This opinion piece by Maha Al-Shehri appeared in the Saudi Arabic daily Okaz and was translated and printed in the English daily Saudi Gazette on May 14, 2017. A link to the story can be found here, and the text is below.
By Maha Al-Shehri
Okaz
SEVERAL incidents of women being saviors or heroes,
especially when their men developed sudden health problems while behind
the wheel, have been reported in the media.
Recently a female university student became the hero when
she rose to the occasion and took the wheel after the driver of her
university bus fainted. Ashwaq Al-Shamri of Hail University took the bus
and the driver to safety. The news of the incident was widely
circulated on social media.
The female student was able to avert an accident and save
the bus driver by driving him to hospital because she had learned
driving despite the ban on women driving existing in the country.
There is no legal basis for preventing women from driving
but the Kingdom has so far failed to allow its female citizens to
exercise this legitimate right.
I believe that every woman should learn driving as a skill
even if she does not own a vehicle or may not obtain a driving license
in the near future. We have seen men learning cooking even though they
do not cook on a daily basis.
The mastering of a skill will enable us to use it whenever a
need arises. It will help us deal with various life situations boldly
and efficiently.
It is high time that we overcome the mentality that women
are incapable and inferior beings. We have limited women’s roles
treating them as weak despite their capabilities, aptitude and
decision-making prowess.
People have to recognize that women are no less than men in terms of
qualifications and efficiency. Women are partners of men in every walk
of life.
Even while considering women as mentors of new generations
and protectors of families, some of us wrongly believe that they are
incompetent in most matters, which they think are reserved for men.
In a nutshell, we should teach our women how to drive for
the sake of themselves and others. A situation may arise at any point of
our life where we will not find anyone except women as saviors as has
occurred in the case of the Hail bus driver.
Showing posts with label Saudi Gazette. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Saudi Gazette. Show all posts
Sunday, May 14, 2017
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
Shoura intent on enabling women to drive
Article from Okaz and the Saudi Gazette on May 10, 2017 by Fatima Al-Dibais, that the Shoura Council postponed their discussion of the women driving issue. From reading the article, it appears that a Ministry of the Interior report must have recommended the law be changed, if the recommendations are to be incorporated into the actions of the Council. A link to the story is: here, and the story is pasted below.
__________________________________________________________
By Fatima Al-Dibais
Okaz/Saudi Gazette
DAMMAM — A number of Shoura Council members are making preparations to come up with a solid recommendation to enable women to drive, according to informed sources.
The sources said the Council on Monday postponed the discussion on the Interior Ministry’s report so as to include in it a recommendation on the issue.
The sources said the members were notified about the postponement of the discussion only 48 hours before the start of the session.
No new date has been announced, but the discussion on the Interior Ministry’s report is expected to take place before Ramadan which starts on May 27.
The sources said the Council’s security committee was unable to draft a recommendation approving women driving to be included in the report.
They said the members late last December rejected the recommendations made by the security committee because it failed to mention anything about women driving. The sources said that a number of members at the time were determined to include a recommendation allowing women to drive in the ministry’s report which should have been discussed on Monday.
The issue of women driving was mentioned during the Council’s previous session in which about 30 women members participated.
Latifa Al-Shaalan and Haya Al-Manie, two women members, introduced the issue in 2013 but the security committee rejected it saying the recommendation was inappropriate.
In April last year, the two women members introduced the issue for the second time through a recommendation calling for the amendment of the traffic law to grant driving licenses to women also. But the Council’s consultants turned it down.
The issue of women driving was not raised in the Council’s sixth session, but it resurfaced in the current session in December when Al-Shaalan asked the security committee to take the initiative to adopt a recommendation that would enable women to drive.
__________________________________________________________
 |
| Women members taking part in the Shoura Council deliberations in Riyadh on Tuesday. — SPA |
By Fatima Al-Dibais
Okaz/Saudi Gazette
DAMMAM — A number of Shoura Council members are making preparations to come up with a solid recommendation to enable women to drive, according to informed sources.
The sources said the Council on Monday postponed the discussion on the Interior Ministry’s report so as to include in it a recommendation on the issue.
The sources said the members were notified about the postponement of the discussion only 48 hours before the start of the session.
No new date has been announced, but the discussion on the Interior Ministry’s report is expected to take place before Ramadan which starts on May 27.
The sources said the Council’s security committee was unable to draft a recommendation approving women driving to be included in the report.
They said the members late last December rejected the recommendations made by the security committee because it failed to mention anything about women driving. The sources said that a number of members at the time were determined to include a recommendation allowing women to drive in the ministry’s report which should have been discussed on Monday.
The issue of women driving was mentioned during the Council’s previous session in which about 30 women members participated.
Latifa Al-Shaalan and Haya Al-Manie, two women members, introduced the issue in 2013 but the security committee rejected it saying the recommendation was inappropriate.
In April last year, the two women members introduced the issue for the second time through a recommendation calling for the amendment of the traffic law to grant driving licenses to women also. But the Council’s consultants turned it down.
The issue of women driving was not raised in the Council’s sixth session, but it resurfaced in the current session in December when Al-Shaalan asked the security committee to take the initiative to adopt a recommendation that would enable women to drive.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
An Argument Demanding a Second Look
This opinion piece on the English language daily the Saudi Gazette of January 27, 2016 was written by Tareq A. Al-Maeena. A link to his article is here, and the text is pasted in below.
Many Saudi visitors to the UAE on their return to the Kingdom are heard to mutter: Why them and why not us? The country has in recent times become a draw for Saudis wanting to escape abroad for a short holiday. Tourists have been flocking to the UAE by the hundreds of thousands. And they don’t visit only once. Families make up the bulk of visitors, but there are also a sizable number of single males and females who venture to the Emirates on their own.
What is it that attracts these visitors from a nearby country? It is certainly not the weather as there are no significant climatic differences between the two countries. Nor is there a dramatic change in topography that might induce some to visit. Shops and restaurants are not much different in both countries. Yet in the balance of travel, visitors from the Saudi side most likely outnumber their UAE counterparts by 10 to 1.
There are significant reasons why Saudis would make the trip from the Kingdom to the UAE. The first is that they find the UAE more similar than different from their own culture. And besides a host of other reasons such as world class entertainment, there is the compelling draw of a country that places no unjustified restrictions on its women.
A resident of Jeddah explained her own reasons why she chooses the UAE during the holidays rather than spending her time in the Kingdom. She says: “It’s all about personal freedom. The UAE is an Islamic country which follows a similar code to Saudi Arabia, yet allows women choices that we find denied here. And the number one irritant and nuisance to all women here is not allowing them to drive their own cars. Perhaps we can attempt to get a discussion going in the Shoura Council pertaining to this matter by using a different logic; perhaps the argument of conservation?”
Her novel argument went as follows: “The fastest and least expensive way to conserve water and other resources in Saudi Arabia and save some of our outbound tourist dollars would be to allow women to drive! Where is the connection? Allow me to give an explanation in a very rough estimate of figures: If women were given the right to drive, approximately one million drivers could eventually be sent back to their home countries. Each one of these men uses about 300 liters of water a day, (about 1/3 cubic meter).
That’s 300,000,000 liters per day for a million drivers. That’s 90,000,000,000 liters per year, with allowances made for their vacation time. That’ 90,000,000 cubic meters per year of water consumed by drivers alone.
“The desalination plant in Saudi Arabia produces 1,000,000 cubic meters of water per day. That’s 365,000,000 cubic meters a year. If we had a million less drivers we would only need 275,000,000 cubic meters. The Shuaiba desalination plant would thus have 25 percent surplus water for people to use if women could drive their own cars. Double check the math.
“The same approximate figures would hold true for electricity consumption.
Even if drivers were to be slowly phased out, this would amount to an enormous saving for the country in terms of water, energy, and of course finances as well. The employment of drivers is becoming an increasing financial burden. Some women’s salaries are spent solely on a driver. Should women then not receive government subsidies for each household, as compensation for the expenses of having to pay recruiting agencies, visas, air fare, medical check-ups, driver’s licenses, traffic tickets, extra living quarters, furniture, insurance, meals, medical bills and medication, and of course water and electricity, etc., in addition to drivers’ salaries?
“What a huge financial burden for a country with a shrinking middle class, and with minimum wages not much higher than that paid to a driver brought in from a developing country, many of whom have never driven a car before coming to work in Saudi Arabia. That brings up the safety issue as well: safety on the road, safety allowing one’s children day in and day out in the presence of a stranger.
