In a January 12, 2018 article in the English-language daily Saudi Gazette, columnist Nefeen Abbas rebukes women who oppose their husband taking a second wife. Men, she says, unlike women, get bored with the monotony of married life, and if not allowed to take another wife they are likely to resort to cheating. Abbas expresses puzzlement that wives can be so "selfish" and "ignorant" as to cause their husbands to commit the sin of adultery, rather than pursue the course of taking another wife, which is sanctioned by the Islamic shari'a.
The following is the article:[1]
Nefeen Abbas (image: soutalkhaleej.net,November 7, 2017)
"Experts say a man who marries a second wife will live a longer and happier life. However, it is very rare for a wife to agree to her husband marrying a second time. Women believe that their husbands should not be shared with other women.
"Men generally get bored with their wives after a while because of the monotony of married life. Women, on the other hand, do not care about that. The most important thing for any woman is stability and being in a marriage in which her husband is able to provide for her and give her what she needs. Some men do not like these situations; they feel desperate and indulge in extramarital relationships.
"Many women can live with their husbands cheating on them but are unable to live with a second wife. This would be out of the question for most women. I do not understand how these women prefer that their husbands commit sins rather than marrying second wives since they know that an extramarital relationship is sinful while marriage to a second wife is legal as per Shariah law.
"I have asked many women about this and most of them agree that they could live with adultery. On the other hand, many men prefer to get married legally rather than commit a sin. They, therefore, get married secretly and try their best to keep their marriages hidden when they should not be doing so. They do this because of their first wives’ selfishness and ignorance of Shariah.
"I advise women to always remember that love does not come easily and no one can buy love or feelings. A woman who does not take care of her husband and does not satisfy his needs should not be upset if he decides to get married again. He will search for love and care somewhere else.
"What I do not understand is that many wives accuse their husbands of cheating on them if the husbands get married again when in fact the husbands have done something legal that is according to Shariah."
[1] Saudi Gazette (Saudi Arabia), January 12, 2018.
