Manama: Antonio Guterres , United Nations Secretary General, has joined a chorus of international voices in welcoming Saudi Arabia's decision to allow women to drive in the kingdom.
"I welcome Saudi Arabia's decision to lift the ban on women drivers. An important step in the right direction," he posted on his official Twitter account a short time after the breakthrough was announced.
US President Donald Trump also commended the Saudi decision, describing it as a "positive step toward promoting the rights and opportunities of women in Saudi Arabia."
His daughter Ivanka Trump also tweeted: “Today was a historic day for women in Saudi Arabia as a decree was announced to lift the ban on women drivers."
1:2 Today was a historic day for women in Saudi Arabia as a decree was announced to lift the ban on women drivers. #SaudiArabia
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) September 27, 2017
“This important step in the right direction!" Ivanka posted on the social microblog where she has 4.624 million followers.
Vision 2030
The step was "part of Vision 2030, which is a huge step toward a brighter future," he added.
"We are trying to increase women's participation in the workforce," he said, quoted by CNN.
"In order to change women's participation in the workforce we need them to be able to drive to work. We need them to move forward, we need them to improve our economy."
State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert reportedly said the US was "happy" with the decision, calling the Saudi decision "a great step in the right direction for the country".
In Washington, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the US Prince Khalid Bin Salman told reporters that it was "a historic big day in our kingdom."
SAUDIS REACT:
Ghada Amer Alhamoud, 28, Saudi political analyst
Efforts to empower Saudi women continued to stall in the absence of the right to drive, but as of yesterday (Tuesday), the future of the country will be filled with our limitless potential. Even in the absence of empowerment, Saudi women were always present and continuously contributed to society. So, imagine what we could be capable of now!
Zahra Abu Ali, Saudi engineer, UAE-resident of three years
It feels like the first day of Eid for me. It was a great news to hear. Women have the potential to be equal to men and the doors are now open to them to prove how strong and independent they are. We all feel so happy, and I feel like driving myself back to Saudi once the decree is implemented. This has been something we have all been waiting for and it happened. As a result, the country will be more efficient and faster, in my opinion. Going out will no longer require depending on another person and waiting for them to drive us.
Abdul Majeed Al Mojalid, Saudi senior account executive
I'm glad the decision was finally made. It is essential that women have the same rights as men in a functional society - and allowing them to drive is the first step in the right direction. I hope that this will have a positive impact on our society and will increase productivity overall.
Faisal Al Enaizi, 22, Saudi working in an online travel agency, UAE resident of five years
I was happy and proud of my country after hearing the news of finally allowing Saudi women to drive. This shows that we're developing as a nation and finally moving forward even though it's one of the simplest rights in the world that everyone should have as a human being. I believe that this boost which enhanced Saudi women's rights has a positive effect on our reputation as a country, and I'm extremely happy for all Saudi women. However, due to our conservative culture, I also think that it's going to have a negative effect which will appear from those who are close minded and not used to seeing women drive which may lead to issues such as public harassment. I really hope that everything works out well, and again I’m really happy for all Saudi women who finally obtained some of the rights that they deserve.
- By Mary Achkhanian, Staff Reporter
In New York, Permanent Representative of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations Abdallah Al Mouallimi broke the news at the UN.
"You may be interested to know that a royal decree was issued in Saudi Arabia a few minutes ago giving women the right to drive," he said. "This is a historic day for Saudi society, for men and women, and we can now say 'At last!'"
Singer and actress Rihanna expressed her pronounced enthusiasm for the decision by posting on her Instagram an illustration of a Saudi woman sitting on a Lexus with the word ‘Drive’ on the licence plate.
"Love to see progression. Women will now be able to drive in Saudi Arabia," she commented, generating more than 710,000 likes.
In Saudi Arabia, Shura Council Member Dr Lateefa Al Shaalan, the most vociferous and active advocate for the right of women to drive, said that she was lost for words to express her feeling and that of hundreds of thousands of Saudi women.
"King Salman sided with the rights of women and we are all grateful," she told Al Arabiya Television, breaking into tears. "The decision will resolve the social issue of harassment against women and children by foreign drivers."
The decision will also help confront the distortion of facts about Saudi Arabia by Western media and human rights organisations, she said.
Recent pro-women reforms in Saudi Arabia include:
2011: Women were given the right to vote and stand for municipal elections
2012: Women were allowed to compete at the Olympic Games for the first time
2013: King Abdullah appointed 30 women to the 150-seat Shura Council
