tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4157181068289169982024-03-05T04:46:24.802-08:00Saudi Women DrivingNews and thoughts about Saudi women driving.Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.comBlogger491125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-66577466150852318532018-07-04T08:23:00.002-07:002018-07-04T08:23:22.778-07:00Saudi dad hilariously replies to online haters, and people are loving itThis story is from stepfeed, reported on July 4, 2018. You can link to the story <a href="https://stepfeed.com/saudi-dad-hilariously-replies-to-online-haters-and-people-are-loving-it-1924">here</a> and it's pasted in below. The story is by Razan Mneimneh.<br />
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<h3>
For the first time since 1957, female members of Saudi society have been granted their right to get behind the wheel.</h3>
<h3>
It's uncommon to see an Arab dad making people laugh by clapping back at his haters online... <span>Meet </span>Khalid Al Othman<span>, an outspoken Riyadh-based engineer with nearly 15,000 Twitter followers.</span></h3>
<span>Last week</span><span>,
Al Othman posted a picture of himself with his daughter behind the
steering wheel, four days after the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia
was </span>officially lifted <span>on June 24.</span><br />
Since King Salman's September 2017 <a href="https://stepfeed.com/breaking-saudi-arabia-lifts-ban-on-women-driving-6523">royal decree</a>, the country has been busy setting up driving schools and holding events encouraging female members of society to practice their newly established right.<br />
<blockquote>
"My first ride alongside my precious daughter after women officially started driving in Saudi Arabia," wrote Al Othman.</blockquote>
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Most people on Saudi Twitter rejoicingly replied to Al Othman and his daughter with positive comments. <span>But alas, the negative comments also made their way through and the proud father handled them like a boss.</span><br />
Let's take a look below...</div>
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"Darker than it already is?"</h2>
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<i>- "Why don't you make your daughter wear the hijab and cover her hair? May God darken your face (humiliate you)." </i><br />
<i>- "You want my face to be darker than it already is you blind man?"</i></div>
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<h2>
"Transportation has nothing to do with covering up"</h2>
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<figure><img alt="" height="256" src="https://stepcdn.com/assets/2018-07/04/9/v3jt9/screen-shot-2018-07-04-at-12-12-52-pm-700x.png" width="640" /><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
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Replying
to a user's comment on his daughter being uncovered and claiming public
transportation is what the country really needs, Al Othman said:<br />
<i>"Covering up is my business and my daughters ... and by the way, public transport has nothing to do with modesty."</i></div>
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"Should we say wow?"</h2>
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<figure><img alt="" height="167" src="https://stepcdn.com/assets/2018-07/04/9/lheid/screen-shot-2018-07-04-at-12-14-22-pm-700x.png" width="400" /><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
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Arabic puns at their best.</div>
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"I placed the driving wheel on my daughter's side"</h2>
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<i>- "Are you the one driving or your daughter?" </i><br />
<i>- "I'm the one driving of course, but I placed the driving wheel on my daughter's side." </i></div>
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<h2>
Although he received some negative responses, most replies where supportive</h2>
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"A beautiful person"</h2>
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"An awesome dad"</h2>
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"Warms my heart"</h2>
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"She's lucky to have you"</h2>
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<h2>
Saudi women celebrated a historical day</h2>
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On June 24, women in Saudi Arabia were finally given their right to drive legally after a long-standing ban was lifted by a royal decree in September last year.<br />
As part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's wide-ranging drive to modernize
the country, for the first time since 1957, female members of Saudi
society have been granted their right to get behind the wheel.<br />
The 32-year-old crown prince, who is heir to the throne, has spearheaded the Vision 2030 agenda to diversify the economy away from oil and open up Saudi society.<br />
Part
of his plan is to increase female workforce participation from 22
percent to 30 percent by 2030, and allowing them to drive will be a
vital component of that.<br />
Up until June 24, Saudi Arabia was the
only country left in the world where women were not allowed to drive and
families had to hire private drivers and chauffeurs for female
relatives.<br />
Following the ban lift, viral footage that was
widely shared online showed police officers handing out roses and giving
their full support to the new female drivers.</div>
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<h2>
Even a rap video was put out to support women</h2>
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The rap song - titled "Tahsibni Amzah" (Do you think I'm kidding?) - was written and performed by Saudi social media personality Leesa A.<br />
<blockquote>
<span>"Don't
forget that today is the tenth day (of Shawwal) and this means no need
for taxis. I'm not kidding, today I can drive myself," Leesa raps in the music video.</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span>The video went viral almost immediately, </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span>amassing over a million </span></span><span>views on Instagram and over 840,000 on YouTube.</span></div>
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<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-8896234837018015562018-07-04T08:17:00.001-07:002018-07-04T08:17:22.081-07:00Saudi woman’s car set on fire in Makkah villageGulfnews.com reports this story on July 3, 2018. A link to the story is <a href="https://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/saudi-woman-s-car-set-on-fire-in-makkah-village-1.2245869">here </a>and you can read it below. The story is by Al Sherbini.<br />
<br />
Cairo: A car owned by a Saudi woman was set on fire in a Makkah
village allegedly by men opposed to women driving, Saudi media reported
on Tuesday, more than a week after women were allowed to drive for the
first time in the kingdom’s history.<br />
A spokesman for the Makkah
Police said that they had received a complaint that the car was the
target of a dawn arson attempt in the village of Al Samd, Saudi news
portal Sabq reported.<br />
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“The fire was put out and the incident is being investigated by security agencies,” the official added without giving details.<br />
The owner posted a video of the burning vehicle and accused local men
of being behind the incident, but did not name anyone. “The village
youth torched my car because they oppose female driving,” a crying woman
says in the video.<br />
The woman, who gave her name as Salma Al Sharif, appealed to King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Mohammad for help.<br />
The decision to allow women to drive is part of wide social and
economic reforms championed by Saudi Arabia’s young heir apparent.<br />
On
June 24, women in Saudi Arabia were allowed to drive for the first
time, months after the Saudi monarch decreed lifting the ban on female
driving.<br />
Conservatives frown upon women’s driving as immoral and un-Islamic.<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-66214498721504001142018-06-28T18:58:00.002-07:002018-06-28T18:58:54.721-07:00Saudi woman releases Hijazi rap song on women drivingGulfNews reports on June 29, 2018 that a young Saudi woman produced a Youtube video singing in Arabic rap about women driving. A link to the story is <a href="https://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/saudi-woman-releases-hijazi-rap-song-on-women-driving-1.2243556">here </a>and it's pasted below: <br />
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Leesa offers constructive saftey advice in her song stressing the importance of buckling up<br />
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<span class="img-caption">Saudi woman Leesa stresses the importance of buckling up while driving in her rap song.</span><span class="img-credits">Image Credit: Youtube</span></div>
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<span class="img-caption">Saudi young woman celebrate right to drive in rap song.</span><span class="img-credits">Image Credit: Youtube</span></div>
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<span class="img-caption">Saudi young woman celebrate right to drive in rap song.</span><span class="img-credits">Image Credit: Youtube</span></div>
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<span class="time" itemprop="datePublished">Published: 11:39 June 28, 2018 </span><a class="source" href="https://gulfnews.com/"><img alt="Gulf News" src="https://static.gulfnews.com/polopoly_fs/1.505033.1454993913!/image/1784965892.png_gen/derivatives/box_16223/1784965892.png" title="Gulf News" /></a><br />
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<span itemprop="name">Habib Toumi, Bureau Chief</span></div>
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Manama:
A Saudi young woman has composed a rap song “We Are Driving” to
celebrate the lifting of the ban on women driving in the kingdom.<br />
In her Hijazi rap song, in reference to the western part of Saudi Arabia, Leesa celebrated the glory of the historic 10/10 date.<br />
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The
date refers the tenth day of the tenth month of the lunar-based Islamic
calendar, Shawwal, and corresponds to June 24 when the ban was lifted.<br />
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<span class="teads-ui-components-credits-colored"></span>Don’t
forget that today is the tenth day and this means no need for taxis. I
am not kidding, today I can serve (drive) myself,” she sang.</div>
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Leesa also offered safety advice to
women driving on busy roads, stressing the importance of buckling
up.Saudi and Gulf women on Sunday celebrated with the right of women to
drive in the kingdom.</div>
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The decision was announced in a royal decree
in September but several months were alotted to prepare the logistics
for the event, including setting up driving schools and finding
experienced women driving instructors.</div>
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Saudi Arabia also enacted a strict anti-harassment law to ensure the full safety of women drivers on roads.</div>
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Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-15598536749490549812018-06-28T18:16:00.002-07:002018-06-28T18:16:27.981-07:00How to rent a car as a foreign woman in Saudi ArabiaThe Arab News sent a reporter to rent a car and report on how it's done. A link to the story is <a href="http://www.arabnews.com/node/1330091/how-rent-car-foreign-woman-saudi-arabia">here</a> and the story (with video) is pasted in below. It was published on June 29, 2018.<br />
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Arab News' Mo Gannon went to find out how easy it was to rent a car as a
foreign women in Saudi Arabia. Visiting from Dubai Mo went to a branch
of Budget rent a car in Jeddah.<br />
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Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-3608735512862903342018-06-24T18:07:00.002-07:002018-06-24T18:07:39.968-07:00In her own words: Saudi Arabian woman on her first drive AFP Riyadh reports on June 24, 2018 about one young Saudi woman starting to drive, Samar Almogren. A link to the story is <a href="https://www.khaleejtimes.com/region/saudi-arabia/in-her-own-words-saudi-arabian-woman-on-her-first-drive">here,</a> and the text is pasted in below.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's midnight in Riyadh, and Samar Almogren is making her way across the city she was born and raised in.<br /><span>(AFP)</span></td></tr>
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<h4>
Women in Riyadh and other cities began zipping around streets bathed in amber light soon after the ban was lifted.
