Saudi Arabia to allow women to drive for the first time

Correct, they have NO arrest powers. There are slightly less than 3400 of them. They are banned in Jubail and Yanbu.... rare in the Eastern province and Jedda. Most prevalent in Riyadh. They usually show up around prayer time and tell young men to go to mosque, get a haircut.

They invaded the international book fair in Jedda year before last and were thrown out.

Saudi women aren't "forced" to dress the way they do.. That's their culture and tradition.

Under their abayas they have beautiful clothes from Milan and Paris... or jeans.

 

True.
But if they dare to show skin in public they are beaten !

 

Rarely.. and when it does happen its all over the news and condemned.

 

Even you cannot support women rights in Saudi ... Gay rights .. freedom of speech .. etc.
Saudi fails on all subjects.
Fails hard.
Sad !

 

Are you actually unaware of women's rights in Islam? They had rights that western women didn't get until 1950.. Gays get along fine in Arabia unless they go public.. Then they would be flogged.

 

LOL! True!

 

Why should a gay person be flogged for being in public? That's the most barbaric, homophobic thing I've ever heard.

We should nuke KSA and not North Korea

 

O.M.G !! That's the most barbaric, homophobic thing I've ever heard.

 

Oh? what rights were those?

As for gays in arabia, that ain't "getting along fine". that is living in constand fear.

sometimes you try just a tad to hard to defend the KSA.

 

The right of divorce, child custody and maintenance. The right to buy, sell and own property in their own right (no dower right) The rights of inheritance. The right to write their own marriage contract.

 

There are large gay communities in all the major cities and they are NOT terrified. In a country where there are NO public displays of affection or sexuality between heterosexual couples, gays don't flaunt their sexuality in public either.

 

KSA is conservative.. There are NO public displays of sexuality even among heterosexual couples..

No gay pride parades etc. Otherwise they live, work, go to school without incident.

 

We know they are very conservative. They have religious police.

 

How exactly do you know they aren't terrified? Hell, I recall when being "gay" was a social anathema and gays were "terrified" just to be outted. Can't imagine its any less when getting outted means flogging and perhaps worse.
Like I said, you try just a tad too hard at times.

 

There aren't many religious police and they are banned in most cities.. They have NO police powers.

 

Being flogged involves some public actions on the part of gays.

 

There ARE religious police and the real police don't interfere with the religious police. I myself was harassed by those freaks. We informed a local law enforcement official of the harassment of my boss (a woman), and they said that if the religious police thought she was in the wrong, then she was in the wrong.

Sad place KSA is.

 

those weren't women's rights in the western world in the 1950's? Yeah I know about the swiss vote but divorce, custody, maintenance, property ownership and inheritance were all well estalished female rights by then.

 

In most jurisdictions divorce was not allowed.. People went to Reno for six weeks and you had to PROVE that your spouse was unfaithful or violent. Most states still had dower rights so a spouse could not buy, sell or own independently.

That's really the tip of the iceberg.. and some of those lasted thru the 1960s. What do you think the feminist movement was about?

In the 1920-30s men could take the children.

 

I recall the archaic divorce laws. My parents had to have a friend "confess" to adultery with my father to get a divorce. Bogus but that was how it had to be done back in the day.

The flip of divorce of course is that in KSA a man does not have to petition a court to divorce any of his wives. What obligations does the divorcing man have to support his wife under sharia?

In the 2000's men can take children, at least its getting a bit easier over time. Equal rights and all.
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He has to support her and his children..

Women also have the right to divorce. I have known many gays and Saudi divorcees.

There was a time not so long ago that American wives couldn't get a credit car in her own name... It was hard on widows and divorcees as well.

 

Your comparisons are no longer relevant other than to provide Saudis with some small glimmer of hope that REAL social change can be had.

 

Social change comes slowly.. and I think that's good.. The SAG never jams the people up.. They propose and wait for the people to catch up. That's why they aren't Iran, Iraq or Syria.

 

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