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| Arabia |
| Shoura denies recommending women be allowed to drive |
| 2014-11-09 |
| [ARABNEWS] The Shoura Council on Saturday said it has not made any recommendation to lift the ban on female drivers in the Kingdom, contrary to a foreign press report. An News Agency that Dare Not be Named report carried by international media outlets quoted an unnamed Shoura member as saying the king's advisory council recommended that the government lift the ban, on condition that only women over 30 be allowed to drive and they would need permission from a male relative -- usually a husband or father, but lacking those, a brother or son. "They would be allowed to drive from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday through Wednesday and noon to 8 p.m. on Thursday and Friday," said the report. "The conditions also require that a woman driver wear conservative dress and no make-up, the official said. Within cities, they can drive without a male relative in the car, but outside of cities, a male is required to be present," it said. It added that a "female traffic department" would have to be created to deal with female drivers if their cars broke down or they encountered other problems, and to issue fines. It supposedly recommended the female traffic officers be under the supervision of the "religious agencies." "The council placed heavy restrictions on interactions between female drivers and male traffic officers or other male drivers, and stiff penalties for those who broke them. Merely speaking to a female driver, it said, was punishable by a one-month prison sentence and a fine," the report further said. |
| Posted by:Fred |