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Saudi Arabia ended its longstanding ban on
women driving on Sunday - and the second the clock struck midnight,
women across the country started their engines.</div>
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This is what it was like for one of those women as she drove across Riyadh, the city of her birth, in her own words:</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"My name is Samar Almogren. I'm a talkshow host and writer.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"I took off my niqab a long time ago. When I
first decided to show my face on television, it did not go down well. My
brothers were very upset. But my father supported me, and has always
supported me in all of my life decisions. He's the one who encouraged me
to study abroad.</div>
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"I've driven in different countries before,
and I have an international driver's license, but it's going to be
totally different here. At home.</div>
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"I actually hate driving. But that's not the
point. The point is that it is my right. I can drive, and whether I
choose to or not is another issue.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"My whole body is tingling right now. To get
in my car, to hold this steering wheel, after having lived my entire
life, since the moment I entered this world, in the back seat... This is
now my responsibility, and I'm more than ready to bear it. I've long
depended on myself.</div>
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"I always knew this day would come. But it came fast. Sudden.</div>
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"I think this was the biggest stumbling block.
I don't see any more obstacles from here on. Driving was the big one,
and that's done now.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"Everyone's already asking me to drive them to
work or to come for coffee. It's going to be great to be able to take
my mother around, rather than have her sit in the backseat with a driver
who's a stranger. No, my mom isn't going to drive, at her age. We're
going to drive her around, me and my sisters. We want to spoil her.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"What's most important to me is that I can
drive my baby around. It's the worst thing to me to have to entrust him
to a driver, even though I'm always with him in the car.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"I wore white tonight because it's the colour of peace. I feel like a butterfly... No, a bird. I feel free like a bird."</div>
<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-2167796491973013562018-06-24T07:51:00.004-07:002018-06-24T07:51:58.055-07:00As driving ban ends, Saudi Arabia’s women take to the roads with joy and relief The Washington Post covers women driving in a June 24, 2018 story by Kareem Fahim. You can link to the story <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/as-driving-ban-ends-saudi-arabias-women-take-to-the-roads-with-joy-and-relief--/2018/06/24/fcb02cf8-73cf-11e8-bda1-18e53a448a14_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.5105db9132a4">here,</a> and the text is pasted below. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="pb-caption">After midnight, on June 24, the day the ban on
women driving in Saudi is lifted, Ahd Niazy's mother, Dania Alagili, 47,
parks the car after taking her family for a stroll for the first time
in the streets of Jeddah. (Iman Al-Dabbagh/For The Washington Post)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span class="dateline">JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia</span>
–With her husband in the passenger seat and her daughter cheering her
on, Dania Alagili guided her sport utility vehicle onto the King
Abdulaziz Road early Sunday, breaking a barrier by becoming just another
Saudi driver in the roaring traffic. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="2">
“This is a day I’ve been waiting for,” she said. “For the last 30 years.” </div>
<div data-elm-loc="3">
Saudi
Arabia allowed women to drive for the first time on Sunday, lifting a
ban that was the last of its kind in the world and one that had come to
symbolize the kingdom’s harsh subjugation of women. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="4">
In
an effort to modernize the country, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
has eased some social restrictions. And by the standards of the Saudi
Arabia, an absolute monarchy guided by an ultraconservative religious
creed, reforms that seemed like the barest of innovations – like the
lifting of the driving ban or the opening of cinemas – are viewed by
many here as revolutionary, if long overdue. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="5">
That
Alagili, 47, had earned her driving license 23 years ago, in the United
States, did nothing to dampen the joy on Sunday of driving in her own
city, on her own roads, on her own. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="5">
Without the driving privileges, and dependent on men, “I felt heavy, tied back,” she said. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="7">
She
headed to her father’s house, knowing he would want to share the moment
with his only daughter. “For women it’s a big deal. And for the men who
supported us,” she said. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="7">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLUWY62N5K0PPfNb4ZNQxT4n51CCMPqKhGOpRVK9s_VeclKPPxz3rCFUem4lsK2h3PpvvlwFt34yu0qtxVR5zAcVFMaLlH5RqtNhjymmL5rP73P6D0OyWdq8Tq51YjeS37CHO-CasRx48/s1600/postphoto2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="989" data-original-width="1484" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLUWY62N5K0PPfNb4ZNQxT4n51CCMPqKhGOpRVK9s_VeclKPPxz3rCFUem4lsK2h3PpvvlwFt34yu0qtxVR5zAcVFMaLlH5RqtNhjymmL5rP73P6D0OyWdq8Tq51YjeS37CHO-CasRx48/s320/postphoto2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A<span class="pb-caption">hd Niazy tells her mom, Dania Alagili , how proud she is of her. (Iman Al-Dabbagh/For The Washington Post)</span></td></tr>
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<div data-elm-loc="7">
<br /></div>
<div data-elm-loc="8">
Cars raced by on
the King Abdulaziz Road, a harrowing stretch of freeway that is also
perhaps an argument for reevaluating the driving privileges of some of
the men in Saudi Arabia. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="8">
"You’re doing great momma,” her daughter, Ahd Niazy,
23, said from the back seat. Hany Niazy, Dania’s husband, called the
couple’s other daughter, Layal, 19, who lives in Washington, D.C. Her
face appeared on his phone. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="11">
“Momma how do you feel?” Layal asked. </div>
<div data-elm-loc="12">
“I feel great,” he mother said. “I feel wonderful. I am born today.” </div>
Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-14729120510094346122018-06-23T14:03:00.000-07:002018-06-23T14:03:21.725-07:00It's Official --- Saudi Women Drive!!!!!Nine years after I started this little blog, I am so happy to be at my computer, counting down the minutes until women in Saudi Arabia will be able to drive legally. Over all these years, reading about the issue from so many angles, it was still such a delight to learn the news last September that the ban would be lifted at last.<br />
<br />
And now the day is here. People are sending out tweets of congratulations. Women are tweeting that they are getting ready to drive. Others are tweeting to women to take the responsibility of driving seriously. And the world watches. Another tweet mentions that filming and photographing women drivers in order to mock them is forbidden and punishable by fines and even prison. I trust that cool heads will prevail and people will be mature about this change. <br />
<br />
Fortunately, Saudis like to stay up late, so I think those who go out driving in 47 minutes (yikes it's coming up soon) will find that there a lots of people on the road. I hope there will be some peaceful celebrations and ululations (zaghareed).<br />
<br />
My novel, A Caravan of Brides, has a chapter in it imagining that on the first day of women driving (set in 2018 by pure luck) that women stand on the steps at the Traffic Department and let out zaghareed. I don't think that will happen tonight, but maybe someday.<br />
<br />
Now it is nine minutes to midnight. Now it is two minutes. I eagerly await coverage of the day, especially what people post about their first drives. <br />
<br />
It is so wonderful to be alive to see this change take place. <br />
<br />
And now, the moment has arrived. Congratulations and Hallelujah!!!!!Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-71804333348571801482018-06-20T18:25:00.001-07:002018-06-20T18:26:01.166-07:00Countdown begins to Saudi women drivingThe June 21, 2018 English language daily, the Arab News, reported on women getting ready to drive. You can link to the story <a href="http://www.arabnews.com/node/1325101/saudi-arabia">here,</a> and the text is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
The story is by Nur Nugali and Rawan Radwan<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Women who already held valid driving licenses from authorized countries found the process of switching to a Saudi one simple.</td></tr>
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<div class="entry-highlight">
<ul>
<li>Women who already held valid driving licenses from authorized countries found the process of switching to a Saudi one simple</li>
<li>Many women plan to hit the road on June 24 and enjoy their new travel independence, without the need for a man to drive them</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="entry-content" data-io-article-url="http://www.arabnews.com/node/1325101/saudi-arabia">
In just three days’ time, Saudi women will be able to take to the wheel and drive.<br />
Many have been telling Arab News how simple it was to obtain a license,
how much they are looking forward to driving — and what this
transformation in Saudi society means to them.<br />
“It is as if I have been recognized as an equal citizen,” said Hatoon
Ajwad Al-Fassi, a historian and columnist at Al Riyadh newspaper. “I
have to admit that it’s a bit surreal.”<br />
Women who already held valid driving licenses from authorized countries found the process of switching to a Saudi one simple.<br />
“I have never seen such ease in obtaining my Saudi license, the easiest
license I’ve ever gotten in my life,” said Noor Ashadawi, 36. a finance
manager in Alkhobar.<br />
“After going through Absher and making an appointment at the Traffic and
Road Safety Department website, we got an appointment for early Ramadan
in Alkhobar. It was canceled, but I was given a new one for the next
day.”<br />
“The process didn’t take more than 15 to 20 minutes maximum. The staff
inside were extremely friendly. I could say they were just as happy as
we were to be there.<br />
“It’s very exciting and reassuring to see that everyone is on board and
supporting us. I am, as are many, simply overjoyed, and can’t wait.”<br />
Al-Fassi said: “I felt strange going in the front door of the main
traffic department, one of the taboo places for women in Saudi Arabia.
But I was well received and guided to the licenses section immediately.”<br />
Norah Al-Jaser, an employee at a telecommunications company, has
registered in the driving school in Riyadh and hopes to obtain her
license soon. She has recently started attending theoretical driving
lessons. “Attending the classes has given me insight into the traffic
laws in place. I can see that unfortunately they’re not being
implemented by many drivers, but I plan on abiding by the laws.<br />
“I intend following the rules to the letter, or else what would be the
point of taking all the necessary theoretical and practical lessons?
The material is very thorough and I believe it’s the most ideal lessons
to ensure we succeed and drive safely on our roads.”<br />
Many women plan to hit the road on June 24 and enjoy their new travel
independence, without the need for a man to drive them. Others will wait
it out for a while, in case the first few weeks on the road are hectic
and chaotic.<br />
“After driving for 18 years abroad, I’m elated with the fact I had my
Saudi licence issued to me with tremendous ease,” said Najla Redwan, a
home business owner and examiner at the Jeddah Advanced Driving School.
