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Saudi Arabia has finally put in force the ability for women to be able to vote and stand in elections. It is the last country to allow women the vote, other than Brunei where no-one has the vote. This is actually a major acheivement given how much repression is in the country towards women.
Given its oil rich status, I can't see how further reforms could be bargained out of Saudi Arabia.
Is this just a side effect of the Arab Spring or is this a possibility that further reform could come?
I was really happy to hear about this. Here in the West, when we talk about conservative Muslim countries, the focus is often on stuff like face veils, but I think that women having a voice in government is ultimately more important.
Of course, the country is still a monarchy, and they probably aren't getting rid of the creepy-assmorality police, but voting rights are a big, big step.
This is a good step, but I'm a bit wary of how much good it might do. Just because a group has voting rights on paper doesn't mean they'll be able to take advantage of those rights, as illustrated in the American South after Reconstruction. Or they can be induced to support things that could harm them, as illustrated in countries with female genital mutilation, where the practice is kept alive by women themselves.
I'm curious as to how they will get to the polls.
Apparently Saudi women have been challenging the driving ban. The voting decree appears to be related.
How will they stop widespread voter fraud?
As hands can be displayed, an ink mark on the finger is the usual method they use to show someone has voted.Quote:
Originally posted by The Original An Gadaí
I wonder if this is in reaction to the change in voting from the hardline religious clerics. A female driver is to be given 10 lashes from a whip for defying the prohibition on women drivers. I have a feeling this is only going to exacerbate the situation rather than make women be afraid.