THE HAGUE, 02/08/07 - The ambassadors of Morocco and Sudan find it strange that some immigrants in the Netherlands refuse to allow women to be treated by a male doctor. They said this to the Stan Huygens Journaal, the feature in daily newspaper De Telegraaf that visits diplomatic and business receptions.

At a reception held by Moroccan Ambassador Ali el Mhamdi and his wife in their residence in Wassenaar, the Stan Huygens Journaal quoted the host as saying "our cultures can learn much from each other." The ambassador was asked for his views on Islamic women in the Netherlands whose husbands do not allow them to see a male doctor. He stated: "My wife is a doctor and she treats men all the time!"

"In our country, Islamic women simply consult male doctors," added Abuelgasim Idris, the Sudanese ambassador. Kenza Benalla, chief financial officer of the International Court of Justice and Moroccan by birth, was quoted as saying that it is "ridiculous not to go to the best doctor, whether male or female!"

The Christian democrats (CDA), the largest government party, last week rejected complaints by doctors who say an increasing number of women patients are refusing to be treated by a male doctor. Doctors should always comply with the wishes of patients, CDA MP Janneke Schermers stated.

According to professional journal Medisch Contact (MC), male specialists are sometimes threatened with physical violence by the woman's relatives in order to win treatment by a female doctor. Labour (PvdA) MP Khadija Arib, herself a Muslim, wants to investigate whether it is possible to prosecute the family of women patients for endangering the lives of their women if they refuse treatment by a man in an emergency.