Enough About The Driving Ban – Saudi Women Have Bigger Problems

Last October, Saudi women made headlines once again by challenging their country’s ban on female drivers and getting behind the wheel. The October 26th driving campaign saw over a dozen women take to the streets, undeterred by warnings from the interior ministry that they should stay at home. However, as in the past, the tangible outcomes of the driving campaign were modest in proportion to the media hype surrounding it. While some observers have pointed out that the government response was milder this time around compared to previous campaigns (in the past, women caught driving were detained or dismissed from their jobs), there have still been no changes in policy.

The attention accorded to the October 26th campaign is illustrative of international media coverage of Saudi women, which is often dominated by either the driving ban or the dress code. Since these are the two most visible signs of Saudi-style patriarchy, and the most unsettling to Western sensibilities, this is perhaps understandable. But the media’s obsession with the driving campaign can be damaging because it obscures a whole realm of issues affecting Saudi women that go much deeper than their right to drive. While I want to make it clear that the driving ban is an archaic and discriminatory policy which has no Islamic or secular justification, I would argue that it is not the biggest issue facing Saudi women, nor should it be the only focus of our attention. There are much more pressing issues at stake.

The struggle for women’s empowerment in Saudi Arabia will require much deeper reforms than simply lifting the driving ban or the dress code. It will involve, first of all, challenging the guardianship system, a deep-rooted social structure that makes women entirely dependent on men. The guardianship system places women under the authority of their closest male relative, usually their father, brother or husband. This means that women are effectively minors under the law who cannot make basic decisions for themselves. Women require their guardian’s permission in order to open a bank account, take up a job, get married, and leave the country, to name a few examples. There are many proponents of this system in Saudi, male and female alike, who see the principle of men’s responsibility for women as an alternative path to empowerment which is preferable to liberal, individualistic conceptions of feminism which downplay the importance of family. But while the system may not pose a problem within healthy marriages and families, it leaves many women vulnerable to abuse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87rS8ZvY6qg

For example, a single mother cannot open a bank account for her children without their father’s signature, and the father retains the power to withdraw from or close the account at any time. There was also a recent case of a Saudi woman who took her father before the Supreme Court after he repeatedly refused to allow her to marry, beat her and locked her at home for months. Women are also at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to divorce. While men enjoy an almost unrestricted right to divorce, women have to endure lengthy legal battles which often hinge on the husband’s willingness to show up to court. If a woman is divorced or predeceased by her husband and father, she could be placed under the guardianship of her son and put in the bizarre situation of having to acquire his approval for a whole range of everyday decisions.

Beyond the realm of the family, the other major site of struggle for Saudi women is in the economic life of their country. Saudi women’s access to meaningful employment is limited by strict gender segregation laws which not only restrict their independence but are also damaging the Saudi economy as a whole. Saudi women outnumber men in universities, but upon graduating they are faced with few employment options which match the skills they have acquired. The unemployment rate for Saudi is 26.9%, nearly four times higher than the figure for men. Many industries are closed to women, so the vast majority of female employment opportunities are concentrated in the health and education sectors. Private sector companies are reluctant to hire women because it means they will have to spend money building separate facilities for their female employees in order to comply with Saudi gender segregation regulations. This has created a vast pool of underutilized female talent which is not being channeled into national productivity.

The guardianship system, coupled with the barriers facing women in finding employment, has led to a phenomenon which often escapes coverage in the media: that of shocking poverty levels among female-headed households. An overwhelming 80% of those receiving unemployment benefits are women. There are also many more women who fall through the cracks of the welfare system, who are often ignored in popular portrayals of Saudi Arabia as a country swimming in oil wealth. In fact, there are over 3 million Saudis living below the poverty line. Many of the poorest households are headed by women who find themselves destitute after becoming widowed or divorced and struggle to support themselves and their children without a male guardian.

These issues show that far-reaching reforms will be needed to make Saudi women full members of society whose well-being does not depend on the goodwill of their male relatives. When the implications of the guardianship system and women’s lack of access to employment are considered, it becomes clear that a lifting of the driving ban, if and when it occurs, will only be a small step for Saudi women. While the ability to drive a car is undoubtedly a major part of independence, it is not enough within a system which restricts women’s power over their lives in so many other ways. The priorities should lie in challenging the guardianship system and expanding the range of employment available for women. As women start to have a greater role in public life, their demands will be harder and harder to ignore, which will pave the way for further advances.