“I am also an examiner at a school and I would like to drive in my city,
Jeddah, which I hope to do soon.<br />
“As an examiner, it’s my job to evaluate students and give them a
passing or failing grade before they head to the Traffic and Road Safety
Department. But I can see how driven and determined the students are to
commit to the material being taught at the school and how much of a
burden will be lifted once they get their chance at driving.<br />
“The class has people from all walks of life, but one thing’s for sure,
they’re here to learn and are determined to be the best they could be
for their sake and the sake of this given right.”<br />
And what will these women do on their first day at the wheel? “I’m
planning to drive with my husband and children around Riyadh,” Al-Fassi
said. “Celebrating will be the first aim, then I will see where I need
to go on that day.”<br />
“The gym and office, of course!” said Ashadawi, with a laugh. “I’m
finally going to drive myself to work instead of quarreling with my
sister over who takes the driver first. It’s going to be good and I
can’t wait.”</div>
<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-63727268375525767312018-06-19T08:49:00.001-07:002018-06-19T08:49:03.490-07:00Saudi Arabia's women drivers get ready to steer their livesJust five days ahead of women being able to drive in Saudi Arabia, Reuters published this story on June 18, 2018. A link to the story is <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-women-driving-aramco/saudi-arabias-women-drivers-get-ready-to-steer-their-lives-idUSKBN1JF0IY">here</a>, and the text is pasted below. Note: I am unable to reproduce the images from the story so you'll have to go to the link to see them.<br />
<br />
<br />
DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) - On June 24, when Saudi women are
allowed to drive for the first time, Amira Abdulgader wants to be
sitting at the wheel, the one in control, giving a ride to her mother
beside her. <br />
“Sitting
behind the wheel (means) that you are the one controlling the trip,”
said the architect, dressed in a black veil, who has just finished
learning to drive. “I would like to control every single detail of my
trip. I will be the one to decide when to go, what to do, and when I
will come back.” <br />
Abdulgader is one of about 200 women at the
state oil firm Aramco taking advantage of a company offer to teach
female employees and their families at its driving academy in Dhahran to
support the social revolution sweeping the kingdom. <br />
"We
need the car to do our daily activities. We are working, we are
mothers, we have a lot of social networking, we need to go out - so we
need transport," she said. "It will change my life." <br />
Women
make up about five percent of Aramco’s 66,000 staff, meaning that 3,000
more could eventually enroll in the driving school. <br />
Last
September, King Salman decreed an end to the world’s only ban on women
drivers, maintained for decades by Saudi Arabia’s deeply conservative
Muslim establishment. <br />
But it is his son, 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the face of the wider social revolution. <br />
Many
young Saudis regard his ascent to power as proof that their generation
is finally getting a share of control over a country whose patriarchal
traditions have for decades made power the province of old men. <br />
For Abdulgader, June 24 will be the day to celebrate that change, and there is only one person she wants to share it with. <br />
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“On
June 24, I would like to go to my mother’s house and take her for a
ride. This is my first plan actually, and I would like really to enjoy
it with my mother. Just me and my mother, without anyone else.” <br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-62253545057389624122018-06-14T08:25:00.001-07:002018-06-14T08:25:12.030-07:00Saudi women drivers to receive 24/7 roadside assistance from ChevroletOn June 14, 2018, the Saudi English language daily the Arab News reported this story. A link to the story is <a href="http://www.arabnews.com/node/1321541/saudi-arabia">here</a>, and the text is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
<div class="entry-content" data-io-article-url="http://www.arabnews.com/node/1321541/saudi-arabia">
JEDDAH: Chevrolet Middle East will help to put women in the driving seat
by offering its 24/7 roadside assistance service to all female drivers
in the Kingdom once the ban is lifted on June 24.<br />
The service will be available to all women regardless of the brand of car that they drive.<br />
Making this program available beyond the standard offer that comes with
its new cars for four years, Chevrolet aims to deliver the same level of
confidence to all women deciding to join the Kingdom’s driving
community.<br />
The roadside assistance program will start once the ban is lifted as part of the decree issued by King Salman.<br />
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<span class="chars-style">FAST</span>FACTS</h3>
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<div class="block-content">
<div class="item-area">
Chevrolet’s extended 24/7 roadside assistance will be available for
women drivers in KSA for eight weeks from June 24. The service will
include recovery after an accident, flat tire changes, courtesy
transportation to get drivers home, fuel deliveries of up to 20 liters,
recovery after being stuck in sand, emergency towing, and battery-jump
starts. <br />
</div>
</div>
</div>
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<br />
Molly Peck, chief marketing officer at General Motors Middle East, said:
“Safety is part of our very foundation at Chevrolet and we continuously
work to find ways to deliver on this promise to our customers, their
cars, and their security on the road, and KSA is no different. Engrained
in the Saudi community for more than 90 years now, we have been a
constant companion providing dependable means of transport to both men
and women, which is why extending our 24/7 roadside assistance program
to all women drivers in Saudi was a natural step for Chevrolet.”<br />
“With our #UpToMe campaign earlier this year, we greeted His Majesty’s
announcement with optimism to recognize Saudi women’s new-found
possibility to decide, emphasizing that from this June onwards, it’s up
to them,” she said. “I am extremely proud that with this move, women
exercising their choice to drive in the Kingdom can now have complete
peace of mind thanks to the response, security and convenience of our
24/7 roadside assistance program, regardless of what brand of car they
decide to drive.”<br />
The regional roadside assistance program already offers 24/7 emergency services to customers across the GCC, Jordan and Lebanon.<br />
In September 2017, a royal decree announced the end of a decades-long ban on women driving.<br />
Saudi women nationwide are counting down to June 24 to make history and
take the wheel. Some have already enrolled in driving lessons offered by
five Saudi universities, while others exchanged their existing
international license with a Saudi one.<br />
</div>
Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-61055817814969744632018-06-11T18:08:00.001-07:002018-06-11T18:08:45.802-07:00Exclusive: Friends to hit the road together as first western women to get their Saudi driving licencesStory by Ashleigh Stewart in The National on June 11, 2018, about the first European and the first American women to get drivers licenses in Saudi Arabia. You can link to the story <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/world/gcc/exclusive-friends-to-hit-the-road-together-as-first-western-women-to-get-their-saudi-driving-licences-1.738845">here,</a> and read the whole article below. Note: the linked story has some great images. I couldn't capture them all here.<br />
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<img alt="Laura Alho and Kelly Downing show off their new driving licences in Riyadh. Abdul Ahad for The National." class="img-responsive full-width" height="180" src="https://www.thenational.ae/image/policy:1.739055:1528726113/j.jpg?f=16x9&w=1200&$p$f$w=de55b97" width="320" />
<figcaption>Laura Alho and Kelly Downing show off their new driving licences in Riyadh. Abdul Ahad for The National.</figcaption>
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<div class="">
Sheer
determination: that's what friends Kelly Downing and Laura Alho believe
got them two of the first driving licences issued to foreign women by
Saudi Arabia.<br />
The pair had been keen to get their licences as soon as possible
after Saudi authorities announced the ban on female drivers was to be
lifted. However, they didn't quite expect to become the first westerners
to receive them.<br />
"It still feels very surreal. It's very exciting," Ms Alho told <em>The National</em>. "I have been waiting for this thing forever."<br />
She even owns a jacket with "June 24 2018" — the date she will
finally be able to use her new licence — and the corresponding date in
the Islamic calendar, embroidered on the back.<br />
The positive impact on Saudi women becoming drivers has been widely
acknowledged. But it is also going to influence their foreign
compatriots — those who may have already been drivers in their home
countries. <br />
Ms Alho is in her 11th year of living in the kingdom. She arrived as a
single Finnish woman to take up a nursing job. Now she is married with
two children, running a full-time Saudi-focused travel blog.<br />
Ms Downing moved from the suburbs of Washington DC to Riyadh in late 2012, after her Saudi husband finished his MBA. She met Ms <span>Alho</span>
through mutual friends months later, and the pair have been excitedly
watching the succession of reforms in the country ever since. <br />
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<br />
Driving licences were issued to 10 Saudi women last Monday, just
weeks before Saudi Arabia's ban on female drivers is to be lifted on
June 24.<br />
The Ministry of Information said another 2,000 licensed female drivers would join their ranks this week.<br />
"It's been a rapid rise of changes recently," Ms Downing said. "The ways things are currently, I'm very, very happy to be here.<br />
"Having the ability to choose is wonderful, I don't miss going to
movies or sports stadiums, but driving has been a big thing for me."<br />
The two friends made sure they were among the first to register when
the system for booking appointments opened on May 21. They opened their
Absher accounts on the Ministry of Interior website, submitted their
documents — including a medical report and translations of their foreign
licences — and managed to book the first spots on the first day expats
with foreign licences could have their paperwork converted.<br />
"As soon as I saw that the system was up for appointments, I woke my
husband before prayer and said I had to do it," Ms Downing said. <br />
"He knew from the beginning that I wanted to be the first, so he
helped me navigate the websites and get everything in order and
everything submitted correctly." <br />
However, a couple of days later their appointments were cancelled as the system was not ready.<br />
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<img alt="Laura Alho's jacket counts down to the day she'll be able to finally get behind the wheel. Abdul Ahad for The National." class="img-responsive full-width " height="180" src="https://www.thenational.ae/image/policy:1.738843:1528704656/fsf.jpg?f=16x9&q=1.0&w=1024&$p$f$q$w=694d9bb" width="320" />
<figcaption>
Laura Alho's jacket counts down to the day she'll be able to finally get behind the wheel. Abdul Ahad for The National.