“Which leads me to my next point. The burden of women being banned from driving is also of a psychological and social nature. How has a conservative society such as Saudi Arabia ever allowed itself to bring total strangers into their homes, not knowing the slightest thing about their past, or their moral conduct? It’s a mystery. The whole issue of the ban on women driving is a mystery and a paradox. And you wonder why we all escape to the UAE? Perhaps it’s because they have got it right!”
And thus the woman concludes her argument with new reasoning. The fact that she has chosen an original slant to a social issue indicates that this issue will simply not go away. Nor will those marginalized by these restrictions remain silent. The issue should not be blanketed by the traditions and beliefs of some. One must not be dismissive of her arguments but look at the overall impact through the eyes of this woman.
– The author can be reached at talmaeena@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena
Many Saudi visitors to the UAE on their return to the Kingdom are heard to mutter: Why them and why not us? The country has in recent times become a draw for Saudis wanting to escape abroad for a short holiday. Tourists have been flocking to the UAE by the hundreds of thousands. And they don’t visit only once. Families make up the bulk of visitors, but there are also a sizable number of single males and females who venture to the Emirates on their own.
What is it that attracts these visitors from a nearby country? It is certainly not the weather as there are no significant climatic differences between the two countries. Nor is there a dramatic change in topography that might induce some to visit. Shops and restaurants are not much different in both countries. Yet in the balance of travel, visitors from the Saudi side most likely outnumber their UAE counterparts by 10 to 1.
There are significant reasons why Saudis would make the trip from the Kingdom to the UAE. The first is that they find the UAE more similar than different from their own culture. And besides a host of other reasons such as world class entertainment, there is the compelling draw of a country that places no unjustified restrictions on its women.
A resident of Jeddah explained her own reasons why she chooses the UAE during the holidays rather than spending her time in the Kingdom. She says: “It’s all about personal freedom. The UAE is an Islamic country which follows a similar code to Saudi Arabia, yet allows women choices that we find denied here. And the number one irritant and nuisance to all women here is not allowing them to drive their own cars. Perhaps we can attempt to get a discussion going in the Shoura Council pertaining to this matter by using a different logic; perhaps the argument of conservation?”
Her novel argument went as follows: “The fastest and least expensive way to conserve water and other resources in Saudi Arabia and save some of our outbound tourist dollars would be to allow women to drive! Where is the connection? Allow me to give an explanation in a very rough estimate of figures: If women were given the right to drive, approximately one million drivers could eventually be sent back to their home countries. Each one of these men uses about 300 liters of water a day, (about 1/3 cubic meter).
That’s 300,000,000 liters per day for a million drivers. That’s 90,000,000,000 liters per year, with allowances made for their vacation time. That’ 90,000,000 cubic meters per year of water consumed by drivers alone.
“The desalination plant in Saudi Arabia produces 1,000,000 cubic meters of water per day. That’s 365,000,000 cubic meters a year. If we had a million less drivers we would only need 275,000,000 cubic meters. The Shuaiba desalination plant would thus have 25 percent surplus water for people to use if women could drive their own cars. Double check the math.
“The same approximate figures would hold true for electricity consumption.
Even if drivers were to be slowly phased out, this would amount to an enormous saving for the country in terms of water, energy, and of course finances as well. The employment of drivers is becoming an increasing financial burden. Some women’s salaries are spent solely on a driver. Should women then not receive government subsidies for each household, as compensation for the expenses of having to pay recruiting agencies, visas, air fare, medical check-ups, driver’s licenses, traffic tickets, extra living quarters, furniture, insurance, meals, medical bills and medication, and of course water and electricity, etc., in addition to drivers’ salaries?
“What a huge financial burden for a country with a shrinking middle class, and with minimum wages not much higher than that paid to a driver brought in from a developing country, many of whom have never driven a car before coming to work in Saudi Arabia. That brings up the safety issue as well: safety on the road, safety allowing one’s children day in and day out in the presence of a stranger.
“Which leads me to my next point. The burden of women being banned from driving is also of a psychological and social nature. How has a conservative society such as Saudi Arabia ever allowed itself to bring total strangers into their homes, not knowing the slightest thing about their past, or their moral conduct? It’s a mystery. The whole issue of the ban on women driving is a mystery and a paradox. And you wonder why we all escape to the UAE? Perhaps it’s because they have got it right!”
And thus the woman concludes her argument with new reasoning. The fact that she has chosen an original slant to a social issue indicates that this issue will simply not go away. Nor will those marginalized by these restrictions remain silent. The issue should not be blanketed by the traditions and beliefs of some. One must not be dismissive of her arguments but look at the overall impact through the eyes of this woman.
– The author can be reached at talmaeena@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena
Thursday, February 26, 2015
How can we lift the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia?
Opinion piece by Neaz Rooqaf printed in the English daily, the Saudi Gazette, on February 27, 2015. You can link to the story here, and the text is pasted down below.
Like all progress in our conservative society, if women are ever going to be permitted to drive in the Kingdom, we must focus on modest steps to satisfy those on all sides of the debate.
Like all progress in our conservative society, if women are ever going to be permitted to drive in the Kingdom, we must focus on modest steps to satisfy those on all sides of the debate.
In no realistic version of the future will women suddenly start
driving the next day, even if a law is passed that allows them to do so.
Progressing to that point will require the establishment of a framework
and a process of several stages:
Stage 1: Establishing a framework
Driving schools will be set up for women, where licenses will be provided with the permission of the woman’s male guardian.
A police training academy will be established for female police
officers who will monitor traffic violations and be called to scenes of
accidents involving women drivers. In addition, ambulances called to the
scenes of an accident must have both male and female paramedics.
Stage 2: Easing into it
Once the framework is set up, it will be time to test it. But like
the implementation of all new programs, it will start with a limited
“soft launch”.
Women in this stage will be permitted to drive; however, only in
the presence of a male guardian. Due to the framework requirements, this
will be rolled out city by city; for example, Jeddah or Riyadh to begin
with.
There will also be restrictions on the time that women can drive,
say between 5:30 a.m. and 9 p.m., because of the relatively small number
of female police that will at that time be in the police force.
However, there will be an exemption for medical or other emergencies.
This stage will ensure that all the initial problems with the roll out
are resolved and that the results are satisfactory.
Stage 3: More cities involved in the roll out
This stage will involve removing the requirement that a male
guardian be present when a woman is driving. Timings can be restricted
to between 5:30 a.m. and 9 p.m., based once again on the availability
of female police officers, although by now the number of such officers
should have increased. There will now be many cities involved in the
roll out of the program, although women will not be permitted to drive
between cities.
Stage 4: The final stage
The final stage will go into effect when all major cities have set
up the framework for women driving and have satisfactorily completed
the previous stages and have a sizable female police force. After this
has been accomplished, the timing restrictions can be lifted.
There are a number of different ways to allow women to drive in
Saudi Arabia while satisfying all of those who are for and against them
doing so. No matter what route we take to get there, I believe that if
we work together we can.
Neaz Rooqaf
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Let women drive for the safety and welfare of their families
Opinion piece in the 11/17/2013 edition of the English language daily the Saudi Gazette, by radio broadcaster and writer Samar Fatany. You can link to the story here, and the text is below.
Samar Fatany
The recent crackdown on undocumented drivers has disrupted the daily lives of many families in Saudi society. Professional women were immobilized and kindergarten schools suffered the most. The brave Saudi women spearheading the women’s driving campaign are motivated by their concern for the safety and welfare of their loved ones, which is why they continue to demand permission to drive. These women refuse to be dissuaded by ignorant fatwas and the narrow-mindedness that continues to dominate the mindset in society creating an attitude hostile to the concept of women driving in this country.
The struggle between reformers and hardliners continues despite the official ban on extremists’ fatwas. There are still powerful and influential clerics who are blocking the changes that could modernize the existing system and they control and infringe on people’s privacy rights. One example is the fatwa that bans women from driving because it could affect their ovaries or encourage immoral behavior.
Many Saudi families today do not wish to comply with the strict lifestyle of the hardliners, who proclaim modernity to be un-Islamic. Many families want a modern Muslim lifestyle that supports a more flexible attitude that is in tune with the realities of the 21st century.
In 2010 Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah banned all fatwas that were not authorized by the Council of Senior Ulema. However, such fatwas continue to be issued by some extremist Ulema causing much public frustration and international criticism. Websites and call-in shows on religious channels continue to promote and interview ultra-conservative Ulema who see themselves as superior to others and are hostile to anyone who does not conform to their views They use social media to express their condemnations and their rigid interpretations of Islamic Shariah laws. That is why the Saudi women’s driving campaign is not gaining momentum. We need a stronger campaign countering the negative fatwas supporting the ban.
