Arab Fashion Week took place in Riyadh from April 10th to the 14th. The event was supposed to have happened in March, but according to Jacob Abrian, the chief executive of the Arab Fashion Council, the decision to postpone was made “… to accommodate all the international guests” who wanted to attend.
Mulki and Aliyaah, two fashion graduates living in Stratford East London, told Rising East why they think the event is so important. ”I believe this show is something very good that is happening in Saudi Arabia and I am hopeful that things like that can transform the country to be a better place for women,” said Mulki. Her friend Aliyaah added that, “… despite the delays this event is important for women in Saudi Arabia and the whole fashion industry over there. Men’s fashion has been fashionable for years and this is the chance for women to take a piece of the pie! Exciting!”
The place of women within Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia was highlighted earlier in the month with the launch of an Islamic Relief campaign at one of London’s largest mosques, in Tower Hamlets, East London. The slogan of the campaign is: ”There is no honour in any type of violence against women and girls. Enough is enough”.
Rising East attended the campaign launch and spoke to Aysha about women’s rights, and about the significance of Arab Fashion Week. A recording of what she said is below:
Taken together with the recent lifting of the ban on cinema and women driving, Arab Fashion Week represents a less authoritarian approach to life in Saudi Arabia.