AlThenayan, Lulwa Mohammed; (2020) Between Shari'ah and International Standards: Protecting the Rights of the Child under Saudi Arabia's Human Rights Law. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

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Abstract

Between international standards and Islamic law, are children’s rights in Saudi Arabia protected? My research revolves around this question. It looks at the rights and best interests of the child in Saudi Arabia. What rights does international law grant children and similarly, what rights does Islamic law – Shari’ah grant them? Are international child laws currently being implemented as fully as it is possible under Islamic Law - Shari'ah law, as some claim? Or, as others allege, are Islam and Shari'ah law being used as excuses to deprive children of their rights and ‘best interests’ as intended by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)? Indeed, many practitioners in the region argue that it is not Shari'ah that imposes most of the alleged limitations on the exercise of children’s rights (as conceived in the UNCRC) in Muslim states, but that it is the governments themselves that do so. According to this view, the states are not implementing Islamic law as it should be implemented, but rather are using the notion of Islamic law (or allowing it to be used) as an instrument to deflect criticism from international human rights advocates. So, the question that imposes itself here is; whether convergence between international Children’s Rights and Islamic Children’s Rights can be reached in Saudi Arabia or not. More specifically, are the human rights of children and their best interests in Saudi Arabia, a country governed by Islamic Law, protected?

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