Where do Yemeni girls go for entertainment? [Archives:2007/1116/Reportage]
Wojoud Mujalli
A brief survey conducted by Wojoud Mujalli reveals that many women in Sana'a complain that there aren't enough entertainment venues for them to spend their free time.
“My entertainment is walking from the kitchen to the other room in my house. That's it,” complains teenager Sarah Mohamed, describing how she spends her free time.
She continues, “I once expressed to my parents my desire to go out with my friends and have fun. The first thing my dad said was, 'Here in Yemen, where would you go and what would you do? There are no places especially for women's entertainment and even if there were, I wouldn't trust them.'”
These issues were raised with several young women and parents, as well as young men, to discover how girls entertain themselves and whether or not Yemeni society accepts the idea of women's entertainment.
“Many parents don't trust or believe in our society, which causes them not to trust their own daughters because of how men and boys act on the streets. When a young lady or woman walks on the street – simply going from one place to another or even taking local transport – all eyes stare at her like she's some kind of criminal. What makes it even worse is that bad words also start spewing from their mouths,” Sana'a University student Ahmed Abdullah observes.
“What if girls think about having fun? I think they'll find a lot of trouble if they don't know where to go and the right places to do so, that is, if there actually were any,” he adds.
Fellow university student Hanan Saria'a remarks, “There are no places for girls to go out and have fun. I believe they have the right to enjoy their time, but the problem is that there are no appropriate places for them. Because of new trends within our society, girls instead chew qat, smoke shisha and waste their time rather than benefiting or improving themselves.”
Another Sana'a University student Laila Al-Maflahi says, “Shopping is the best way I entertain myself. When I'm bored during my free time, the first thing I do is go to the malls and buy different things and my parents are ok with that. I once considered playing games or sports, but I remembered that there are no such places in [Yemen] and even if there were, they wouldn't be qualified or trustworthy enough.”
Student Maha Said goes to the Bilqis Club, the only public club in Sana'a especially for women's sport. “I spend my afternoons there and I go to some other private clubs as well. My father trusts this place because it's closed to men; it's only for ladies and there are women trainers has only women trainers ,” she adds.
Director Lutfia Hamza, who also heads the Arwa Girls School in Sana'a, explains that the club, which opened in 2005, accommodates Yemeni women's entertainment needs, as well as helps them spend time in sports so as not to be accused of being ignorant in that field as well.
“I believe the best way for girls to spend their free time is by playing games and different types of sports such as chess, football, volleyball, etc. – not chewing qat and smoking,” Hamza asserts.
She adds, “Registration is easy; all it requires is a photo and an approximate $3 fee for the entire year.” Club members can play chess and billiards while volleyball and basketball also are offered.
The Bilqis Club is open from 8 a.m. to noon and again from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., thus accommodating most Yemeni women's free time. Susan Al-Masabi, a supervisor at the club, maintains that it's better for young women to spend their time at the club instead of going to chew qat.
Samah Al-Bawsi agrees, recalling, “I used to chew qat in the afternoons because I had nothing else to do, but then a friend told me about this club, saying that I'd be able to spend that time chatting with some other girls and playing games and sports, so I tried it. I'm actually having fun here and enjoying my time. I wish there were many places like this in Sana'a to spend free time!”
Siham Al-Garsi laments, “My father says that I'm allowed to go out and have fun, so long as there are places especially for ladies and that they are trustworthy. However, the problem is that such places still don't exist here, so I'm wondering when there will be. I also wonder about if there were any, how long it would take them to gain the public's trust.”
In this regard, internet cafes are becoming important places for women of all ages to spend time chatting via the internet or with a group of friends. However, while some internet cafes have special women's sections, the majority don't.
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[archive-e:1116-v:15-y:2007-d:2007-12-31-p:report]
