The fight for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia has been a long and rocky road. Although these brave women want nothing more than to have the same privileges commonly taken for granted in other countries, Saudi Arabian women are still suffering the backlash of political unrest.
Although there isn’t a written law specifically declaring women cannot drive, ultraconservative religious leaders prohibit the notion with an iron fist.
However, women are fighting to break the taboo despite these restrictions. In an attempt to promote Freedom and Feminism, many women in Saudi Arabia set up video cameras in vehicles and drove their point home (literally).
Maha al-Qahtani, a female activist states, “This is our right, whether they like it or not.” She, along with many other Saudi Arabian women, drives out need not defiance. Many families cannot afford to hire live-in drivers, but in order to buy groceries, care for children, and maintain other domestic functions, these activities require the use of a vehicle. For many Saudi Arabian women, depending on male relatives to act as chauffeurs is both frustrating and restricting, so they drive anyway.
The Associated Press reports, “Normally, police just stop female drivers, question them and let them go after they sign a pledge not to drive again.”
But not this time.
Unfortunately, Shaimaa Ghassaneya (one of many women who flouted the ban) will receive ten lashings as punishment for driving. Of course, the sentence is extreme for such a small violation, but what makes this particular sentence more hurtful is the fact that two days earlier, King Abdullah announced women’s right to vote in the upcoming 2015 elections.
Such a verdict is like a spit in the face toward women’s rights, and it’s especially frustrating when the maximum penalty for traffic violations is a fine rather than physical punishment. Despite the push for change, Saudi Arabia seems to be stuck in a cultural rut-sticking to the same traditions that keep women covered from head to toe in layers of cloth.
Although many Saudi Arabians believe that progressive Western beliefs will lead to the deterioration and erosion of traditional values, some traditions were never meant to be enforced with the lash of a whip. These extremes put Saudi Arabia in a negative light, and though Ghassaneya hopes to make an appeal for her case, one can only hope that the political pressures of the outside world will soften the blow.