PROPOSED CHANGE IN WOMEN'S PRAYER AREA IN MECCA

C O N F I D E N T I A L RIYADH 007193

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/12/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL KISL KWMN
SUBJECT: PROPOSED CHANGE IN WOMEN'S PRAYER AREA IN MECCA
SPARKS CONTROVERSY

Classified By: Acting Deputy Chief of Mission David Rundell
for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The General Presidency for the Two Holy
Mosques Affairs issued a proposal on August 25 for shifting
the prayer place of women within the circumambulation area --
the uncovered circle surrounding the Kaaba ("House of God"),
which is called the mataf-- in the Grand Mosque of Mecca.
Moving this prayer area to two larger spaces far away from
the Kaaba would prevent women from easily performing tawaf--
the prayers required as part of the five pillars of Islam.
Female scholars and worshippers alike broadly condemned the
proposal, which named increased television broadcasting as
one of the reasons for the shift. They dismissed the move as
unacceptable and biased against women. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) On August 25, the General Presidency for the Two Holy
Mosques Affairs issued a widely-published proposal to remove
the female section of the Grand Mosque from the mataf -- the
uncovered circle surrounding the Kaaba ("House of God") -- to
a different area entirely. Over the past few years, the
female section of the mataf has been the subject of much
debate, but no action had previously been taken. The
proposal, which ignored the need for women to be able to
perform tawaf -- the prayers required as part of the five
pillars of Islam -- was developed to address overcrowding,
the need for privacy for women during prayer, and the desire
for wider television coverage. (Note: It is considered
un-Islamic by many religious scholars in the Kingdom for
women to be photographed or videotaped. As such, the weekly
broadcast of the Friday Sermons from the Grand Mosque has
been limited in scope. Many viewers have commented that they
would like more "fantastic television coverage" of the Grand
Mosque during sermons. End Note.)


3. (C) BACKGROUND: Performing the pilgrimage to the Kaaba
has traditionally been done, even in pre-Islamic times, by
women and men together. There is no instruction either in
the Quran or in the Prophet Mohammed's teachings indicating
that segregation of men and women is necessary or warranted.
The Wahhabi sect of Islam tends to liberally impose
segregation of the sexes-- often times does so in seeming
opposition to the spirit and traditions of Islam. END
BACKGROUND.


4. (U) Overcrowding in the Grand Mosque has been a point of
contention for many years because the space allocated for
women in the mataf is considerably smaller than the space
allocated for men. Additionally, there are already several
areas that are "off-limits" to women in the Grand Mosque,
which forces all women to be confined to these new,
relatively small designated spaces. The proposal aimed to
increase prayer room for men by removing the women's area
entirely, as well as to expand television coverage for the
public.


5. (U) Many female religious scholars dispute the actual
purpose of the proposal. Writer and historian Hatun al-Fasi
publicly stated that the proposal contradicts the spirit and
message of Islam, which treats both men and women equally.
She said, "I strongly reject this proposal and request the
authorities not to implement it." This sentiment has been
reiterated in several mainstream op-ed pieces, with women
contributors commenting that Islam does not give preference
to men in following the five pillars of the faith, therefore,
the General Presidency should not either. Safiya Ali, an
expatriate religious activist, stated that she feared that
once the current female mataf area shifted, women would no
longer have the chance to pray close to the holy Kaaba.


6. (C) Saudi interlocutors reported to EmbOffs that they
fear expanded authority of the General Presidency over Mecca
and Medina should this proposal be accepted. One contact
stated, "if it is left to them (the General Presidency),they
would go as far as dividing the Grand Mosque into two and
totally segregate men from women." Several interlocutors
expressed concern that this proposal reflects the strict
Wahhabi orientation of the General Presidency, whose sheikhs
largely hail from Qassim, arguably the most conservative
province in the Kingdom.


7. (C) Although male religious scholars also publicly
commented on the proposal with mixed reviews, their focus
generally remained negatively tainted. International Fiqh
Academy expert Hassan Misfer called mosque authorities to
allocate special areas for women to perform tawaf. However,
he also said that he feared the Western media would use the
new proposal to support allegations that the Kingdom
discriminates against women.


8. (C) COMMENT: The nature of the proposal to remove women
from the mataf exemplifies the strict control that Wahhabi

sheikhs continue to have over religious institutions in the
Kingdom, as well as their focus on segregation of men and
women as an overarching priority. The discrimination posited
by this proposal imposes on women's right to perform tawaf,
as well as the family's ability to perform together the Hajj
and Umra, which is a long-standing Muslim tradition. Both
conservative and liberal women alike have expressed outrage
at this proposal, and it is likely that, if it is
implemented, Muslims worldwide will publicly vocalize their
dissatisfaction. Additionally, the fact that male scholars
support this proposal and fear the response of the Western
media goes to the heart of the issue at hand. If Saudi men
do not think it appropriate for there to exist equal
opportunity for males and females even for prayer -- the very
core of Saudi society -- then it will most certainly be
difficult to institutionalize reforms in other areas that
would impact Saudi women. END COMMENT.
OBERWETTER