Women in Saudi Arabia have been eagerly waiting for this day for a long time. Starting June 24 at midnight local time (today at 10pm London time, 5pm New York time), women will finally be allowed to drive a car on their own, capping a 30-year campaign to end the world’s last ban on female drivers. Until now, Saudi Arabia was the only country in the world where women were legally required to be driven by chauffeurs or travel with male family members. Things quickly changed after a royal decree from the crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, last September enabled women to obtain driver’s licenses. With the promise of greater independence, many women across the conservative kingdom signed up for driving lessons and road safety education classes at universities. The first licenses were issued earlier month and about 2,000 female drivers now have official permits to get behind the wheel, the BBC reports. Reuters/Zohra Bensemra Drivers ed. Speaking the Guardian, Hamsa al-Sonosi described how momentous June 24 is.”I didn’t think I’d see this day in my lifetime,” she says, relieved that she can finally take her new Range Rover to the open road.”People have come back from abroad for this day alone.” she said. But as Saudi women take the driver’s seat, the rights activists who spearheaded the campaign to end the driving ban are still in prison or have been forced into exile. Accused of treason, Saudi officials have arrested several women and their male supporters. With a possibility of a 20-year prison sentence, nine women including prominent activist Loujain al-Hathloul are slated to face a criminal court established to discern terrorism-related cases. In a June 20 statement, Sarah Leah Whitson, the Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, calls for international support on behalf of the activists languishing in prisons.”It is imperative for Saudi Arabia’s Western allies to speak out in solidarity with the detained activists and to pressure the Saudi authorities to unconditionally release those detained for their work as human rights activists before they are referred for trial,” said Whitson. “There can be no real celebration on June 24 while the women who campaigned for the right to drive and their supporters remain behind bars.”<doc-sep>Technically, there isn’t a written law in Saudi Arabia banning women from driving. Instead, like so much else in the country, it’s a combination of religious diktats, social pressure and purposefully convoluted licensing rules which has effectively stifled women’s freedoms and make it illegal for them to get behind the wheel. When a royal decree goes into effect on Sunday, for the first time in decades, that is going to change. The independence is going to revolutionise life for many - including Pilar al Amad, from Kohbar, on Saudi Arabia’s east coast. If the rules had changed a few months earlier, she says her recent family tragedy may have been a little easier to deal with. “I was pregnant with twins and my husband was away with work when I went into labour,” she said. “I had to rely on people from work to drive me to the hospital and it was really stressful. I lost one of my twins a week after delivery. I feel like if I had just been able to drive the whole situation would have been easier.” Pilar’s surviving baby daughter has been in an intensive care unit for the last three months. Saudi women watch an educational video during a preparatory event on car driving at Riyadh Park Mall on 23 June 2018 (EPA/Ahmed Yosri) (EPA) “I can’t wait to be able to come and go as I please without having to go when my husband goes or else pay for an Uber,” she added. Lifting the driving ban is a deeply symbolic move in a country where the guardianship system means that most decisions in a woman’s life are made for her by her father, husband or son. The kingdom’s newly appointed and immensely powerful crown prince, 32-year-old Mohammed bin Salman, is the driving force behind the new measure aimed at liberalising Saudi society - which will, crucially, bring more women into the workforce. Allowing women to drive is part of ‘Vision 2030’, an ambitious roadmap of socio-economic reforms designed to wean the kingdom off its dependence on oil revenue. Other bold moves include curbing the powers of the once notorious religious police and even a promise the conservative kingdom will return to a more “moderate” form of Islam. Before Prince Mohammed was appointed crown prince a year ago, such rapid change was unthinkable. In visits before and after his appointment, however, The Independent has witnessed how many ordinary Saudis have begun to relax into the changes. In the Red Sea city of Jeddah, more and more women are choosing to forego wearing headscarves altogether, and shops sell abayas - the cloak-like robe women must wear by law - in navy, grey and white as well as black. Even in the more conservative desert capital, Riyadh, people now blast Western pop music from cars and groups of teenagers - both boys and girls - roam around parks and malls unsupervised. ✕ Saudi Arabian women release video mocking driving laws Sunday’s historic moment is somewhat overshadowed by the arrests of 17 prominent women’s rights activists in the weeks leading up to the lifting of the ban. While eight have been released on bail since, the rest have still not been charged and have not been allowed access to their families or lawyers. The arrests have widely been viewed as an attempt to intimate Saudi Arabia’s tiny activist community - and serve