600 Saudi Women Will Vote For The First Time!
According to the Middle East Times:
Saudi women to vote in chamber poll
UPI
July 29, 2005RIYADH — Some 600 Saudi women are expected to participate in the elections of the chamber of trade and industry in eastern Saudi Arabia for the first time.
The Saudi daily Al-Yawm said on Wednesday that the chamber of commerce and industry in the eastern province decided to allow businesswomen to take part in the elections of its board for the first time in the kingdom’s history.
The paper said that the elections would take place before the end of the year and ballot boxes for women would be placed under the supervision of a female committee representing the ministry of trade and industry, which oversees the elections of trade chambers in the kingdom.
Saudi women were banned from participating in the kingdom’s first municipal elections earlier this year.
Women in the Muslim-conservative kingdom are deprived of many social and political rights, including the right to travel alone and drive cars.
Every little step forward is a good step. I find it fascinating that the Bush administration keeps pushing democracy and women’s rights in the Middle East but our “allies” the Saudis have been exempt to that kind of pressure…not that our peer pressure has done that much good.
Anyway, I really do hope this proves to be a victory for Saudi women.
tags: Saudi Arabia, Women's Rights, vote
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