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Last Tuesday, they both received messages at night saying their appointments had been scheduled for the next morning. <br />
Ms Downing was scheduled for 11.20am, soon after the traffic department opened, and Ms Alho was scheduled for soon afterwards.<br />
After having their thumbprints taken and licence information entered
into the system came a short driving test around a course in the car
park. It lasted only a couple of minutes, Ms Alho said. She had to
demonstrate a three-point turn and a parallel park as the driving
instructor watched from outside, following the car along the course.<br />
"Laura arrived moments after I was handed my licence and it was
incredible to hug her and share my happiness in that moment," Ms Downing
said.<br />
"It was so straightforward, it was amazing. I was prepared to wait
all day if I had to, but everyone was in a great mood. I keep saying
it's the best DMV experience I've ever had."<br />
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"The guy gave me the thumbs up, but then I went back inside he said
to my friend 'you passed' and to me, 'you didn't pass'," Ms Alho said. <br />
"And I said are you serious? He said 'no, of course you passed'."<br />
When they collected their new licences moments later, they asked
whether they had indeed managed to be the first expatriates to get their
licences. They were told they had, being the first American and first
European respectively, with several Saudi women and one Lebanese woman
just sneaking in before them that day.<br />
"It felt incredible, I was just so happy. It means so much for my
life here. I already have a say in my life because my husband gives me a
say, but now I'm independent and I can leave the house without worrying
about a driver," Ms Downing said.<br />
Ms Alho agreed. "I think it's a really great time to be here, it's
such a historic moment and we've been waiting for so long," she said.
"It's going to make such a huge difference in everyday life. You can do
spur-of-the-moment things, like going to restaurants or to the park. You
always had to plan those in advance before."<br />
And, come June 24, the duo have agreed that, whether it be a road
trip or simply taking in the sights of Riyadh, they'll be on the road
somewhere, together.<br />
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-50347898820075906802018-06-09T10:15:00.001-07:002018-06-09T10:15:27.704-07:00 Baha woman tells her 40-year story of drivingWomen in rural Saudi Arabia have been driving for years. This June 8, 2018 story from Okaz and Saudi Gazette was picked up by the western media. <a href="http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/536509/SAUDI-ARABIA/Baha-woman-tells-her-40-year-story-of-driving">Here</a> is a link to the story and the text (her picture too) are pasted in below. The story is by Ali Al Robai.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtiusSOZUIsnMvq3ByBH1LP_5yIDwRlwJI0NG2DRnWFZZaRrAvxIoWx1kjXOPVm1DS0daUqoEwNZjkmNywg91Zn2LOiz7B22OToxtXCi7iN-tBlHxG1ZSYBpgwFsgl3XXWyPDjuG2GxFY/s1600/Amsa+Hathel+Driver.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="749" data-original-width="1000" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtiusSOZUIsnMvq3ByBH1LP_5yIDwRlwJI0NG2DRnWFZZaRrAvxIoWx1kjXOPVm1DS0daUqoEwNZjkmNywg91Zn2LOiz7B22OToxtXCi7iN-tBlHxG1ZSYBpgwFsgl3XXWyPDjuG2GxFY/s320/Amsa+Hathel+Driver.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="child">Amsa Hathel, 60, was the first woman to sit behind the wheel in the southwestern Saudi province of Al-Baha 40 years ago</span></td></tr>
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<br />
AMSA Hathel was the first Saudi woman to drive in the southwestern Saudi
province of Al-Baha around 40 years ago and today she is the first
Saudi woman in the region to get a driver’s license.<br /><br />“I have been
driving for the last 40 years and never have I made an accident or
broken traffic rules. I always drive on the outskirts of the city near
where I live and never in my life have I been criticized by any of the
residents,” she said, adding that she learned how to drive by herself
and nobody taught her.<br /><br />Amsa, who is over 60 years old now, is
happy that women in the Kingdom will finally be able to drive and enjoy
one of their basic rights granted to them by the country's law.<br /><br />Amsa
said when she was young, she used to ride with her uncle and run
errands. She picked up driving skills from him and learned to fix the
car if it broke down. The harsh life of the village and her mother’s
illness encouraged her to learn driving because she had to drive her
mother to the hospital on a monthly basis.<br /><br />She would use unpaved roads to avoid being spotted by traffic officers. Her father died long time ago leaving them alone.<br /><br />She
told her future husband that she would only marry him if he allowed her
how to drive. And he did, but her husband had to move to Riyadh later,
leaving her on her own. But Amsa managed to fend for herself by driving
on a daily basis.<br /><br />“I always drive carefully and never engage in any behavior that might risk road safety,” she said.<br />
<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-12897373362480179802018-06-06T18:12:00.003-07:002018-06-06T18:12:45.211-07:00Saudis celebrate issuance of driving licenses to women<strong></strong><br />
On June 5, 2018, the Saudi Gazette reports reactions to the first Saudi women being granted drivers licenses. A link to the story is <a href="http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/536372/SAUDI-ARABIA/Saudis-celebrate-issuance-of-driving-licenses-to-women">here</a> and the text is pasted below.<br />
<strong><br />JEDDAH </strong>— Many Saudis celebrated the historic day when Saudi Arabia began issuing its first driving licenses to women on Monday.<br /><br />“Ten
Saudi women made history on Monday when they were issued driving
licenses,” said the Information Ministry’s Center for International
Communication (CIC).<br /><br />“Expectations are that next week an additional 2,000 women will join the ranks of licensed drivers in the Kingdom.”<br /><br />The
video of the first Saudi woman Ahlam Al-Thenayan receiving her driving
license at the General Directorate of Traffic went viral on social
media.<br /><br />Esraa Al-Batti expressed joy on Twitter and said it was “an indescribable feeling of happiness.”<br /><br />Hanadi
Alsunaid said she’s “looking forward to drive in her own country and go
to work by herself, thanking the leadership for continuously empowering
women.”<br /><br />Wafa Mohammed Humaid enthusiastically shared her new ID
calling it a historic day and is waiting for the next historic moment
when women start to drive in the Kingdom.<br /><br />Rema Jawdat said it was an exceptional day for her receiving her driving license and posted, “Finally, it’s a dream come true.”<br /><br />Commenting
on the number one trending news on Twitter, media personality and
writer Nawal Al-Jabr told Saudi Gazette that she plans to enroll in a
driving school and learn how to drive.<br /><br />“The royal decree allowing
women to drive aims at reinforcing the Saudi woman’s status and
position in society and enabling her to be an independent and productive
citizen enjoying all her rights,” said Al-Jabr, a full-time working
manager who lives with her husband and son.<br /><br />Fatima Al-Zahrani, a
medical student, said, “I’ve been driving for almost eight years now in
Canada or whenever I travel to other countries and I like the
independence and the ability to explore. Although there are some
benefits to having a driver especially after an overnight shift, not
everyone can afford to have a driver.”<br /><br />Writer and analyst Dr.
Abdulmajeed Al-Jallal said, “Finally, Saudi women’s dreams have come
true and turned into a wonderful reality during the era of King Salman. I
congratulate the women and the future looks bright for them!”<br /><br />In
a poll of some 350 respondents about their plans for driving, around 37
percent said they are eager to join a driving school to learn driving
while others said they either have an international driving license or
don’t wish to drive.<br /><br />The Ministry of Interior has created a
specific website (www.sdlp.sa) for Saudis and expats to register for the
issuance and replacement of licenses.<br /><br />“Dear sister, you need to
register in Abshir to benefit from all services,” says the portal asking
users to apply online through Abhsir for the replacement or issuance of
licenses.Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-64935744631790153932018-06-05T19:08:00.003-07:002018-06-05T19:08:31.899-07:00Saudi Arabia issues first driving licences to womenOn June 5, 2018, the BBC reports about the first ten licenses being granted to Saudi women who had international drivers licenses and who passed a driving test. A link to the story is <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-44367981">here,</a> and the text is pasted in below.<br />
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Ten women swapped their foreign licences for Saudi ones on Monday in cities across the country.<br />
However, women's rights activists have complained of a new crackdown - with several being arrested.<br />
A flood of applications is now expected in the run-up to 24 June when the ban will end.<br />
Saudi
Arabia's laws require women to seek male permission for various
decisions and actions, and that extends to the ban on women driving.<br />
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<figcaption class="media-with-caption__caption"><span class="off-screen">Media caption</span>Saudi woman receives driving licence as the kingdom prepares to end its ban</figcaption>
</figure>Previously, that meant that families had to hire private drivers to transport female relatives.<br />
But
rights groups in the kingdom have campaigned for years to allow women
to drive, and some women have been imprisoned for defying the rule.<br />
Several activists, men and women, were arrested last month, accused of being "traitors" and working with foreign powers.<br />
Loujain al-Hathloul, a well-known figure in the campaign for women's driving rights, was believed to be one of those held.<br />
Rights
group Amnesty International described the arrests as "blatant
intimidation tactics". On Sunday, Saudi prosecutors said 17 people in
total had been detained, but said eight had been released "temporarily".<br />
Ms Hathloul has been detained previously, including once in 2014 when <a class="story-body__link" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-30602155">she attempted to drive across the border from the United Arab Emirates</a>. She served 73 days at a juvenile detention centre as a result, and documented many of her experiences on Twitter.<br />
<h2 class="story-body__crosshead">
'A dream come true'</h2>
"Expectations
are that next week an additional 2,000 women will join the ranks of
licensed drivers in the kingdom," a statement from the Saudi information
ministry said.<br />
It added that the 10 women who had collected their new Saudi licences had "made history".<br />
"It's
a dream come true that I am about to drive in the kingdom," Rema
Jawdat, who received a licence, was quoted as saying by the ministry.<br />
"Driving to me represents having a choice - the choice of independent movement. Now we have that option."<br />
The lifting of the driving ban was announced last September and
