A support thread for those of us who live in places where mothers have no rights

[Laiyan]

I thought I'd get the ball rolling. Feel free to ignore this thread, and start your own, or write here.
We want to support each other, and help each other in practical ways if possible, emotionally if not possible practically.

what places are these?

women have no rights or mothers?

What countries are we talking about where mothers have no rights? Do you mean places like Saudi Arabia where the father gets custody if the mother leaves etc.?

I'm guessing maybe by your posting name that we're talking about Arab countries here?

Why don't you start by telling your story? Are you ok? Are you struggling with something specific as a mother in a country where you feel you have no rights?

Yes, I am talking about Saudi Arabia in particular, and arab countries in general. My friend set up a facebook group to support mothers whose children have been taken away from them, given to abusive fathers by the courts. ~She wants to support them emotionally and also find some method of getting the government to realise just how cruel the law is, before ultimately changing it.
That was the idea behind the group, and it started well. Unfortunately, it got taken over by five or six people who just want to discuss the awful stories, do a bit of islam bashing, and generally be very unhelpful towards the original goal of the group. This meant that the original people stopped posting. The friend who started the group doesnt have the techincal know how about how to moderate it all. I spoke to MNHQ about allowing them to discuss on here and they think its a good plan. :) If it gets going, then they can create a topic so that posters wont have to keep explaining the cultural background, iyseim.

I know how wonderful mn is. Ive been using it for years, OMD, youve given me wonderful advice and support over the last few years, but i dont want my usual persona to mix with the one on fb, as the anonymity is important to me, and many of these mothers who are in very vulnerable positions.

Good luck with this Laiyan, I hope you and the other vulnerable mothers out there find support here.

Gosh wouldn't it be amazing if the laws in places like Saudi Arabia actually changed! It's all very sad. I went to school with a girl who's English mother left her Saudi father, and the poor girl wasn't allowed to move back to England with her mother, due to the father getting custody. Luckily, with the help of some powerful friends, the girl finally managed to run away at the age of 16, back to the UK to her mother, but it was all so sad, she missed her mother so so much.

I think it's great you are coming here and starting a thread for support!

The ball has started rolling in the middle east, and I'm all for women having a platform, so hope you get lots of help! By the way, FB, or whatever medium, it all helps! The more women who find their voice, the better!

Welcome and all the best!