• The post you are reporting:
   
  Somewhere buried in the traffic department regulations is a clause saying that licenses will only be issued to men. That's all. So women may be prosecuted for driving without a license.
  
  In practice, women drive widely in the desert areas. It's not uncommon to see a Bedouin girl driving a pick-up or a water bowser in the farming districts north of Riyadh. Off-road, it's allowed. My wife often used to hop into the driving seat of our 4x4 truck as soon as we were out of sight of tarmac. It's just in the cities and towns where it's an issue.
  
  What triggered the original protest drive in October 1990 (which my wife witnessed, it started in a supermarket car park where we used to shop) was the influx, during the preamble to the first Gulf War of thousands of Kuwaiti women fleeing the invasion in their own cars, and American women driving US Army transports. The authorities turned a blind eye to the Kuwaitis so Saudi women got the hump.
  
  I think this time they might do it. Many Saudi women, particularly in the affluent families, can drive perfectly well and already hold licenses from one or more other countries.
  
  Car insurance has been compulsory in Saudi Arabia since 2008, but policies cover the car for any licensed driver. So it's important to let women have licenses, not just turn a blind eye, which is the traditional Saudi way.

Report Post

Your Name

Reason