Woman Breaks Law by Driving to Save Father
Arab NewsYANBU, 23 January 2006 — A 19-year-old daughter saved her father by driving more than 25 kilometers in the desert, the Al-Madinah daily reported. The father was camping in the desert when he began suffering from heart pain. He called home for help. His daughter took her father in the car and drove at high speed for emergency treatment, saving his life by breaking the law against women driving — not to mention speeding.
I note the increasing frequency with which stories about Saudi women, driving in Saudi Arabia, are making their ways into the media. Not all are as up-beat as this one (though many are). A few weeks ago there was a story about a woman killed in an accident while she was driving.
The point of these articles, I believe, is to start making the fact of women’s driving an ordinary thing, something that is socially unobjectionable. There have already been many stories about how the ban on women’s driving has nothing to do with religion, but everything to do with social values.
Those values are in need of a change as more and more women start working and as men take on more responsible jobs, jobs they can’t walk away from for an hour or two to drive women where they need to go.
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January:23:2006 - 20:51
It reads like a story tailor-made for the purpose!
January:27:2006 - 18:41
This is an English language online newspaper. I believe that there is Saudi government involvement in all news from SA, especially that directed at foreigners. Is this article directly translated from the Arabic equivalent? In other words, is this what Saudis are also reading? Is there a sequel to the article (i.e. the lady was arrested for driving)?
January:27:2006 - 22:53
There’s certainly a measure of gov’t involvement in all Saudi media, though to a lesser degree than many suspect. There is, for instance, no prior censorship, but there are penalties if reporters or editors go beyond “redlines,” often unstated.
I have recently asked Saudis about this story. It has appeared in the Arabic papers as well as on radio and TV. They believe that it’s within the “redline” of government tolerance because the gov’t is trying to get people used to the idea of women’s driving.
There is no sequel to the story that has the woman being arrested or anything. If you go into the “Women’s Issues” category of this blog you’ll find several similar stories, over the past couple of years.
The Saudi gov’t–or at least parts of it–really doesn’t have a problem with women driving. They see an enormous financial drain in hiring expat drivers for women, a lack of productivity in male employees who must leave work to ferry the women in the family around, and a hinderance in women’s employment.
The rejection of women’s driving is a social/cultural issue. Many Saudis simply believe that it is morally dangerous for women to be driving around by themselves. The religion itself clearly doesn’t say anything about it and millions of Muslim women drive with no great hazard to their morals. But it takes time for societies and cultures to change.
January:29:2006 - 02:14
To follow up: When I was in Jeddah, I heard–but was not able to verify–that a new law explicitly permitting women to drive had been promulgated, but not yet put into force. Supposedly, the law will permit women aged 35+ to obtain drivers licenses. They would not be permitted to wear either veils or make-up while driving.
I’m still tracking this story down and will have more later.