Saudi Arabia will allow women to drive for the first time in the ultra-conservative kingdom, ending a policy criticized worldwide as a human rights violation.
Saudi Arabia, the only country in the world to bar females from driving, has received negative attention for years for detaining women who defied its ban.
Manal al-Sharif was arrested for breaking the law in 2011 when she filmed herself cruising behind the wheel of a car and uploaded the video to YouTube. Eventually, she was released from jail after an international outcry. She said the arrest only made her more determined to speak out for Saudi women's rights. Her passion led her to write a memoir, Daring to Drive: a Saudi Woman's Awakening.
"My society is very conservative. Women are treated as minors who need protection and permission of men for almost everything," al-Sharif said in an interview in July.
Al-Sharif explained that when 47 women tried to break an accepted norm by driving on Nov. 6, 1990, the religious establishment denounced them as immoral women who wanted to destroy Saudi society.
Activists are celebrating the news as a major development in a country where women face extreme social and personal restrictions as a result of the kingdom’s strict interpretation of Islam.
The United States welcomed Saudi Arabia’s announcement on Tuesday, with State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert saying the U.S. is “happy” with the move. But he did not comment on other restrictions Saudi women face in the kingdom. For example, they are not allowed to travel without the permission of a male guardian and must cover their hair and bodies in public.
The progressive developments follow a decade of incremental change in Saudi Arabia. More women are working in retail and hold top executive positions in the Saudi stock exchange and Dammam Airport. Women can now also be appointed to the Shoura Council as well as run in municipal elections.
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