UPR Sexual Rights Database

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 61) JS4, JS1, ECLJ and HRW noted that although recommendations 17, 18, 19 and 20 had been accepted during the 2009 UPR, little has been done to genuinely implement them ...

UN Compilation:
Para 51) ... In the light of the large number of reported domestic violence incidents, the Committee against Torture was concerned about allegations that the male guardianship system (mehrem) deterred and often prevented victims from reporting such cases.
Para 53) [CEDAW] was concerned about the persistence of the male guardianship system, despite measures taken to limit its scope.
Para 56) The Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty noted that challenges with regard to the human rights of women were heavier on women living in poverty, as many employers still insisted on obtaining the permission of male guardians before women could work.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 32) JS8 noted that workers are denied an array of fundamental rights. The few rights that do exist are not meaningfully protected. This is clear in the continued, widespread and severe discrimination, both through law and in practice, against women, …
Para 34) AI, Musawah and JS6 observed that women and girls face discrimination in law including in the Civil Status Code, Labour Code and Nationality Act, and in practice. They noted that Saudi Arabia made some progress in advancing women’s rights. Despite these ostensibly positive developments, but they failed to implement the eight accepted UPR recommendations pertaining to the system of male guardianship over women. Women face numerous restrictions on their daily actions throughout Saudi society. The government has recently taken steps towards easing guardianship restrictions, but reforms are limited, and provide no penalties for offences. The system is not only set in law, but is a set of regulations that act as de facto law.

National Report:
Para 95) Particular achievements have been to … make progress in enabling women to participate in the job market.
Para 98) Most of the reforms and developments in the period covered by the report have been concerned with the promotion and protection of women’s rights and the empowerment of women. This is reflected in the quantity and quality of the measures taken and the results achieved. Many measures have been taken to empower women and promote gender equality within the framework of Islamic sharia law. These include the codification of judicial rulings on personal status matters, to which reference has already been made; the issuance of Supreme Order 33322 (18 April 2017), allowing women to access government services and conclude their business without being required to obtain the approval of another person; the appointment of 30 women to the Consultative Council, representing 20 per cent of members; granting women the right to vote and stand as candidates in municipal elections; the appointment of six women to the board of the Human Rights Commission; the appointment of Saudi women to senior positions, such as deputy minister, university principal and chair of the board of directors of several companies, including the Saudi Stock Exchange (“Tadawul”). As such, women now occupy decision-making positions in the public and private sectors.
Para 104) A number of initiatives have been launched across the country to empower women economically. These include the “Qurrat” programme to support childcare services for working women; the “Wusul” programme to provide transport for working women; the “Self-employment support” program, which widens opportunities for women to increase their income using the skills they have; and the “Part-time working” and “Remote working” programmes to enable women to balance work and family life. There are also empowerment programmes in rural and remote areas designed to encourage women to enter the job market.
Para 105) There has been a marked increase in the proportion of women working in the law, as court attorneys, public prosecutors and lawyers, on an equal footing with their male colleagues. Instructions have been issued by the Public Prosecution Service requiring female lawyers to be treated the same as their male counterparts, enabling them to study their clients’ case papers and be present when clients are questioned, in accordance with article 70 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
Para 106) There has also been a marked rise in the proportion of women working in government service. Numerous programmes have been developed to expand female employment opportunities, in collaboration with the Human Resources Development Fund, General Organization for Social Insurance and the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation and in partnership with employers. A total of 2,033,668 women were in employment in the first quarter of 2018, compared with 2,008,233 in the first quarter of 2017. The number of Saudi women working in the private sector rose to 559,814 in the first quarter of 2018, representing approximately 32 per cent of Saudis employed in the private sector. The aim of Saudi Vision 2030 is to increase female participation in the job market from 22 per cent to 30 per cent by 2030, achieving a 3 per cent increase in non-oil GDP.
Para 107) Article 34 of the standard model employment regulations sets out the general rules on equal pay for work of equal value, which include a prohibition on any form of discrimination between male and female workers in respect of equal pay for work of equal value. It is worth noting that the Kingdom is a party to the International Labour Organization Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) and the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111).
Para 108) To the Kingdom’s achievements in women’s rights might be added the following: adoption of the Mother and Child Health Passport, designed to track the health of mother and child from pregnancy and birth until the age of five; application of the developed prenatal care model and distribution of literature thereon, amended in accordance with World Health Organization standards; and establishment of the National Observatory for Women, a centre of excellence attached to the King Abdullah Institute for Research and Consulting Studies at King Saud University. The Observatory tracks the participation of Saudi women in development programmes and their growing involvement in NGOs. Note that Saudi women make up 25 per cent of the founding members of the National Society for Human Rights and can be found on the board of banks, chambers of commerce and the Saudi Council of Engineers. Furthermore, there has been a rise in the number of charities founded and managed by women.
Para 109) Saudi businesswomen feature prominently on global lists and rankings. They organize workshops across the Kingdom to promote women’s rights and play a prominent role in the activities of the King Abdulaziz Centre for National Dialogue and the cultural dialogue sessions it organizes. They are also involved in implementing action programmes to improve the delivery of services for women, including family security mechanisms, productive family programmes, motherhood programmes, sport and leisure programmes and programmes to help families with limited income develop their own resources and transition from dependency to productivity.

UN Compilation:
Para 24) The Committee [against Torture] was concerned about the reported lack of independence and impartiality of the judiciary, since judges were appointed and discharged by the King. It also regretted the absence of women in the judiciary.
Para 41) [CEDAW] welcomed measures promoting women’s employment. It remained concerned about women’s low participation in the labour market; the lack of enforcement of the law abolishing the need for a guardian’s permission to work; persistent occupational segregation and sex segregation in the workplace; the concentration of women in low-paid jobs; and the persistent gender wage gap.
Para 55) Despite the entitlement of women to vote and to be elected to municipal councils, CEDAW was concerned about the very low participation of women at all levels of decision-making.