Published in the New York Times newspaper, and written by Ben Hubbard ,
BEIRUT, Lebanon — At first, Saudi Arabia was an adventure for Bethany Vierra.
An American from Washington State, she taught at a women’s university, started a company, married a Saudi businessman and gave birth to a curly-haired daughter, Zaina.
But since the marriage went sour and she sought a divorce, she has been trapped. Because of the kingdom’s so-called guardianship laws, which give men great power over women, she is unable to use her bank account, leave the country, travel with her daughter or seek legal help, according to her cousin, Nicole Carroll.
“She is completely stuck,” Ms. Carroll, 37, said by phone from Dublin, Calif. “She is out of options.”
Ms. Vierra, 31, is now divorced, but her ex-husband let her residency expire, meaning she has lost access to her bank account and cannot get authorization to leave the country, Ms. Carroll said. Their 4-year-old daughter cannot travel without her father’s permission, meaning that even if Ms. Vierra finds a way to leave the kingdom, her child may have to stay behind.
Ms. Carroll decided to publicize her cousin’s case because she believed the family had nowhere else to turn and hoped that speaking out would encourage someone to help her, while also shedding light on what she called “an unfair system.”
Saudi Arabia’s restrictions on women drew renewed international scrutiny in January, when a Saudi teenager ran away from her vacationing family and barricaded herself in a hotel room in Thailand before being granted asylum in Canada.
Under the so-called guardianship system, Saudi women are given a legal status similar to that of minors. All must have a male “guardian” — usually a father or husband, but sometimes a son or uncle — whose permission they need to obtain passports, pursue certain medical procedures or travel. These rules extend to foreign women who marry Saudis, like Ms. Vierra, as well as their children.
Male guardians can grant or deny permission to travel through a government app, even registering to receive text messages when any woman over whom they have oversight passes through an airport.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s day-to-day ruler, has loosened some restrictions on women, lifting a ban on driving by women and allowing them into sports stadiums. Last month, he named a princess, Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan, as the new Saudi ambassador to Washington.