is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's programme to modernise
some aspects of Saudi society.<br />
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<span class="story-image-copyright">EVN</span>
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<span class="off-screen">Image caption</span>
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A woman buckles her seatbelt before doing a driving test
</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>He has spearheaded the Vision 2030 programme to diversify the economy away from oil and open up Saudi society.<br />
But there are still limits on what Saudi women can do.<br />
Saudi law enforces a strict form of Sunni Islam known as Wahhabism and is known for its gender segregation rules.<br />
Women
have to adhere to strict dress codes, must not associate with unrelated
men, and if they want to travel, work or access healthcare they must be
accompanied by - or receive written permission from - a male guardian.<br />
<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-33951314806602313912018-06-04T18:16:00.002-07:002018-06-04T18:16:14.719-07:00WATCH: First female driving license being issued in Saudi Arabia Today, June 4, 2018, is another historic day - one of many for Saudi women.<br />
Al-Arabiyya.net reports on the video of the first Saudi woman to receive a driving license.<br />
A link to the story is<a href="https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/06/04/WATCH-First-female-driving-license-being-issued-in-Saudi-Arabia-.html"> here,</a> and the story is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
storic moment unfolded in Saudi Arabia on Monday when, after months
of preparations, the first driving license was issued to a woman. <br />
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
A
video, that quickly went viral, showed the woman being handed over the
driving license by the officials. “Thousands of congratulations to the
daughters of the homeland, being issued the first license in Saudi
Arabia,” the tweet read.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Here is a link to the tweet: </div>
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<a href="https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/1003626848180457472">https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/1003626848180457472</a></div>
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Earlier last month, the date of the issuing of
licenses was announced. Saudi women will be allowed to start driving in
the kingdom from June 24, the General Department of Traffic Director
General Mohammed al-Bassami had then said.</div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
“All
the requirements for women in the kingdom to start driving have been
established,” Bassami was quoted as saying in a statement released by
the government on May 8.<br /> <br /> In September 2017, a royal decree
announced the end of a decades-long ban on women driving — the only one
of its kind in the world.</div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
<em><strong>Women from US, Canada, Wales to train female driving instructors in Saudi Arabia</strong></em></div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
Women 18 years of age and older will be allowed to apply for a driver's license, Bassami said.</div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
Driving schools for women have been set up across five cities in the <a href="https://english.alarabiya.net/en/variety/2018/04/27/Saudi-Women-Choices-to-learning-how-to-be-behind-the-wheel.html">kingdom</a>, and teachers will include Saudi women who obtained their licenses abroad.</div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
Women
with foreign driving licenses will be able to apply for a local one
through a separate process, which will also assess their driving skills.</div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
<em><strong>ALSO: Saudi women learn road safety measures ahead of driving license procedures</strong></em></div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
"It is no secret that many women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia hold driving licenses from abroad," the statement added.<br /> Saudi women have previously petitioned the government for the lifting of the ban, and even taken to the wheel in protest.</div>
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Crown
Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, 32, is seen as the force behind the lifting
of the ban, part of a series of reforms being pushed.</div>
<div class="hide-in-mobile">
His
Vision 2030 reform plan for a post-oil era seeks to elevate women to
nearly one-third of the workforce, up from about 22 per cent now.</div>
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The decision to allow women to drive could give them the much-needed mobility to join the workforce.</div>
<div class="article-content-bottom-info">
Last Update: Monday, 4 June 2018 KSA 17:13 - GMT 14:13
</div>
<br />
<br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-74625008776769078262018-05-31T17:53:00.002-07:002018-05-31T17:53:59.335-07:00Vogue Arabia Puts Princess in Driver’s Seat, With Not a Word About Jailed ActivistsLikely a result of bad timing (magazines printing schedules require lead time), the Vogue Arabia cover story celebrating Saudi women hit a sour note with some observers. On May 31, 2018, Megan Specia of the New York Times reported. A link to the story is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/31/world/middleeast/vogue-arabia-saudi-cover.html">here,</a> and it's pasted in below.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbF-Zhmik6hDVPjHZ-bnYzjY5OSzmZHKvECAaUnPdSQXx9gQgJPRhyphenhyphenx2XgAKlhH6su4A-c_0PpPpAphAPuafute95bG1DwF_H8m5IoGesS0SasgOgcnoS-J5H0ybcdbAEZCYBOg9CON8/s1600/Vogue+arabia+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1244" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbF-Zhmik6hDVPjHZ-bnYzjY5OSzmZHKvECAaUnPdSQXx9gQgJPRhyphenhyphenx2XgAKlhH6su4A-c_0PpPpAphAPuafute95bG1DwF_H8m5IoGesS0SasgOgcnoS-J5H0ybcdbAEZCYBOg9CON8/s320/Vogue+arabia+cover.jpg" width="248" /></a></div>
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<br />
<br />
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<div class="css-87430e emamhsk2">
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“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is putting women in the driving seat — and so are we.”</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
That’s how Vogue Arabia <a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://twitter.com/VogueArabia/status/1001721674650259456" target="_blank" title="">described</a> its June cover, which features a glamorous woman behind the wheel of a classic car, parked in the desert.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
But the problem for some has been <em class="css-2fg4z9 ehxkw330">which</em>
woman the magazine decided to put in the drivers seat in an issue that
“celebrates the women of the kingdom and their wide-reaching
achievements,” but makes no mention of the country’s most recent
crackdown on women’s rights activists.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
Princess
Hayfa bint Abdullah al-Saud — one of the late King Abdullah’s 20
daughters — sits behind the wheel, even as some prominent female
activists who fought for the right for Saudi women to drive remain <a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/23/world/middleeast/saudi-women-drivers-arrests.html" target="_blank" title="">locked behind bars.</a></div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
In
mid-May, at least 11 activists were arrested and labeled “traitors” by
the Saudi government, a move that surprised many as the country is just
weeks away from allowing women to drive. Some of the activists have been
released, but others remain detained.</div>
<div class="css-87430e emamhsk2">
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, announced in September 2017 that the notoriously conservative nation was<a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/26/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-women-drive.html" target="_blank" title=""> lifting the ban on female drivers</a>
as part of a reform effort. Saudi women have long been restricted in
most aspects of public life, from what they can wear to where they can
travel, in part because of the country’s strict guardianship laws.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
On
June 24, Saudi women will legally be able to drive for the first time.
But critics say the Vogue coverage fails to highlight some Saudi women
whose activism helped draw international attention to the issue, and who
now face persecution.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
The issue does feature <a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/16/world/middleeast/saudi-womens-rights.html" target="_blank" title="">Manal al-Sharif</a>,
one of the Saudi activists who took part in the 2011 protests against
the restrictions and was later arrested for the action, but does not
mention the latest arrests.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
Twitter users were swift in their reaction, calling out Vogue Arabia for what some saw as an oversight.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
Others photoshopped faces of two detained women’s rights activists,
Aziza al-Yousef and Loujain Hathloul, over the face of Princess Hayfa.
Both women are still being held by Saudi authorities, <a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/05/30/saudi-arabia-2-new-arrests-activists" target="_blank" title="">according to Human Rights Watch. </a></div>
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<br /></div>
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Others
voiced support for Vogue Arabia, including Ms. Sharif, the activist
featured in it. She said she was happy that her “country women are being
celebrated” — but also urged readers not to forget the detained
activists.</div>
</div>
<aside class="css-14jsv4e emamhsk1"><div class="css-87430e emamhsk2">
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
Vogue Arabia launched <a class="css-1g7m0tk" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/03/fashion/islamic-fashion-vogue-arabia.html" target="_blank" title="">in November 2016</a>, with a staff of 25 and a headquarters in Dubai.</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
One
of a series of pushes into new and potentially lucrative foreign
markets by the magazine publisher Condé Nast, the new title was pitched
as a digital-first, bilingual effort to attract the hearts, minds and
money of women in the 22 countries of the Arab League. Saudi Arabia
makes up most of the readership, Vogue Arabia said.</div>
</div>
</aside></div>
</div>
<div class="css-c65vdd e2kc3sl0">
<br /></div>
</div>
<br /><br />Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-49120945388313149072018-05-27T17:11:00.002-07:002018-05-27T17:11:41.437-07:00Traffic chief refutes report on license swap This May 28, 2018 story ran in the English language daily, the Saudi Gazette. A link to the story can be found <a href="http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/535650/SAUDI-ARABIA/Traffic-chief-refutes-report-on-license-swap">here,</a> and the text is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
<b>RIYADH</b> — Director General of Traffic Department Maj.
