How hard can it be for a woman to get custody of her kid after divorcing her husband who allegedly takes drugs and is abusive?
Bethany Vierra, originally from Washington, would not have given much thought to the question while getting married to her husband, a Saudi Arabian, because he was a nice, charming guy who had studied abroad and was supportive of her ambitions.
But, after being married for over five years, the relationship soured when he allegedly started being abusive. So she divorced him, a rare thing in Saudi Arabia, and approached the court to fight for the custody of her 4-year-old daughter Zeina.
That is when things started going south as her husband caused her residency to expire, making her presence in Saudi Arabia illegal, according to the New York Times. And she had no power to do anything without the residency. Though her daughter Zeina has dual citizenship, the country recognizes only her Saudi citizenship. That means that even if Bethany somehow managed to leave the country, she could not take her daughter with her.
On top of all these complications, her husband shared a photo of her in a bikini to the court to prove she is 'unfit' to have custody of their daughter.
Bethany, on the other hand, produced video proof of her husband taking drugs which she claims was dismissed as he had "sworn to God".
In the end, the judge ruled that neither of them was fit to have custody of the child and made Bethany's husband's mother, who lives with her son, the legal guardian. While announcing the verdict, the judge added that since Bethany was new to Islam and has a different belief system, Zeina should be protected from being exposed to those 'traditions'.
Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman introduced reforms like ending the ban on women driving, among other things. In an interview about gender equality, he said, "We are all human beings, and there is no difference.” But Bethany's story suggests that the country still has a long way to go.