Senate Women Urge King of Saudi Arabia to Overturn Ban on Women Driving

Bipartisan Letter From 14 Senators Follows Growing Grassroots Campaign by Saudi Women and Men to Oppose the Ban

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) today led Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Kay Hagan (D-NC) and Susan Collins (R-ME) in sending a letter to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia urging him to end the country’s ban on women driving.

Saudi Arabia is currently the only nation in the world that prohibits women from driving or obtaining a driver’s license. Maintaining the ban undermines the commitment by Saudi leaders to meet the recommendations of the United Nations Human Rights Council Working Group to “[a]bolish all legislation, measures and practices that discriminate against women… In particular, to abolish legislation and practices which prevent women from participating fully in society on an equal basis with men, including… limitations on freedom of movement, the prohibition on women driving and restricted access by women to work, public places and commercial facilities.”

In their letter, the Senators wrote, “As women members of the United States Senate, we write in support of the increasing number of Saudi women and men calling for the removal of the driving ban on women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As you know, Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world with such a ban on women driving, and maintaining such a restriction stands in stark contrast with the commitments your government has made to promote the rights of Saudi women.”

Earlier this year, the arrest of Manal al-Sharif, a 32-year-old from Khobar who posted a video of herself defying the driving ban on YouTube, led to international condemnation of the ban and sparked the protest movement in the Kingdom. Last month, dozens of women participated in a social media campaign against the driving ban with some posting videos of themselves driving.

The full text of the Senators’ letter is below:

July 26, 2011

King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques

Dear King Abdullah:

As women members of the United States Senate, we write in support of the increasing number of Saudi women and men calling for the removal of the driving ban on women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As you know, Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world with such a ban on women driving, and maintaining such a restriction stands in stark contrast with the commitments your government has made to promote the rights of Saudi women.

We appreciate that the government of Saudi Arabia has taken steps to advance women’s rights. For example, we were pleased to see the appointment of the first woman deputy minister in Saudi Arabia and the establishment of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology—the only university in Saudi Arabia that allows women to study alongside men and where women are allowed to drive motor vehicles on campus. These are important steps, but more must be done and lifting the driving ban would be a critical step forward.

In June 2009, the government of Saudi Arabia accepted the majority of the recommendations put forward by the United Nations Human Rights Council Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review, including to “[a]bolish all legislation, measures and practices that discriminate against women… In particular, to abolish legislation and practices which prevent women from participating fully in society on an equal basis with men, including… limitations on freedom of movement, the prohibition on women driving and restricted access by women to work, public places and commercial facilities.”

Given this commitment, we strongly believe it is time to abolish the prohibition on women driving once and for all, especially in light of Saudi Arabia’s role as a newly elected member of the board of UN Women—an entity dedicated to achieving gender equality and the empowerment of women worldwide.

According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, “Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.” And according to the Arab Charter on Human Rights which Saudi Arabia ratified in April 2009, “Every individual residing within the territory of a State shall have the right to liberty of movement.” The prohibition on women driving motor vehicles, even in cases of emergency, makes it impossible for citizens to exercise a basic human right.

We strongly urge you to reconsider this ban and take an important step toward affording Saudi women the rights they deserve.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

Mary L. Landrieu
United States Senator

Dianne Feinstein
United States Senator

Patty Murray
United States Senator

Olympia Snowe
United States Senator

Claire McCaskill
United States Senator

Barbara Mikulski
United States Senator

Jeanne Shaheen
United States Senator

Maria Cantwell
United States Senator