Gen. Muhammad Al-Bassami has refuted contents of a statement published
in one of the electronic newspapers on Thursday about procedures for
swapping foreign licenses held by women drivers. The statement was
attributed to a Traffic Department source.<br />
<br />
Maj. Gen. Al-Bassami
said the tests for women holding foreign driving licenses and replacing
foreign driving licenses with Saudi ones would begin only when
preparations are complete.<br />
<br />
The report claimed that foreign women
visiting the Kingdom would be allowed to drive for a year if they have
international driving licenses. It said women visitors will also be
allowed to drive if the driving licenses they hold are recognized by the
Traffic Department. They can drive for a year or until the expiration
of their driving licenses, whichever comes first.<br />
<br />
The report said
the Traffic Department has started exchanging international driving
licenses held by women with Saudi licenses and has set up a number of
centers in various parts of the Kingdom for the purpose.<br />
<br />
While
refuting the claims published by the newspaper, Maj. Gen. Al-Bassami
stressed the importance of sourcing information regarding public affairs
to official spokesmen of the concerned departments.<br />
<br />
All
procedures for implementing the royal order on implementing traffic
regulations and their executive bylaws on both male and female drivers
have been made clear earlier, Al-Bassami said in a statement carried by
the Saudi Press Agency on Friday. — SG/SPA<br />
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Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-76475465452188098112018-05-26T19:06:00.002-07:002018-05-26T19:06:43.996-07:00Women driving: The countdown begins The Saudi English language daily the Saudi Gazette reports on May 27, 2018 that women are gearing up to get their driving licenses. A link to the story is <a href="http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/535651/SAUDI-ARABIA/Women-driving-The-countdown-begins">here,</a> and the text is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
<b><br />JEDDAH </b>– The countdown for women in Saudi Arabia to start driving has begun.<br />
<br />
Saudi
authorities are scheduled to lift a decades-old ban on women driving in
the country as of June 24. As the date is drawing near, centers
training women how to drive in Jeddah and other cities have been
struggling to cope with the big turnout of prospective female drivers
who have been enthusiastically responding to the historic decision by
the Kingdom.<br />
<br />
While Saudi women are making preparations to enter a
hitherto male domain, training centers have started intensive programs
to instruct them on traffic regulations and driving skills so that they
qualify for a Saudi driving license, Al-Hayat Arabic newspaper said in a
report on Thursday.<br />
<br />
Deputy President of King Abdulaziz
University (KAU) for Projects and Chairman of the Board of Directors of
the Saudi Engineers Council Dr. Abdullah Al-Ghamdi said: “The total
number of female applicants for obtaining driving licenses has reached
7,822 as of now. Of them, 261 have paid the fees and are given the dates
to begin their training.”<br />
<br />
The registration is open for all women who fulfill the required conditions announced by the Traffic Department.<br />
<br />
The
Jeddah Driving School for Women has a total of 125 trainers. The woman
trainee can choose the time that suits her from the given training
schedule, Al-Ghamdi said.<br />
<br />
In late 2017, an agreement was signed
between KAU and the Traffic Department to set up the first women’s
driving school in Jeddah governorate. The school will award recognized
driving certificates. At that time, the Traffic Department had made it
clear that there would be no difference between the number plates of
cars driven men and women. All cars will be subject to the number plate
regulations in force at present, according to Article 7 of the Traffic
Regulations.<br />
<br />
The conditions for the photo to be used for a
woman’s driving license are the same as those for male drivers. The
royal decision stipulates implementation of the rules for Traffic
Regulations and their executive bylaws on both male and female drivers
alike.<br />
<br />
Licenses were granted to five driving schools exclusively
for women in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Madinah and Tabuk. At present,
applications for opening other driving schools are being studied in
different Saudi cities and governorates.<br />
<br />
Preparations are under
way to issue driving licenses to women who complete their training
programs and to replace international and foreign licenses held by
female drivers, provided these licenses are recognized by Saudi Arabia,
as stipulated by the Traffic Regulations and their executive bylaws.<br />
<br />
All licensed women’s driving schools have seen huge turnouts of women keen to learn how to drive.<br />
<br />
The
Jeddah Driving School for Women at KAU has completed final preparations
to begin training. The driving school has set up a website that
provides guidance to Saudi women on licenses; how to renew or replace
them, a general idea on the Traffic Regulations and basic driving
skills.<br />
<br />
The school confirmed that it has not set the fees for
practical training, despite accepting the applications from the
prospective trainees. What it provides now is electronic training only,
which includes theoretical aspects of training, giving the trainee a
general idea on the driving licenses, their types and the traffic
violations that will lead to the withdrawal of the driving license. It
also deals with getting women ready to drive in various conditions, and
how to tackle hazards by following the steps for safe driving.<br />
<br />
The
school said in order for a female trainee to obtain a driving license,
she must undergo a medical check-up at a recognized medical center,
attend the lectures on theoretical aspects of driving and attend written
and practical exams. She must obtain a document certifying that she has
passed the examination. She will then take this document to the Traffic
Department to be issued a driving license.<br />
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Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-37466474634624678862018-05-22T16:44:00.004-07:002018-05-22T16:44:41.213-07:00A closer look at 10 arrested Saudi women's rights activistsAva Batrawy reports for the Associated Press on May 22, 2018. A link to the story is <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/closer-10-arrested-saudi-womens-rights-activists-55351081">here</a> and the text is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Saudi Arabia's arrest of 10 women's rights advocates just weeks before
the kingdom is set to lift the world's only ban on women driving is seen
as the culmination of a steady crackdown on anyone perceived as a
potential critic of the government.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The group includes women ranging in age from their 20s to their 70s who
have pushed to lift the ban on women driving and for equal rights, as
well as men who have supported them. State-linked media and rights
advocates have circulated the names of those detained.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Here's a look at who the detained activists are and how they became icons of the women's rights movement in Saudi Arabia:<br />
</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
LOUJAIN AL-HATHLOUL</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The activist in her late 20s is among the most outspoken women's rights
activists in the kingdom. She was detained for more than 70 days after
she attempted to livestream herself driving from neighboring United Arab Emirates
to Saudi Arabia in 2014. She was detained by Saudi authorities as she
attempted to cross the border and referred to an anti-terrorism court on
charges of criticizing the government online. She was later released
without trial. Activists say al-Hathloul was arrested again in June of
last year in connection with her advocacy.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Activists say al-Hathloul was then stopped by authorities in Abu Dhabi,
where she was residing, and transferred to Saudi Arabia earlier this
year where she's been under a travel ban since March.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Al-Hathloul attended a humanitarian summit in Canada in 2016, where she
was photographed in Vanity Fair magazine with former American actress
Meghan Markle, who wed Prince Harry over the weekend.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
AZIZA AL-YOUSEF</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
A retired professor at King Saud University, al-Yousef is a mother of
five and a grandmother of eight. Although she hails from a conservative
tribe with links to the royal family, she is among the most prominent
women's rights activists in Saudi Arabia. In 2016, she delivered a
petition signed by thousands to the royal court calling for an end to
guardianship laws that give male relatives final say over a woman's
ability to marry or travel abroad.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
She has worked for years assisting women fleeing abusive marriages and
homes. She also defied the kingdom's ban on women driving on several
occasions.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
"This is a good step forward for women's rights," al-Yousef told The
Associated Press last year when the kingdom announced that women would
be allowed to drive. However, she cautioned it was just "the first step
in a lot of rights we are waiting for."</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
EMAN AL-NAFJAN</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
An assistant professor of linguistics and mother of four, including a
toddler, al-Nafjan runs one of the first English blogs on Saudi Arabia.
She describes the "Saudiwoman" blog as an effort to counter the many
non-Saudis and non-Arabs "out there giving 'expert' opinions on life and
culture" in the kingdom.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Al-Nafjan has protested the driving ban, including publicly driving in
the capital, Riyadh, in 2013 as part of a campaign launched by women's
rights activists. She has worked closely with al-Yousef and other
women's rights activists to help domestic abuse victims and bring
attention to repressive guardianship laws.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
In recent years, she has been cautious about voicing her opinion on
Twitter out of concern over a growing crackdown on rights advocates. She
was among dozens of women who were warned by the royal court last year
to stop speaking with the press or voicing opinions online.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
MADEHA AL-AJROUSH</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
A psychotherapist in her mid-60s, al-Ajroush runs a private therapy
practice in the capital, Riyadh, which specializes in gender
orientation, according to activists. She helped initiate a nationwide
program in Saudi Arabia to provide support for domestic abuse victims
and train police and courts on how to receive and treat such victims.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
A longtime advocate of women's rights, she took part in the kingdom's
first driving protest in 1990 and subsequent campaigns to end the ban on
women driving. She has faced years of harassment by authorities,
including house raids, travel bans and being fired from her job.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Last year, al-Ajroush told the AP after women were promised the right to
drive: "I had no idea it was going to take like 27 years, but anyway,
we need to celebrate."</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
AISHA AL-MANA</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Like al-Ajroush, the 70-year-old al-Mana took part in the kingdom's
first driving protest in 1990, in which 47 women were arrested. She also
took part in driving protests in 2011 and 2013.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
She is director of Al-Mana General Hospitals and the Mohammad Al-Mana
College of Health Sciences. She completed her bachelor's and master's
degrees in the U.S. in sociology. In 1980, she became one of the first
Saudi women to obtain a Ph.D., also in the U.S. from the University of
Colorado.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
In 2016, she established a scholarship program for Saudi women to study
global health at her alma mater. She also established a $2 million
endowment to support Saudi and Arab women at the American University of
