The Constitution of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) upholds the principle of equal treatment of all citizens, but does not specifically address gender-based discrimination. All legislation in the UAE is based on Islamic Sharia law. Several laws and national policies continue to restrict women to their traditional roles as wives and mothers rather than supporting their equality with men across all aspects of society.
A woman’s situation, and her ability to exercise her rights, depends to a large degree on her legal status in the UAE. Only 20 per cent of the total population are officially UAE citizens and, thus, fully protected or supported by the laws. Large portions of the female population comprise foreign professional women residing temporarily on employment contracts, foreign women employed in the informal sector, or the wives of temporary foreign workers.
Although progress can be noted, current family law in the UAE discriminates against women in several areas. Despite a steep decline in recent years, early marriage continues to be a problem The Population Reference Bureau reports that between 1975 and 1995 the percentage of girls married between 15 and 19 years of age dropped from 57 per cent to 8 per cent. In contrast, a 2004 United Nations report estimated that 19 per cent of girls in this age group were married, divorced or widowed. Muslim men can freely choose their spouse, but Muslim women are prohibited from marrying non-Muslim men.
Polygamy is legal following provisions in Sharia law, which allow Muslim men to take as many as four wives provided they are able to financially support all wives. Polygamists tend to be men aged 60 or older whereas their second, third or fourth wives are considerably younger (usually in their twenties) and often of foreign nationality. Few first wives are happy with this situation, as shown in a study published by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and quoted by the Khaleej Times: bigamy or polygamy are cited as the main cause in 31.9 per cent of divorces.
Women in the UAE also face discrimination in regard to parental authority. Sharia law views fathers as the natural guardians of children, while mothers are merely the physical – not legal – custodians. In the event of divorce, mothers are normally granted physical custody of daughters until they reach puberty and of sons until they reach 13 years. Women who choose to remarry do so at the cost of forfeiting their custody rights. Women cannot confer UAE citizenship to children borne to foreign fathers.
Islamic law provides for detailed and complex calculations of inheritance shares. Women may inherit from their fathers, mothers, husbands or children and, under certain conditions, from other family members. However, their share is generally smaller than that to which men are entitled. A daughter, for example, inherits half as much as a son. This is commonly justified by the argument that women have no financial responsibility towards their husbands and children.
Women in the UAE have a rather low level of protection in terms of physical integrity. Violence against women is quite common and laws that prohibit violence and verbal abuse do not apply in the home, making domestic violence a serious problem. In addition, the law does not recognise the concept of spousal rape. The existing Penal Code gives male guardians the right to discipline women and children at their discretion, including the use of physical violence. As noted by the US Department of State, a 2005 UAE university study found that 66 per cent of all women permanently residing in the country have experienced domestic abuse.
Violence against women committed by non-family members and outside the home is punishable with fines, prison sentences or even death in the case of rape. Non-citizen perpetrators run the risk of deportation. However, women rarely report their abusers because of shame and fear of social stigma.
Female genital mutilation is not illegal in the UAE, but the Ministry of Health prohibits the practice in state hospitals and clinics. Nevertheless, FGM continues to be carried out in private clinics and in rural areas. An estimated 30 per cent of the total female population are believed to have undergone some form of FGM; it is practised mainly among Somali, Omani and Sudanese expatriates living in UAE.
The sex ratio at birth is tilted in favour of males, suggesting that the UAE is a country of concern in relation to missing women.
Women in the UAE are considered adults at the age of 18, at which point they are legally able to have independent access to land and access to property other than land. The law also provides that when women marry, previously owned assets – as well as any income resulting from those assets – remain separate property of the spouses. The assets of unmarried women, however, are not protected from claims of their fathers or brothers.
Women have the legal right to access to bank loans and credit. Some banks have opened “women-only” branches at which both clients and staff are female. Women can also engage in commercial activities, although they might be discouraged from doing so if the activities involve interaction with non-related males.
Women in the UAE have a low level of civil liberty. Despite the fact that the law provides for the freedom of movement of all persons, fathers and husbands have the legal authority to prevent their daughters and wives from participating in professional and social life. Men can also restrict their wives, minor children and adult unmarried daughters from leaving the country, either by withholding their passports or by contacting the immigration authorities. Despite a 2003 law that forbids the practice, many employers withhold the passports of their foreign workers as a condition of employment. This leaves female domestic workers in a particularly vulnerable position. Some government administrations will not employ married women without the written consent of their husbands.
The degree of freedom of dress in the UAE varies between rural and urban regions, and between national and foreign women. In international cities such as Dubai, women can wear relatively modern dress. Although there are no legal requirements for women to cover themselves, most Emirati women cover their hair with a veil or scarf; some also wear a black cloak over their ordinary clothes. Stricter Islamic communities require that women wear the face veil and the burkha.
Al-Muttawa, S. (2005), Women’s Rights in the Middle East and North Africa: Citizenship and Justice – United Arab Emirates Country Report, Freedom House Inc., Washington DC.
Expatriate Information (n.d.), UAE Life – National Dress, http://dwc.hct.ac.ae/expatinfo/uaelife.htm.
Khaleej Times (2005), Polygamy a Major Cause of Divorce: Study, www.khaleejtimes.com, Dubai .
Osman, M., H. Rashad and F. Roudi-Fahimi (2005), Marriage in the Arab World, PRB (Population Refe¬rence Bureau), Washington DC.
Uhlman, K. (2004), Overview of Shari’a and Prevalent Customs in Islamic Societies: Divorce and Child Custody, Expert Law, www.expertlaw.com.
UN (United Nations) (2004), World Fertility Report 2003, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York, NY.
US Department of State (2007), Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: United Arab Emirates, US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Washington, DC. T