Social activists and researchers should address the negative aspects of the continued ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia and expose how it is a source of misery to many Saudi homes, leading at times to divorce, broken homes and juvenile delinquency. There is a dire need to educate the public and spread awareness about how women who drive can contribute to the welfare of the family. It is time to put into action a plan that would honor the role of women and protect the Saudi family from further abuse.
Economists stress that the high cost of living and inflation make it difficult for single-income families to provide the basic needs of the average family living in Saudi Arabia today. The participation of women in the workforce is no longer a luxury; it has become an economic necessity. In the absence of public transportation, it is a daily frustration for women to get to work. How and who takes the children to school is also another daily ordeal that middle class families are forced to struggle with. The frustration over the lack of a driver or the expenses of a driver combined with having to deal with his reckless driving, abuse of the vehicle, rude behavior and untrustworthiness are a source of tension in every Saudi household. Lifting the ban on women driving can make life much easier for many families and can contribute to their social and economic welfare.
The media should play a bigger role in highlighting case studies of Saudi families who suffer daily because of the ban. Researchers should conduct studies to address the negative aspects of the ban and prompt government action to resolve the social, psychological and economic injustice inflicted upon the educated middle class. Women should be allowed to drive for the well-being of their families. In other countries, the luxury of a chauffeured car is a privilege that only the rich in society are able to enjoy, but in our case it is a great burden.
Social scientists should address the psychological and economic needs of average middle class families to protect them from stressful conditions and a depressive lifestyle. When the family is faced with daily stress and the frustrations of immobility or its members become prisoners in their own homes, this ultimately leads to many negative consequences, especially unhappy women and children. It is time we implement well-researched strategies that can provide efficient traffic laws and safe roads so that women can drive. The State remains responsible for enforcing the necessary laws that can guarantee the safety of women drivers and ensure the well-being of the average middle class family.
The government must recognize that today’s professional young men and women are a different generation; they are more exposed to the world and have access to a more comfortable and convenient lifestyle across the globe. They continue to express their frustration and discontent in Internet forums and YouTube messages. Calling on the government to allow women to drive and to help them cater to the needs of their families by driving their children to school or their parents to a doctor’s appointment is a legitimate demand that would guarantee the average Saudi family a life of dignity and prosperity on a par with the more advanced societies of the world.
The ban on women driving has a negative effect on the lives of women and their families. It is unacceptable treatment of the Saudi family of the 21st century. The happiness, safety and welfare of Saudi families could influence the direction of our nation and the future of our younger generation.
Samar Fatany is a radio broadcaster and writer. She can be reached at samarfatany@hotmail.com
Samar Fatany
The recent crackdown on undocumented drivers has disrupted the daily lives of many families in Saudi society. Professional women were immobilized and kindergarten schools suffered the most. The brave Saudi women spearheading the women’s driving campaign are motivated by their concern for the safety and welfare of their loved ones, which is why they continue to demand permission to drive. These women refuse to be dissuaded by ignorant fatwas and the narrow-mindedness that continues to dominate the mindset in society creating an attitude hostile to the concept of women driving in this country.
The struggle between reformers and hardliners continues despite the official ban on extremists’ fatwas. There are still powerful and influential clerics who are blocking the changes that could modernize the existing system and they control and infringe on people’s privacy rights. One example is the fatwa that bans women from driving because it could affect their ovaries or encourage immoral behavior.
Many Saudi families today do not wish to comply with the strict lifestyle of the hardliners, who proclaim modernity to be un-Islamic. Many families want a modern Muslim lifestyle that supports a more flexible attitude that is in tune with the realities of the 21st century.
In 2010 Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah banned all fatwas that were not authorized by the Council of Senior Ulema. However, such fatwas continue to be issued by some extremist Ulema causing much public frustration and international criticism. Websites and call-in shows on religious channels continue to promote and interview ultra-conservative Ulema who see themselves as superior to others and are hostile to anyone who does not conform to their views They use social media to express their condemnations and their rigid interpretations of Islamic Shariah laws. That is why the Saudi women’s driving campaign is not gaining momentum. We need a stronger campaign countering the negative fatwas supporting the ban.
Social activists and researchers should address the negative aspects of the continued ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia and expose how it is a source of misery to many Saudi homes, leading at times to divorce, broken homes and juvenile delinquency. There is a dire need to educate the public and spread awareness about how women who drive can contribute to the welfare of the family. It is time to put into action a plan that would honor the role of women and protect the Saudi family from further abuse.
Economists stress that the high cost of living and inflation make it difficult for single-income families to provide the basic needs of the average family living in Saudi Arabia today. The participation of women in the workforce is no longer a luxury; it has become an economic necessity. In the absence of public transportation, it is a daily frustration for women to get to work. How and who takes the children to school is also another daily ordeal that middle class families are forced to struggle with. The frustration over the lack of a driver or the expenses of a driver combined with having to deal with his reckless driving, abuse of the vehicle, rude behavior and untrustworthiness are a source of tension in every Saudi household. Lifting the ban on women driving can make life much easier for many families and can contribute to their social and economic welfare.
The media should play a bigger role in highlighting case studies of Saudi families who suffer daily because of the ban. Researchers should conduct studies to address the negative aspects of the ban and prompt government action to resolve the social, psychological and economic injustice inflicted upon the educated middle class. Women should be allowed to drive for the well-being of their families. In other countries, the luxury of a chauffeured car is a privilege that only the rich in society are able to enjoy, but in our case it is a great burden.
Social scientists should address the psychological and economic needs of average middle class families to protect them from stressful conditions and a depressive lifestyle. When the family is faced with daily stress and the frustrations of immobility or its members become prisoners in their own homes, this ultimately leads to many negative consequences, especially unhappy women and children. It is time we implement well-researched strategies that can provide efficient traffic laws and safe roads so that women can drive. The State remains responsible for enforcing the necessary laws that can guarantee the safety of women drivers and ensure the well-being of the average middle class family.
The government must recognize that today’s professional young men and women are a different generation; they are more exposed to the world and have access to a more comfortable and convenient lifestyle across the globe. They continue to express their frustration and discontent in Internet forums and YouTube messages. Calling on the government to allow women to drive and to help them cater to the needs of their families by driving their children to school or their parents to a doctor’s appointment is a legitimate demand that would guarantee the average Saudi family a life of dignity and prosperity on a par with the more advanced societies of the world.
The ban on women driving has a negative effect on the lives of women and their families. It is unacceptable treatment of the Saudi family of the 21st century. The happiness, safety and welfare of Saudi families could influence the direction of our nation and the future of our younger generation.
Samar Fatany is a radio broadcaster and writer. She can be reached at samarfatany@hotmail.com
Friday, May 3, 2013
Women driving in Saudi Arabia: Forever a thorny issue
Great column printed in the English daily The Saudi Gazette, which was translated from al-`Arabiya. Text pasted in below and a link to the story is here.
Last updated: Thursday, May 02, 2013 6:46 PM
Last updated: Thursday, May 02, 2013 6:46 PM
Badria Al-Bishr
Al Arabiya
It is narrated that a semiliterate man liked the phrase “of course” the first time he heard it so he started using it whenever possible. He would go to the grocery store and say: “Give me yoghurt, gum and, of course, matches.” This is why the phrase “of course” exists in a context that has no meaning or significance. I remember this joke whenever I read the statements of officials on women driving cars in Saudi Arabia, an issue which always appears as if it is a huge crisis. So after each statement made, I find myself saying: "Of course, of course". I did so particularly when I read the traffic general director’s response when he was asked: “What would you do if you came across a woman driving a car?” He said: “I would issue a violation against her because she does not have a driver’s license.” Realizing he was caught off guard, he added: “Keep me away from this thorny matter.”
It is truly a thorny issue because it is similar to the mystery of whether the egg or the chicken came first. How can you issue a violation permit against a citizen for not having a driver’s license when your institution does not allow the said individual to attain one in the first place and when your institution does not open a driving school for the person? What if a woman carries a Gulf or Arab or international driver’s license? It is truly “of course” a thorny issue.
