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Saudi woman walks at the Saudi Tadawul, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on March 9 2020. Picture: REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri
Saudi woman walks at the Saudi Tadawul, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on March 9 2020. Picture: REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri

President Cyril Ramaphosa postponed his second visit to Saudi Arabia recently due to the recent catastrophic flooding in KwaZulu-Natal. 

Saudi Arabia, known for its poor human rights record and being a fundamentalist, brutal and misogynistic regime, was appointed to the UN Human Rights Council and praised by the likes of Venezuela, Pakistan, China, Mauritania and Eritrea. 

Yet Saudi Arabia executes people by decapitation by sword. Saudi women were prohibited from driving cars until 2018, and only in 2021 were given the “right” to their own passports and travel without the “permission” of male guardians.

Prohibitions remain on what women can and cannot do. A strict dress code is enforced. Interaction with men other than husbands or close relatives can lead to criminal charges. Sharia governs marriage and divorce. Women need permission from male guardians to marry.

Ramaphosa raises the issue of human rights and scourge of gender-based violence in almost every speech, yet he has no problem visiting Saudi Arabia. Has he no shame? Stupid question, given the support he and his ANC government have given to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, completely out of step with the rest of the democratic world.

Allan Wolman 
Tel Aviv

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