as a reminder to everyone that change in the kingdom will only come from the top down. Despite the crackdown, though, excitement for Sunday is building. Newspapers and television stations across the country have gone into overdrive celebrating “history in the making”. Pink “ladies’ parking” spaces have sprung up in major cities and community events focussing on family road safety organised under the slogan “Tawakkali wa Intaliqi”, or ‘Have Faith and Drive”, are planned across the country tomorrow. Mabkhoutah al-Mari, 27, with her new driving license at the Saudi Driving School inside Princess Nora University on 23 June (AP/Nariman El-Mofty) “Everyone is embracing the changes,” said Susan Newbon, a driving instructor from South Wales who is training up Saudi women to teach their own driving students and hold exams. “This is a young nation, where people know change is overdue. It’s logistically a massive undertaking but Saudis are more than ready to be able to do this. There’s a real sense of celebration.” Many challenges are still waiting in the wings. Complex rules on the mixing of genders in work and social environments mean it’s not clear whether women-owned businesses or female employees can mix with male customers and clients in certain industries; the threat of harassment and backlash from religious conservatives is also a problem feared by many women. The long overdue social reforms are also being ushered in in part to sweeten a bitter pill: the House of Saud has been badly hit by a global plunge in oil prices since 2015. Saudi Arabia struggles to employ its most-educated women Show all 4 1 /4 Saudi Arabia struggles to employ its most-educated women Saudi Arabia struggles to employ its most-educated women SAUDI WOMEN122.jpg SAUDI WOMEN: Tahany Omar, 36, has a Masters of Business Administration from the US but has found the job market challenging in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; she works in an investment firm, but not in management. Washington Post photo by Linda Davidson Saudi Arabia struggles to employ its most-educated women SAUDI WOMEN124.jpg A young Saudi woman in her 20's shops for dresses on the women-only level at Kingdom Centre Mall in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in October. Unless designated as a women's only area, most shopping in Saudi Arabia is staffed by men. Washington Post photo by Linda Davidson Saudi Arabia struggles to employ its most-educated women SAUDI WOMEN123.jpg Saudi men reflected in the mirrors of the Al-Faisaliyah Center viewing level which overlooks the expansive city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Washington Post photo by Linda Davidson Saudi Arabia struggles to employ its most-educated women SAUDI WOMEN121.jpg SAUDI WOMEN: Zainab Al Talib, left, assists legal consultant Tala Al-Hejailan at the law offices of DLA Piper in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on October 8. Hejailan is a lawyer, but cannot practise law in Saudi Arabia, which will not grant licences to women. Washington Post photo by Linda Davidson Women are being ushered into the workforce, but unemployment already reached a high of 12.8 per cent in 2017. The government introduced its first-ever VAT (at 5 per cent) on 1 January and has begun phasing out fuel subsidies - meaning that while women will be able to get behind the wheel from next week, it will cost a lot to fill up the tank, and there aren’t enough jobs for everyone to drive to. Mohammed bin Salman’s reforms are more a continuation of the House of Saud’s long-term thinking than an out of the blue new agenda, David Butter, an associate fellow at London’s Chatham House, told The Independent. Nonetheless, the rate of recent change has been dramatic. The prince’s critics see the women’s driving issue as a “stunt to boost [his] credentials in the West” and as cover for attempts to consolidate his power, Mr Butter added. “Lifting the driving ban will provide a lot more scope for women to participate in the workforce and society,” he said. “But the changes do raise all sorts of questions.”<doc-sep>(CNN) — Saudi women drivers took to the roads legally Sunday for the first time in the kingdom’s history, as its decades-old ban on women driving finally lifted. The end of the controversial ban brings the ultra-conservative Gulf nation into line with the rest of the world. It also represents the culmination of years of campaigning by rights activists who have sometimes been arrested and imprisoned for their efforts. More than 120,000 women applied for a driver’s license Sunday, according to senior Ministry of Interior and Traffic Directorate officials. “Demand for obtaining driving licenses is very high,” said Maj. Gen. Mansour Al Turki, official spokesman of the Ministry of Interior. Mona Al-Fares, a doctor, was in her car before midnight, waiting for the ban to lift before setting off through the streets of Jeddah with her husband and children. “I feel like I’m surprised – am I really driving in my own country? I feel happy, relieved. I feel like I’m free,” she told CNN. The step, first announced last September, will liberate many women from the constraints of needing to hire a male driver to travel even small distances, allowing many more to join the workforce, grow their own businesses and explore the kingdom. Hiring women is a key part of Saudi Arabia’s ambitious plan to overhaul its economy, known as Vision 2030. The reform agenda is being spearheaded by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. For some, though, the