ever police station departments staffed by women in Riyadh and Jeddah have been handling hundreds of civil status, financial and real estate cases over the past year, said Colonel Naser Al-Qahtani, Riyadh Police spokesman. Al-Qahtani was quoted Saturday in the Arabic media as saying that the departments were set up to help Saudi women pursue their cases in the Shariah courts. The Riyadh policewomen station is affiliated to the Riyadh Police Headquarters. He said that in less than one year the policewomen have pursued more than 880 family cases, 11 financial cases and 81 real estate cases. A total of 595 cases have not been resolved because of the absence of the male defendants. He said the policewomen section is mainly involved in enforcing civil status cases such as marriages, divorce, khulu, alimony, and child custody. Najud Al-Adawai, who heads the women's department in Jeddah, said it was set up to help women pursue their legal cases and to protect their privacy. She said most women tend to ignore their rights defined under Islamic law, thereby allowing themselves to be exploited. She said the department also helps to educate women about their rights.
