Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Misyar Marriage As Human Trafficking In Saudi Arabia, Stephanie Doe

Global Tides

The severity and scope of human trafficking for sexual and labor exploitation has been grossly understudied until this past decade. Reliable information on how and why trafficking in persons occurs is scarce, especially for the Middle East. Saudi Arabia’s notorious policies of discrimination against women serve as the starting point. In Saudi Arabia, the monarchy has co-opted the traditional roles of women as an emblem of its own Islamic character, thereby making it a symbol of its national heritage. An entrenched institution of patriarchy uses gender construction as an instrument of state policy and state security. This intimate relationship between …