Saudi Gazette report
JEDDAH — The Ministry of Justice has adopted new policies to facilitate legal procedures for women plaintiffs, Makkah newspaper reported on Saturday.
National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) Secretary-General Khalid Al-Fakhry said the ministry's support has enabled many women to file lawsuits and get justice mostly in personal status issues.
“Women can now file lawsuits in courts in their location of residence irrespective of whether the defendant resides in the same location or not. The legal system obliges plaintiffs to file lawsuits at courts in locations where the defendants lived. However, the ministry has exempted women from the requirement, relieving them of the burden of travel and transport to claim justice,” said Al-Fakhry.
He said the procedure for a woman to file a lawsuit takes only minutes now when it takes hours and days for men.
“The rate of personal status cases being filed at the NSHR has dropped by 9 percent in the past two years. In each court, the ministry has allocated a judge to handle women's issues. This policy prevents lawsuits from being dispersed and forwarded to several directorates forcing women to chase after the case,” said Al-Fakhry.
He said the courts allow women to enter first and make sure lawsuits by women are fully processed without any delay.
“Women can book appointments and cancel them from home via the ministry’s website. Women are given priority in cases of alimony and custody. The more cooperative the ministry is the less the NSHR has to lobby for women's rights in courts,” said Al-Fakhry.
He said the legal status of women in the Kingdom is improving and is already better than many countries of the world.
