China
12:17, 21-Jul-2017
West shouldn't judge in Saudi miniskirt incident, says commentator
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By CGTN’s The Point
The case of a Saudi Arabian woman arrested after being filmed wearing a miniskirt has made headlines abroad, but the West should not be so quick to judge, according to a former Saudi-based commentator.
"You find a lot of do-gooders in the West making criticism of places they haven't been to and they don't actually understand the social norms in that society," Brian Salter, a broadcaster and author who worked in Saudi Arabia, told CGTN's The Point.
“Don’t be ready to judge too harshly or too quickly... It’s very easy to judge other people from your own point of view without understanding the background of how they got there in the first place," Salter, who now works at CGTN, also argued.
"I think you've got to have an open mind and try to understand the point of view from their point of view.“
A short video of a young Saudi Arabian woman wearing a miniskirt while walking outdoors went viral over the weekend, and her arrest for wearing “suggestive clothing” quickly prompted an outcry abroad.
Saudi Arabia imposes some of the strictest rules in the world on women's appearance and behavior. The young woman has since been released, according to reports.
The Point with Liu Xin is a 30-minute current affairs program on CGTN. It airs weekdays at 9.30 p.m. BJT (1330GMT), with rebroadcasts at 5.30 a.m. (2130GMT) and 10.30 a.m. (0230GMT).
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