jubilation at realizing a hard-won freedom Sunday will be tempered by the arrests last month of a number of Saudi rights activists, including some who have played a prominent role in the fight for women’s right to drive. Many other restrictions on women’s everyday lives remain in place under the male guardianship system – including the right to marry, work or travel. HUSSAIN RADWAN/AFP/Getty Images Saudi woman Sabika Habib drives her car through the streets of Khobar City on her way to Bahrain on Sunday. Women and their families began posting photos and videos of them driving and celebrating as soon as the ban lifted. In Riyadh, Aliah Naser watched as her mother, Romoush Bana, drove for the first time and posted an image of the moment to Instagram. “My reaction: I was super excited about this change in Saudi and really hope that everyone can have fun and enjoy these changes in Saudi Arabia,” she told CNN. “She was scared a little but she did it in the end.” Baheirah Khusheim, 33, described how just after midnight she followed a route her late father had taken her on as an 18-year-old girl, dressed in her brother’s clothing, “as he wanted me to have a real driving experience.” “It is a remarkable historic moment that I wish all the world would be here to witness it,” she said. Khusheim said she had picked up her Saudi license in Mecca. “The support from the community and officers was remarkable. As soon as you leave the license office, all you will hear is BEEP! BEEP! “MABROOK! CONGRATS!” from random strangers. It’s a thrilling experience.” A spokesman for the Saudi Interior Ministry told a news conference that 120,000 women had applied for driving licenses in Saudi Arabia, according to state media Al-Ekhbariya TV. Celebratory rides Reema al-Bawardy, 28, took her 10 cousins on a drive across Jeddah at midnight as soon as the ban was lifted. They packed the big black SUV again on Sunday afternoon for another drive to an upscale coffee house in the Rawda neighborhood. Out of the 11 people in the vehicle, two had driving licenses. The celebratory rides will go on for a few days, she told CNN. “After that they have to learn how to drive.” picture alliance/Getty Images Walaa Abou Najem, 30, drives her car for the first time through the streets of Riyadh early Sunday. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, a billionaire businessman who was among the scores of high-profile Saudis detained for weeks last year in a luxury hotel in what the kingdom called an anti-corruption sweep, also hailed the end of the ban. “Finally, first ride with my daughter @Reem_Alwaleed while she’s driving me and my grand daughters in Riyadh,” he tweeted. Others were more skeptical about the much-touted advance. “This is not an achievement,” one woman, who gave her name only as Yasmin, told CNN in Jeddah. “An achievement is something you worked and fought hard for, like being the first ambassador or minister or astronaut. That would be something worth celebrating.” Her friend Batoul interjected. “At the end this doesn’t solve the problem. Public transportation does, and this is what would make the difference for the women who really need it.” ’Women can’t drive’ The kingdom had already issued its first driver’s licenses to a handful of Saudi women, in exchange for ones they acquired while overseas. It also staged events last week in the cities of Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah and Tabuk to raise awareness of road safety and traffic laws. Women who were new to driving could try out driving simulators and practice parking. Handout/Center for International Communication, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Women take part in a government-organized road safety event at Riyadh Park Mall, in the Saudi capital, on Thursday. It may take some time, however, to change the attitudes of those opposed to the ban lifting. “Women can’t drive and they are unqualified,” Khaled Abdullah Al-Houba, a 42-year-old state employee, told CNN on Saturday. He was sitting with his wife and children at the busy walkway overlooking the Red Sea in Jeddah. “The society is not used to women driving,” he said. For him, the decision taken last September was implemented too soon. “Women need at least two years to learn driving,” he said, “so the women can be ready and society gets ready.” He would consider allowing his daughters to apply for a license in the future, he said, but for now, “Saudi women still don’t have the guts needed to drive.” Activists arrested Among the women’s rights advocates arrested last month were Loujain Al-Hathloul, who was previously detained for 73 days in 2014 after trying to drive from the United Arab Emirates to Saudi Arabia, and Aziza al-Yousef, 70, one of the country’s earliest activists for the right to drive. Both remain in custody, rights group Amnesty International said Thursday. Those detained were accused of “suspicious contact with foreign entities,” according to a statement on Saudi Arabia’s official news agency. Rights groups have condemned the crackdown and voiced fears that it could presage a closing down of Saudi civil society. Saudi activist and author Manal al-Sharif, who was jailed in Saudi Arabia in 2011 after posting a video on YouTube of herself driving a car, tweeted Sunday that she was the first Saudi women to be given a ticket. “The first Saudi traffic violation that was issued to a woman was actually for me for driving without a license on May 19th, 2011,” she said, adding that she paid 900 Riyals, or $240. Sharif