But statements on this subject never end. But “of course,” the most important of them are those prepared for foreign consumption. Perhaps the last of these was the justice minister’s statement that the issue of women driving is a social decision. Perhaps this statement has real significance, if one of the judges, who is part of the Ministry of Justice “of course,” has issued a decision to whip a girl for driving a car in the city of Jeddah although she said she only drove the car as a result of a medical emergency of one of her relatives. If the traffic institution issues a violation permit against the woman who drives the car, the judge issues a verdict to whip her and the cleric at the mosque emphasizes that prohibiting women from driving is for the sake of maintaining her morals, how did the whole issue become a social decision? A social decision is one where all circumstances are present to finalize it, and a person either chooses it or not. But enabling citizens to attain their human rights and benefit from developmental projects is not a social decision. Education today is every citizen’s right. Even the state has made it obligatory. Providing and facilitating transportation in the city and issuing laws regulating that transportation is a developmental project and a human right and not a social choice. Social choices do not clash with the laws of prohibition.
Discussions on the issue of women driving have increased, but they have been poisoned by ideological aims and interests. Prohibiting women from driving serves the interests of one party over another. So the issue has become a national concern.
We recently heard of young men who announced that they were willing to volunteer to prevent women from driving by crashing into their cars. One young man who made such a statement was the same man who was flirting with a girl in the market and asking her to take his phone number. But when he sees a girl behind the steering wheel, he says that he will take it upon himself to protect her morals and customs and crash into her car “of course.” I almost said that faking awareness on this issue has complicated it and made it an issue similar to Palestine’s. But I realized that comparing it to the Syrian revolution is closer. The lack of the state’s intervention in finalizing the issue has made the matter “thorny.” People have debated and taken rival stands on the matter, while those in the middle are “of course” afraid of what this rivalry may result in.
This issue has become material for movies. The Saudi movie “Scrap,” which participated in the Gulf Film Festival, is based on the true story of a lady who was arrested by a traffic officer while driving her pickup. The officer found out that she was poor and that she supported herself by collecting scrap. So he escorted her to the police station and asked her: "Where is your guardian?" Her only reply was: "God is my guardian."
All people benefit from the issue of women driving, except women themselves “of course!”
— Dr. Badria Al-Bishr is an award-winning Saudi columnist and novelist. She currently lectures at King Saud University's Department of Social Studies. Follow her on Twitter @BadryahAlbeshr
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Saudi women victims of 'restriction for protection'
Interesting opinion piece in the English language daily, the Saudi Gazette. A link to the story is here, and the text is below.
Last updated: Saturday, April 27, 2013 12:11 PM
Badria Al-Bishr
I arrived at Dubai airport last week with my daughter. It was around midnight and I waited in line for a taxi, like I would do in any other country. When my turn came, I was surprised to see a lady standing near the cab, wearing a uniform, similar to the one worn by flight attendants, with Dubai's Road and Transport Authority badge on it. After checking that I've put my luggage in the trunk, she sat behind the wheel and drove.
This of course was not the first time I saw a female taxi driver, however, I was surprised because I had just arrived from Riyadh where I had just read a statement from a sheikh confirming that prohibiting women from driving in Saudi Arabia aims to “preserve their chastity, morals and safety.”
The statement added that they — women — are more likely to make mistakes and violations while driving the car, but most of all, the sheikh said that “men verbally harass women on the streets and markets, even when they are accompanied by guardians.” He then asked: “What will happen once they drive a car?”
I thought to myself, if the sheikh could see us now, all the three of us in the taxi, on our way home, which is located half an hour from the airport, without any car bothering us or a reckless man blocking the road; we were truly safe. I have lived these peaceful moments during my stay in Dubai, and I saw women around me driving their cars — among them unveiled foreign women, veiled Gulf women, women who cover their entire face with a black veil — and no one dares to mistreat them or assault them. People behave on the streets by virtue of an Islamic law that forbids any assault on men or women. So how can women be safe even in the late hours of the night in Dubai, while women in Saudi Arabia are not safe, even when guardians accompany them?
Where is the Islamic responsibility that was revealed in the words of Islam’s Umar ibn Al-Khattaab when he said: “If a mule stumbled, I would be afraid that Allah would ask me, why did you not pave the road for it?” Would he pave the way for mules and not for women? What if someone in these societies came out and told them that women should sit at home and should not go out on the streets, so they can preserve their chastity and manners? What if someone added that when a woman goes out and falls victim to verbal or physical harassment, this is her punishment for daring to leave her house? In which human civilizations or religion is this logic found correct?!
How can Muslims defend this logic? How could women go out, 1,400 years ago, five times a day to the mosque to pray with men without barriers or dividers, only protected by the saying of the Prophet (pbuh): “Do not stop Allah's [Islam’s] women from going to Allah's mosques.” Today, women do not go to mosques, but are rather warned by sheikhs that that they might be harassed even if their guardians accompany them. So the solution is to prohibit them from going out in order to protect them and preserve their chastity according to a logic that is closer to the logic of the desert rather than the country, civil society and religion’s logic.
Women staying inside their own houses will not fix the dilapidated traffic infrastructure, it will rather make us more tolerant to its deterioration; this will not fix the fragile ethics educational system. If the violators do not find women on the streets to harass, they will mistreat other vulnerable employees and animals; they will ruin public places and go astray. Detaining women inside their houses will not make a better community, but instead it will sanctify its mistakes, as it will treat it through temporary hiding it under the rug. — Al-Arabiya
— Dr. Badria al-Bishr is a Saudi columnist and novelist. She can be found on Twitter: @BadryahAlbeshr
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Saudi women's right to drive
This op-ed appeared in the English language daily the Saudi Gazette. The article is by Dr. Ali al-Ghamdi. He is commenting on an interview printed by the Arabic paper, Okaz, with one of the new female members of the Saudi Shura Council, Dr. Thoraya Obaid, about Saudi women driving. You can link to his op-ed here, and the text is pasted in below.
Written by - Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi
A recent interview with Dr. Thoraya Obaid, a woman member of the Shoura Council, drew my attention. The interview, which appeared in Okaz newspaper, was about the right of Saudi woman to drive. The very title of the interview epitomized the content of her statement about women’s driving — “The dangers surrounding us are our prime concern than the issue of driving cars by women.”
I was surprised to read such a statement from the doctor at a time when we are looking forward to her and her fellow members in the Shoura Council with a hope that they would take up the issue of women’s driving as one of their priorities in the Kingdom’s consultative body. This is especially significant because Saudi women are the only women in the world who are deprived of this right despite the fact that Islamic Shariah does not forbid women from driving, as endorsed by a large number of Islamic scholars, including members of the Council of Senior Scholars. This topic has become a communal issue because of the fact that the society still remains a stumbling block in allowing a women to drive. But nobody explains to us as to why the community stands in the way of a woman from driving if she owns a car? There are certain situations where a woman is not in a position to hire a foreign driver either because of financial or social or religious reasons. Also, some scholars ruled that it is not permissible for a woman to travel along with a foreign driver in the absence of a mahram (close relative). In such cases, the ideal way for a woman is to drive by herself.
Coming back to the expression of Obaid about the dangers that were linked to allowing women to drive, I want to ask: What is the potential danger if we allow a woman to drive? Would the delay in granting a woman her right to drive or help to secure any other rights avert any danger or reduce its impact? Then what are the dangers about which the Shoura Council is discussing. We were following the Council’s deliberations through the electronic and print media but did not find any discussions that involve dangers to our country.
If we go down memory lane and review the issue of opening schools for girls, we can see that we had to meet with similar hurdles. In the beginning, it was said that girls’ education was a "taboo." Then, it was told that though Islamic Shariah permits it, the community won’t allow it. When King Faisal took a firm decision to open schools for girls, delegations from some regions came to meet him and asked him not to open schools for girls in their respective region. But he told them unequivocally that schools will be opened but there won’t be any compulsion on anybody to send his daughter to school.
However, after some time, there was not a single Saudi girl who stayed at home without going to school. When King Faisal took the decision to open schools for girls, there were “dangers surrounding us” as if fighter planes and bombs were striking parts of our country. But that did not deter King Faisal from giving girls their right to education.
Truly speaking, Obaid mentioned in her detailed interview that driving is a symbol for the right of women that enables a woman to reach her destination without any dangers. She also indicated that ours is the lone country in the world that does not allow women to drive. Our religion does not forbid women from driving but our customs do so as they control the situation. I wish to demand or at least poise to demand for taking a decision to allow women to drive following the example of King Faisal related to girls’ education.
I disagree with Obaid with regard to her linking of the women’s right to drive to the “surrounding dangers” because there should not be any question of bargaining while allowing one’s rights to him. All of us should avail of our rights, whether we used them or not. The demand to grant women their right to drive does not mean that all women would come out to streets with a car to ride.
