Saudi Women’s License to Drive

From the start of the week, Saudi Arabia has started giving driving license to its women citizen, first time thereby lifting the ban on female motorists in the conservative country. The move also gave license to the Saudi women to think and move freely, who are otherwise debarred from these basic human rights in the country. This move also marked the beginning of a new era in Saudi Arabia’s steps towards independent thinking and equal rights.  

At the start of the week, around 10 women across the cities including Riyadh came to exchange their foreign license with the Saudi driving license. The kingdom officially lifts the ban from 24th June 2018. According to Centre for International Communication, Ministry of Information, Saudi Arabia, “Ten Saudi women made history on Monday when they were issued driving licenses.

Expectations are that next week an additional 2,000 women will join the ranks of licensed drivers in the kingdom”.The initiative is a part of popularly known liberalization drive popularly known as vision 2030, launched by the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, where he is seeking to modernize the kingdom not just with constructive infrastructural development but also with the development of people’s thought process breaking the orthodox barriers. In September 2017, the crown prince has promised that the women of the country will be allowed to drive “in accordance with the Islamic laws”. Women too are happy with the progressive steps of the Royals, Rema Jawdat, one of the women, who received the driving license, said, “It's a dream come true that I am about to drive in the kingdom,”. She also said, “driving to me represents having a choice the choice of independent movement. Now we have that option”. Rema Jawdat also an official at the Ministry of economy and planning, Saudi Arabia.

Till now Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world where driving is not allowed for women and for this the country has faced several criticisms from various quarters of the world, as it is seen as one of the major form oppression on women. The Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman who recently undertook a tour of the world, with the aim to reshape the image of his kingdom is seen as the young reformer of Saudi Arabia. He has recently lifted the ban on Cinemas and Concert with both male and female participants. According to a government announcement nearly 2,000 Saudi women to get their driving licenses in a week time. In the month of May, a group of women rights activists was arrested for advocating Saudi women’s rights to drive. Now with the new move, the hope of their release too has been confirmed.

Allowing women to drive in Saudi Arabia is a major social change no doubt, as the women of the country who are long been out of public life. But experts are of the opinion that still some parts of Saudi society won’t allow their woman to come out and choose to remain conservative.