In Defense of Dr. Nawal Saadawi

Dr. Nawal Saadawi is a controversial figure.

Long time before Oprah spoke about her sexual abuse- Dr Saadawi broke all kinds of taboos when she wrote about being sexually abused by a relative- I think it was her grandfather if I recall right.

In the 1980s, during one of Lebanon’s civil war episodes of insanity, we had to seek refuge in Sidon. Our neighbor was a fan of Dr. Saadawi. She spoke highly of her and her writings. She lent me her copy of the book, Woman and Sex. I was fascinated by Dr. Saadawi’s writing on this taboo subject.

Today her writings, given what most people around the globe see on TV and on the web, seem very tame.

Alquds Al Arabi of London writes that someone sued Dr. Saadawi for insulting God and asking to have her denaturalized and denied the right to travel. It’s amazing that a lawyer would do that to this doctor.

http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today\13z34.htm&storytitle=ffمحكمة%20ترفض%20اسقاط%20%20الجنسية%20المصرية%20عن%20نوال%20السعداويfff&storytitleb=&storytitlec=

She is outspoken, controversial and in your face. But to be dragged in court, by a private party, to face loss of citizenship and the right to travel for offending God is outrageous.

And what kind of law is that in this day and age?

The time and energy that attorney spent suing Dr Saadawi could have better been spent providing free legal aid to Egypt’s poor, for example.

Kudos to the Egyptian courts for throwing this case where it belongs- in the garbage.

Of all the problems facing Egypt- the least of anyone’s worries is Dr. Nawal Saadawi.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Is Mahr Enforceable in a Court of Law?

Response to Amer Zahr’s Sexual Harassment Column

In Defense of the Dream During the Night of the Long Zionist Nightmare: