Women drivers unveiled

"Women at the wheel create situations for sinful temptation." That is the declaration of "senior clerics" who in many Islamic countries have the power to make declarations in the form of edicts, even though the laws of Saudi Arabia do not stop women from driving, nor do the books of Islam.

Now a very brave man named Mohammad al-Zula has asked his fellow legislators to at least consider letting "some" women drive.

Al-Zula will be lucky to get out of this mess alive. He has been threatened by phone and in the highest King's Council.

Some of his fellow legislators think he should be kicked out of office. Others say he should lose his Saudi citizenship.

One letter to the editor says "driving by women leads to evil. If her car broke down she would have to seek help from men." Another points out that if a woman was driving she would have to "…unduly expose her eyes and interact with strange men such as traffic cops and mechanics."

This business might be a bit humorous to some but it isn't to most of us. There are little more than 8 million women in Saudi Arabia who wait for a driver every day to take them to school, the hospital, relative's home, wherever.

Without written permission from a "male guardian" women in Saudi Arabia and much of the Middle East may not travel, get an education or work. They cannot mix with men in public or leave home without wearing black cloaks, and don't forget the veils.

In Saudi Arabia the ban against women drivers applies to "all women." That means that a women visiting from England, America or anywhere must hire a driver who ironically must be a man.

According to much of what I read these days, including a recent AP story by Donna Abu-Nasr, there is a growing number of people in Saudi Arabia and other Islamic nations who would like to see more liberal laws and rules for women.

These include many Arab journalists who have been able to study abroad and are better educated.

Abdulrashman al-Rashed, manager of Al-Arabiya television, is one of those enlightened men and he feels the treatment of women in his country is very divisive and bodes serious trouble ahead.

I agree with al-Rahshed, but for a while yet, I'm going to withhold final judgment on the danger of women interacting with "traffic cops and mechanics" . . . especially mechanics.

While heated and emotional battles are waged over the slightest exposure of a female's anatomy in the Middle East, guess what was going on in England?

Last Saturday was the 2005 World Naked Bike Ride.

"Hundreds of naked cyclists rode through London to protest the West's dependence on cars and to push for more use of bicycles."

One bare peddler told reporters, "What we clearly want to show is that we feel naked against traffic . . . the unnecessary overuse of cars . . . the aggression of drivers, their speed and bad manners."

We have to surmise the naked bikers "clearly showed" a lot more than their feelings against cars. According to AP, "Organizers said similar protests were expected in the United States and Canada."

If they have one at Kila, I'll go out and cover it for the radio station.