As far as men are concerned, many of them are not used to drive for different reasons. Some of them are afraid of driving while some others have more than one driver to pick them up. As for some, they prefer public transport or limousine.
I won’t agree with those who oppose granting women their right to drive in the name of risks involved while driving, such as getting stuck on the road due to engine failure or such other problems. Some people ask what a woman would do in tackling such situations. It was a great surprise for me while listening to such arguments. I lived in a number of countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Yemen, and Turkey where I saw women driving, and some of them wearing veil or niqab while sitting behind the wheel. I never saw or heard about any woman faced any problem or subjected to dangers while driving. Hence why are we scared of something that would never happen? I do not rule out that there would be some problems in the beginning for those who practice driving but these will disappear with the passage of time. Stringent punitive measures could be taken against those who try to disturb women while driving.
I believe that even if women are allowed to drive, we cannot see a large number of women come out to sit behind the wheel in the beginning. This is because some of them are afraid of driving while some others need more time to learn driving. In the beginning, let the Saudi women, who learned driving and used to ride vehicles abroad, as well as expatriate women drive their cars. Granting women the right to drive would be helpful to a great extent to stop the campaign unleashed against us outside the Kingdom with regard to human rights, especially the rights of women.
Last updated: Wednesday, April 24, 2013 12:05 PM
Written by - Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi
A recent interview with Dr. Thoraya Obaid, a woman member of the Shoura Council, drew my attention. The interview, which appeared in Okaz newspaper, was about the right of Saudi woman to drive. The very title of the interview epitomized the content of her statement about women’s driving — “The dangers surrounding us are our prime concern than the issue of driving cars by women.”
I was surprised to read such a statement from the doctor at a time when we are looking forward to her and her fellow members in the Shoura Council with a hope that they would take up the issue of women’s driving as one of their priorities in the Kingdom’s consultative body. This is especially significant because Saudi women are the only women in the world who are deprived of this right despite the fact that Islamic Shariah does not forbid women from driving, as endorsed by a large number of Islamic scholars, including members of the Council of Senior Scholars. This topic has become a communal issue because of the fact that the society still remains a stumbling block in allowing a women to drive. But nobody explains to us as to why the community stands in the way of a woman from driving if she owns a car? There are certain situations where a woman is not in a position to hire a foreign driver either because of financial or social or religious reasons. Also, some scholars ruled that it is not permissible for a woman to travel along with a foreign driver in the absence of a mahram (close relative). In such cases, the ideal way for a woman is to drive by herself.
Coming back to the expression of Obaid about the dangers that were linked to allowing women to drive, I want to ask: What is the potential danger if we allow a woman to drive? Would the delay in granting a woman her right to drive or help to secure any other rights avert any danger or reduce its impact? Then what are the dangers about which the Shoura Council is discussing. We were following the Council’s deliberations through the electronic and print media but did not find any discussions that involve dangers to our country.
If we go down memory lane and review the issue of opening schools for girls, we can see that we had to meet with similar hurdles. In the beginning, it was said that girls’ education was a "taboo." Then, it was told that though Islamic Shariah permits it, the community won’t allow it. When King Faisal took a firm decision to open schools for girls, delegations from some regions came to meet him and asked him not to open schools for girls in their respective region. But he told them unequivocally that schools will be opened but there won’t be any compulsion on anybody to send his daughter to school.
However, after some time, there was not a single Saudi girl who stayed at home without going to school. When King Faisal took the decision to open schools for girls, there were “dangers surrounding us” as if fighter planes and bombs were striking parts of our country. But that did not deter King Faisal from giving girls their right to education.
Truly speaking, Obaid mentioned in her detailed interview that driving is a symbol for the right of women that enables a woman to reach her destination without any dangers. She also indicated that ours is the lone country in the world that does not allow women to drive. Our religion does not forbid women from driving but our customs do so as they control the situation. I wish to demand or at least poise to demand for taking a decision to allow women to drive following the example of King Faisal related to girls’ education.
I disagree with Obaid with regard to her linking of the women’s right to drive to the “surrounding dangers” because there should not be any question of bargaining while allowing one’s rights to him. All of us should avail of our rights, whether we used them or not. The demand to grant women their right to drive does not mean that all women would come out to streets with a car to ride.
As far as men are concerned, many of them are not used to drive for different reasons. Some of them are afraid of driving while some others have more than one driver to pick them up. As for some, they prefer public transport or limousine.
I won’t agree with those who oppose granting women their right to drive in the name of risks involved while driving, such as getting stuck on the road due to engine failure or such other problems. Some people ask what a woman would do in tackling such situations. It was a great surprise for me while listening to such arguments. I lived in a number of countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Yemen, and Turkey where I saw women driving, and some of them wearing veil or niqab while sitting behind the wheel. I never saw or heard about any woman faced any problem or subjected to dangers while driving. Hence why are we scared of something that would never happen? I do not rule out that there would be some problems in the beginning for those who practice driving but these will disappear with the passage of time. Stringent punitive measures could be taken against those who try to disturb women while driving.
I believe that even if women are allowed to drive, we cannot see a large number of women come out to sit behind the wheel in the beginning. This is because some of them are afraid of driving while some others need more time to learn driving. In the beginning, let the Saudi women, who learned driving and used to ride vehicles abroad, as well as expatriate women drive their cars. Granting women the right to drive would be helpful to a great extent to stop the campaign unleashed against us outside the Kingdom with regard to human rights, especially the rights of women.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Saudi women drive, but not in the Kingdom
Story from the Saudi Gazette by Jihad Mohammad about Saudi women driving in the nearby United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. A link to the story is here, and the story is pasted in below.
Jihad Mohammad
Saudi Gazette
AL KHOBAR —The roads and communications body in Emirates registered more than 113 Saudi women drivers’ licenses, accounting for 36 percent of Saudi female residents in the Emirates.
The body said that Saudi women have to prove their residency in the Emirates before they can obtain a license.
In addition, driving schools in Dubai have witnessed an increase in Saudi women candidates, as 55 trainees receive a license every month.
They receive 46 one hour driving sessions, extending over a three month period, with costs reaching 10,000 Dirham.
Many Saudi women have taken residency in the Emirates, and some have started business investments.
On the same note, the Bahraini general directorate of traffic said that it has issued more than 6000 driving licenses for Saudi women during the past two years, as they use it to drive in the rest of Gulf countries, which allow women drivers.
A number of Saudi women said that they prefer driving their own cars rather than having a driver, and that they feel some independence this way.
Jihad Mohammad
Saudi Gazette
AL KHOBAR —The roads and communications body in Emirates registered more than 113 Saudi women drivers’ licenses, accounting for 36 percent of Saudi female residents in the Emirates.
The body said that Saudi women have to prove their residency in the Emirates before they can obtain a license.
In addition, driving schools in Dubai have witnessed an increase in Saudi women candidates, as 55 trainees receive a license every month.
They receive 46 one hour driving sessions, extending over a three month period, with costs reaching 10,000 Dirham.
Many Saudi women have taken residency in the Emirates, and some have started business investments.
On the same note, the Bahraini general directorate of traffic said that it has issued more than 6000 driving licenses for Saudi women during the past two years, as they use it to drive in the rest of Gulf countries, which allow women drivers.
A number of Saudi women said that they prefer driving their own cars rather than having a driver, and that they feel some independence this way.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
The dilemma of women: Costly transportation
Laura Bashraheel of the Saudi Gazette interviews Saudi women about the inconvenience and expense of hiring and keeping a driver. A link to her story is here, and the story is pasted below.
A woman gets into a taxi outside a shopping mall in Riyadh. — AFP photo
Laura Bashraheel
Saudi Gazette
JEDDAH — Since women are not allowed to drive in the Kingdom, driving has become a highly lucrative profession for some men. Summertime and Ramadan are peak seasons for independent drivers and companies who charge between SR30-50 per hour or per drop-off. Mohammed Ali, a driver who works for a private car company in Jeddah, said that he earns SR3000 a month, while he would earn SR2000 as a private driver for a family. He feels that it is “better to work for a company as salaries are better.”
Fatima Ibraheem, a 28-year-old employee in a private company, said that she does not have a driver and as such has no other option but to use independent drivers. “I paid SR600 for a driver to drop me off and pick me up from work, six days a week until recently. My office is near Palestine St. but my driver told me he couldn’t drive me there anymore because he doesn’t have clients in that area. He prefers to stay within the Rawdah/Tahliah area where he can make more money,” she explained.
