Saudi: Allowing women to drive a ‘sovereign’ decision

A member of the Saudi Shura Council said the issue of allowing women to drive needs a sovereign decision; therefore, there is no need to discuss it in the Shura Council.

Sami Zaidan explained that “the council is only concerned with amending laws and regulations”.

“The issue is subject to the guardian’s assessment, whether the social situation allows women to drive or not,” Zaidan told the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper. “Allowing women to drive does not mean they have to.”

He called for women to be allowed to drive “just like in neighbouring Gulf nations”.

In November last year, Saudi Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal called on the government to allow women to get behind the wheel.

كفى نقاش:

حان وقت قيادة المرأة للسيارةhttps://t.co/BBgyF8i1Gs

Stop the debate:

Time for women to drivehttps://t.co/6KAniFa4BT

— الوليد بن طلال (@Alwaleed_Talal) November 29, 2016