Woman sentenced to 100 lashes for giving birth outside marriage

A Kenyan domestic worker in Saudi Arabia has reportedly been sentenced to 100 lashes for giving birth outside marriage, drawing condemnation from human rights organisations.

The woman, identified as Esther Wanja Muthoni, was reportedly handed the sentence last month under Saudi Arabia's legal system, where sex outside marriage is a criminal offence.

Muthoni worked as a housekeeper and nanny in Saudi Arabia. She became pregnant during a brief relationship with an Egyptian man, who has since left the country, according to the report.

After the ruling, Muthoni told the New York Times that she feared she would not be able to endure the punishment. “I don’t deserve this,” she said.

Rights groups have criticised the sentence, arguing that women are disproportionately targeted in cases involving childbirth outside marriage.

Maryam Aldossari, acting director of the UK-based rights organisation ALQST, described the ruling as an act of violence. She said Muthoni should have been sent back to Kenya rather than punished.

Ekaterina Porras Sivolobova, founder of Do Bold, a non-profit organisation advocating for migrant workers' rights in the Gulf, said the case came to light because Muthoni had been taken to a hospital. Hospitals in Saudi Arabia are required to report unmarried women who give birth to the authorities.

Many unmarried women give birth at home and therefore are not reported, Sivolobova said.

A 2024 investigation found that several Kenyan single mothers were abandoned by their children's fathers, who feared arrest for having sex outside marriage.

The case has also drawn attention amid the postponement of a planned visit to Saudi Arabia by Reem Alsalem, the UN special rapporteur on violence against women and girls. Alsalem said she had intended to raise specific cases during the visit and would pursue them through established channels if the visit was not rescheduled soon.

Saudi Arabia announced reforms in April 2020 to end flogging as a judicial punishment. However, the change applied only to ta'zir offences, where judges have discretion over punishments. Flogging remained a possible penalty for certain hudud offences, including adultery and alcohol consumption, according to an ALQST report published in 2021.

The Saudi government was approached for comment.

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