Riyadh
| In an unprecedented ruling, a panel of Saudi scientists has concluded
that women are actually mammals, granting them the same rights as other
mammal species such as camels, dromedaries and even goats.
The
verdict, which fell just hours before the International Women’s Day, is
considered “historic” by some experts and advocacy groups for women’s
rights.
“This
is a great leap forward for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia,” concludes
Jane Austin, spokeswoman for the Women’s Liberation Action Network. “It
may seem too little, too late, but it is truly a milestone event for all women in the region,”
she says, visibly excited. “From now on, women will be considered as
members of the mammal class, whereas before women shared the legal
status of an object, similar to that of a home appliance,” she admits.
Jillian Birch, spokeswoman at Amnesty
International, said she is optimistic about the future as women will no
longer be considered as “soulless objects” but as fully fledged mammals
“Soulless objects”
The
recent verdict could completely upset all laws currently enforced in
Saudi Arabia believes Jillian Birch, spokeswoman at Amnesty
International.
“This
verdict shows the incredible progress the women’s rights movement has
made in the past 50 years,” she admitted in a press conference this
morning. “Finally, women will no longer be simply considered as objects
without souls, but as full-fledged mammals, with the same rights as
other animals of their species such as camels and goats,” she said,
visibly emotional. “Women are still far from being considered 100%
human, but their condition will improve drastically with this decision,”
she firmly believes.
An unprecedented verdict
The
verdict, which fell like a ton of bricks on the Saudi state, has
clearly not found unanimous support amongst religious authorities and
the political elite, concede experts.
“It
could create significant turmoil in the current legal state of affairs
and the judiciary system of Saudi Arabia,” says political analyst
specialized in the Middle East, Anthony Bochstein. “If before women had
the same rights as a chair or a table and were seen more as individual
property, they now have an equivalent status to certain animal species,
and thus must receive, at the very least, feeding, watering and be
conferred a minimum of attention and respect, which was not the case
previously,” he explains.
According
to the expert panel that ruled on the matter, women are still devoid of
a soul but have been shown to possess qualities common to the mammal
species, which would explain their ability to procreate and breastfeed,
as well as why they are equipped with seven cervical vertebrae, a
characteristic unique to the mammal species.
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