Beirut who are studying advanced degrees in nursing and health sciences.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Activists say she suffered a stroke last year and are concerned for her health while in detention.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
IBRAHIM AL-MUDAIMIGH</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Al-Mudaimigh is a lawyer who defended al-Hathloul during her detention
in 2015 for attempting to cross the UAE-Saudi border while driving. He
has supported human rights defenders in court and offered legal
representation to activists in the kingdom.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
He's also represented Waleed Abulkhair, a human rights lawyer now
serving a 15-year sentence who'd represented Raif Badawi, a blogger who
was publicly flogged in 2015 and is serving 10 years in prison.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Activists say al-Mudaimigh, who ran his own practice, was one of the few
lawyers in Saudi Arabia willing to defend human rights activists since
others have either fled or been detained.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
HESSAH AL-SHEIKH</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
A longtime women's rights activist who took part in the kingdom's first
driving protest in 1990, al-Sheikh is a professor at King Saud
University and volunteers with Saudi-based charities focusing on women
and children.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
She hails from the prominent Al Sheikh family who are descendants of
Sheikh Mohammed Ibn Abdul-Wahhab. His ultraconservative teachings of
Islam in the 18th century are widely referred to as "Wahhabism" in his
name.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
She co-authored a 100-page study that was published this year by the
Center for Women's Global Leadership in partnership with Rutgers
University, examining Saudi women's advocacy since 1990. The study says
questions remain over whether new policies will lead to real changes in
how women's lives are governed in Saudi Arabia.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The study notes that international media exposure "can be a protective
shield against severe punishment for active engagement in women's
causes."</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
WALAA AL-SHUBBAR</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Activists say al-Shubbar, in her late 20s, works as a nurse in the
capital, Riyadh. She has been active in calling for an end to
guardianship rules and appeared on Arabic news programs to discuss
issues of patriarchy in the kingdom.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
In an interview previously aired on France24, al-Shubbar is quoted as
saying that in Saudi society "men are viewed as superior to women, and
men are seen as capable of achieving anything and a woman is not."</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
MOHAMMED AL-RABAE</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Al-Rabea is a writer and an activist in his 20s who has organized
discussion groups about philosophy and social issues. He worked with
some of the activists to push for greater women's rights.</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
ABDULAZIZ AL-MESHAAL</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
The Gulf Center for Human Rights describes al-Meshaal as a businessman
and philanthropist who was listed as a board member in an application by
activists to the government to establish a non-governmental
organization called "Amina" to protect women survivors of <a class="r_lapi" href="https://abcnews.go.com/topics/news/issues/domestic-violence.htm">domestic violence</a>.</div>
Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-40736205679850386262018-05-20T09:25:00.003-07:002018-05-20T09:25:52.478-07:00Women from the village waiting for the 10th of Shawwal On May 19, 2018, the Saudi English language daily, the Saudi Gazette reported on village women in Saudi Arabia's southwestern region. You can link to the story <a href="http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/535199/SAUDI-ARABIA/Women-from-the-village-waiting-for-the-10th-of-Shawwal">here,</a> and it's pasted in below. Rural women have learned to drive over the decades, but are glad to have it become officially legal. The date, the 10th of Shawwal, is June 24, 2018.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ijUGEnCEmPumWiOiOht-6U53m79ClvJk9Kr-xpVd067TZUtIYxmAXFoeFVYFaeTT7aFfYmaJYl9GDqpEN9pbX_aQrR4i6n-A6g8UHMgyVJythHU04TgeKfn87-AZ6jAm8GirSzVi2ds/s1600/older+saudi+woman+driving+southwest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="563" data-original-width="1000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ijUGEnCEmPumWiOiOht-6U53m79ClvJk9Kr-xpVd067TZUtIYxmAXFoeFVYFaeTT7aFfYmaJYl9GDqpEN9pbX_aQrR4i6n-A6g8UHMgyVJythHU04TgeKfn87-AZ6jAm8GirSzVi2ds/s320/older+saudi+woman+driving+southwest.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A number of women from the southern part of Saudi Arabia are waiting for
the 10th of Shawwal when women will be allowed to drive.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<b>NAJRAN</b> — A number of women from the
southern part of Saudi Arabia told Okaz that they are waiting for the
10th of the month of Shawwal when women will be allowed to drive.<br />
<br />
That
date will mark the end of the era of driving in fear and secrecy in
rural areas and far away from the road. This time, they will be driving
in city roads without any fear.<br />
<br />
They told Okaz that they would be
adhering to the rules and regulations of the road, and they even
consider themselves strict followers of the rules than men.<br />
<br />
A
Saudi women, who did not mention her name, said that she has been
driving from when she was 16 years old, but she only sat behind the
wheel if the car was far away from the city and away from police eyes.
When she became old, she was the only one who was able to drive.<br />
<br />
She
was transporting her parents to the hospital and health centers and to
the social insurance department. Her younger children are also dependent
on her to driverthem to school every day.<br />
<br />
She said, “I am proud
that I am driving the car and carrying out my duty toward my family. I
feel proud when I am driving and serving my parents and helping my
children to get their education.”<br />
<br />
Another old woman who has been
driving in a village south of Saudi Arabia, said, “Every time the
traffic department stops me on the road I tell them who is going to
transport my parents to the hospital or take me to the shopping center
to buy groceries? Who is going to take care of our daily needs?”<br />
<br />
She
said that driving the car was a dream for women living in villages
until the decision by the Custodian of the Two Holy mosques came. She
said now women can take care of their daily needs.<br />
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Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-45955244446691114652018-05-20T09:19:00.004-07:002018-05-20T09:19:36.261-07:00Saudi Arabia women's driving activists 'targeted in smear campaign'The BBC reports on a smear campaign against Saudi women driving activists who have been detained. Manal al-Sharif is interviewed in the story. Link to it <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-44187840">here,</a> and the story is pasted in below.<br />
<br />
<div class="story-body__introduction">
The woman behind the movement to
allow women to drive in Saudi Arabia says she and her fellow activists
in the kingdom are being targeted in a smear campaign.</div>
Saudi native Manal al-Sharif said she has been receiving death threats online ahead of the ban's removal.<br />
She was speaking after several activists in the kingdom were arrested.<br />
They
have been accused of being "traitors" and working with foreign powers -
charges Amnesty International called "blatant intimidation tactics".<br />
The
group is accused of "contact with foreign entities with the aim of
undermining the country's stability and social fabric", the human rights
group said.<br />
Manal al-Sharif, who is currently living in
Australia, said the "organised defamation campaign" targeting the
activists was similar to the campaign that targeted the movement in
2011.<br />as similar to the campaign that targeted the movement in 2011.<br />
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The ban is due to be lifted on 24 June.<br />
<h3 class="story-body__crosshead">
'Crackdown on dissent'</h3>
Seven
people - men and women - were arrested earlier this week. They are
believed to include Loujain al-Hathloul, a well-known figure in the
campaign for women's driving rights.<br />
Ms Hathloul has been detained previously, including once in 2014 when she attempted to drive across the border from the United Arab Emirates. She served 73 days at a juvenile detention centre as a result, and documented many of her experiences on Twitter.<br />
<figure class="media-landscape has-caption full-width">
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</span></figure><figure class="media-landscape has-caption full-width"><span class="image-and-copyright-container">
<span class="off-screen">Image copyright</span>
<span class="story-image-copyright">Jason Schmidt</span>
</span>
<figcaption class="media-caption">
<span class="off-screen">Image caption</span>
<span class="media-caption__text">
Loujain al-Hathloul (far right) attended the One
Young World Summit along with Prince Harry's now-wife Meghan Markle,
Pakistani author Fatima Bhutto and former Irish President Mary Robinson
(C) in 2016
</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>Amnesty said it believes that women's rights
activists Eman al-Nafjan, Aziz al-Yousef, Dr Aisha al-Manea, Dr Ibrahim
al-Modeimigh, and Mohammad al-Rabea have also been arrested.<br />
Saudi
Arabia's laws require women to seek male permission for various
decisions and actions, and that extends to the ban on women driving.<br />
Previously, that meant that families had to hire private drivers to transport female relatives.<br />
<ul class="story-body__unordered-list">
<li class="story-body__list-item"><a class="story-body__link" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-44138344">Saudi women troll 'You won't drive' trend</a></li>
<li class="story-body__list-item"><a class="story-body__link" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-middle-east-44133403/saudi-women-prepare-to-hit-the-road">Watch: Saudi women prepare to hit the road</a></li>
</ul>
Influential Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman has widely been
credited with a range of social reforms in the traditionally
conservative kingdom.<br />
He was, however, singled out for criticism in a statement from Amnesty.<br />
"Crown
Prince Mohammad Bin Salman has presented himself as a 'reformer', but
such promises fall flat amid the intensifying crackdown on dissenting
voices in the kingdom," it said.<br />
"His pledges amount to very
little if those who fought for the right to drive are now all behind
bars for peacefully campaigning for freedom of movement and equality."Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-66571685955573843732018-05-19T05:18:00.000-07:002018-05-19T06:09:35.198-07:00Saudi Arabia detains women's rights activists weeks before female driving ban comes to an end On May 18, 2018 the Washington Post broke the story that activists supporting women driving in Saudi Arabia had been detained. This story from the UK's Telegraph has now published it to. A link to the story is <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/05/18/saudi-arabia-detains-womens-rights-activists-weeks-female-driving/">here</a> and the text is pasted below. <br />
<br />
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<span class="byline__author-name" content="Raf Sanchez" itemprop="name">By Raf Sanchez
</span>
</div>
<span class="article-date component ">
<span class="component-content">
<time class="article-date-published" datetime="2018-05-18T15:58+0100" itemprop="datePublished">18 May 2018 • 3:58pm</time>
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<span class="m_first-letter m_first-letter--flagged">S</span>audi Arabia has detained several prominent female activists who campaigned for women’s right to drive, taking them into custody just weeks before the decades-long driving ban finally comes to an end.<br />
Human rights groups said Loujain al-Hathloul, Eman al-Nafjan and
Aziza al-Yousef - three of the most prominent voices demanding women be
free to drive - were all detained on Thursday. Two male advocates for
women’s rights were also detained, activists said.<br />
<div data-mediaconductor-processed="true">
The activists were detained as
Saudi Arabia prepares for the driving ban to come to an end on June 24.
