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Growing support for women drivers in Saudi

Head of Shoura Council’s committee on economy and energy said there is no traffic law to prevent women from driving

By Staff writer
Head of Shoura Council’s committee on economy and energy said there is no traffic law to prevent women from driving
Head of Shoura Council’s committee on economy and energy said there is no traffic law to prevent women from driving

There is growing support for allowing women to drive in Saudi Arabia, after one Shoura council member voiced his support for the move.

Abdulrahman Al Rashed, head of Shoura Council’s committee on economy and energy, said Saudi traffic department does not have a law to prevent women from driving.

In an interview with Okaz newspaper, Rashed said he was in the favour of women driving “as long as there is a clear system to enable them to drive”.

“The question is how to enable them to drive – if there is a clear regulation that allows women to drive ‘then I am with it, especially as there is no Sharia restriction on the issue’.”

He told the newspaper that the issue of women driving had been discussed by the council, urging council members not to remain silent on the issue.

Rejecting proposals or recommendations is done by the members of the council themselves, and “no hidden hands prevent the council proposals,” Al Rashed added.

His comments follow Saudi’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal’s call to lift ban on women drivers in the Kingdom in November, declaring it as a “matter of economic necessity and women’s rights”.

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