Woman who mounted internet campaign to get women driving is held for defying Saudi Arabian ban on females driving
A woman in Saudi Arabia was detained after she launched a campaign against the driving ban for women in the Kingdom and posted a video of herself behind the wheel on Facebook and YouTube.
Human rights activist Walid Abou el-Kheir said Manal al-Sherif was detained on Saturday by the country’s religious police, who are charged with ensuring the kingdom’s rigid interpretation of Islamic teachings are observed.
Al-Sherif was released hours later, according to the campaign’s Twitter account. The terms of her release were not immediately clear.
Al-Sherif and a group of other women started a Facebook page called “Teach me how to drive so I can protect myself,” which urges authorities to lift the driving ban.
She went on a test drive in the eastern city of Khobar and later posted a video of the experience.
“This is a volunteer campaign to help the girls of this country” learn to drive, al-Sherif says in the video.
“At least for times of emergency, God forbid. What if whoever is driving them gets a heart attack?”
‘Mass drive’
The campaigners have focused on the importance of women driving in times of emergencies and in the case of low-income families.
Al-Sherif said unlike the traditional argument in Saudi Arabia that driving exposes women to s…
