Saudi girl sues father for not letting her complete overseas education

The Criminal Court is reviewing a case filed by a young woman who claimed her father would not let her complete her scholarship program because she refused to give him her stipends, Makkah daily reported.

She told the judge that her father did not let her travel back to the country where she is studying.

Her father repeatedly asked her for money but she never gave him any, the court heard.

When he realized that his daughter had no intention to share her scholarship money with him, he waited for her until she returned home and then banned her from traveling.

She accused her father of being a drug addict and having a prior criminal record.

A source in the court told Makkah daily that such cases are frequently filed and are always complicated in nature.

In this case, the father refused to provide the court with sound justifications why he did not want his daughter to travel back and continue pursuing her studies, the source said.

The judge is reviewing the case based on the acts and behavior of the father and trying to verify whether his justifications are valid.

He said the reasons why the daughter was not allowed to continue her studies are still unclear to the court.

Lawyer Rashid Al-Amro said the law, based on Shariah, does not give parents the right to cause damage to their children.

Al-Amro said: “Any girl, who has attained adulthood or not, may bring a lawsuit against her parents if they mistreat her intentionally.”

“The government grants the right of education to all citizens, male and female.” The verdict in such cases depends on the discretion and evaluation of the judge, who will have to assess the damage caused by not allowing the daughter to travel back and continue her studies.

If the daughter’s guardian continues to skip court hearings on purpose, the judge will rescind his guardianship and appoint another one, or the judge himself become the guardian and allow the daughter to continue her studies.
A version of this article was first published in the Saudi Gazette on Dec.7 2014.