Indignant Saudi women on Tuesday turned the tables on Karen Hughes, the US under secretary for public diplomacy, rejecting her analogy of them as the “broken wing” of a bird that the US will help fly.
The lesson in Arab pride came in the setting of a women’s university auditorium in Saudi Arabia’s coastal city of Jeddah, the second stop of Mrs Hughes’ listening tour of the Middle East that kicks off her campaign to mend America’s own broken image among Muslims.
Mrs Hughes, better known as the long-time communications guru for President George W. Bush, began the “open dialogue” before several hundred women at Dar al-Hekma university by introducing herself as a “working mom”.
Saudi ban on women driving is a taboo waiting to be broken
She went on to talk about the importance the US attaches to freedom and welcomed a new Saudi labour law that is supposed to open up more job opportunities for women.
Mrs Hughes said she looked forward to the day that Saudi women would play an active role in civil society and quoted Laura Bush, the first lady, as saying a bird can’t fly if one wing is broken. America hoped Saudi women will “spread your wings”, she said.
Students and teachers lined up at the microphones to express in perfect English their indignance at the stereo-typing of Saudi women as living in a closed society, unable to work or drive or vote. They also slammed the US media for spreading such an image, notably one Oprah Winfrey show that they said presented a Saudi woman beaten by her husband together with the message that theirs was a country to be avoided.
“We are happy, not just content, but happy,” one student objected.
Mrs Hughes quickly replied that she thought Arab women were strong and intelligent, but stuck to her guns, saying that Americans “take their freedom very seriously”, and that means speech, religion, voting and driving – for work and shopping.
The discord between the American official, setting foot in the Middle East for the first time, and her Saudi audience reflects the immense complexities facing the Bush administration as it tries to focus on the ideological dimension of its “war on terror”.
The theme of terrorism did not appear to go down well either. Selected intellectuals in Cairo and Jeddah – of whom virtually none could be described as radical Muslims or from the left – showed little enthusiasm for discussing the subject.
Yet in small ways, the weight Mrs Hughes carries -- thanks to the close relationship with Mr Bush -- has pushed some doors open already.
One US diplomat described as a “historic breakthrough” permission given to western male reporters to sit in the same auditorium as the young female students, instead of watching the proceedings on a screen in a separate room. The decision was taken by a princess in the royal family who attended the conference.
Afterwards, the young women – many from wealthy families who spend their summers in the west – were eager to give interviews, explaining why driving was not such a big deal for them, and that the right to vote would come eventually.
“We don’t want the US to force us to bring change,” said one teacher. “They did not allow the blacks to vote before, and now they are forcing the world to accept their views.”
Students described Mrs Hughes as “very kind” and “friendly”, but begged to differ on her views. “I go out with my driver. I go to the beach. I don’t feel caged in,” said one student. “People think we go on camels and live in tents.”
When pressed, they admitted that they would like the right to drive and vote but insisted that reform would come at Saudi Arabia’s pace and choosing. Some complimented King Abdullah for his gradual reform efforts, saying he wanted women to drive but that many conservatives in Saudi society did not.
Speaking on her plane heading towards Turkey, her last stop, Mrs Hughes reflected on her Saudi experience and admitted to being surprised on several accounts.
She said she was a little surprised that Mr Bush “doesn’t get more credit” for his declaration of support for the establishment of a Palestinian state.
She was also surprised at the reaction of the Saudi women students.
But it did confirm her preconception, she said, that a “big challenge” in diplomacy lay ahead.