The policy shift has become a symbol of the modernising drive of Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and the Saudi government is eager for
positive media coverage of the move. </div>
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The detentions appear to be an effort by Saudi authorities to make
sure they do not have to share credit for the end of the driving ban
with activists who spent years campaigning for it.<br />
They may also be concerned that the women right’s campaigners would
use the end of the driving to call for further advances in women’s
freedom - like an end to the male guardianship system that severely
limits Saudi women’s ability to travel independently.</div>
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<span class="article-body-image-caption" itemprop="caption">A woman in a black niqab drives in Saudi Arabia</span>
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<span class="m_first-letter m_first-letter--flagged">N</span>either
Ms Narfjan nor Ms Hathloul could be reached for comment. Ms Hathloul
told The Telegraph earlier this year that shortly before Saudi
authorities announced the end of the driving ban in September she was
warned not to speak publicly about it.</div>
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<span class="m_first-letter m_first-letter--flagged">I</span>nstead, she Tweeted just the word “Alhamdulillah” in Arabic, or “Praise be to God”.<br />
“Shutting up or submitting to these threats is unacceptable to me, it
is not an option to stay quiet any more,” she said, breaking her
silence in January. “We have been quiet for too long.”<br />
Ms Hathloul had been detained twice before for her activism. She and
other Saudi women sometimes filmed themselves driving in defiance of the
ban and published the videos online, to the fury of the government.<br />
Ms Hathloul was voted the third-most powerful Arab woman by Forbes in
2015, but was forced to quit her job that same year because of driving
restrictions. Her husband, a well-known Saudi comedian who acts as her
male guardian, was often out of the country meaning she had to pay for
taxis to and from work.</div>
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<span class="article-body-image-caption" itemprop="caption">Saudi women tour a car showroom for women on January 11, 2018, in the Saudi Red Sea port city of Jeddah.</span>
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“The Uber and Careem applications would take more than 30 per cent of
my salary. For instance I would pay 2,000-3,000 riyals (£375-560) a
month to get around, while my salary was 6,000 riyals,” she said. “At
the end of the month I basically had nothing.”<br />
<span class="m_first-letter">I</span>t was not clear if she or any or
any of the other activists had been charged with a crime. Prisoners of
Conscience, a human rights group, said that two men - Mohammed al-Rabjah
and Ibrahim al-Mdmyegh - had also been arrested.</div>
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<span class="m_first-letter m_first-letter--flagged">T</span>he
driving ban has been in place since 1979 and women’s rights activists
have been fighting it against for it for decades. In 1990, around 50
women launched the first high profile protest by driving in a convoy
around Riyadh. They were eventually stopped by police.<br />
The Saudi government under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed
has shown itself willing to use detention as a tool against political
rivals. Dozens of princes and prominent businessmen were arrested in
November and detained at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh on allegations
of corruption.<br />
Most were released only after agreeing to pay large sums as part of a settlement with the authorities.</div>
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</article>Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-78808062926108728302018-05-18T09:54:00.003-07:002018-05-18T09:54:47.559-07:00Saudi women drivers express hopes and fears as countdown beginsOn May 17, 2018, al-Arabiyyah reports how Saudi women are reacting to and preparing for the upcoming change in the law regarding women driving. A link to the story is <a href="https://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/entertainment/2018/05/17/Saudi-female-drivers-paint-a-mosaic-picture-on-first-day-of-driving-.html">here,</a> and the text is below.<br />
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<span class="author-name">By Staff writer, Al Arabiya English </span>
<span class="caption">Thursday, 17 May 2018</span>
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The countdown has started in Saudi Arabia for women to sit behind
the wheel, when females will be allowed to start driving in the kingdom
starting from June 24.<br />
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While many Saudis
are waiting to see this new scene on Saudi roads and which has been long
awaited by women, many of whom are preparing for this day, while others
are taking driving lessons in order to obtain driving licenses</div>
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A
female driver in a training center in Saudi said a large number of
applicants are ladies in their sixties compared to a trickle of
applicants from among university students and teenagers. She said that’s
because they rely more on their drivers and that some families would
not prefer their daughters to drive at this young age. The situation is
different with working females, as they prefer to be independent.</div>
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The trainer added that the older females become easily tired during the driving sessions, and they tend to fail the field tests.</div>
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When
Saudi women were asked about the first drive they will take on June 24
and what is their biggest fear, answers varied between taking a simple
drive in the neighborhood, or to drive accompanied with family members
or to drive to do some grocery shopping, most of them agreed that
meeting with an accident on the road was their biggest fear.</div>
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Sherin
Bawzer, said that her first drive will be “to go to the supermarket”
but she is scared of speedy drivers and from motorists who overtake from
the right side. For Fatima al-Nisan it will be a family affair, who
says: “On the first drive I will be accompanied by those who are close
to me, whom I trust that they will be joining me in celebrating this
day, while road curves and sudden breakdowns are very worrying and
scary.”</div>
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Amani al-Salimi said she will
drive to work on that day without waiting for the driver to pick her up,
adding that she is terrified of traffic congestion and road accidents.</div>
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In
a confident tone, Khulood al-Harithi says that the first time she will
be behind the wheel she will take her family out and would tell them she
does not need anyone with her anymore, but she is scared that a tree
will fall on her or she will fall asleep while driving.</div>
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For
her part, Khulood al-Ebrahim said she is mostly worried about motorists
who do no respect the law, while Mariam al-Hasan is not fearful of
anything and the first trip she will take will be just to wander around
aimlessly.</div>
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Najat al-Majeed said shopping
malls will be her focus when she starts driving, especially those around
her home, and that she is scared of driving up hills, or of running out
of petrol or a breakdown in remote areas which will put her in an
embarrassing situation calling for help from others.</div>
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Mouna
al-Qadri prefers to delay getting a driving license for a while and
would watch the situation despite the fact that she is convinced that
this experience is very good, but not necessarily she will take part in
it.</div>
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Lubna Mohamed mentioned that women
will be divided into two categories after driving lessons: working
females who will drive to their workplace and “housewives” who can
drive in emergency situations to hospitals, adding that she is “scared
of breakdowns and flat tires. A situation will force me to order a cab
and I do not like to be driven by a stranger.. also I am scared of
running over animals..”</div>
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Fatima Outhman
said her first drive will be with family and friends and she is scared
of motorists who do not know driving laws, while Tahani Attif pointed
out that her first time behind the wheel will be for grocery shopping
while she fears narrow roads and accidents.</div>
Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-39170587651782320042018-05-15T17:01:00.003-07:002018-05-15T17:01:41.691-07:00Meet ‘Captainah’ Enaam, Careem’s first female driver in Saudi Arabia<div class="entry-highlight">
The May 16, 2018 Arab News reports the Careem (a ride service like Uber) has named and hired its first female driver. A link to the story is<a href="http://www.arabnews.com/node/1303491/saudi-arabia"> here </a>and the text is below.</div>
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<li>Enaam Gazi Al-Aswad was selected to become the first “captainah” —
the female version of the Careem “captain,” as the firm calls its
drivers</li>
<li>The 43-year-old learned how to drive in her native Syria</li>
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Careem, the Middle East’s ride-hailing firm, has named its first female
driver in Saudi Arabia, as the Kingdom prepares to allow women behind
the wheel from next month.<br />
Enaam Gazi Al-Aswad was selected to become the first “captainah” — the
female version of the Careem “captain,” as the firm calls its drivers —
from among around 3,000 women looking for employment with the company.
“When the authorities announced in September that women would be allowed
to drive, I wanted to be the first and contacted Careem straight away,”
Al-Aswad told Arab News at a media event in Dubai.<br />
“It is wonderful to think that after all this time we will have the
freedom to drive. It will help all of us build the future together in
accordance with the Vision 2030 strategy.”<br />
The 43-year-old divorcee learned how to drive in her native Syria, and
has a driving license from that country. She expects to be able to
obtain a Saudi license when she has completed 10 hours of driving
tuition under the new laws.<br />
“I already have my own car, a Kia I bought in 2013, and I hope to be
able to do the 10 hours of lessons in a few days,” she said.<br />
She has already received all the necessary training from Careem to
enable her to become a “captainah,” having been hand-picked by the
Dubai-based company soon after last year’s royal decree on women
driving.<br />
“It is good for women’s career enhancement, and for their social lives.
But also I think it is our national duty. It is a job to do for the
Kingdom,” she said.<br />
Al-Aswad trained as an airline flight attendant in Saudi Arabia before
studying management science at King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah,
where she lives. She expects that being a Careem driver will be the
stepping stone to a better life for her and her two sons.<br />
“For a woman on her own, it is a good way to earn a living and pay the
bills. My sons are excited and very supportive of me. Careem drivers
earn good money, I know. I am telling lots of my female friends to think
about it too. I would like to be a guide as well as a driver,” she
said.<br />
Mudassir Sheikha, the co-founder and CEO of Careem, said that he
expected new business to eventually make up for any short-term fall-off
in revenues when women — who previously formed a majority of the firm’s
passengers in the Kingdom — are able to take to the roads themselves.
About 95 percent of drivers in the Kingdom are Saudi nationals, he
added.<br />
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Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-415718106828916998.post-51724305398305287242018-05-15T16:25:00.001-07:002018-05-15T16:25:06.234-07:00Saudi women gear up to hit the road, test simulatorThis article appeared in the May 15, 2018 Khaleej Times. You can link to the story <a href="https://www.khaleejtimes.com/region/saudi-arabia/saudi-/women-gear-up-to-hit-the-road-test-simulators">here,</a> and the text is below. <br />
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Women in Saudi Arabia are all gearing up for the red-letter day on June
24 when they will hit the road for the first time in a generation. The
popularity of the ruling to allow women to drive was clear this week at
the Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Center from the
scurry of activity at the venue of the Saudi capital's first women's
exhibition for cars, dubbed 'Pinkish'.<br /><br />The first day of the
three-day show on May 13 drew curious visitors in droves, who carefully
examined the many new vehicles on display, interacted with car dealers
and insurance-company representatives, learnt about special offers and
checked out car accessories. They also enthusiastically discussed with
their relatives and companions which car would suit them best as they
spent time on simulators to get a feel for the experience they expect to
have in a few weeks when the Kingdom opens the way for them to take the
wheel.<br /><br />The organisers, who have braced themselves for at least
80,000 visitors over the course of the show, have arranged for special
lessons for attendees on driving skills and how to choose the right car.<br /><br />The
event is organised with the support of General Directorate of Public
Security, the administrative authorities of the Riyadh region, the Saudi
General Department of Traffic Department, the General Entertainment
Authority, the Ministry of Commerce and Investment and the Ministry of
Culture and Information.<br /><br />With the long-awaited start date for
issuing driving licences to women in the Kingdom just around the corner,
the General Department of Traffic's Director, Major General Mohammed
bin Abdullah Al Bassami, has announced last week that all requirements
for women in Saudi Arabia to start driving were in place.Kay Hardy Campbellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10655646072881460264noreply@blogger.com0