Analyzing Gender Inequality: Quality of Life in Kuwait vs North Korea

This essay provides a comparative analysis of the quality of life experienced by women in Kuwait and North Korea, highlighting the disparities and challenges they face. While Kuwait has made considerable progress in gender-related development, particularly in recent years with governmental initiatives, inequalities persist in areas such as voting rights, workplace security, and economic opportunities. Spousal rape is not criminalized, and workplace harassment remains a significant issue. In contrast, the situation in North Korea is significantly worse, with women facing extreme discrimination in economic, social, cultural, and political spheres, along with high rates of crimes against women. The essay concludes that while Kuwait is working to improve women's rights, North Korea lags far behind, with women still struggling for basic rights and freedoms. Desklib offers a range of resources, including similar essays and solved assignments, to support students in their academic endeavors.

Running head: ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
Essay Assignment
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
Introduction
Gender discrimination, over the years, has experienced considerable dynamics and
variations in different countries across the world. Globally this discrimination among the male
and female population has been prevalent in all domains of life, economic, social, cultural and
political, thereby creating considerable differences in the overall quality of life of the male and
the female population1. While many countries have succeeded considerably with time in
reducing the discrimination and in improving the overall quality of life of their female
population, gender disparities are still primary issues of concern in many others, especially in the
developing and low developed countries, even in the contemporary periods.
Keeping the above-discussed problems in consideration, the essay tries to analyze and
discuss extensively about the scenario of overall quality of life of female population in one of the
impressively progressing countries, Kuwait. It also tries to find the level of difficulties which the
women in the concerned country faces in achieving equalities and better qualities in all the
spheres of life, especially in economic and cultural aspects2. The essay also highlights the
conditions in the same aspect in another country, North Korea to compare the well-being of
women in Kuwait vis-à-vis North Korea.
Women in Kuwait
Situated near the Persian Gulf, the Arabian country of Kuwait has experienced
considerable economic progress over the last few decades and is currently considered as one of
the most industrially and commercially prospective Arabian countries. The residents of the
1 Bose, Christine E. "Intersectionality and global gender inequality." Gender & Society 26.1 (2012): 67-72.
2 Steans, Jill. Gender and international relations. John Wiley & Sons, 2013.

2ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
country experience a superior quality of life and economic abundance of the country is
comparatively higher than many countries in the world3.
The country, compared to other Arabian and Middle Eastern countries has achieved
significant success in terms of gender related development and currently ranks 37th in the Global
Index of Gender Related Development of UNDP. This gender related development in the country
has specifically increased in the recent periods, with the government of the country taking
appropriate steps for the same.
However, there remains discrimination and disparities in the overall quality of life among
the male and female population in the country. In spite of being one of the highly developing
countries in the global scenario, the women in the country received their voting rights in 2005.
Before that, they were denied this fundamental right and the right to stand for parliamentary
elections4. The cultural disparities in the overall life quality of women in Kuwait is not
constrained to voting rights only, women in the country experience comparative inferiority in
terms of security in domestic as well as workplaces. Spousal rape is not an institutionalized
crime in the country and the driving rights of women are also subjected to a lot of restrictions.
Nearly 40% of working women in the country still now experience harassment in their daily
workplaces5.
3 Hrw.org, 'Kuwait: Promises Betrayed - Discrimination Against Women' (Hrw.org, 2018)
<https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/kuwait/kuwait-05.htm> accessed 20 February 2018.
4 Kabeer, Naila, and Luisa Natali. "Gender Equality and Economic Growth: Is there a Win‐Win?." IDS Working
Papers2013.417 (2013): 1-58.
5 Charrad, Mounira M. "Family law reforms in the Arab world: Tunisia and Morocco." Report for the United
Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), Division for Social Policy and Development,
Expert Group Meeting, New York. 2012.

3ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
Economically also there exits disparities in the workplaces, both in terms of the
opportunities as well as in terms of pay scales for the same types of jobs vis-à-vis their male
counterparts. The discrimination in the overall quality of life and facilities of women also varies
according to their socio-economic status. In Kuwait, the economic opportunities and overall
quality of life of women of higher socio-economic strata as compared to those belonging to the
middle or lower economic strata, thereby making it even more difficult for the latter to achieve
the quality of life, economically as well as culturally, which their male counterparts enjoy in
Kuwait.
Comparison to condition of women in North Korea
The conditions of women in Kuwait, though being comparatively restrictive and inferior
than many other developed and Western countries, the situations are still better than many
developing countries, North Korea being one of them. The country, even in this age, lags
significantly behind in the aspect of development and empowerment of their female population6.
The women in the concerned country not only experience immense discrimination in terms of
economic and financial security and independence but also face challenges in terms of cultural,
social and political aspects of their life. Crimes against women, including rape, molestation and
harassment are everyday incidents and the level of vulnerability and social insecurity is terribly
high in them. Women in North Korea do not form any substantial part in the formal working
population of the country and their conditions do not seem to improve over time7.
6 Reuters.com, 'North Korean Women Suffer Discrimination, Rape, Malnutrition: U.N.' (U.S., 2018)
<https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-un-rights/north-korean-women-suffer-discrimination-rape-
malnutrition-u-n-idUSKBN1DK1EN> accessed 20 February 2018.
7 Cha, Victor. The impossible state: North Korea, past and future. Random House, 2012.

4ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be asserted that women, even in the contemporary
period, do not get to experience the same quality of life as their male counterparts, in many parts
of the world. There remain difficulties and hurdles, especially for women in developing countries
in removing the discrimination and inequalities, which they face in their everyday lives. Kuwait,
in this respect, has been working considerably in the contemporary period, as can be seen from
the changes in their laws and facility structure for women. North Korea, however, remains
substantially behind in these aspects as women in this country are still fighting for their basic
rights, let alone the economic, socio-political and cultural liberty and stability even in
contemporary period.

5ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
References
Bose, Christine E. "Intersectionality and global gender inequality." Gender & Society 26.1
(2012): 67-72.
Cha, Victor. The impossible state: North Korea, past and future. Random House, 2012.
Charrad, Mounira M. "Family law reforms in the Arab world: Tunisia and Morocco." Report for
the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), Division for Social
Policy and Development, Expert Group Meeting, New York. 2012.
Hrw.org, 'Kuwait: Promises Betrayed - Discrimination Against Women' (Hrw.org, 2018)
<https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/kuwait/kuwait-05.htm> accessed 20 February 2018
Kabeer, Naila, and Luisa Natali. "Gender Equality and Economic Growth: Is there a Win‐
Win?." IDS Working Papers2013.417 (2013): 1-58.
Reuters.com, 'North Korean Women Suffer Discrimination, Rape, Malnutrition: U.N.' (U.S.,
2018) <https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-un-rights/north-korean-women-suffer-
discrimination-rape-malnutrition-u-n-idUSKBN1DK1EN> accessed 20 February 2018
Steans, Jill. Gender and international relations. John Wiley & Sons, 2013.