Gendered Citizenship, Inequality, and Well-Being: The Experience of Cross-National Families in Qatar during the Gulf Cooperation Council Crisis (2017–2021)

Wahiba Abu-Ras, Khalid Elzamzamy, Maryam M. Burghul, Noora H. Al-Merri, Moumena Alajrad and Vardha A. Kharbanda
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Wahiba Abu-Ras: School of Social Work, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY 11530, USA
Khalid Elzamzamy: Institute of Living/Hartford HealthCare, Hartford, CT 06102, USA
Maryam M. Burghul: Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, Doha P.O. Box 200592, Qatar
Noora H. Al-Merri: Supreme Judiciary Council, Doha P.O. Box 9673, Qatar
Moumena Alajrad: Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies (CHS)—Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, Doha P.O. Box 200592, Qatar
Vardha A. Kharbanda: Department of Psychology, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY 11530, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 11, 1-20

Abstract: This study explores the impact of gendered citizenship on the well-being of cross-national families following the political blockade imposed on Qatar in 2017. More specifically, it examines how these families, women, and children face challenges related to their lives, well-being, and rights. Twenty-three face-to-face interviews were conducted with Qatari and non-Qatari women and men married to non-Qatari spouses residing in Qatar. The study’s findings revealed that Qatari women with non-Qatari husbands did not enjoy the benefits of full citizenship, further undermining their psychological well-being and their socioeconomic and legal rights. Additionally, children born before or during the blockade have become stateless and undocumented, which jeopardizes their mental and physical well-being and the prospects of their parents’ economic advancement. This study contributes to the conceptualization of and debate on gender citizenship rules and policies, which can exclude these women and children and deny them the recognition and rights they deserve. Since ensuring full citizenship rights is crucial for people’s well-being, increasing gender equality and reforming Qatar’s existing citizenship policies would benefit both groups and provide social justice for all.

Keywords: blockade; gendered citizenship; family cohesion; social inequality; cross-national families; family well-being; vulnerable children (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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