The Society for the Welfare of Saudi Families Abroad – Awasir – has warned Saudis against marrying foreigners. Awasir's board of directors met in Riyadh Saturday and signed approval for a “comprehensive plan” to be conducted this summer to raise awareness of the “negative effects of marrying non-Saudi women and the resultant social and family problems”. Led by Awasir chairman Tawfiq Al-Suwailam, the meeting also approved a program to visit some 30 Arab and non-Arab countries to inspect the conditions of Saudi families living there and find ways to help them and return them to the Kingdom through coordination with the relevant authorities. Al-Suwailam said that an awareness campaign targeting youth would address the “risks of marriage abroad in all its forms”. “The plan will be carried out throughout the summer when there is a large increase in the number of Saudis traveling abroad,” he said. “A range of studies are being prepared to assess at the extent of Saudis marrying foreign women.” Al-Suwailam added that greater interaction with the media was required to promote awareness of the problem. “There is particular concern over the rising rate of Saudi women left unmarried, and the rise in the age of marriage in Saudi girls,” he said. “Awasir is giving considerable attention to tackle the issue through its welfare programs for Saudi families abroad.” Earlier this month Awasir revealed that unlicensed marriages, many conducted “in secrecy”, have left homeless or in poverty over 1,500 abandoned widows and children in 19 countries across the world. “The countries where they are found stretch from the Philippines in the east to the United States in the west, and approximately 90 percent of them are in brotherly nations such as Yemen, Syria, Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco and Lebanon as well as the Philippines,” Al-Suwailam said. According to Al-Suwailam, many of the families were living homeless or in poverty, in many cases due to unregulated marriages, “such as misyar, misfaar and ‘urfi marriages”. “We have seen Saudis getting married and then failing to care for their families and live up to their responsibilities,” Al-Suwailam said. Saudi Gazette reported Saturday that proposed news law governing the marriage of Saudi nationals and set to be discussed by the Shoura Council in the presence of female advisors Monday, would set out various conditions by which Saudi men and women will be permitted to marry foreigners. Sources told the Gazette that Saudi women will be allowed to marry non-Saudis born in the Kingdom to a Saudi mother or parents both of non-Saudi nationality, on the condition that prospective husbands have legal residence, birth certificates from the department of Civil Status, and have lived in the Kingdom for at least 15 years. The 12-Article law will bar ministers, Shoura members, and employees of the ministries of Defense and Interior, Saudi Intelligence Service, National Guard and military manufacturers from contracting marriage with non-Saudis, and offenders will be penalized with fines of up to SR100,000, a bar on the non-Saudi spouse from entering the Kingdom, and the annulment of residency status and deportation if the spouse is already present in the country. – Okaz/SG The new laws are expected to replace rulings on marriage to non-Saudis dating back 38 years.