Fatima estimates that he makes a minimum of SR400 a day. “He works 18 hours a day and pays only SR400 a month for his rent. He refused to become my personal driver on a monthly salary of SR2,000. That’s why it’s so hard to find a driver nowadays,” she added.
Nadia Sayed, a 31-year-old teacher, is also suffering as she cannot find a suitable driver. She has no brothers and her father does not have the time to provide transportation to and from her workplace. “In the past drivers used to charge SR1,200 a month but now they realized how profitable this profession can be,” she said.
Nadia added that though she understands the complexity of the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia, she has not “heard of any research on why it’s impossible or what could be done for women to overcome the whole issue of transportation.”
After her driver left, Nadia contacted a car company, but was taken aback when the company told her that they would charge SR3,000 a month just to take her to and from work five days a week. Her transportation allowance is SR400 a month. According to her, finding a driver is much like operating in a black market.
Dana Alawi, a 28-year-old employee, urges the concerned authorities to release an official statement immediately on the status on women driving. “We have been waiting long for public transportation since we don’t know when we are going to be allowed to drive,” she said. Dana asserts that car companies “are always busy nowadays and it’s not safe to go with random drivers. Transportation for women in this country is one of the major dilemmas.”
Dana also said that she has been looking for a driver as Ramadan approaches but has yet to find an affordable one. Like Nadia, she feels “it’s like a black market for drivers — the higher you pay the more chances you might find one,” she said.
Saudi activists have been advocating for their right to drive with the most recent effort being the Women2Drive campaign launched in 2011. On its one-year anniversary, the campaign renewed its call for Saudi women to get behind the wheel and post videos of themselves driving to social media websites. However, the campaign didn’t create as much buzz as it did last year and there were only a few women who posted videos.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Let young Saudis be themselves
Fascinating letter to the editor from a Saudi teacher Dr. Khalid al-Seghayer to the English daily The Saudi Gazette about his students being unable to express their opinions on the women driving issue and other social questions. A link to the story is here and the full text is below.
Let young Saudis be themselves
BY DR. KHALID
AL-SEGHAYER
Saudi youths seem to be inhibited from expressing their thoughts or feelings and lack the ability to think independently as well. Neither homes nor schools teach young Saudis how to stand up for their own ideas and thoughts.
At home, expressing views is subject to a hierarchical order. My father or older siblings are entitled to give their opinions concerning, let’s say, a family matter. The same tradition is practiced in schools where teachers are the authority figures. Students are taught to follow precisely whatever their instructors tell them. They should not deviate a bit from the teachers’ thoughts or directions; otherwise, they will put themselves in a difficult situation or, to state the obvious, fail the subject.
This social phenomenon is common in the workforce, especially in the government as opposed to the private sector. It creates, I would contend, a generation of young Saudis who cannot, or who are not willing to, express or communicate freely their thoughts and feelings. When you ask them to state their personal views on a subject, they will either ask you in return about your opinion or refer to what so and so said about the issue under discussion.
Let me relate my recent experience with my own students. I asked them to write an academic essay about whether Saudi women should be allowed to drive. I was shocked when all of them, about 50 students, quoted so and so concerning this topic and did not write their thoughts about this controversial social issue. I confronted them and explained I was interested in what each of them personally thought on the issue, not the opinions of the respected people whom they had quoted.
I returned their essays and instructed them to try again, taking into account their need to express their thoughts. To my surprise, a large number of them could not follow my instructions and thus I found it difficult to extract comments and opinions from my students concerning the subject being discussed.
To find out what was wrong, I held a conference session to discuss why they did not write about what they thought about the issue. The overwhelming comment was, “We are not fully trained to express our thoughts,” or “ We are not accustomed to being given a chance to state our ideas freely and independently.” Some of them also mentioned that they were afraid their thoughts might upset me on the assumption that their thoughts might be different from mine.
The following is an example written by one of the students: “….sheikhs of Saudi Arabia say that women’s driving is forbidden. They contend that the disadvantages are more dangerous than the advantages…some of these Islamic scholars say that women driving will be the starting point of Westernizing the Saudi society which will eventually break the teachings of our religion.”
The conclusion that I would like to leave you with is that the inability of young Saudi citizens to express their own thoughts deserves our greatest attention. It also shows us the importance of reconsidering our approaches when it comes to raising and educating our youth.
So let’s do something to make our young Saudi generation aware of the different ways in which they can communicate a range of feelings and thoughts and, most importantly, express their ideas and insights independently.
— The writer is a Saudi academic who can be reached at alseghayer@yahoo.com
Saudi youths seem to be inhibited from expressing their thoughts or feelings and lack the ability to think independently as well. Neither homes nor schools teach young Saudis how to stand up for their own ideas and thoughts.
At home, expressing views is subject to a hierarchical order. My father or older siblings are entitled to give their opinions concerning, let’s say, a family matter. The same tradition is practiced in schools where teachers are the authority figures. Students are taught to follow precisely whatever their instructors tell them. They should not deviate a bit from the teachers’ thoughts or directions; otherwise, they will put themselves in a difficult situation or, to state the obvious, fail the subject.
This social phenomenon is common in the workforce, especially in the government as opposed to the private sector. It creates, I would contend, a generation of young Saudis who cannot, or who are not willing to, express or communicate freely their thoughts and feelings. When you ask them to state their personal views on a subject, they will either ask you in return about your opinion or refer to what so and so said about the issue under discussion.
Let me relate my recent experience with my own students. I asked them to write an academic essay about whether Saudi women should be allowed to drive. I was shocked when all of them, about 50 students, quoted so and so concerning this topic and did not write their thoughts about this controversial social issue. I confronted them and explained I was interested in what each of them personally thought on the issue, not the opinions of the respected people whom they had quoted.
I returned their essays and instructed them to try again, taking into account their need to express their thoughts. To my surprise, a large number of them could not follow my instructions and thus I found it difficult to extract comments and opinions from my students concerning the subject being discussed.
To find out what was wrong, I held a conference session to discuss why they did not write about what they thought about the issue. The overwhelming comment was, “We are not fully trained to express our thoughts,” or “ We are not accustomed to being given a chance to state our ideas freely and independently.” Some of them also mentioned that they were afraid their thoughts might upset me on the assumption that their thoughts might be different from mine.
The following is an example written by one of the students: “….sheikhs of Saudi Arabia say that women’s driving is forbidden. They contend that the disadvantages are more dangerous than the advantages…some of these Islamic scholars say that women driving will be the starting point of Westernizing the Saudi society which will eventually break the teachings of our religion.”
The conclusion that I would like to leave you with is that the inability of young Saudi citizens to express their own thoughts deserves our greatest attention. It also shows us the importance of reconsidering our approaches when it comes to raising and educating our youth.
So let’s do something to make our young Saudi generation aware of the different ways in which they can communicate a range of feelings and thoughts and, most importantly, express their ideas and insights independently.
— The writer is a Saudi academic who can be reached at alseghayer@yahoo.com
Friday, December 30, 2011
Saudi girl steps into the world of automobile mechanics
Great story in the Saudi Gazette - a link to the story is here, and the text is pasted below. Not sure if the photograph is of Kadeeja herself, or another woman mechanic.
Saudi girl steps into the world of automobile mechanics
By Ayesha Lorenz Sayeed
An aptitude and fondness for cars, gears, mechanics and electronics do not only fascinate boys now, girls are also slowly and steadily entering this field. They have again proven their worth and caliber in another distinct male cherished and dominated sector.
Kadeeja Y. Al-Saeed, a young Saudi girl with a fervor for automobiles, has completed a two year theoretical and practical program of auto repair and maintenance from Portland Community College in Oregon, US.
She had, however, not planned to get in this field. She was taking a pre-requisite course at her community college, when she was offered the basic auto-repair course. Hesitantly, she took up the course and was surprised to find a number of female students, and female instructors, too. Over the course, she discovered that she excelled at it, and was asked to help other students in her class. Her instructors were very proud of her diligent attitude toward her studies, and her lively nature and friendly smile which lit up the class and the auto lab.
She is inspired by her father, a flight engineer. He instilled her with the confidence of pursuing a higher education abroad, and has always shared a special bond of understanding and love with his children. He had also gently advised her to pursue another career, when she chose to enter the auto-repair and maintenance feild. “I hope to study or learn many things in my lifetime that will be useful,” remarked Al-Saeed.
Bedriya, her eldest sister, was awarded with the Best Business Plan in 2007 by Jeddah Economic Forum. She has done her post graduation from Emirates and is now working for General Motors.
