Wheels of Progress

The “October 26, Women Driving” campaign has asked Saudis to put its logo on their cars and called upon women with international driving licenses to get behind the wheel that day.
The Ministry of Interior, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia warned organisers of the October 26, “Women Driving Campaign”, that group gatherings and marches are illegal. The warning also applies to organized attempts on social media sites to stop women from driving. Saudi women organised the campaign in an effort to gain the right to drive automobiles on Saudi roads. A ministry spokesman said in a statement to the press that “regulations in Saudi Arabia prohibit any action that disturbs social peace and opens the door for sedition and responds to the illusions of prejudiced intruders with sick dreams.”
He said the ministry assures everybody that competent authorities “will implement regulations against all violators strictly.” He said the ministry “appreciates the concerns expressed by many citizens on the importance of preserving security and stability and avoiding whatever calls for society division and classification.”
Some Saudi women posted online photographs and video clips of themselves defying the ban this month after some members of the Shoura Council called for an end to the prohibition.
The “October 26, Women Driving Driving” campaign has asked Saudis to put its logo on their cars and called upon women with international driving licenses to get behind the wheel that day, while urging other women to learn to drive.
Conservative supporters of the ban have said allowing women to drive will encourage free mixing of men and women in public, and thus threaten public morality. Over 200 clerics had visited the royal court in Jeddah to make a case against women driving.