Saudi Gazette report

JEDDAH – Adult women who live in the hospitality homes under the Ministry of Labor and Social Development are free to leave if they are capable of taking care of themselves, a senior official in the ministry has said.

Abdullah Al-Tawi, director general of the ministry’s office in Makkah province, said inmates who are educated and are confident they can live and work independently are allowed to leave the homes when they cross the age of 30 years.

The ministry established the care homes called Dar Al-Dhiyafa five years ago to accommodate convicted women who have been rejected by their families upon their release from prison after serving their sentences.

“We help these women to keep in touch with their relatives in order to convince them to take them back into the family,” Al-Tawi told Al-Watan Arabic daily.

Dar Al-Dhiyafa is different from Dar Al-Himaya, which accommodates women who had been subjected to family violence and torture. The ministry will conduct a thorough health check on such women before admitting them to Dar Al-Himaya or the protection home.

The ministry also establishes contacts with the women’s relatives to narrow their differences and explore the possibility of them being received back into the family allowing them to lead a normal life.

The two care homes accommodate 30 women with their children and provide them with psychological, social and medical support and help bring them closer to their relatives and families.

Dar Al-Dhiyafa accommodates women who have served jail terms but have been rejected by families and relatives. They are given accommodation and food and are informed about their rights and duties on the basis of the Dar’s rules and regulations.

The care home will help the women get suitable jobs after providing them with necessary training. It will also try to improve their conduct and lifestyle in order to encourage their families to accept them without reservations.

“We provide rehabilitation services in order for the women at the care homes to be accepted into society so that they can lead a normal life. We also provide them with educational, healthcare, sports and recreational services. We arrange such programs considering the age of the women,” he explained.

“These programs will be carried out under the supervision of the Dar’s technical wing,” Al-Tawi said, adding that the programs would help women change their behavior.

Referring to the case of the two young women who ran away from Dar Al-Dhiyafa in Jeddah, he said the women were housed in the care home when their relatives refused to accept them following their release from prison.

“We have informed security agencies about the disappearance of the two women to find out the reason why they left the facility without informing its administration. Police arrested and questioned the two women after they had left the home,” Al-Tawi said.