange incident, a woman in Saudi Arabia has been arrested after a short Snapchat video showed her wearing a skirt and crop top in the desert heat. Her outfit would be unremarkable in the U.S., but it violated Saudi Arabia’s strict, conservative dress code for women. The footage went viral online over the weekend.
Watch The Video Here:
On Tuesday, Saudi Arabian state TV announced via Twitter that the woman had been taken into custody by police and that the case had been referred to the general prosecutor.
For the ones who don’t know, there are strict dressing rules for women in Saudi Arabia; they need to wear an “Abaya” i.e. a black garment, that covers all parts of the body, except hands, face and feet. Moreover, it is a rule that women should keep their heads covered. Due to such stringent rules, the woman was surrounded by a controversy.
The video was uploaded this weekend on Snapchat and the woman in it was identified as Khulood. As soon as the video went viral, people started debating on social media and very soon, this led to official investigation. Even hashtags “Wanted for trial model Khulood” started trending on Twitter.
لو كانت اجنبية كان تغزلوا بجمال خصرها وفتنتة عيناها .. بس لانها سعودية يطلبوا محاكمتها ! #مطلوب_محاكمة_مودل_خلود
https://t.co/ttYqynySN2— فاطمة العيسى (@ALessiFatima) July 16, 2017
After this, she was arrested on the charges of wearing “Indecent clothing”. She agreed that it was her in the video, but stated that it was posted by someone else. Also, the woman added that there was a male guardian with her on the trip, which means she hadn’t broken Saudi laws (According to which woman can’t travel alone).
As of now, the public prosecutor will decide whether it’s a crime or not. If found guilty, the woman will have to pay a fine and will also be sentenced to imprisonment.
This controversy over the video is an alarm to Mohammed Bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s young crown prince, who wants to take the country on the path of modernization. Yes, he plans to redesign economy and ease the Sharia laws, but with these kinds of debates, will it be possible?