Saudi Gazette The need for Saudi women, staying at home, and receiving a stipulated monthly income has again knocked the doors of the government. The pressing issue has been met with mixed reactions from authorities and professionals. It was recently brought up at a forum, held in Riyadh, on Saudi woman: her rights and responsibilities. It may seem as a lucrative offer for many women, but it was readily rejected by other working women for they claimed that such an initiative would discourage women from seeking education and work. Professor Dr. Marzouq Al-Aseer of Najran University supports this initiative and explained that in Islam the primary role of a woman is to stay at home and take care of her family. However, she can work too, under certain conditions and permission from her guardians. “The housewives deserve a regular monthly allowance because she is also considered as a working woman as she works at home diligently. Her active and positive presence in the home protects the family and the society's security,” was another opinion voiced at the forum in support of women receiving monthly allowances. Dr. Thuraya Al-Arid, a Saudi writer disagrees with her opposition. She strongly condemned and explicitly made a valid point by saying, “This initiative will discourage women from entering the workforce. It may be a useful idea but under strict regulations and control. If a working woman chooses to stay at home to nurse her newborn baby and nurture the child, she should request a leave of absence without pay and the government compensate for the same. The allowance should be only for a given period of time. For example: 2 years, after which she will return to her job. However, indiscriminately distributing monthly salaries to all women will only drive women to sit at home and have more children. And with the current spread of housemaids in many homes in the Saudi society, we must ask ourselves. Are women who stay at home with housemaids to help them around eligible for receiving monthly allowance from the government?” She thinks that this proposal should be cautiously approached and thoroughly studied before it is implemented. It may have negative outcomes not only on women's entry into universities and workplaces, but also on males of our society. “It may lead men and young fathers to adopt a more lax attitude toward their work and holding a job. Some men may take advantage of the women's salary and use it to spend on household expenses, which will diminish his sense of financial responsibility,”Al-Arid explained. While a monthly salary for housewives may diminish women's ambition, it can also serve as a significant assistance to women who toil in their homes day and night looking after their families. Dr. Amira Kashgari, a journalist and a professor of linguistics at King Abdul Aziz University, thinks that it is an excellent idea for those women who do not have a housemaid. “I see no fault in granting Saudi mothers this assistance because I believe that raising children properly, keeping the family together, and providing a stable environment in the home is one of the most important and productive jobs a woman can perform,”she told Asharq Al-Awsat. It seems like the debate between housewives, advocates and critics over receiving a monthly allowance will continue for a while. Though supporters of this initiative have already launched a campaign on social networking sites to elicit general public's approval. A monthly allowance of SR2,000 is being looked forward to as a reward and appreciation for housewives. The campaign also believes that this financial aid will reduce the divorce rate and family problems that often arise due to monetary issues. __
