Persian Realm

IRI Press TV lectures on lack of democracy in Saudi Kingdom and the lack of freedom for women. 

Press TV description :

The recent announcement by Saudi King Abdullah that women will be allowed to vote in elections for the first time in the country is aimed at halting anti-regime protests in the Arab kingdom, an analyst tells Press TV.

 "This announcement about allowing women to vote in 2015 is really meant to try to stop the protest that is going to happen by women to participate in elections as full members, and it is also trying to cover up the abuses of women in that country," said Ali al-Ahmad, director of the Institute for [Persian] Gulf Affairs ([P]IGA) from New York. 

Last week, the Saudi king said women would be able to take part in the 2015 municipal elections, which is the second in Saudi Arabia's history.

In April, a group of Saudi women protested against the banon women voting in elections at a voter registration office in the city of Jeddah.

Women in the kingdom must have a written approval from a male guardian, which could be a father, husband, brother or son, to leave thecountry, work or even undergo certain medical operations.

"Women in Saudi Arabia are still treated as the property of their male family members and theycannot decide," the IGA head said.

"The woman in that country cannot obviously drive, cannot decide where to go because the father or the guardian is in charge of that and decides even if she can get married or not," he added.

 Saudi activists in the Eastern Province have staged anti-government protests over the past months, demanding reforms and immediate release of political prisoners.

 AGB/HJL/MB

 

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