RECENTLY when I was on a flight to Dubai I felt lonely because I was sitting among a group of women who were wearing black abayas at the start of the journey. Few minutes after the flight took off from the Kingdom, things changed around me in a frightening way, raising surprises and questions. The black gowns disappeared and were replaced by glittering fashions and the plane was filled with smell of best perfumes. Some of these Saudi women were wearing transparent and tight dresses that even foreign women would be shy to wear. This not only raised my amazement but also my anger thinking about how these women represent Saudi Arabia outside their country. I closed my eyes and prayed that no other flights originating from Saudi Arabia would have the same sickening scenes and that people living in foreign countries, which host Saudi tourists, should not believe this is the hallmark of the conservative Saudi society. I took my laptop from the bag and wrote down my viewpoints on the situation and tried to find out reasons behind this amazing phenomenon. I wrote the following points: I believe that this is, first of all, the result of suppression suffered by Saudi women over the past several decades that have impacted their concepts of freedom, giving them the courage to react violently. Growing cracks in family relationship, especially among members of rich families, is another reason. Their men rarely meet with their women and girls or travel with them and they put the responsibility of taking care of their children on mothers, maids and family drivers. Excess use of social media networks is another major reason as most Saudi men and women meet with their relatives and friends in a virtual world and not in real. They would not care about what has happened to their family members or close relatives because they are in a different world altogether. Saudi women show excessive interest in themselves and their appearance, their progress and prosperity. They document their words, movements, dresses and cosmetics, what they eat and drink as well as their worries and happiness and send them to their friends and relatives whom they interact with only through pictures and video clips. We should realize that what our children learn from the social media is more dangerous than contagious diseases as the new media destroys their values and pollutes their minds. They watch flagrant sex and violence scenes without the presence of any guide or supervisor. Many homes are broken from inside due to the presence of more than one wife. Children get the feeling that they are mere hypothetical figures. They will be happy for just having food, housing, educational facilities, clothing, travel and enjoyment. They don't have an opportunity to see and follow the best model, which is no more that balanced, intelligent and decent person, who upholds high moral and humanitarian values. Most models in modern world are figures which look good only in their appearance. They live inside artificial and fake shells which can be sold and purchased and can be polished by the media. These models cheat us with their excellent appearance, which would have nothing to do with the reality. By writing this article, my intention is not to attack our society. I know that the majority of our people are not like them. But I wanted to send a message to our parents, especially those who show leniency in shouldering their responsibility. We should also understand that family relations are broken.
