According to UN human rights chief, it is time for region to overhaul local legal framework. Current laws discriminate against women, who are prevented from making choices about themselves and their country, and against immigrants who are at the mercy of employers.

Jeddah (AsiaNews/Agencies) –United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem (Navi) Pillay called on Gulf states to change rules that restrict women's and foreign workers’ rights. In her view, women should have greater control over their own lives and foreign workers should not be subject to the current sponsorship system, which leads to abuses by employers.

In a press conference held at King Abdullah University for Science and Technology in Jeddah, Ms Pillay tackled two of the most contentious issues in the region. However, her statement about women’s rights found little coverage in local media.

Speaking about women, who are tied down by a tradition that treats them as incapable of conducting any activity that is legally relevant, Pillay said, “Discriminatory barriers continue to hamper women's right to shape their own lives and choices, and fully participate in public life and be part of public debates that influence the direction of a nation”. For her, “These barriers must be removed.”

Some Muslim states have already improved women's rights via “dynamic interpretations of Islamic traditions.” In these countries, governments and Islamic legal experts have "demonstrated that far from being innovations, such legislation was compatible with Islamic jurisprudence and, indeed, stemmed from it.”  In view of this, the practice of requiring women to have a male guardian—father, brother or husband—should be "put to rest." Women should be able to go out as they please.

Speaking about the sponsorship, or kafala, system, she said changes were necessary. Under the system, work permits are conditional on contracts.

What is more, “Reports concerning this region consistently cite ongoing practices of unlawful confiscation of passports, withholding of wages and exploitation by unscrupulous recruitment agencies and employers,” she said.

 “Some [foreign workers] are held in prolonged detention after they escape abusive employers and may be unable to obtain access to judicial recourse and effective remedies for their plight,” she added.

The rich Gulf States have attracted tens of millions of mostly blue-collar migrants from Asian countries, many of whom work in construction or as domestic workers.

Under the sponsorship systems, local employers and companies can hire large numbers of migrants who are dependent on them for food and shelter. Violence against employees is not rare.

Local governments have been debating the issue for some time. In some countries, plans are underway to overhaul existing labour laws to grant workers some rights.

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