“It’s great to think ‘outside the box’ like she does. Innovative ideas enrich society,” she said. She is content with her studies and achievements, and is extremely happy of her siblings, accomplishments. She feels that children strive to work hard and succeed in life, when parents pay attention in their interests, and praise them for their efforts.
Al-Saeed dreams of owning an auto-repair shop where she can cater to women in need of services for their cars. She explains, “It’s really important for females to be able to feel comfortable and at ease when they come for a repair. I was better able to understand this when I dealt with my own car in US.”
Many women want an auto-repair shop run by women themselves as they would prefer to go,for their cars, maintenance, to a female instead of a male. This will also comply with the Islamic ruling of segregation for both genders. __
By Ayesha Lorenz Sayeed
An aptitude and fondness for cars, gears, mechanics and electronics do not only fascinate boys now, girls are also slowly and steadily entering this field. They have again proven their worth and caliber in another distinct male cherished and dominated sector.
Kadeeja Y. Al-Saeed, a young Saudi girl with a fervor for automobiles, has completed a two year theoretical and practical program of auto repair and maintenance from Portland Community College in Oregon, US.
She had, however, not planned to get in this field. She was taking a pre-requisite course at her community college, when she was offered the basic auto-repair course. Hesitantly, she took up the course and was surprised to find a number of female students, and female instructors, too. Over the course, she discovered that she excelled at it, and was asked to help other students in her class. Her instructors were very proud of her diligent attitude toward her studies, and her lively nature and friendly smile which lit up the class and the auto lab.
She is inspired by her father, a flight engineer. He instilled her with the confidence of pursuing a higher education abroad, and has always shared a special bond of understanding and love with his children. He had also gently advised her to pursue another career, when she chose to enter the auto-repair and maintenance feild. “I hope to study or learn many things in my lifetime that will be useful,” remarked Al-Saeed.
Bedriya, her eldest sister, was awarded with the Best Business Plan in 2007 by Jeddah Economic Forum. She has done her post graduation from Emirates and is now working for General Motors.
“It’s great to think ‘outside the box’ like she does. Innovative ideas enrich society,” she said. She is content with her studies and achievements, and is extremely happy of her siblings, accomplishments. She feels that children strive to work hard and succeed in life, when parents pay attention in their interests, and praise them for their efforts.
Al-Saeed dreams of owning an auto-repair shop where she can cater to women in need of services for their cars. She explains, “It’s really important for females to be able to feel comfortable and at ease when they come for a repair. I was better able to understand this when I dealt with my own car in US.”
Many women want an auto-repair shop run by women themselves as they would prefer to go,for their cars, maintenance, to a female instead of a male. This will also comply with the Islamic ruling of segregation for both genders. __
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Shoura council reconsidering women driving issue
The Saudi Gazette reports that the Saudi consultative council, known as the Shoura, appointed by the King, is reconsidering the women driving issue. A link to the story is here and the text is below. This subject has come to the fore, in response to the growing movement of Saudi men and women who are asking for women's right to drive, as well as the questions that have followed the King's recent announcement about women's right to vote and women's imminent appointment as full members of the Shoura.
Shoura reconsidering women driving issue
Al-Khobar — In view of the popular campaign for allowing women to drive in the Kingdom, the Shoura Council is thoroughly reconsidering the issue, said Dr. Misha’l Mamdooh Al-Ali, Chairman of the Council’s Human Rights Committee.
Allowing women to drive does not conflict with Islamic law, he said, adding that the majority of people oppose women driving based on tradition and customs. “It has nothing to do with religion,” Al-Ali was quoted by Al-Hayat Arabic daily as saying.
Many Saudi women say their driving does not contradict the Shariah and there is no religious reason that prevents them from driving, he added. He said these women have appointed a lawyer to follow up the issue at the Shoura Council.
“The human rights committee is waiting for the Chairman of the Shoura Council to study the case and refer it back to the committee,” he said.
“The Shoura Council will study any issue put on the table as long as it is in the interest of citizens and residents,” he said. The Shoura Council will allow the lawyer and his female clients to attend the session when the issue is discussed, he said.
Dr. Al-Ali hoped that Sheikh Abdul Aziz Aal Al-Sheikh, the Grand Mufti of the Kingdom, and other senior Ulema (scholars) would give their opinion on the issue. “We will comply with what they say because they know better and know what is best for us.”
The Shoura Council members are studying the issue thoroughly from different social, economic and security aspects, he said.
One important goal that his committee seeks to achieve is to ensure that there are female police so that female drivers are treated with respect, he explained.
Shoura reconsidering women driving issue
Al-Khobar — In view of the popular campaign for allowing women to drive in the Kingdom, the Shoura Council is thoroughly reconsidering the issue, said Dr. Misha’l Mamdooh Al-Ali, Chairman of the Council’s Human Rights Committee.
Allowing women to drive does not conflict with Islamic law, he said, adding that the majority of people oppose women driving based on tradition and customs. “It has nothing to do with religion,” Al-Ali was quoted by Al-Hayat Arabic daily as saying.
Many Saudi women say their driving does not contradict the Shariah and there is no religious reason that prevents them from driving, he added. He said these women have appointed a lawyer to follow up the issue at the Shoura Council.
“The human rights committee is waiting for the Chairman of the Shoura Council to study the case and refer it back to the committee,” he said.
“The Shoura Council will study any issue put on the table as long as it is in the interest of citizens and residents,” he said. The Shoura Council will allow the lawyer and his female clients to attend the session when the issue is discussed, he said.
Dr. Al-Ali hoped that Sheikh Abdul Aziz Aal Al-Sheikh, the Grand Mufti of the Kingdom, and other senior Ulema (scholars) would give their opinion on the issue. “We will comply with what they say because they know better and know what is best for us.”
The Shoura Council members are studying the issue thoroughly from different social, economic and security aspects, he said.
One important goal that his committee seeks to achieve is to ensure that there are female police so that female drivers are treated with respect, he explained.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Driven to despair
Excellent essay by Saudi writer Sameera Aziz in the 9/13/2011 Saudi Gazette about the lack of progress in the women's driving issue. The link to the story is here and the text of it is below. Bravo, Sameera.
Prodded further about the exact time when women could get behind the wheel, King Abdullah added: “Our people are just now beginning to open up to the world, and I believe that, with the passing of days in the future, everything is possible.”
That interview took place more than five years ago but the question still remains about when women could be allowed to drive.
And, to be honest, this is a question I have never tired of raising at any forum that upholds women’s rights. In fact, at about the same time that Walters was raising this issue with King Abdullah, I was putting this question before the Jeddah Economic Forum.
It is a question that is very close to my heart and that, I believe, of every woman in the Kingdom. However, I was in for a rude shock. I had barely finished my question at the elite gathering, when one of the key speakers cut me short: “This is the dilemma of our society; young Saudi women of today, like you, just think of seeking permission to drive in the Kingdom, rather than focusing on and nurturing their marital life,” he had scoffed and continued deploringly. “Think of seeking a good groom for yourself rather than wasting your time on such non-issues.”
According to him, we should be concentrating on more fruitful issues instead: like finding ways to reduce the increasing number of divorces in our society! I will refrain from naming the speaker, who is elderly and respectable, but his unexpectedly harsh and offensive reply took me completely by surprise. I had promptly gathered myself and presented my case. “Sir, I was speaking on the issue of women driving in general,” I explained. “However, if you are interested in talking about me personally, for your kind information, I am already married and my husband believes I am a very caring homemaker. I know how to nurture a good marital life. Personally, I would probably prefer to pamper myself by being chauffeur driven but, equally, those women who want to drive should be allowed to drive. And I was speaking on behalf of all those Saudi and expat women, who don’t want to depend on drivers.”
Saying this I walked out of the hall. I can only guess what his response would have been because I left behind a silence that raised more questions than he could answer.
While I was sitting in the lobby for the next session, however, I found several supporters. Many young girls came out and voiced their disgust.
“We are fed up. They don’t consider it (driving) an issue at all. I can’t afford a driver but I am forced to pay him,” said one. “On one hand, we talk about non-Mahrams (strangers) but, on the other, our menfolk think nothing of allowing us to go around town accompanied by these drivers who are also non-Mahrams,” added another. “How long are we going to depend on our drivers to take us where we want?” questioned yet another.
I could go on but you probably get the drift. Clearly, women were frustrated at being put down at every forum and a key issue like this was simply put on the backburner.