told CNN last month that she had planned to visit the country from Australia, where she now lives, but had canceled the upcoming trip out of fear for her safety following the arrests of activists. “We are back to square one,” she said. “We used to live in a police state; if you speak up you go to jail. And then there would be a defamation campaign against you, saying all sort of untrue things. Character assassination. We are seeing that same pattern again now.” Sharif also told CNN that after Saudi authorities announced plans to allow women to drive, they called her and asked her not to speak to the media about it. Amnesty: ‘Bravery and determination’ In Thursday’s statement, Amnesty International called for more reforms to follow the lifting of the driving ban – and for the detained women’s rights activists to be freed. “The lifting of the ban is testament to the bravery and determination of the women’s rights activists who have been campaigning on the issue since the 1990s, and the activists following up their groundbreaking work in subsequent campaigns since 2011,” said Samah Hadid, Amnesty International’s Middle East campaigns director.<doc-sep>
(CNN) — On Sunday, Saudi Arabia will end the world’s only ban on women drivers. For the first time in its history, women will be able to drive themselves legally through the ultra-conservative kingdom’s streets. The landmark step is the culmination of years of activism and appeals from inside and outside the Gulf nation. But, while a welcome development, activists say the battle for women’s rights is far from over. Why are women being allowed to drive now? The move comes as part of a series of sweeping social and economic reforms known as Vision 2030. Initiated over the past two years, the reforms have been spearheaded by Saudi Arabia’s 32-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The end of the driving ban will allow many more women to join the workforce, a key goal for the Crown Prince. Until now, many Saudi women have had to employ male drivers, something that eats into their salaries and is prohibitive for some. A royal decree was issued in September announcing the end of the ban in June 2018. Since then, the kingdom has been readying itself for a historic shift that will bring it into line with the rest of the world. Earlier this month, the kingdom issued its first driver’s licenses to 10 Saudi women in exchange for licenses they’d acquired while abroad. In January, ride-hailing applications Uber and Careem said they were recruiting female drivers for when the ban lifts. Handout/Center for International Communication, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia A woman tries a driving simulator at a government-organized road safety event at Riyadh Park Mall in the Saudi capital on Thursday. What’s the background to this? The lifting of the driving ban comes 28 years after Saudi women first took to the streets of the capital, Riyadh, to protest for the right to drive. The 47 Saudi women who drove in a motorcade through the city were all arrested, and the country’s highest religious body issued an edict banning female driving, adding what had been a customary ban to the legal code. The decades that followed the 1990 Riyadh protest were peppered with movements to lift the ban, but they came to a head around the time of the Arab Spring in 2011. A social-media campaign called Women2Drive culminated in activist Manal al-Sharif posting a video of herself driving in the Saudi city of Khobar on YouTube – a move that landed her in jail. She now lives in Australia. Other activists also emerged at the forefront of the movement. Loujain al-Hathloul was detained for 73 days in 2014 after trying to drive from the United Arab Emirates to Saudi Arabia. Eman al-Nafjan, a well-known blogger, drove in Riyadh in 2013 as part of a protest that attracted international attention. Aziza al-Yousef, who is 70, was one of the country’s earliest activists for the right to drive and signed a petition in recent years calling for an end to guardianship laws. All three were arrested last month in a sweep that targeted women’s rights groups, casting doubt on the Crown Prince’s much-touted reform effort. The government’s defenders said the move was necessary to quell conservative dissent on June 24. Analysts told CNN the arrests were an attempt to deprive the activists of credit for the lifting of the ban. The crackdown came on the heels of bin Salman’s month-long tour of Western countries, where he was billed as a modernizer spearheading change. What other rights have Saudi women gained? Over the past year, Saudi Arabia has opened its first cinema in decades and loosened several morality laws that discriminate against women, including its notorious rules requiring that women receive a male guardian’s permission to travel, receive an education and sometimes work and receive health care. The kingdom also announced that Saudi mothers would now be able to retain custody of their children after divorce without filing lawsuits. In doing so, it broke ranks with several other countries in the region that heavily favor male guardianship. Women are also now permitted to attend certain sporting events. In 2015 women cast ballots for the first time ever during municipal elections, a vote in which they were also allowed to campaign for public office. But female candidates weren’t allowed to speak to male voters and couldn’t have men and women mixing in their campaign offices. At least 17 women were elected during the 2015 municipal vote.