6 hours ago
Domestic violence
The name of the Saudi girl, Rahaf Al-Yami, topped the social networking sites in the Kingdom, following circulating news that the sports coach had been assaulted by her family.
The pioneers of social networking sites circulated a set of photos and audio recordings, in which Rahaf confirmed that she was subjected to physical violence.
Activists launched the hashtag #Save_Rahaf_Al-Yami, which topped the list of the most discussed topics in Saudi Arabia, calling on the competent authorities to intervene to protect it.
Rahaf Al-Qahtani tweeted: “Every day a new victim is enough to arrest her father. The device that is supposed to be a protection is the source of harm by inaction and the distraction of criminals. Why does a woman have to defame herself, write on Twitter and raise public opinion so that her case is taken seriously.”
Many criticized the performance of the Saudi official authorities in dealing with domestic violence cases, “which leads some girls to defame themselves on social media in order to obtain the required protection,” they said.
On the other hand, the case of Rahaf Al-Yami was met with angry reactions, as tweeters considered that this campaign “aims to destabilize the Saudi family by feminist hands bearing the slogan of women’s rights.”
The Saudi journalist, Yahya Balharith, tweeted: “Publishing such clips enables the enemies of the homeland to exploit it under the so-called human rights. A man’s upbringing of his daughter or sister is from our customs and traditions, and before her from the true religion, some tweeters need to be educated so that they do not (run following the trend) for the interests of Character”.
For his part, Abu Sultan accused unknown persons of “inciting girls to submit false malicious reports and tell false stories in order to bring down the family’s prestige and demolish homes,” he said.
On the other hand, others have criticized those who justify domestic violence in the name of religion.
Hamad replied: “When writers and thought leaders in our society justify domestic violence in the name of education, honoring parents and in the name of religion, even though domestic violence is a crime in law, we are still far behind in awareness. Undoubtedly, the person who justifies domestic violence and makes it acceptable is that tarnishes the image of the country.
General Security
With the widespread spread of Rahaf’s case in Saudi Arabia, the Najran police announced that “it had received a report that a girl had been abused by a member of her family, and handed her over to the competent authority while following up on the implementation of legal procedures.”
