A joke badge warning drivers that a woman is behind the wheel of a neighboring car was until recently simply unthinkable in this Islamic kingdom, where high-heeled shoes in themselves are even a reason for public censure. However, in attempts to please European and overseas partners, the current secular authorities of Saudi Arabia are ready to carry out a veritable feminist revolution, naturally, only within the strict framework of Muslim canons, writes Vremya Novostei.
The other day, former Secretary-General of the World Islamic League Abdel Omar Naseef, who previously served as deputy head of the Saudi Shura - an advisory body that is the predecessor of parliament - made a sensational statement in an interview with the local English-language newspaper Arab News: "Nothing in Islam forbids women from driving a car." He said that in the country's major cities, women will soon be able to get behind the wheel without fear of being punished in accordance with the full strictness of Sharia.
It is noteworthy that, having decided on this unprecedented step for Saudi Arabia, the authorities have been concerned primarily with carrying it out as cautiously as possible. That is, on the one hand, to please supporters of the Europeanization of morals among wealthy and educated compatriots, and on the other hand, not to arouse the anger of residents of the conservative hinterland. For example, according to Naseef, at first driver's licenses should be issued only to the emancipated female residents of Riyadh and Jeddah. "In other areas this could cause unnecessary fermentation of minds," explained Abdel Omar Naseef. And only when a woman behind the wheel ceases to cause surprise and indignation among passersby should the experiment be extended to the entire kingdom.
However, opponents of retreating from the rigid traditions of Saudi Islam will likely continue for quite some time to put a spoke in the wheel, both literally and figuratively, for representatives of the fair sex who try their hand at driving. Disputes about women's rights, as well as about what constitutes a departure from the canons of Islam and the precepts of the Prophet Muhammad - current attempts to at least partially equalize women's rights with men, or the centuries-old traditions of the Muslim family that forbid women from engaging in purely male affairs - have been going on for many years. Saudi businessmen, especially those educated in the West, have long been seeking concessions from the royal family for their daughters and wives. Businessmen ask the authorities to reform the religious police and weaken the influence of Muslim theologians on everyday life.
In turn, clerics accuse supporters of liberalization of destroying the morality on which the Islamic kingdom itself rests. They demand that the role of women in society remain limited to the home and raising children; co-education of boys and girls seems seditious to them, as does the joint work of women and men. Moreover, even shortening the long female abaya by a few centimeters or simply the appearance of beautiful embroidery on it triggers an attack of religious anger among conservatives.
This struggle proceeds with varying success, and Saudi women, most of whom for obvious reasons do not take part in this discussion, can only watch the pendulum of the authorities' decisions. In Riyadh, they either seriously expect the appearance of the first female announcer on local television, or they categorically ban the import of "depraved toys" into the country, which in Saudi Arabia are considered not goods from sex shops at all, but teddy bears or, say, Barbie dolls. Even the attempt to change the employment structure of Saudi women (and the vast majority of those who decided to work are now employed in education) is carried out by the country's authorities taking into account the opinion of religious orthodox.
Thus, for women wishing to try their hand as a manager, engineer, technologist, or other specialist of an industrial enterprise, the authorities are ready to create a special closed industrial town. According to local press reports, the government is ready to invest half of the $200 million required for the construction and equipment of this town. However, the profile of most of its 83 enterprises under construction will still be "female": they will produce perfumes, sweets, clothing, etc.
Meanwhile, the plans of supporters of gradual reform of the Muslim foundations of Saudi Arabia go much further and already encroach even on the kingdom's suffrage, which forbids women to vote in municipal elections. "Women's participation in elections, their membership in the Shura, and other things such as driving a car will come gradually," predicts Abdel Omar Naseef, a supporter of gender equality.