Gendered Citizenship: The Case of the Children of a Qatari Mother and a Non-Qatari Father

Citizenship is a wide topic that is discussed in various ways by feminist scholars, either as legal possession of a passport or in terms of mixed families’ feeling of belonging. This paper will discuss citizenship rights from a gendered perspective, focusing on the children of a Qatari mother, and the discrimination encountered against Qatari mothers in conferring their nationality to their children. Qatari mothers are not provided with equal rights in conferring their nationality to their children, and thus the children are deprived of their basic rights. The paper will discuss three thematic rights, education, health, and employment, and will provide insights on the discrimination in those sectors, and the lacuna in the laws that prevent them from having equal rights compared to the children born to a Qatari father. Accordingly, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 adult children of a Qatari mother and a non-Qatari father, a policymaker, and a lawyer. Based on the results, children of a Qatari mother are discriminated against in employment, and partially in health and education. Based on the results, the recommendation is to provide Qatari mothers with equal rights in citizenship as it does not contradict with sharia laws. Moreover, to create a similar system to the European Union through the Gulf Cooperation Council, that will help to equalize the salary, promotion, and employment matters system between the GCC countries. This will contribute to boosting the salaries of the children of a Qatari mother in Qatar. Along, with providing the children of a Qatari mother with their rights in health and education as equal citizens to Qatari people.