SAUDI ARABIA TO ALLOW WOMEN TO DRIVE

Clerics argued it would lead to corruption, sin

Women in Saudi Arabia will be allowed to drive, the government announced Tuesday, ending its reign as the only nation in the world where women were forbidden from getting behind the wheel of a car.

The news was announced on state television and in a simultaneous media event in Washington, highlighting the damage that the policy has done to the kingdom’s international reputation and its hopes for a public relations benefit from the reform.

While there is no formal law banning women from driving, the government refuses to issue them permits. That will now change under the royal decree, issued late Tuesday, which ordered the formation of a ministerial body to implement the order by June 2018.

The milestone was greeted with jubilation on social media, with the hashtag #Saudiwomencandrive being used in a flood of tweets.

Loujain Hathloul, who has been at forefront of the women’s right to drive movement, and spent 73 days in detention for driving in 2014, simply responded: “Praise God.”

In Washington, the state department celebrated the news, describing it as “a great step in the right direction.”

Some ultraconservative clerics in Saudi Arabia, who wield power and influence in the judiciary and education sectors, had warned against allowing women to drive. They argued it would corrupt society and lead to sin.

In June 2011, about 40 women got behind the wheel and drove in several cities in a protest sparked when Manal Sharif, one of the founders of the movement, was arrested and detained for 24 hours after posting a video of herself driving.

Another was arrested and sentenced to 10 lashes — a sentence later overturned by the king — and the rest were told to sign statements guaranteeing they would not drive again.

In October 2013, shortly after a prominent cleric claimed that medical studies showed driving damaged a woman’s ovaries, 60 women took part in a protest, driving in spite of warnings from the authorities.

Last year Human Rights Watch produced a report highlighting the range of restrictions that Saudi women face.

Adult women must obtain permission from a male guardian to travel, marry or exit prison. They may be required to provide guardian consent in order to work or access health care.

Women regularly face difficulty conducting a range of transactions without a male relative, from renting an apartment to filing legal claims.

“We all have to live in the borders of the boxes our dads or husbands draw for us,” said Zahra, a 25-year-old Saudi woman.

Progress has, however, been made: in 2013, thenKing Abdullah appointed 30 women to the Shura Council, his highest advisory body, and two years later women were allowed to both vote in and run for office in municipal council elections.

And according to the Saudi Ministry of Education, women in Saudi Arabia attend college at higher rates than men.

The momentum to change the driving ban picked up in recent years with the rise of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a 32-yearold son of the king who has laid out a far-reaching plan to overhaul the kingdom’s economy and society.

In May, King Salman, ordered that government agencies publish lists of services that women can access, without a male guardian present, and ordered that employers provide women with transport.

The change could face some resistance inside the kingdom, where families are highly patriarchal and some men say they worry about their female relatives getting stranded should their cars break down.

The royal decree left open the question of whether women would need a male relative’s permission to obtain a driver’s licence.

WE ALL HAVE TO LIVE IN THE BORDERS OF THE BOXES OUR DADS OR HUSBANDS DRAW FOR US.