The challenge of mobility

Over the last few days, many of you have reached out to us about the woman in Saudi Arabia who was recently arrested for driving. First of all, thank you for thinking of us! Second, since this is a topic that is now hitting global headlines (including the New York Times), I figured I would offer some insight from “the inside.” The women here in Jeddah have definitely been talking about Manal al-Sharif, the women who drove, but also more broadly about the campaign on June 17^th encouraging Saudi women to drive en masse. In previous years, women have tried to organize similar protests, but never has it been organized on such a large scale. The campaign’s success is largely due to viral networking tools, such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, that are now so widely used in our society. Many women here seem to support the movement, but only time will tell what will happen on June 17^th.

What I learned the other day is that there is no official Saudi Arabian law that prohibits women from driving. What does exist is a fatwa, which is a religious opinion concerning Islamic law that is issued by an Islamic scholar, that says women should not drive. The primary concern of those opposing women being able to drive is that it would “cause too many problems” (this information is based on some survey data that was presented to us by a guest speaker during our workshop). What does “too many problems” mean? According to the survey, people are afraid of male harassment, increased traffic, and a woman’s lack of knowledge of the car mechanics. Each of these concerns is addressable, and I have learned that the most effective way to push for change in Saudi Arabia, is by laying out a thorough, intelligent line of reasoning that operates within the context of Islamic law. I have heard numerous times about women sitting in meetings with Ministry officials for hours and days until they are able to reach a solution. Ultimately, sound reasoning seems to work.

But more challenging than a law or a fatwa, is the cultural and societal way of life that has existed in Saudi Arabia for so long. Women here are used to operating within an environment that requires them to rely on male relatives or male drivers. Many families employ private drivers so that the mother and daughters have the ability to get around. There are 750,000 private drivers in Saudi Arabia, many of whom are immigrants from neighboring countries. Changing an institutional practice such as this will not happen overnight. (Here we are getting into the DAH van after work)

Mobility is actually a huge challenge for all people in Saudi Arabia, not just women. In fact, many see the lack of public transportation as a much larger issue than the ban on women drivers. In particular, this impacts lower income individuals, who often cannot accept jobs in other neighborhoods because the cost of a car or a driver would be prohibitively expensive. Until the broader issue of mobility is addressed, many Saudi Arabians will be limited in their ability to reach full potential.