American Bedu

Tara maintains an excellent blog with an emphasis on bicultural marriages between a Saudi and a non-Saudi.  She strives to provide up-to-date information on the approval procedure as well as changes and developments pertaining to the convoluted regulations that abound bicultural marriages to a Saudi.  Her posts are always insightful, candid and thought-provoking.  Therefore it is with pleasure that I am providing a questionaire she has devised to help her prepare an upcoming post:

Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem
Asalamu Alaikum

Why Saudis Marry Non-Saudis
Tara Umm Omar bint Curtis Gregory
November 28, 2008
Riyadh, KSA

I have been reflecting upon the catalysts behind the Saudi government’s restrictions of Saudis marrying non-Saudis. At least three possible rationale come to mind: 1) it is a concerted effort to discourage Saudis from ever endeavoring to marry non-Saudis 2) to prevent a high incidence of spinsterhood amongst Saudi women 3) as a response to the repeated occurrence of divorce between Saudis and their foreign spouses which have subsequently lead to custody battles for children and unfortunately, kidnapping.

The entire marriage permission process is so rife with encumbrance that it can be viewed as a collective punishment. Despite the various obstacles, Saudi men and women are still choosing to marry non-Saudis. What spurs them to do so?

I developed a questionnaire to help answer the above question and it will form the basis for an upcoming article titled “Why Saudis Marry Non-Saudis”. It targets Saudi men and women already married to non-Saudis, those engaged to non-Saudis and those who are neither married nor engaged to non-Saudis but desire a non-Saudi husband or wife in the future.

Some responses will be featured on my blog, “Future Husbands And Wives Of Saudis”, so if one wants to remain anonymous please note it on the questionnaire (question number 10). You can also use a nickname or kunya to help protect your identity. I promise that emails and names will be kept confidential unless you wish to have them displayed.

There are no limits to the length of the answers for numbers 5a, 6a, 7 and 8.

1. Are you a Saudi male married to a non-Saudi? yes or no:
   a. What is the nationality of your spouse:

2. Are you a Saudi female married to a non-Saudi? yes or no:
   a. What is the nationality of your spouse:

3. Are you a Saudi male engaged to a non-Saudi? yes or no:
    a. What is the nationality of your intended:

4. Are you a Saudi female engaged to a non-Saudi? yes or no:
    a. What is the nationality of your intended:

5. Are you a Saudi male who wants to marry a non-Saudi in the future? yes or no:
    a. What nationality would you prefer your future spouse to be and why:
    b. It does not matter which nationality your spouse will be: yes or no

6. Are you a Saudi female who wants to marry a non-Saudi in the future? yes or no:
    a. What nationality would you prefer your future spouse to be and why:
    b. It does not matter which nationality your spouse will be: yes or no

7. Why did you choose to marry or why are you choosing to marry a non-Saudi?

8. Is/Are there any reasons why you chose not to or choosing not to marry a non-Saudi?

9. Nickname or kunya:

10. Do you want your nickname/kunya displayed with your response in my article? yes or no

Send completed questionnaire to islamisno1@yahoo.com

Please forward to Saudi husbands and Saudi wives of non-Saudis and those Saudi men and women who are interested in marrying non-Saudis in the future.

Thank you!

FiAmanAllah, Tara Umm Omar

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