Saudi Women's Activists Arrested Prior To Lifting Of Driving Ban

Saudi Women's Activists Arrested Prior To Lifting Of Driving Ban



Saudi activist Aziza al-Yousef was arrested this week, along with other women's activists. In this March 29, 2014 photo, she drives a car on a highway in Riyadh as part of a campaign to defy Saudi Arabia's ban on women driving.
Hasan Jamali/AP

At least six prominent defenders of women's rights in Saudi Arabia were detained this week, six weeks before the kingdom's ban on women from driving is due to be lifted June 24. Activist Loujain al-Hathloul was arrested at her home on Tuesday evening, according to Amnesty International. She campaigned against the decades-old driving ban and ranked No. 3 in a list of the most powerful Arab women for her work. Amnesty International named three other women who were detained as Eman al-Nafjan, who became widely known for her activism; Aziza al-Yousef, a fellow leader in the campaign to drive; and Aisha al-Manea, who campaigned for women's right to drive since the early '90s. She is a 70-year-old who survived a heart attack last year, according to Australian-based Saudi activist Manal al-Sharif.

It is unclear why the activists were arrested. As part of their fervent advocacy, some of them also signed a September 2016 petition calling upon King Salman to abolish the male guardianship system, which prohibits women from traveling overseas, marrying and making basic decisions without permission of a male relative. Two men were also taken into custody by Saudi authorities in their apparent sweep: Ibrahim al-Modeimigh, a lawyer and women's rights advocate, and Mohammad al-Rabea, a youth activist who started a literary salon for young men and women in Riyadh.

At midnight on Saturday, a "smear campaign" began, said Amnesty. Six activists, believed to be the same ones that were arrested, and another individual, were accused in state media of forming a "cell" that threatened Saudi security. Activists were alleged to have "contact with foreign entities with the aim of undermining the country's stability and social fabric," according to the organization. A hashtag, "Agents of Embassies," and a graphic featuring the activists' faces, spread on social media. Samah Hadid, Amnesty International's Middle East director of campaigns, said in a written statement, "This chilling smear campaign is an extremely worrying development for women human rights defenders and activists in Saudi Arabia. Such blatant intimidation tactics are entirely unjustifiable."

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The king signed a royal decree to end the ban in September 2017. It was hailed as proof of a progressive reform, in line with the crown prince's Vision 2030 which includes a goal of bringing more women into the workforce. King Salman also ordered a review of rules on male guardianship earlier in May. But in the past seven years, the courts have convicted nearly 30 prominent activists and dissidents, Human Rights Watch said. Some received prison sentences of at least 10 years under charges that included "breaking allegiance with the ruler" and "inciting public opinion."


https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/20/612830493/saudi-womens-activists-arrested-ahead-of-driving-ban



Women campaigning for right to drive arrested in Saudi Arabia


© Fayez Nureldine / AFP | Saudi women check out cars at an automotive exhibition for women in the Saudi capital Riyadh on May 13, 2018.

International rights groups have condemned the arrests this week of at least seven prominent Saudi Arabian women's rights activists who previously campaigned for the right to drive, which the conservative kingdom is set to grant from next month. The decision to end a decades-old ban on women driving cars has been hailed as proof of a new progressive trend under reform-minded Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but has been accompanied by a crackdown on dissent.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch called on the authorities to release the detainees, identifying six of them as Eman al-Nafjan, Lujain al-Hathloul, Aziz al-Yousef, Aisha al-Manea, Ibrahim Modeimigh and Mohammed al-Rabea. Some are women, and others are men who have campaigned for women’s rights. Authorities said in an overnight statement that they were still identifying others allegedly involved in activities that “encroach on religious and national constants”, and fellow activists said others had been arrested but the total number was not immediately clear.

“It appears the only ‘crime’ these activists committed was wanting women to drive before Mohammed bin Salman did,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.
Women will be allowed to drive starting on June 24. Activists and analysts say, however, that the government is keen to avoid rewarding activism, which is forbidden in the absolute monarchy. The authorities also may aim to avoid antagonising the sensitivities of religious conservatives opposed to modernisation. The government statement said seven people had been arrested for suspicious contacts with foreign entities and offering financial support to enemies overseas, without elaborating.

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Women who previously participated in protests against the driving ban told Reuters last year that two dozen activists had received phone calls instructing them not to comment on the decree lifting it. Some of those arrested this week nonetheless continued to speak out. “Saudi Arabia cannot continue to publicly proclaim support for women’s rights and other reforms, while targeting women human rights defenders and activists for peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly,” said Samah Hadid, Amnesty’s Middle East Director of Campaigns.

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http://www.france24.com/en/20180519-saudi-arabia-rights-womens-advocates-mohammed-bin-salman-mbs-driving-ban-lift