Women in Qatar
 Female Qatari basketball players | |
| Global Gender Gap Index[1] | |
|---|---|
| Value | 0.6299 (2013) |
| Rank | 115th out of 136 |
| Women in society |
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Popular culture |
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Women in Qatar are women living in or are from Qatar. In Qatar, they live in a traditionally conservative Islamic culture.
Clothing norms
Women and men are expected to dress in a manner that is modest and not provocative, but the dress code is generally driven by social customs and is more relaxed in comparison to other nations in the region. Qatari women generally wear customary dresses that include “long black robes” and black head cover "Hijab".[2] But the more traditional Sunni Muslim clothing for women are the black colored body covering known as the abayah together with the black scarf used for covering their heads known as the shayla.[3]
Social life
For social gatherings, women are generally never brought to social events except for western-style gatherings or when the attendees are composed of close relatives. Schools for girls are separate from schools for boys. In terms of employment opportunities, women are generally employed in government positions, although there are no women in high-level government positions.[3]
Women's rights
Women in Qatar vote and may run for public office. Qatar enfranchised women at the same time as men in connection with the 1999 elections for a Central Municipal Council.[4][5] These elections—the first ever in Qatar—were deliberately held on 8 March 1999, International Women’s Day.[4]
Qatar sent women athletes to the 2012 Summer Olympics that began on 27 July in London.[6]
Gender equality
Qatari women have made significant legal and social advancements since the 1990s. Sheikha Mozah has been a vocal advocate for women's issues, supporting women's conferences, higher education opportunities and the creation of a cabinet level position in the government dedicated to women's concerns.
As a result of these advancements, Qatari women have many career opportunities, including leadership positions, in education, banking, charitable projects, health and human services, tourism, law, civil service and even diplomacy. According to the embassy of Qatar[7] women play various roles in the field of Education, Health, Legal, Journalism, Aviation, Banking, Politics, Finance, and Tourism.
36%–42% of Qatari women are in the workforce and experts say women are moving forward with more rights.[8][9]
In 1999, Qatar came to allow women to legally vote and gain senior positions in government, either by being appointed or elected.[10][11]
See also
References
- ↑ "The Global Gender Gap Report 2013". World Economic Forum. pp. 12–13.
- ↑ King, Courtney. For Qatari Women, Change Slow in Coming
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Culture of Qatar
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lambert, Jennifer (2011). Political Reform in Qatar: Participation, Legitimacy and Security 19 (1). Middle East Policy Council.
- ↑ Miles, Hugh (2005). Al-Jazeera.
- ↑ "Saudi Arabia to let women compete in Olympics for first time". CNN. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
- ↑ QATARI WOMEN
- ↑ Toumi, Habib. Qatari women moving forward with more rights, expert says, December 22, 2011
- ↑ freedomhouse.org
- ↑ "In Bahrain, Women Run, Women Vote, Women Lose" New York Times
- ↑ Elbagir, Nima (2007-02-08). "The Tole of Saudi Women". Channel 4. Retrieved 2008-03-25. Link to the full Channel 4 video report.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Women of Qatar. |
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