Maha Al-Shehri
Al-Watan
Recently, a video of a Saudi man cheating on his wife with the couple’s housemaid became a sensation on social media websites. The clip was, apparently, captured by the man’s wife who then circulated it on the web. A debate then ensued as whether the wife should have done so. A majority of people criticized her while some defended and supported her on the grounds that if she were the one showing infidelity then her husband would have killed her.
I believe most people who commented on the video and participated in the debate did not look at the issue objectively. The dominant culture in our society tends to be biased against women to save men from being blamed and criticized. Even if men commit mistakes, they are still supported in society. The focus of comments then shifted to revenge. In other words, the majority blamed the wife as they assumed she did so to take revenge. This proves that our society does not hold men accountable for their actions when women are involved and that men are always assumed to be right.
I wish the wife had kept the video to herself and used it against her husband. I wish she had used it for personal interests, for example to discuss her relationship with her husband and where the relationship was heading. She could have used it as evidence for the benefit of the authorities.
The woman did what she did because of anger and she knew that the best way to name and shame her husband in public was by letting others see what he had done. She never thought that this would get her in trouble. Although I sympathize with her, there are certain legal and human rights points of view that should be taken into consideration. Naming and shaming others in public is a punishable crime. Two wrongs do not make a right. There was no need to post the video on the Internet.