However, after five years of harsh and haunting debate, I believe things are changing. People are now open to the idea of at least discussing the issue of women driving.
There was much confusion over what the law says about women driving when Manal was arrested.
The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice washed its hands off Manal’s case saying it did not fall under its jurisdiction because she had apparently committed a violation of the law.
The police, on the other hand, claimed it had nothing to do with this as Manal had not committed any security violation. It was a traffic violation, it said, which was under the traffic department.
Though it was indeed the traffic department that finally leveled the charges, it was evident that they were confused about the issue. And the reason for that was simple: they had never handled a woman violator before! There was some certainty provided this past week when Prince Ahmad Bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, Deputy Interior Minister, said that the ban in the country was still in place, according to the Ministry of Interior website. “… a statement has been issued in 1411H, which banned women driving cars in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Ministry of Interior still implements this regulation but we could not say that this is correct or incorrect because it is not our work; we are responsible for implementing the regulations.”
Whatever the points of view, confusion should be cleared and the issue needs to be addressed quickly. After all, women comprise more than half of the Kingdom’s student body. While the transition from education to employment is already hard for Saudi women, it becomes even harder for them to find the resources to pursue a successful career. And creating feasible transportation is a key factor here.
Being dependent on others for something as basic as getting from one place to another can be frustrating. And more so when one has to depend on a complete stranger to fulfill this need. There is little doubt that most women would feel safer behind the wheel of their own car rather than meet the roving eye of her limousine driver or the lecherous taxi driver who makes unnecessary conversation and drops broad hints.
Men need to understand that women in the Kingdom are simply asking for their right. They are not demanding unnecessary freedom by seeking permission to drive.
And those who are depriving them of this need to be cautioned. As uprisings are sweeping the Arab world, the climate is ripe for protests. Take Najla Hariri, a Saudi housewife in her mid-thirties, for instance. Najla apparently took to the road in a direct challenge to the ban on female drivers. Najla claimed to have drawn inspiration from the Mideast protests.
Now, hundreds of activists have already set up Facebook groups and campaigns calling for Manal’s release and an end to the driving ban. A Facebook page titled “We are all Manal Al-Sharief: a call for solidarity with Saudi women’s rights,” has been growing in popularity.
Contrary to that, the deplorable ‘Iqal campaign’ has been also launched on Facebook calling for men to beat Saudi women who drive their cars in protest. The renowned novelist Abdo Khal, writing in Okaz, condemned the ban on women driving, and said he did not know “whether to laugh or cry” over the proposed Iqal campaign.
Whatever be the case, the fact remains that Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world in which women are not allowed to drive. Thus, every time the issue is raised in the global arena, it will give the Western media another chance to take potshots at women’s lack of independence in the Kingdom.
If Saudi men continue to oppose women driving, there seems little doubt that the authorities have to brace themselves for more Najlas and Manals on the streets.
— Sameera Aziz is International Editor at
The Saudi Gazette __
Driven to despair - Sameera Aziz
In
his reply to a pointed question from Barbara Walters of ABC News asking
him whether he would support allowing women to drive, King Abdullah,
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, was forthright. “I believe strongly
in the rights of women ... my mother is a woman, my sister is a woman,
my daughter is a woman, my wife is a woman,” he said. “I believe the day
will come when women drive. In fact, if you look at the areas in Saudi
Arabia, the deserts and in the rural areas, you will find that women do
drive. The issue will require patience. In time, I believe it will be
possible.”Prodded further about the exact time when women could get behind the wheel, King Abdullah added: “Our people are just now beginning to open up to the world, and I believe that, with the passing of days in the future, everything is possible.”
That interview took place more than five years ago but the question still remains about when women could be allowed to drive.
And, to be honest, this is a question I have never tired of raising at any forum that upholds women’s rights. In fact, at about the same time that Walters was raising this issue with King Abdullah, I was putting this question before the Jeddah Economic Forum.
It is a question that is very close to my heart and that, I believe, of every woman in the Kingdom. However, I was in for a rude shock. I had barely finished my question at the elite gathering, when one of the key speakers cut me short: “This is the dilemma of our society; young Saudi women of today, like you, just think of seeking permission to drive in the Kingdom, rather than focusing on and nurturing their marital life,” he had scoffed and continued deploringly. “Think of seeking a good groom for yourself rather than wasting your time on such non-issues.”
According to him, we should be concentrating on more fruitful issues instead: like finding ways to reduce the increasing number of divorces in our society! I will refrain from naming the speaker, who is elderly and respectable, but his unexpectedly harsh and offensive reply took me completely by surprise. I had promptly gathered myself and presented my case. “Sir, I was speaking on the issue of women driving in general,” I explained. “However, if you are interested in talking about me personally, for your kind information, I am already married and my husband believes I am a very caring homemaker. I know how to nurture a good marital life. Personally, I would probably prefer to pamper myself by being chauffeur driven but, equally, those women who want to drive should be allowed to drive. And I was speaking on behalf of all those Saudi and expat women, who don’t want to depend on drivers.”
Saying this I walked out of the hall. I can only guess what his response would have been because I left behind a silence that raised more questions than he could answer.
While I was sitting in the lobby for the next session, however, I found several supporters. Many young girls came out and voiced their disgust.
“We are fed up. They don’t consider it (driving) an issue at all. I can’t afford a driver but I am forced to pay him,” said one. “On one hand, we talk about non-Mahrams (strangers) but, on the other, our menfolk think nothing of allowing us to go around town accompanied by these drivers who are also non-Mahrams,” added another. “How long are we going to depend on our drivers to take us where we want?” questioned yet another.
I could go on but you probably get the drift. Clearly, women were frustrated at being put down at every forum and a key issue like this was simply put on the backburner.
However, after five years of harsh and haunting debate, I believe things are changing. People are now open to the idea of at least discussing the issue of women driving.
There was much confusion over what the law says about women driving when Manal was arrested.
The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice washed its hands off Manal’s case saying it did not fall under its jurisdiction because she had apparently committed a violation of the law.
The police, on the other hand, claimed it had nothing to do with this as Manal had not committed any security violation. It was a traffic violation, it said, which was under the traffic department.
Though it was indeed the traffic department that finally leveled the charges, it was evident that they were confused about the issue. And the reason for that was simple: they had never handled a woman violator before! There was some certainty provided this past week when Prince Ahmad Bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, Deputy Interior Minister, said that the ban in the country was still in place, according to the Ministry of Interior website. “… a statement has been issued in 1411H, which banned women driving cars in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Ministry of Interior still implements this regulation but we could not say that this is correct or incorrect because it is not our work; we are responsible for implementing the regulations.”
Whatever the points of view, confusion should be cleared and the issue needs to be addressed quickly. After all, women comprise more than half of the Kingdom’s student body. While the transition from education to employment is already hard for Saudi women, it becomes even harder for them to find the resources to pursue a successful career. And creating feasible transportation is a key factor here.
Being dependent on others for something as basic as getting from one place to another can be frustrating. And more so when one has to depend on a complete stranger to fulfill this need. There is little doubt that most women would feel safer behind the wheel of their own car rather than meet the roving eye of her limousine driver or the lecherous taxi driver who makes unnecessary conversation and drops broad hints.
Men need to understand that women in the Kingdom are simply asking for their right. They are not demanding unnecessary freedom by seeking permission to drive.
And those who are depriving them of this need to be cautioned. As uprisings are sweeping the Arab world, the climate is ripe for protests. Take Najla Hariri, a Saudi housewife in her mid-thirties, for instance. Najla apparently took to the road in a direct challenge to the ban on female drivers. Najla claimed to have drawn inspiration from the Mideast protests.
Now, hundreds of activists have already set up Facebook groups and campaigns calling for Manal’s release and an end to the driving ban. A Facebook page titled “We are all Manal Al-Sharief: a call for solidarity with Saudi women’s rights,” has been growing in popularity.
Contrary to that, the deplorable ‘Iqal campaign’ has been also launched on Facebook calling for men to beat Saudi women who drive their cars in protest. The renowned novelist Abdo Khal, writing in Okaz, condemned the ban on women driving, and said he did not know “whether to laugh or cry” over the proposed Iqal campaign.
Whatever be the case, the fact remains that Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world in which women are not allowed to drive. Thus, every time the issue is raised in the global arena, it will give the Western media another chance to take potshots at women’s lack of independence in the Kingdom.
If Saudi men continue to oppose women driving, there seems little doubt that the authorities have to brace themselves for more Najlas and Manals on the streets.
— Sameera Aziz is International Editor at
The Saudi Gazette __
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